Forward-looking: Apple is reportedly looking to revive its ailing iPad sales by introducing several models next year, including a 12.9-inch iPad Air and new iPad Pros featuring OLED screens. The claim comes from Ming-Chi Kuo, who is now the second analyst to predict the arrival of OLED-packing iPad Pros.
The iPad remains the world's most popular tablet brand, but sales have been sluggish recently, with revenue declining 10% year-on-year during the most recent quarter.
According to Kuo, Apple will be giving its slates a much-needed shot in the arm by releasing an updated 10.9-inch iPad Air at the start of next year. Joining it will be the first-ever 12.9-inch iPad Air, which sounds like it could be an excellent, cheaper option for lovers of large tablets who don't want or need a 12.9-inch iPad Pro.
The 12.9-inch Air will continue to use an LCD and lack the mini-LED tech found in current iPad Pro models, though it will have the same oxide backplane as those more expensive tablets. This should give it a better visual performance than the current 10.9-inch iPad Air, which features an a-Si backplane.
Reports that Apple will be upgrading the iPad Pros with OLED displays have been around for a while now, including a claim in August from Mark Gurman. The Bloomberg analyst did not talk about a 12.9-inch iPad Air, though.
Kuo says there will also be new 11-inch and 13-inch OLED Pros that ship with a redesigned chassis. They'll come with Apple's recently revealed M3 SoC and use the same LTPO tech found in the Apple Watches and newer iPhones, enabling a variable refresh rate of between 1Hz and 120Hz. Kuo said their display performance and power consumption will outperform the current mini-LED iPad Pro.
The analyst believes the new OLED iPad Pros will land during the second quarter of 2024.
Kuo also said that Apple will release a new iPad Mini next year along with an 11th-generation base iPad, resulting in the discontinuation of the 9th-gen iPad that is still being sold alongside newer models.
The new iPad Air tablets are expected to feature Apple's M2 chips, while the new iPad Mini will likely use an A16 Bionic.
In other Apple news today, it was revealed that the company could be forced to pay a $14 billion tax bill in Ireland.
https://www.techspot.com/news/100817-next-year-ipad-lineup-could-see-pro-tablets.html
