iPads that wirelessly charge could finally be a thing

Apple's iPads are among the best tablets currently available on the market, with a premium design, slick interface, and heaps of apps purpose-made for the big screen. And from next year, they may get even better with the introduction of a new way to charge.

MacRumors claims to have got word from sources “familiar with companies that manufacture magnets for Apple products” that the next generation of iPad Pros may feature MagSafe charging. 

This technology has been available on iPhones since the iPhone 12 in 2020, while iPad design has remained the same for a few years with the last iPad Pro update in 2022 only bringing incremental upgrades.

Apple’s due for a larger scale overhaul then, and the addition of MagSafe wireless charging would require a design change, with the rear of the new iPad Pros needing to be glass rather than metal for optimal performance.

While wireless charging will be slower than plugging in a USB-C cable, the inclusion of MagSafe could open up new possibilities for users.

Apple's first smart display?

While the HomePod and HomePod mini smart speakers have been available for a while, Apple has resisted a move into the smart display market to compete with products such as the Google Nest Hub Max and Amazon Echo Show 10.

However, with a MagSafe-toting iPad Pro the door is opened for Apple to build a speaker dock which you can easily pop your tablet onto when at home, transforming it from slate to smart display.

If this sounds familiar, it’s because it is. Google already offers this with the Pixel Tablet, which comes with its own magnetic speaker dock. While it was an intriguing proposition, it didn’t work as slickly as we hoped which left it in a bit of a no man's land. If Apple was to adopt a similar approach with a MagSafe iPad Pro, we’d expect a much better all-round experience.

There were rumours back in 2021 surrounding wireless charging coming to iPad, but the new slates in 2022 failed to follow through on the claims. Of course, Apple may have been just waiting for the best time to add the feature to its slates, and this new report shines a light on the 2024 updates.

The new iPad Pros are tipped to be a significant upgrade over the previous generation, with separate rumours claiming they will also feature OLED displays.