Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has long pegged the next major update to the iPad Pro in 2024, and in the latest issue of his Power On newsletter, he elaborates on details that will make it "the iPad Pro's biggest update since 2018." The first major update to the product”
While Gurman described recent iPad upgrades as "particularly minor lately," next year's iPad Pro will apparently bring four big changes.
1. The OLED iPad Pro is finally here
In fact, the first one has already been highlighted, with Gurman hinting in January that 2024 will be the year of the OLED iPad Pro.
Still, the introduction of OLED screen technology will be a major improvement over the mini-LED technology found in the current 12.9-inch model, with Gurman saying the panels should be "crisp and brighter" and "reproduce colors more accurately".
This change in screen technology will apparently be accompanied by a small increase in the size of the high-end models. The tablet is expected to come in 11-inch and 13-inch sizes: the former is unchanged, but the latter is up 0.1 inches.
Display analyst Ross Young had previously predicted both changes. But confirmation from two sources with solid records makes it more likely that the changes will be fully confirmed.
2. M3 chip power
The next improvement is the move to the next-generation M3 chip. This isn't actually in any Apple hardware yet, but it's expected to appear in new Macs launching in October (a date Gurman mentioned again in his latest newsletter).
In any case, the M3 chip will be manufactured on TSMC's 3nm process, which means both efficiency and speed will be greatly improved. The current 2022 iPad Pro isn't far behind when it comes to the M2 processor, but it could be a significant step forward. Once the M3 MacBook becomes the benchmark, we'll know just how big it is.
3. New Magic Keyboard
This last change may be the biggest for those who want the iPad to be a replacement laptop. Apple will revamp the Magic Keyboard to make the "iPad Pro look more like a laptop than the current setup," Gurman said, while adding a "bigger trackpad."
Gurman predicts that these changes will give iPad sales a much-needed boost (he writes: "The iPad category — indeed, the tablet market as a whole — is in a panic right now").
He predicts that the new iPad Pro will be released in the spring or summer of 2024, and he believes that "we won't see small updates to the company's other tablets until then." Alongside the surprise unveiling of the iPhone 15, you shouldn't expect anything revolutionary either.