Since alternating leaks keep flip-flopping on the subject, it’s difficult to say whether Apple is developing an iPad Pro with an OLED screen. The latest report says the company is working on a high-end tablet with this display technology, but it won’t arrive until 2024.
According to South Korean news site The Elec, which often provides insider information based on local production sources. A couple of months after the site said that an OLED iPad Pro wasn’t happening, it’s changed its tune, and now says such a slate could come – just in at least two years time.
Samsung Display manufactures OLED panels (that’s a different division of the company than the one that makes Galaxy phones), and it sounds like it and Apple are having an interesting back-and-forth regarding whether they’ll work together on iPad screens.
OLED iPads were reportedly canceled in late 2021 due to the inability to turn a profit and Apple’s dissatisfaction with the structure of the displays. Now, The Elec claims Samsung is bringing in new equipment to fix these issues, which suggests OLED iPads are back. on the menu.
The new factory equipment is expected to arrive in 2023, so we won’t see OLED iPads until 2024 or later. That’s assuming Apple and Samsung Display do not have another spat – we’ll see how things pan out.
Do iPads need OLED screens?
We should note that most stories we’ve heard about OLED Apple tablets refer to the top-end iPad Pro family, but The Elec’s new report simply refers to OLED iPads in general.
This technology is often found in TVs, smartphones, and tablets, and it’s generally preferred over LCD in mobile device technology as it allows for better colors and contrast, even though it’s sometimes harder to see outdoors.
The iPad uses LCD screens in general, with the exception of the iPad Pro (2021), which has a mini LED screen, and we’re not convinced that most iPad users will care or need to upgrade to OLED.
Since iPads are already the top-selling tablet, it’s clear that audiences love their LCD screens – and if Apple is having trouble sourcing OLEDs, maybe it is not worth the extra cost consumers will ultimately have to pay.
One exception is iPad Pros, because some professionals use those devices, and the advantages of OLED – such as improved colors and contrast – may be useful to artists, color graders, or mobile journalists.
It sounds like an iPad Pro-first strategy is what Apple is doing for its OLED screens, despite The Elec not mentioning the family in its report, and we’ll have to see whether audiences care about OLED iPads even later than 2025.
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