Apple signals the imminent release of the iPad Air (2024) and iPad Pro (2024)

It feels as though we've been waiting a long time for Apple to finally introduce the new 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro (2024) models, the first Apple tablets to come with OLED displays. Thanks to the use of OLED, the new iPad Pro tablets, especially the 12.9-inch model, are expected to see a huge price increase. To prevent some consumers who want the largest-sized iPad from getting priced out of purchasing one, the company decided to add a 12.9-inch model to the iPad Air line this year alongside the traditional 10.9-inch unit.

Here's why this makes sense. The iPad Air is the closest iPad model to the iPad Pro. By offering a 12.9-inch iPad Air variant, buyers can get most of the features they want, the screen size they desire, and because the iPad Air (2024) will still use an LCD panel, the price will be much lower than the cost of the 12.9-inch OLED iPad Pro (2024). Both the iPad Pro (2024) and iPad Air (2024) will have a landscape-oriented FaceTime camera and upgraded chips (M2 for the iPad Air, M3 for the iPad Pro). We could see the new iPad Pro line feature support for MagSafe wireless charging.

We originally expected the new tablets to surface in March, and then April, and finally it now appears that they will launch in May. The delay, at least in part, has been due to issues that the OLED panel suppliers have had creating the displays for the new iPad Pro models. Earlier this month, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, as much an Apple insider as any tech journalist, said that the new tablets will arrive the week of May 6th. In his latest Power On newsletter released yesterday, Gurman pointed out something that indicates the imminent release of the new tablets.

Gurman noted in the newsletter that inventory levels of the most recent iPad Air (2022) have been declining in retail stores as shipments of the model are cut significantly. This is something that Apple typically does prior to the release of an upgraded device. Shipments of the iPad Pro have not been reduced which could indicate that Apple has a lot of inventory to get rid of, or it could signal that the company plans to keep the iPad Pro (2022) tablets as a lower-priced option after the OLED units launch. 

Apple isn't hosting a big event to mark the introduction of the new iPads and it will instead simply issue a press release to make the announcement.