iPad 5, iPad Mini 2 Release Date: In keeping with tradition, the whole Apple store has gone dark as the expected announcement for the new iPads goes underway.

According to Todd Wasserman of Mashable, the Apple Store appears to have gone down around 9 a.m ET. Apple's October 22 event is being held at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, and started almost 20 minutes ago. As of press time, the OS X Mavericks is being demo'd to a live audience of journalists and tech influencers.

Apple is expected to announce the newest iteration of the iPads on the event. They're expected to release the iPad 5 and iPad Mini 2, both of which has been highly rumored online.

The iPad Mini 2 will feature a Retina Display and a major improvement on the 1024 x 768 pixel resolution of its predecessor, according to a report by U.K.’s the Mirror. It may also have a TouchID fingerprint scanner.

The company is also expected to update the 9.7-inch iPad. It’s supposed to have an A7X processor, battery improvements and enhanced screen resolution.

Both iPads are expected to be slimmer and lighter than their current versions and would most probably be priced at the same range. They also will have iOS 7 out of the box.

According to reports, the new iPads maybe available in less than 48 hours after the announcement date today. It is unlikely that Apple will be raising the price of the new tablets.