Apple iPad Air to go OLED, sources claim – although another iPad might beat it to the punch

Apple is planning to move the display of its mid-range iPad Air tablet to OLED, joining the iPad Pro in offering this enhanced screen technology. Previous rumours had suggested that an OLED iPad mini is also in the works, which would see almost the entire iPad range featuring OLED, bar the entry-level, standard model.

That's the claim coming from ETNews, citing an industry source. It says that Samsung Display is preparing for mass production of the new panels for the iPad Air OLED, expected to be announced in March 2027.

Up to this point, one of the big differences between the iPad Pro and iPad Air has been the display type. While the LCD display that Apple has used has been great, the performance isn't as good as the Pro's OLED.

The shift in display technology will allow for better performance, with better handling of black levels, enhanced contrast and vibrant colours. It will presumably move to 120Hz supporting ProMotion, while boosted brightness would also be expected.

The source says, however, says that "the iPad Air will feature an OLED with lower specifications and manufacturing costs" (translated), so it's likely to remain a step below the iPad Pro.

Will we see the iPad Air price increase?

The big question is what impact this will have on price: while Apple will be looking to boost the experience for users, it's likely that the aim will also be to increase the average selling price of iPad models.

That might see the company push the price of the iPad Air closer to the iPad Pro, which is currently £999 / $999 / €1,099. The iPad Air, by comparison, starts at £599 / $599 / €649, so it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the iPad Air move into the price gap thanks to an enhanced display.

In turn, adding an OLED display to the iPad mini would likely see the already-expensive tablet (for its size) increase in price too. If the iPad Air moves up in price, it might be that the iPad mini crosses the £499 / $499 / €549 barrier.

That will be quite a shake-up for the iPad, which, despite getting updated to a fairly regular cadence, normally focuses on a new chip powering it, rather than anything else. Equipping more models with an OLED display will definitely be an incentive for some owners to upgrade.