Folding iPad rumored to be incoming before a foldable iPhone

For most people the best tablet is one of Apple's iPads, but while it's a wonderful device the basic design hasn't changed much: it's what tech site The Register used to describe as a "fondleslab". But new models are coming, and one of them could be very different from the iPads we know and love: apparently Apple is finding it easier to make a folding iPad than a folding iPhone, so that is likely to be what we'll see first.

That's according to reliable display analyst Ross Young, who told MacRumors about the next generation of Apple's tablet tech. According to Young, the planned 14.1-inch iPad scheduled for 2023 is still coming but will no longer have the predicted mini-LED display; it's going to stick with the same LCD that Apple currently uses in the iPad Air. The next big display jump won't be to mini-LED, but to OLED.

You gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em

The tastiest titbit wasn't Apple's intention to go all-in on OLED for the 2024 iPad Pros; it's Young's information about folding displays. As he told the MacRumors show, Apple has been experiencing issues getting the right volume of cover glass to make a folding iPhone; apparently it's much easier to get the right glass at the right price for larger displays, which means a folding iPad or MacBook is much more likely to be released first. That doesn't mean it's definitely going to happen, but Apple is certainly thinking about it.

In the shorter term, Young says that the 11-inch iPad Pro will stick with its current display instead of getting an upgrade to mini-LED or Liquid Retina XDR; any updates to the smallest pro will be relatively minor. But when it makes the jump to OLED In 2024 Apple expects it to be a big hit: Young says that Apple expects the 11-inch OLED iPad Pro to sell many more units than the 12.9-inch model.