Up to date 4/24/24: Analyst Ross Younger is now saying (on X for paid subscribers) that the brand new 12.9-inch iPad Air may have an LED display, not a Mini LED show as he beforehand stated final week. The unique report is posted under.
We’re anticipating Apple to unveil a new set of iPads throughout the first week of Could. A brand new report on Thursday might present a peek into what could possibly be in retailer, and it says loads about what the corporate is doing with its iPad lineup.
Analyst Ross Younger posted on X (subscription required) that, “The upcoming 12.9″ iPad Air has a MiniLED show,” which is identical show expertise utilized by the present 12.9-inch iPad Professional. Younger states that Apple is utilizing leftover provide from manufacturing of that Professional mannequin since it’s anticipated to improve the iPad Professional to OLED shows.
Implementing a Mini LED show would offer an influence consumption financial savings over the present LED shows. Mini LEDs additionally produce higher blacks, so the picture high quality on the iPad Air may see an enchancment.
A 12.9-inch iPad Air has been rumored to be a brand new addition to the iPad lineup to enrich the present 10.9-inch iPad Air. This creates a non-pro pairing that’s an alternative choice to the 11- and 12.9-inch iPad Professional.
Younger, nonetheless, doesn’t point out if the smaller Air can even improve from its present LED show to Mini LED. If the present iPad Professional setup is any indication–the 11-inch mannequin has a regular LED, whereas the 12.9-inch mannequin makes use of Mini LED–it’s doable Apple wouldn’t improve it.
Additionally, no remark was made about how the Mini LED improve would have an effect on the value. The present 12.9-inch iPad Professional with 128GB of storage begins at $1,099, whereas the iPad Air line is less expensive with an entry-level value of $599. The rumored improve to OLED for this mannequin may improve the value, which would go away room for the 12.9-inch iPad Air to come back in on the $999 vary. Apple may additionally decrease the Air’s customary SSD configuration to 64GB (versus the iPad Professional’s 128GB) to decrease the value a bit.
Keep up-to-date with the most recent information by testing our iPad Air and iPad Professional rumor roundups.