Between John Gruber’s little slip and TechCrunch’s article, the tubes of the interweb are alive with news about the rumored iPad 3 that could be coming out this Fall. It sounds crazy with the iPad 2 not even announced yet, but it kind of makes sense. With all these new tablet devices being announced and released in 2011, and the iPad 2′s rumored disappointing features, Apple may be upping the ante in time for this year’s holiday season. They just announced that they are putting together a “big Fall surprise” that is going to knock our socks off.

But what is the surprise going to be? Could it be an iPad 3? If so, what will it look like?? What other announcement will be made? Read on for our predictions…

1. The iPad 3 will actually be the iPad Mini!

You heard it here first. Rumors of the 7″ iPad mini just refuse to die. Even after a direct denunciation by the Steve Jobs himself, we keep hearing rumors that an iPad mini is still a very real possibility. We think that the iPad 3 announcement that could be coming this Fall is indeed going to be this iPad mini we have all heard so much about.

2. iPad 3 will have an OLED Retina Display

Since the iPad mini will have a smaller screen, an OLED retina display is a much better possibility. Up until now, supplies of 7″ OLED screens have been tight, and were expected to ease up in the second half of 2011… just in time for an iPad 3 to be announced… hmmm… Coincidence? I THINK NOT!

3. iPad 3 will be able to compete with the Sony NGP

Who isn’t drooling over the specs of the soon-to-be-released Sony NGP? The power of a PS3 in the palm of your hands is almost too cool for school. Since games are by far the biggest money makers on the app store, it makes sense that Apple will want to keep pushing the envelope and keeping their devices on the top. We are predicting that the new iPad Mini will have enough power to compete on that level, as will the iPhone 5 or 6 soon thereafter.

4. Apple TV will get it’s own app store and enter the console gaming market

This isn’t exactly a revolutionary idea, we have all been calling for it ever since the Apple TV came out. With it’s incredibly low price point, compact size, and already MASSIVE store full of Apps, it makes sense that Apple would want to continue to press its advantage and bring the app store into as many houses as possible. Possibly games will be streaming just like Steam and make use of their new data center that is currently under construction.

So those are our predictions for this Fall’s “big surprise.” What do you think?

Oh, and for an additional little treat, here’s a video of everybody’s favorite tyrant before he found his “Turtleneck of Confidence +3″ terrified to be on camera and about to toss his cookies: