In the tablet space, Apple’s iPads have been the most popular in the world for quite some time now. But the last time we saw an iPad launch was over a year ago. It was the iPad Pro 12.9-inch 6th Generation, which Apple launched in October 2022.
Since then, we have heard some rumors about a new iPad that was expected to launch in 2023. But all of those rumors eventually got scrapped. However, another iPad launch seems to be in the pipeline for Apple. And this one does have a strong chance to make it out to production.
OLED iPad Pro May Come in April This Year
As per recent reports, Samsung has started increasing the pace of the development of OLED panels. To be more precise, they are focusing on a display type called ‘two stack tandem OLED.’ These panels are going to be supplied to Apple for the production of new iPads. Some sources also mention LG’s involvement in the production of these panels.
These OLED panels have a high chance of arriving in the upcoming iPads. As per earlier information, they will come in two sizes — 11.1 and 13 inches. This is a reasonably big deal since it would mark Apple’s first steps to move to OLED displays for their tablet lineup. And this comes at a time when microLED devices by Apple are also reportedly in the works.
In addition to the updated displays, the new OLED iPads will most likely feature Apple’s latest M3 chips. This would make them one of the first, if not the first, tablets to feature a chip based on a 3nm process. In this particular case, the M3 chips are based on TSMC’s 3nm fabrication.
The most likely period for the launch of the new iPads is in the second quarter of this year, considering there is no delay due to issues of any kind. If we narrow the time window even more, we can expect Apple to launch these iPads in April.
Price Expectations
As for the price, a Korean outlet called The Elec claims that we will see a significant bump in the price of the 11.1-inch and 13-inch iPads. The expected price tags are around $1500 and $1800, respectively. For context, the latest 11-inch iPad came out for $799, while the 12.9-inch one had a launch price of $1099.
Judging by this huge price bump, Apple likely has a few more tricks for these iPads. Whether or not people would be willing to spend this much on iPads will be interesting to see.
