Apple's line of powerful tablet computers — the iPad Pro — is apparently here to stay as the company is reportedly going to be releasing the next generation iPad Pro 2 next year.

However, new reports have now suggested that Apple may be introducing a third screen size to the line-up which originally only had a 9.7-inch version and a larger 12.9-inch version.

According to a report from Macotakara, the Cupertino-based company will be adding a small and compact 7.9-inch iPad Pro variant that will be modeled after the iPad Mini 4. This means that the variant will likely be as thin and light, if not thinner and lighter, than the current generation iPad Mini. Seeing as that the new small tablet will be sporting the "Pro" moniker, it will also likely be equipped with decent hardware specs that is worthy of its name.

A few months ago, the well-known KGI securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also published a similar theory regarding a possible third variant. The big difference with his report and the report from Macotakara, however, is that Kuo had predicted a cheaper 9.7-inch variant instead of the 7.9-inch variant predicted by the latter.

Both reports do agree that the third smaller variant will be much more affordable than its bigger siblings. The smaller 7.9-inch variant is believed to also come with a different processor that the bigger variants, which will be sporting the company's top-of-the-line chips once they are released.

Aside from predicting a third variant, the report from Macotakara also cites that the new iPad Pro 2 models will likely be coming with some upgraded hardware. The new hardware will reportedly include a new 12 megapixel iSight Camera coupled with a True Tone flash system.

The 12.9-inch, 10.5-inch, and 7.9-inch iPad Pro models are expected to be launched in the spring of 2017.