[JunkDNA]

I have been waiting for the haptic stuff. I think it's almost certain they will go there (in fact, it's likely the perfect antidote to the MS Surface keyboard).

Unfortunately, I think you need to think about this from a manufacturing standpoint. They are unlikely to put a new tech like that in a product that needs to be price competitive at the lower end of their product line. They need things that have been clearly demonstrated to be easily mass produced in sufficient quantity. Therefore, I think it's more likely to be something "safe" like a new physical design, software they completely control, colors, or perhaps a new display that someone else is already using in larger quantities.

They have actually been fairly predictable with this stuff in the past: iPhone serves as the testbed for new tech. The small form factor means you need less of the really expensive materials and the US carrier subsidy prevents the initial price from being eye-popping. Once they get the manufacturing kinks worked out and the volume up, the tech can trickle down (over? up?) to the iPad and Mac lines.