iPad Pro OLED Display Production Reportedly to Begin Around February

[MacRumors]

LG and Samsung plan to begin mass production of OLED display panels for the next-generation iPad Pro models around February 2024, according to a report today from South Korea's Chosun Ilbo. The news was highlighted by the website OLED-Info.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman expects new 11-inch and 13-inch iPad Pro models with OLED displays, an M3 chip, and an aluminum Magic Keyboard to launch next year. With mass production of the OLED displays reportedly not beginning until February, it seems unlikely that the next iPad Pro models would be ready to launch in March, a common month for Apple to announce new products. It seems more likely that the next iPad Pro models would be announced at WWDC in June or later, but Apple's plans could still change.

The current iPad Pro models are equipped with LCD panels, and the 12.9-inch model also features mini-LED backlighting for increased brightness and a higher contrast ratio. OLED technology would eliminate the need for backlighting, with benefits including even higher contrast ratio with deeper blacks, lower power consumption, and more. Apple is expected to use very thin hybrid OLED displays with a combination of flexible and rigid materials, which could allow for the next iPad Pro models to be slightly thinner.

There have been rumors about the iPad Pro adopting OLED technology for several years, and it seems that it will finally happen next year. The next iPad Air, iPad mini, and entry-level iPad are all expected to stick with LCD panels.

Apple last updated the iPad Pro line in October 2022, with key new features at the time including the M2 chip, Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 support, hover functionality for the second-generation Apple Pencil, and support for ProRes video recording.

Article Link: iPad Pro OLED Display Production Reportedly to Begin Around February

 

[macduke]

I'm really not too interested in OLED for the iPad because the display on my 12.9" is really good already. With an M1 chip and 16GB of RAM, I can't really see myself needing to upgrade anytime soon from my early 2021 model. It just never breaks a sweat doing anything that you're likely to do on an iPad.

The thought of an 11" iPad Pro with a better screen is intriguing, and now that I've downsized to a 14" MBP M3 Max from my old Intel 16", it makes more sense to have a smaller iPad Pro. The 12.9" can be bulky for a tablet and casual use. That might tempt me in another year if they aren't outrageously priced, per the earlier rumors.

 

[1369281]

Just another Apple device that many of us won't be able to use because of PWM. I'm sure it will be great for those who don't get eye-strain, headaches, and nausea from those displays.

 

[kdesign7]

Definitely been a hot minute since my last comment.

Im stoked. Bring on the OLED! I’m ready for it!

 

[Fuzzball84]

I'm really not too interested in OLED for the iPad because the display on my 12.9" is really good already. With an M1 chip and 16GB of RAM, I can't really see myself needing to upgrade anytime soon from my early 2021 model. It just never breaks a sweat doing anything that you're likely to do on an iPad.

The thought of an 11" iPad Pro with a better screen is intriguing, and now that I've downsized to a 14" MBP M3 Max from my old Intel 16", it makes more sense to have a smaller iPad Pro. The 12.9" can be bulky for a tablet and casual use. That might tempt me in another year if they aren't outrageously priced, per the earlier rumors.

Putting a 12.9 inch or 13 inch tablet in a backpack is scary... I held a friends and it just felt like it would get crushed in a bag.

I have the iPad Air 4 with Magic Keyboard... I feel the Magic Keyboard makes me feel much better about carrying it around as it significantly supports the iPad from any bending forces. When it's off the keyboard, even the iPad Air 4 feels flimsy.

 

[Fuzzball84]

Im all for better screen technologies... but more interested in better efficiency.. it's one component that is a big power draw.

Yes, the inky blacks are nice, but their LCD panels already have amazing contrast ratios.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Im all for better screen technologies... but more interested in better efficiency.. it's one component that is a big power draw.

Yes, the inky blacks are nice, but their LCD panels already have amazing contrast ratios.

OLED panels tend to have better battery life than LCD panels.

 

[Rychiar]

Just another Apple device that many of us won't be able to use because of PWM. I'm sure it will be great for those who don't get eye-strain, headaches, and nausea from those displays.

What causes that? Must be a very small segment of the population since everything is oled now. I def didnt notice a diff switching from lcd to oled

 

[chaospet]

I love the mini-LED display on my current iPad, OLED is not much of a draw for me.

 

[Fuzzball84]

OLED panels tend to have better battery life than LCD panels.

Thats true... but the key word is 'tend'

It depends on what's on the screen. OLED panels in some cases can draw more power than LCD.

 

[Kierkegaarden]

I don’t think this was ever going to introduced in the spring. Any March/April event will most likely be focused on Vision Pro. Most likely at WWDC, but possibly October.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Thats true... but the key word is 'tend'

It depends on what's on the screen. OLED panels in some cases can draw more power than LCD.

Ok more often than not they do. I mean we can play pedantic games all day long but when I said tend I meant the majority of the time aka better for efficiency than LCD panels.

 

[SoldOnApple]

Is OLED really better than microLED?

 

[sunny5]

OLED sucks especially because of burn-in which is not yet solved. Beside, there isn't any advantage over mini-LED in terms of professional uses.

 

[ProfessionalFan]

Is OLED really better than microLED?

No, but I assume you mean miniLED. It is better than miniLED.

 

[Fuzzball84]

Ok more often than not they do. I mean we can play pedantic games all day long but when I said tend I meant the majority of the time aka better for efficiency than LCD panels.

Not pedantic. My response was reasonable.

I think the iPad Pro line in the future will incorporate display technology that drastically reduces power draw. It's one area of intense research. OLED is just the beginning.

The majority of websites still use white backgrounds.. only a few will change to black if detecting the user has dark mode enabled. Visiting a website with mostly white screen will use similar power on OLED to LCD, in some cases more.

 

[Fuzzball84]

No, but I assume you mean miniLED. It is better than miniLED.

mini LED and micro LED are two distinct technologies. miniLEDS refers to backlights using zones... microLEDs are self emissive elements, analogous to OLED.

 

[Fuzzball84]

OLED sucks especially because of burn-in which is not yet solved. Beside, there isn't any advantage over mini-LED in terms of professional uses.

Burn in on recent panels has been significantly reduced with the latest OLED elements. Its far better than what came on the early Motorola phones..

 

[ghanwani]

What is this obsession with OLED? To me, retina LCD was all the display I ever needed. But then Apple has to go screw everything up with OLED/PWM and temporal dithering. When the screens were OK, they were putting in low performance processors and the device would be obsolete in no time.

 

[GDF]

OLED sucks especially because of burn-in which is not yet solved. Beside, there isn't any advantage over mini-LED in terms of professional uses.

I have had/have many oled TV’s with 0 burn in. If Oled can bring a brighter screen with deeper colors like my oled TV’s, then instant buy for me. Oh and if better battery life another big benefit.

 

[klasma]

Is OLED really better than microLED?

Probably not, but micro-LED isn’t production-ready yet. Or do you mean mini-LED?

 

[klasma]

OLED sucks especially because of burn-in which is not yet solved. Beside, there isn't any advantage over mini-LED in terms of professional uses.

OLED is great for reading in the dark, where mini-LED just produces blooming. I've been using a Samsung OLED tablet for a couple of years now, which I look forward to finally replace by an OLED iPad. Apple is really late to the game here (Samsung introduced the first OLED tablet 12 years ago). MIni-LED wouldn’t be a good option for my use case, and besides doesn't exist for the 11" anyway.

 

[sunny5]

I have had/have many oled TV’s with 0 burn in. If Oled can bring a brighter screen with deeper colors like my oled TV’s, then instant buy for me. Oh and if better battery life another big benefit.

OLED TV is totally different than OLED iPad Pro with smaller display. Bestie the pixel density is totally different as well.

OLED is great for reading in the dark, where mini-LED just produces blooming. I've been using a Samsung OLED tablet for a couple of years now, which I look forward to finally replace by an OLED iPad. Apple is really late to the game here. MIni-LED wouldn’t be a good option for my use case, and besides doesn't exist for the 11" anyway.

We are talking about the professional uses. The blooming requires an extreme condition to re-produce and normally not a big deal.

Burn in on recent panels has been significantly reduced with the latest OLED elements. Its far better than what came on the early Motorola phones..

Not really. Even iPhone 15 Pro Max can not reach the max brightness unless you unlock the feature because of burn-in. Also, OLED can not reach high nit because of burn-in as well. Higher the brightness, faster the burn in, and 2~4 times more power consumption especially for white.

 

[Nismo73]

My 2018 12.9 says hurry please!

 

[victorvictoria]

I guess that a "pro" user would be salivating for this iPad Pro. The Apple retail users would probably prefer to have an OLED TV screen. I know I would!