Apple tipped to be working on a large iPad/Mac screen that turns into a smart display

One of the cool new features coming to iOS 17 is called StandBy and it will turn your compatible iPhone into a smart display when the device is charging and in landscape orientation. The display will show the time and weather and there will be a wide selection of clock options and widgets to choose from. It will also support Smart Stack widgets which is a collection of widgets that appear automatically based on location, activity, or time.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman wrote in today's Power On newsletter that he has been told that Apple is working on a large-size screen that would be powered by an A-series chip and a software stack. This would allow it to deliver some features when it is not connected to a Mac and is used on its own. A low-power mode could be enabled turning the screen into a huge smart display similar to the iOS 17's StandBy feature. A smart display is essentially a smart speaker like an Amazon Echo, but with a screen to watch video content on, or to view video calls.

Currently, Apple offers a 27-inch 5K Studio Display designed for consumers. The display is powered by an A13 Bionic, the same chip that is found in the iPhone 11 series. The Studio Display comes with a 12MP Ultra-wide camera with a 122° field of view and an f/2.4 aperture. It also supports Siri. Considering that a smart display would need to include a digital assistant, a new Studio Display with a fresher A-series chip might be exactly what Apple is working on.

While a new Studio Display could use the A-series chip to help the screen become a smart display, on the current Studio Display the A13 Bionic powers the "Hey Siri" capabilities, spatial audio (surround sound), and Center Stage. The latter uses machine learning to help the Ultra-wide camera on the Studio Display keep you in frame when using the Studio Display's Ultra-wide camera with a video app like FaceTime when connected to an iPad or Mac.

A new Studio Display with the ability to turn into a smart display in low-power mode will probably not be something that we would see unveiled this year, according to Gurman. Instead, such a product could be available next year at the earliest, he writes.