There’s good and bad news for those itching to start tapping at a new iPad Pro. The good news is that it’s set to be the “first major update to the product since 2018.” Yay! The bad news is that it’s at least six months away, and possibly closer to a year. Boo.
That rollercoaster of emotions is brought to you by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who used his latest Power On newsletter to talk about iPads.
The iPad and tablets in general are “in a deep funk right now”, he says, meaning a performance low, rather than enjoying the music of James Brown. But the upcoming iPad Pro could be just the thing to give the tablet market its mojo back, he reckons.
In all, Gurman highlights four changes which are small in insolation, but add up to something more significant when taken together.
The biggy is the introduction of OLED screens. At the moment, the top-of-the-range 12.9in iPad Pro comes with mini-LED technology, and the cheaper 11in version still packs an IPS one. By adopting the same OLED tech found in iPhones since 2017, Gurman says, the screens should be “crisper and brighter” and “reproduce colours more accurately.”
On the subject of screens, that rather-awkward-to-say 12.9in measurement is apparently set to be abandoned. Instead, Gurman says, we’re getting an even 13in. Whether that’s going to be the same footprint with smaller bezels or a slightly larger tablet remains to be seen, but the 11in model will apparently be unchanged.
Next up, there’s the chipset. And while “faster” should be the absolute minimum on any tech upgrade, it’s still good news to hear that the new iPad Pro will apparently adopt the same M3 chipset soon to be found in Apple’s new Macs. They’re made to the 3nm process which should not only provide a big speed, but should also boost efficiency to make the battery go that extra mile.
Finally, there’s the optional Magic Keyboard, which will be completely redesigned with productivity in mind. Gurman says that the new model will make the tablet “look even more like a laptop than the current setup” while adding a “larger trackpad”.
All very exciting, but you’ll have to wait. Gurman says this likely won’t be announced until Spring or Summer 2024 — and don’t bother with another iPad in the interim. “I’m not anticipating anything other than minor updates to the company’s other tablets before then,” he gloomily concludes.
