Apple may be done for the year releasing any new hardware, but fans will only have to sit tight for just a few months into 2024 for brand-new tablets and laptops. A new report claims that Apple will share details on new, more powerful iPads and MacBook Airs coming soon. Everything is supposed to get a shiny, new M3 chip installed, but the iPad Pro might finally hit store shelves sporting a swanky, long-awaited OLED screen.
Based on several anonymous sources, Bloomberg’s Apple guru Mark Gurman reported that the iPad Air will offer two different screen sizes. Perhaps the biggest change for Apple’s tablet lineup is the iPad Pro, which could finally get access to an OLED screen next year. These organic displays are usually more expensive than LCD, but they boast sharper colors while being both brighter and more energy efficient.
As for the iPad Air sizes, we could see one with a 10.9-inch display—the same as the current iPad Air model—and another that measures 12.9 inches. That’s as big as the latest iPad Pro model. iPad Pro devices use Apple’s “Liquid Retina XDR,” a kind of mini-LED display, but the iPad Air still uses LCD. There are going to be four models in total, with two Airs supporting 5G while the other two are WiFi only.
All those devices will get access to the latest M3 silicon. The MacBook Air will also receive the M3 upgrade. All of these devices could launch in March at the earliest. Apple’s iPadOS will see the jump to version 17.4, while the new MacBooks will get upgraded to macOS 14.3. Both those software patches should arrive within the first few months of 2024.
The OLED rumors again confirm what the Bloomberg reporter has been saying for close to a month. Other sites that have tracked major display makers like Samsung and LG have noted that Apple was in talks about OLEDs for iPads. Just as well we’ve long heard rumors that Apple was trying to create a 16-inch option for Apple’s tablet range. It’s interesting to note how much sooner we could see an OLED iPad than we probably will see an OLED MacBook Pro. The latest rumors hint that we won’t get an Apple-brand desktop with an OLED screen until 2025.
Apple first shared details of its second MacBook Pro model of 2023 back in October. Alongside a new iMac, the new 14-inch and 16-inch laptop models were the first on the scene to sport the M3 chip. In our own tests, we’ve found the M3 is as powerful as advertised—which is to say capable of performing strenuous tasks on par with other high-grade CPUs—especially with the M3 Pro and M3 Max chips. The regular M3 should be more than enough for what you’ll do on an iPad or MacBook Air. The M2-powered light laptop is already impressive enough, so much so that it will likely be difficult to justify the upgrade to M3 if you’re already using an M1- or M2-powered Apple desktop.
But while Apple has made big product announcements around March in prior years, this year’s showcase is meant to buoy the Cupertino company’s tech sales going into the new year. The company held off on announcing new iPads this year to make a bigger impression with the 11th generation. Apple shipped fewer Macs in the first few months of 2023 compared to previous years. As Gurman mentioned in his report, Macs and iPads make up 15% of Apple’s revenue each year, and the company needs some new devices to jumpstart its 2024 goals.
