Mini-LED iPad Pro Expected at Apple Event on April 20 as Production Ramps Up

[MacRumors]

Apple today announced that it will be hosting a virtual event on Tuesday, April 20 at 10 a.m. Pacific Time, and one of the new products expected to be unveiled at the event is a new iPad Pro with a Mini-LED display.

In a brief snippet shared with paid subscribers, Taiwanese supply chain news website DigiTimes today reported that Apple supplier Ennostar has substantially improved its yield rates for Mini-LED chips and is expected to scale up its output for the new iPad Pro starting later this month. This lines up with a timeframe shared by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who claimed that the new iPad Pro would enter mass production in mid-to-late April.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman and Debby Wu recently reported that Apple plans to introduce new iPad Pro models in the latter half of April, which lines up with the now-confirmed April 20 event. The report said Mini-LED backlighting will be exclusive to the new 12.9-inch model, while both the 11-inch and 12.9-inch models are expected to get a faster A14X chip on par with the M1 chip in Macs and Thunderbolt support. Early rumors also suggested that cellular models will gain support for faster 5G networking like iPhone 12 models.

Gurman and Wu said that due to poor manufacturing yields, the new 12.9-inch iPad Pro could ship later and be available in constrained quantities to begin with, unless suppliers like Ennostar have managed to quickly improve production.

In a follow-up report today, Gurman said that Apple is also working on its long-awaited AirTags item trackers and a redesigned iMac, but it is less certain if those products will be announced at the April 20 event. A new Apple TV with a faster chip, redesigned remote, and a stronger gaming focus is also rumored to be in the pipeline.

On the software side, Apple has been beta testing iOS 14.5 for over two months now, and a final release around the April 20 event is likely. The software update has a long list of new features, including the much-awaited ability for Apple Watch users to unlock their iPhone with Face ID while wearing a mask.

Article Link: Mini-LED iPad Pro Expected at Apple Event on April 20 as Production Ramps Up

 

[smaffei]

Can't think this announcement is just new iPads and pastel phone cases. Those things could be done in press releases.

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

iOS 14.5 is expected too

 

[_Refurbished_]

Just got my mom the plain Jane iPad for $300. That’s my go to for iPads, no better deal on the computing world.

 

[BWhaler]

Can’t wait.

Yes, new hardware is fun. But rock solid software is what we all need.

 

[mightyken]

finally!

 

[The Barron]

Ready for a new Apple TV box and iMac replacement for the 21.5" model. Come on, Apple!

 

[EmotionalSnow]

Well, trying to get one of these is going to be fun /s

 

[twocents]

Really eager to see how iPadOS 15 is showed off with this iPad Pro made in mind 😁

 

[transpo1]

Here's hoping the new iPad 11" 2021 works with the old Magic Keyboard. I really don't want to have to buy another one of those.... But I have a feeling they'll upgrade the Magic Keyboard, too, with Thunderbolt 3.

 

[FightTheFuture]

Nice! An iPad Pro mini!
... oh wait

 

[MrGimper]

Hoping this drives the price of the 2020 model down further

 

[1258186]

I’m not convinced it’s worth upgrading my 12.9” iPad unless they increase the screen size or add a 15” model.

 

[Zdigital2015]

Hoping this drives the price of the 2020 model down further

Nope...they’re selling without much discount now and the fire sale days are probably gone due to WaH because of the pandemic.

 

[Realityck]

Get to see how fast these A14X iPads pros are!

 

[Wags]

Get to see how fast these A14X iPads pros are!

Yes it will and how much can the 11 pro separate from the air with no other changes.

 

[gwenaellp]

The event is in one week, products announced at the event won’t be available to purchase in a few weeks that’s for sure

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

The event is in one week, products announced at the event won’t be available to purchase in a few weeks that’s for sure

possibly pre-ordering will start right away?

 

[theBigD23]

Just give me new iMacs Apple! I would be surprised if this event is just iPads. Maybe iPads/Airtags/Apple TV?

 

[Realityck]

WWDC is less then two months from now, anything major outside iPad Pro revision along with a few other lesser releases is not going to happen. The amount of time they spent discussing the first M1 based Macs will not reoccur in just a spring event IMHO. Although it’s possible they might add new options to the existing M1 products.

 

[bushman4]

Don’t expect too much at this event and you won’t be disappointed. Remember There’s-a chip shortage going on also low yields on mini OLED screens

 

[Metrosey]

Don’t expect too much at this event and you won’t be disappointed. Remember There’s-a chip shortage going on also low yields on mini OLED screens

Not seen news on MiniOLED, is it good?

 

[seek3r]

Think a new 12" iPad Pro is an instant buy for me, been looking forward to one for a while!

 

[oosamon]

Whoo-hoo! I'm not sure I should be this excited about a tablet that works incrementally better than my current tablet. But I'm ready for an upgrade....

 

[azentropy]

Doesn't look like mini LED is in the cards for the 11 Pro yet, so I'll probably pass.