OLED 12.9-Inch iPad Pro Rumored to Feature Brighter, More Durable Display

LG Display has begun developing an OLED panel for a 12.9-inch iPad model that features improved brightness, longevity, and durability, according to The Elec.

OLED iPad Pro Feature
The Elec recently reported that Apple is preparing to release two new iPad Pro models with low-power LTPO OLED displays in 2023 or 2024. The new models could feature improved ProMotion with a wider range of refresh rates.

Further to that report, The Elec is now claiming that LG Display is planning to begin production of a 12.9-inch OLED display for an ‌iPad‌ between the end of 2023 and 2024. Samsung Display is also expected to be preparing to supply panels for the OLED ‌iPad Pro‌ models alongside LG Display, now that the OLED iPad Air that Samsung was working on for 2022 has reportedly been canceled.

LG Display is reportedly planning to use LTPO TFT technology to make the OLED panel up to two times brighter and prolong its working life by up to four times. Since consumers keep iPads for longer than iPhones, longevity and durability are said to be important goals for the display.

The panels are expected to use the same Gen 6 substrates used in the iPhone 13 Pro models, which already support LTPO TFT technology for refresh rates up to 120Hz. This could allow for a much wider range of refresh rates between 10Hz and 120Hz.

In a recent investor note from TF International Securities, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that Apple has abandoned its plans to release an iPad Air with an OLED display in 2022, with multiple sources now agreeing on a 2023 or later launch timeframe.

As per the previous report, Apple is currently planning to launch 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPads that use OLED panels in 2023 or 2024. The ‌iPad Pro‌ now appears to be Apple's focus for its first tablets with OLED displays, rather than the ‌iPad Air‌. That being said, the report notes that Apple could still choose to use OLED technology on the ‌iPad Air‌ first due to pricing and supply volume.

Related Roundup: iPad Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPad Pro (Neutral)

Popular Stories

New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Monday December 16, 2024 8:55 am PST by
Apple released iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. Apple has added a handful of new non-AI related feature controls as...
iphone 16 apple intelligence

Apple Drops Plans for iPhone Hardware Subscription Service

Wednesday December 18, 2024 11:39 am PST by
Apple is no longer planning to launch a hardware subscription service that would let customers "subscribe" to get a new iPhone each year, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman first shared rumors about Apple's work on a hardware subscription service back in 2022, and at the time, he said that Apple wanted to develop a simple system that would allow customers to pay a monthly fee to gain...
iPhone 17 Pro Dual Tone Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Rumored to Stick With 'Triangular' Camera Design

Wednesday December 18, 2024 2:36 am PST by
Contrary to recent reports, the iPhone 17 Pro will not feature a horizontal camera layout, according to the leaker known as "Instant Digital." In a new post on Weibo, the leaker said that a source has confirmed that while the appearance of the back of the iPhone 17 Pro has indeed changed, the layout of the three cameras is "still triangular," rather than the "horizontal bar spread on the...
elevation lab airtag battery

Your AirTag's Battery Will Last for Up to 10 Years With Elevation Lab's New TimeCapsule Enclosure

Wednesday December 18, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Elevation Lab today announced the launch of TimeCapsule, an innovative and simple solution for increasing the battery life of Apple's AirTag. Priced at $20, TimeCapsule is an AirTag enclosure that houses two AA batteries that offer 14x more battery capacity than the CR2032 battery that the AirTag runs on. It works by attaching the AirTag's upper housing to the built-in custom contact in the...
apple tv 4k yellow bg feature

New Apple TV Rumored to Launch Next Year With These Features

Tuesday December 17, 2024 9:02 am PST by
The current Apple TV 4K was released more than two years ago, so the streaming device is becoming due for a hardware upgrade soon. Fortunately, it was recently rumored that a new Apple TV will launch at some point next year. Below, we recap rumors about the next-generation Apple TV. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman last week reported that Apple has been working on its own combined Wi-Fi and...
blackmagic vision pro

Blackmagic Debuts $30K 3D Camera for Capturing Video for Vision Pro

Monday December 16, 2024 4:17 pm PST by
Blackmagic today announced that its URSA Cine Immersive camera is now available for pre-order, with deliveries set to start late in the first quarter of 2025. Blackmagic says that this is the world's first commercial camera system designed to capture 3D content for the Vision Pro. The URSA Cine Immersive camera was first introduced in June, but it has not been available for purchase until...
mac pro creativity

Apple Launched the Controversial 'Trashcan' Mac Pro 11 Years Ago Today

Thursday December 19, 2024 7:00 pm PST by
Apple launched the controversial "trashcan" Mac Pro eleven years ago today, introducing one of its most criticized designs that persisted through a period of widespread discontentment with the Mac lineup. The redesign took the Mac Pro in an entirely new direction, spearheaded by a polished aluminum cylindrical design that became unofficially dubbed the "trashcan" in the Mac community. All of ...
iPhone 17 Slim Feature

'iPhone 17 Air' With 'Major' Design Changes and 19-Inch MacBook Detailed in New Report

Sunday December 15, 2024 9:47 am PST by
Apple is planning a series of "major design" and "format changes" for iPhones over the next few years, according to The Wall Street Journal's Aaron Tilley and Yang Jie. The paywalled report published today corroborated the widely-rumored "iPhone 17 Air" with an "ultrathin" design that is thinner than current iPhone models. The report did not mention a specific measurement, but previous...

Top Rated Comments

cmaier Avatar
42 months ago
Still makes no sense to me. If Apple thinks OLED is the better display, it could have switched to OLED this year instead of miniLED, which was a huge investment for them.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacLawyer Avatar
42 months ago
Nothing against iPads.... they are freaking amazing and if you use one for productive purposes or content viewing, good on you.

As for me, they just don't light my fire. I have the base iPad and I occasionally use it but I'll aways be a Mac guy. (IE old). ?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
julesme Avatar
42 months ago

Nothing against iPads.... they are freaking amazing and if you use one for productive purposes or content viewing, good on you.

As for me, they just don't light my fire. I have the base iPad and I occasionally use it but I'll aways be a Mac guy. (IE old). ?
I think for the majority of iPad users, the device is a companion, not a replacement, for their Mac.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
42 months ago
Rumors about 2024 really? Can we all survive 2021 first please. Who knows how many of us will be dead by then
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Force332 Avatar
42 months ago

Still makes no sense to me. If Apple thinks OLED is the better display, it could have switched to OLED this year instead of miniLED, which was a huge investment for them.
As Apple has historically been both slow to adapt new display technologies and then doesn't move on from them very quickly when they do, I understand that this seems odd. But I think what it comes down to is keeping ProMotion going in the Pro lineup. Similar to how they waited to adopt adaptive refresh on the iPhone until they could source enough of the LTPO OLED displays for their need. Since the iPad Pros have had ProMotion (using LED backlighting) going back to 2017, they don't want to go backwards and throw in an OLED display just because it's OLED if they can't source enough of them to be adaptive. This sounds like they are aiming to be able to do so in 2 or 3 years. In the meantime, I think they implemented mini-LED as a step up to improve brightness and dynamic range while retaining ProMotion until they can produce OLED displays of this size with the adaptive ability.

My gut feeling at least.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Shanghaichica Avatar
42 months ago
That will be me next iPad update.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)