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iPad's moment of truth? Apple looks to new Air to reverse tablet slide

Apple, which will show off its newest iPad on Thursday, has to wrestle with the truth that consumers just aren't buying tablets as frequently as smartphones

It may be another Apple event, but the usual hype and anticipation just isn't there.

When it comes to Apple's marquee products, the iPad will always play second-fiddle to the iPhone, consistently getting new features a year late. Yet it's a new version of the iPad that will likely take the spotlight on Thursday.

Apple is expected to unveil a new version of its 9.7-inch iPad Air tablet that is thinner, lighter, faster, includes an anti-reflective screen and has the option of a gold model. It'll also have a TouchID sensor that will work with the company's upcoming Apple Pay mobile payments system.

But minor tweaks to the iPad Air may not be enough to reverse sliding sales, underscoring the wider reality that consumers just aren't buying as many tablets anymore. Larger screen smartphones -- including the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus -- are eating away at the need for a tablet. And while the iPad remains a top seller, it hasn't radically changed since the first model in 2010. Unlike smartphones, which get replaced every two years or less, consumers are happy holding on to their iPads for much longer. And that's a problem for Apple.

"The industry kind of set its expectations wrong about iPads," Gartner analyst Van Baker said. "Everyone assumed the tablet was kind of like the phone, so the upgrade cycle would be like the phone. That's not true."