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Apple's new iPad Air Plus will boast a 12.2 inch screen and four speakers to allow stereo sound however it is placed, it has been claimed.

The new gadget is expected to be revealed next year, with some reports even claiming a larger 12.9inch screen.

It will also feature a new, much faster A9 processor, according to Japanese magazine Mac Fan.

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The iPad Air Plus is expected to have a 12.2inch screen, dwarfing the iPad Mini with its 7.9inch screen (left) and iPad air (right) with a  9.7 inch screen.

The report claims that the new iPad will include a 12.2-inch display, new A9 processor, four speakers to offer stereo sound in any orientation, and arrive sometime between April and June of next year.

Bloomberg and others reported that Apple was planning on releasing the device sometime in early 2015, while a recent report from The Wall Street Journal claimed Apple had postponed mass production of the larger iPad from December 2014 into next year as suppliers struggled to meet demand for the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus launch. 

The latest rumors from the supply chain point to delays that will see mass production of the larger iPad start sometime in Q1 or Q2 of next year.

The new larger iPad is expected to look like the recently launched iPad Air, with rounded corners, 

The designs show the gadget is just 7mm thick. 

The new largter iPad is expected to look like the recently launched iPad Air (pictured), with rounded corners,The designs show the gadget is just 7mm thick.

Latest rumors for the device claimed iPad Pro would sport a smaller 12.2-inch display and a profile of 7mm, which lines up with the drawings published in the latest Mac Fan issue today. 

Several reports have pointed to a yet to be announced iPad that will reportedly include a display measuring somewhere in the neighborhood of 12-inches, however reports have claimed various sizes ranging from 12 inches to 12.9 inches.

It comes just weeks after claims that the large screen size of the iPhone 56 plus was impacting on iPad usage.

The release of Apple's iPhone 6 Plus means there is now only a 2.4-inch difference between the size of the phablet's screen, and the display on its iPad mini.

Pocket studied more than two million articles and videos opened using its app, and compared the before-and-after behaviour of iPhone and iPad users. People with an iPhone 5S use their phone 55% of the time, but this increases to 72% for the iPhone 6 and 80% for the iPhone 6 Plus - both at the detriment of the iPad

And figures suggest this similarity could cause serious problems for Apple's tablet range.

Analysis has revealed that as phones become larger, more people use them for watching videos or reading - making their tablets almost redundant.

In fact, the research found that people who recently upgraded to an iPhone 6 Plus use their tablets 36 per cent less than before.

The research was carried out by Pocket - an app that lets users save webpages, videos and other content for reading later.

Apple debuts new iPad Air

It analysed more than two million articles and videos that were opened using the app, and compared the before and after behaviour in people who previously owned an iPhone 5, 5C and 5S and those who now own an iPhone 6 and 6 Plus.

It also looked at the use of tablets by the same people.

'The bigger your phone's screen, the more time you'll spend reading and watching on it,' explained the researchers in a blog post.

'In fact, the bigger your phone's screen, the more you'll read and watch as a whole.'

It discovered that users who upgraded to an iPhone 6 now view content on their phones 72 per cent of the time, up from 55 per cent when they owned on a smaller screen.

Pocket also saw users with both an iPhone and an iPad watched significantly more content as soon as they upgraded to an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus. Those with the iPhone 6 (centre) opened 33% more articles and videos inside Pocket than they did with a 5S (left), and those with a 6 Plus (right) opened 65% more items than before

And iPhone 6 Plus consume content on their phones 80 per cent of the time - the same ratio of phone to tablet reading as seen on Android.

Pocket also saw that users with both an iPhone and an iPad watched significantly more content as soon as they upgraded to an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus.

Those with the iPhone 6 now open 33 per cent more articles and videos inside Pocket than they did with a 5 or 5S, and those with the 6 Plus open 65 per cent more items than they did with a smaller phone.

Users with an iPhone 6 now read on their tablets 19 per cent less during the week, and 27 per cent less over the weekend.

While those with a 6 Plus are on their tablets 31 per cent less during the week and 36 per cent less over the weekend.

'That being said, there remains one place where tablets still hold reign: your nightstand,' added the researchers.

'Regardless of which iPhone they have, users still reach for their iPads around 9pm for some late-night, bedtime reading.'

But, a larger screen does make it less portable and Pocket noticed that people with an iPhone 6 Plus read 22 per cent less on their morning commutes than those with a smaller model.

Recent figures from Pocket also found that two-and-a-half more Pocket users are opting for an iPhone 6 as opposed to a 6 Plus.

'This tells us that, at least for now, convenience and portability trump a better, and bigger, entertainment and reading experience.'