The new OLED iPad Pros won't just have the best displays of any Apple tablet. According to a display expert, they'll have the best OLEDs on the market. The new iPads, which will be launched on 7 May at a special Apple event, will boast thinner, lighter OLEDs that will deliver even better visuals than the current models.
The new information comes via Display Supply Chain Consultants, a well established research company. In its report it says that "The OLED iPad panels are expected to be by far the best OLED tablet panels on the market with LTPO, 120Hz refresh, a tandem stack and glass thinning resulting in ultra-thin and light displays with high brightness, extended battery life and long lifetime."
OLED iPad Pros: what the latest rumours say
The OLED iPads were originally expected to launch in March, but the May launch date is all but definite; however, a report that the 12.9-inch iPad Air would also get a display update to mini-LED for next week's launch has since been retracted.
While OLED displays are the most obvious new upgrade, a tantalising new report suggests they're also getting a massive processor boost: according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman the Pros will skip the current M3 processor and be the first Apple devices to run M4 processors.
This claim has caused a lot of debate and a fair bit of skepticism online, because it would mean virtually no time elapsing between the launch of the M3 Macs and a new M4 device. But it's possible that Apple has lit a fire under its processor team in order to beat the AI-pushing competition, most notably Microsoft with its forthcoming range of AI-powered Windows on Snapdragon X devices.
One suggestion that seems possible is that the M4 that'll reportedly power the iPad Pro isn't the same as the M4 that we'll see in the Macs launching later this year; it'll be better than the M3 in terms of its AI features, but it'll be more of a transitional model than the first of a new range. It won't be long before we find out: Apple's event is taking place next week.
