A new supply-chain report suggests that Apple is getting ready to sell around 8.5 million OLED iPad Pro models this year.
Interestingly, it looks like the Cupertino company is expecting the 13-inch model to be the more popular of the two …
Upcoming OLED iPad Pro models
The switch from LCD screens to OLED is expected to be the biggest change this year, though the 12.9-inch model is also said to be getting a small increase in size to an even 13 inches, or thereabouts.
OLED offers four main advantages over LCD. First, because there’s no need for a separate backlight layer, OLED iPads can be thinner. The lack of backlight also means that blacks can be true blacks, as pixels can be switched off, with no light to leak through from behind the panel. Third, and for the same reason, OLED is more power-efficient, as only the pixels needed are emitting light. Finally, colors can be more vivid than with LCD.
On the downside, however, OLED isn’t as bright; the more saturated colors can be less accurate; and the screens can suffer from burn-in.
8.5 million models set to be made this year
Digitimes reports that Apple is splitting display production between two suppliers, Samsung making the screen for the 11-inch model, and LG winning orders for the 13-inch (which the site still refers to as 12.9-inch).
LGD has been chosen as the OLED supplier for the 12.9-inch model, with a planned production of around 4.5 million units in 2024. SDC, on the other hand, has been selected as the OLED supplier for the 11-inch model, with a planned production of around 4 million units in 2024.
OLED is more expensive than LCD, with that fact expected to be reflected in the pricing of the new models. While one unlikely report suggested pricing could almost double, a more credible one suggests a price premium of around $160 for each model.
That would take the starting prices to:
- 11-inch: Around $960
- 13-inch: Around $1260
Apple is expected to announce the models this month, possibly as early as next week. As with the new M3 MacBook Air, the launch is expected to be via press release, rather than an event. Given that a spring event would have encompassed both product lines, this is now a certainty.
Read more here
- OLED iPad Pro: What the rumors say and why Apple is making the switch
- Here are the full dimensions of the new iPad Air and iPad Pro coming soon
- M2 iPad Pro vs M1 iPad Pro: How do they compare as we wait for M3?
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