Apple Rumor Mill Strikes Back, Promises Large iPad In 2014

could be the first manufacturer to release a

, but

may not be far behind. According to an

translation of a report by Chinese-language site

,

is testing two large-format iPads. One features an 11.4-inch display, making it slightly larger than the 9.7-inch iPad Air. The other is a mammoth, 12.9-inch iPad that would dwarf virtually every device on the market.

By developing larger tablets, tech companies are inadvertently blurring the lines between tablets and notebooks. Right now, there is a pretty clear distinction between the two. Most tablets are 10 inches or less. Over the past 12 months, the most popular tablets featured a display that was no bigger than 7.9 inches. This made it easy for manufacturers to separate tablets from the average notebook, which typically offer a 13-inch display. If iPads continue to get bigger and bigger (despite consumers' preference for smaller tablets), there is going to come a point when consumers no longer want to buy notebooks. Some would say that day has already come.

Many manufacturers have added touch screens to their notebooks, hoping to make them more appealing to touch-conscious consumers. Thus far, consumers

.

Apple might be building larger tablets in preparation for the MacBook's eventual demise. Mac sales

during the June quarter, and fell

during the September quarter. Apple is not the only company facing this problem. Nearly every notebook manufacturer has

in 2013. That said, Apple is the only premium manufacturer that has been actively reducing the price of its MacBooks. If that strategy fails and MacBook sales continue to fall, the company could one day build a more powerful iPad to replace the ailing notebook. Disclosure: