If 12.9 inches isn’t enough for a workspace for your iPad, a bigger model might come along. According to Ross Young of DSSCA giant 14.1-inch iPad Pro is currently in development and could launch early next year.
Citing supply-chain sources, Young described the existence of a 14.1-inch display for the iPad Pro as “certain” and said the device was “more likely” to launch in early 2023. (More than what is possible? It’s not clear, but presumably, he means more than a launch after 2022.)
To match the specs of the current 12.9-inch Pro, its screen will be based on the Mini-LED, he claims, and will feature promotion. And in response to a comment, he added that he thinks the device will only have Face ID. Waiting for the under-screen Touch ID, which has been rumored for a while but has not yet appeared on Apple devices.
Let’s start by noticing that this is not a new rumor. Last summer, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman said that Apple was working on a large-screen iPad, which he described as “the perfect device for many people, including me.” [which] Lines between tablets and laptops will continue to blur. “And a report in January claimed that Chinese electronics maker BOE plans to build up to 15-inch OLED panels to monitor Apple’s tablet range.
Is this really going to happen?
With so many reports claiming the existence of a larger iPad Pro, we’re sure it’s right. We can also consider Young’s excellent track record, which is currently rated 92.9 percent accurate on AppleTrack, and the last time he predicted that an iPad would grow to the size of a screen, his numbers were spot on.
Strategically, the move is even more ambiguous. On the one hand, it will solve the problem that Apple has faced in recent years by competing for two iPad lines for the same customers. Whenever the iPad Air is updated, it kills the demand for the seemingly more expensive iPad Pro, and whenever the professionals are updated, they make the Air look like yesterday’s news. In some ways, this is a wonderful thing to do, but it can also be a daunting task.
Having a larger Pro lineup, the 14.1-inch model probably replaces the smaller 11-inch model, meaning they target a completely different market in the air. Looking for 11 inches or less? Go for air. Looking for 12 inches or more? Pro for you. Young did not anticipate that any Pro model, if any, would be excluded to make room for the 14.1-inch, but the 11-inch kill would be understood from this perspective.
On the other hand, however, just how big is the market for a huge iPad Pro? The 12.9-inch iPad Pro is already quite niche, and out of most buyers price range; It’s hard to see where Apple will find a significant audience of technology buyers who need and can afford 14.1 inches, but don’t want to meet that demand with laptops.
We expect new iPad programs with M2 processors to appear in the fall, although with this rumor, M2 models are expected to launch in early 2023. If you do not want to wait until then, make sure you are paying Roundup of our best iPad deals by visiting the lowest prices on current models.