Apple OLED iPad Pro to be unveiled next week could feature all-new M4 chip, be AI-focused

[midian182]

Something to look forward to: Apple has been slower than its rivals when it comes to embracing artificial intelligence, but that could change with the upcoming announcement of the all-new iPad Pro next week. In addition to having an AI focus, the OLED slate may also come with Cupertino's next-gen M4 chip, rather than the expected M3.

Apple's Let Loose iPad livestream event takes place on May 7, when it's expected to unveil a new iPad Air and updated iPad Pro, the latter of which will likely receive the first OLED panel in the long-running iPad series.

It was reported that the new iPad Pro would come with Apple's lauded M3 chip found in the latest MacBooks and iMac. However, according to Bloomberg's resident Apple expert Mark Gurman, there's a "strong possibility" it will launch with the new M4. He said the chip's new neural engine will position the next iPad Pro as Apple's first truly AI-powered device, kicking off Apple's shift into AI hardware.

Pencil us in for May 7! âÂÂï¸Â #AppleEvent pic.twitter.com/1tvyB7h450

– Tim Cook (@tim_cook) April 23, 2024

Gurman writes that by introducing the new iPad Pro ahead of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in June, the company "could lay out its AI chip strategy without distraction." Apple could then use WWDC to focus on how the M4 chip and the new iPad Pros and other M4 devices will take advantage of the software and services coming as part of iPadOS 18 later this year.

Also on show next week will be the updated iPad Air and accessories such as the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil. Gurman believes the Apple Pencil will feature haptic feedback.

Tablet shipments declined 20.5% in 2023 to 128.5 million, marking the lowest figure for 13 years. Apple remained the number one company in this market, despite iPad shipments falling 19.8% – only Amazon's shipments fell further.

Apple will hope the launch of an M4-packing, AI-focused OLED iPad Pro, as well as an iPad Air with a 12.9-inch screen size option, will give the slumping tablet market a needed boost. It will be interesting to see how much the new Pro costs, though; the cheapest current 12.9-inch iPad Pro comes in at $1,099.

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Apple OLED iPad Pro to be unveiled next week could feature all-new M4 chip, be AI-focused

 

[yRaz]

Then Apple will go around talking about how innovative they are for making a tablet with an OLED panel then stick $1000 to the price.

 

[Watzupken]

M4? It is highly unlikely Apple will give the iPad an edge over their more expensive Macs. And if M4 is nothing more than spamming AI at consumers again, I doubt it will improve sales.

Price increase is almost guaranteed as well.

 

[CBTex]

M4 seems like overkill for an iPad.

Are there really people who use iPads for content creation? Seems like those type of people would want more screen real estate and thus be using Macs if they were into the Apple ecosystem.

I only use my iPad for media consumption and web browsing. It's great for that but I wouldn't want it to be my work machine where I need to type or edit documents much.

 

[yRaz]

M4? It is highly unlikely Apple will give the iPad an edge over their more expensive Macs.

Not if they can charge Mac price for it.

 

[yRaz]

M4 seems like overkill for an iPad.

Are there really people who use iPads for content creation? Seems like those type of people would want more screen real estate and thus be using Macs if they were into the Apple ecosystem.

I only use my iPad for media consumption and web browsing. It's great for that but I wouldn't want it to be my work machine where I need to type or edit documents much.

They exist, had one guy at my local pub who would sit at the bar on his iPad. He worked in marketing and would sit there editing photos and making slides.

 

[Eldrach]

Ipad OS is hopelessly limited and doesn’t warrant a premium pricetag. They should allow a full MacOS install on the ipad pro - it’s more than fast enough

 

[daffy duck]

M4? It is highly unlikely Apple will give the iPad an edge over their more expensive Macs. And if M4 is nothing more than spamming AI at consumers again, I doubt it will improve sales.

Price increase is almost guaranteed as well.

Also guaranteed is continuation of the useless iPadOS, no usb ports, no mouse support, no file browser. I really need M4 to browse and type a document or use powerpoint etc.

 

[manowar51]

Lots of people stating its overkill. It is but this is the ipad pro. All the other ipads apple sell are cheaper and perform worse if thats what you're after.

 

[Rudyduu]

They exist, had one guy at my local pub who would sit at the bar on his iPad. He worked in marketing and would sit there editing photos and making slides.

I wouldn't call photo editing and slide creation "content creation".

 

[Rudyduu]

Lots of people stating its overkill. It is but this is the ipad pro. All the other ipads apple sell are cheaper and perform worse if thats what you're after.

What software available on the iPad can't run well enough on the M1 SoC?