As with many times in the past, a case manufacturer named Chinee has jumped the gun and designed a case for an unreleased iDevice in hopes its case will match the device design upon its release. That unreleased iDevice is this time the iPad 3, which is expected to be announced next month and released in March. Although some case manufacturers end up getting their designs wrong due to inaccurate tips, rumors, and speculation, some also manage to base their designs off of reliable information.

Apple’s January 19th education event isn’t really giving us a lot to talk about, so let’s take a look some iPad rumors, shall we? A high definition screen is kind of a given, but there are now reports that it will also come with LTE support (before the iPhone gets it!) and a quad-core processor. Production is rumored to hit high gear in February for a release this March.

Rumors of the iPad 3 have started to pick up steam, including talk that Apple has already begun testing and manufacturing a new retina display for iPads. Richard Shim, an analyst at DisplaySearch, claims Apple has started developing its own 2048×1536 resolution version of the Retina Display for the next generation of the iPad 3. The analyst noted that companies such as Samsung, Sharp and LGD are at work manufacturing them.

The Korea Times is rumoring the iPad 3 will feature a much higher resolution display; 2048×1536 to be specific. The display would maintain the current iPad’s 4:3 aspect ratio but still be capable of full HD (1080p) with pixels to spare. Does this mean iPad 3 will be billed as having a Retina Display? It’s very likely, despite the rumored pixel density being lower than that of iPhone 4 at “just” 280 ppi.

The next mysterious (well, kind of mysterious) Apple event is nearly upon us. All the invitation showed us a big number 2 and the corner of an iPad, and that’s all we needed to start speculating on what Apple will unveil. In fact, we were speculating well before that, because we have fun doing so. Here’s our roundup of all the rumors and guesses as to what Apple feels 2011 will be the year of.

Here’s one final rumor before things get official with Apple Today. The image above was taken somewhere in China, and seems to fit nicely with most of the rumors thus far. The device pictured doesn’t work, though. So, at best, it’s a mockup. It even has an FCC ID and a model number on it. Both are, of course, wrong. THe FCC ID is for the original WiFi only iPad, and the Model number is that of the original Apple TV. Quite the combination. Sounds fishy to me.

As if you couldn’t have guess this yourself, word on the net is that the iPad 2, which is just a few short days away from being announced, is to be thinner, have a faster processor, more RAM and at least one, if not two, cameras. What it most likely won’t have is an SD slot or a higher resolution display, despite earlier rumors. It’s not that those features are doomed forever, they just aren’t likely to happen this time around.

Pretty much the entire Apple web is reporting we’ll be getting our first look at the iPad 2 on Wednesday, March 2nd. No venue has officially been named, but Kara Swisher of All Things D reports that it’s a done deal. According to “several sources close to the situation,” Kara confirms that “… the Wednesday date in a little more than a week is firm and will take place in San Francisco, the scene of many such Apple events.”

If unconfirmed rumors are to be believed, Apple may be planning a special event to announce the iPad 2 sometime in March. The only other information offered by the source is the image here, which appears to be a bezel for an iPad like device. Is it a rumor backed in truth, or is it just an educated guess?

Rumor has it that Apple’s next generation of iOS devices is slated to get a new processor: the A5. This processor would be approximately 4 times more powerful than the current A4 chip in iPhone 4. The processor would easily be capable of superior graphics, powering an iPad with a doubled resolution and even HD video with output through HDMI. The rumored A5 might just be the biggest new feature of the next iPad, iPhone and even AppleTV.