Those in the know say Apple will release its first new iPad models in over a year early in May

Bloomberg cites people familiar with the matter for stating that the long-awaited iPad Pro (2024) series, the first iPad to sport OLED panels, will be released along with the iPad Air (2024) in early May. This extends the April time frame for the launch of the tablets that was recently the subject of a story by the news organization's Mark Gurman. About a week and a half ago, Chinese publication It Home had said that the tablets would be released on March 26th, but Gurman was adamant about an April release.

The iPad Pro (2024) will come with both an 11-inch and a 12.9-inch model and thanks to the use of an OLED display for the first time on any iPad, the price is expected to be much higher. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro, with its new OLED screen, will probably bring on a case of severe sticker shock. But Apple has devised a cure for this. It added a 12.9-inch iPad Air (2024) model that will have a display just as large as the one on the iPad Pro, but being an LCD panel, the price will be more down to earth. The new, larger iPad Air will be released alongside the traditional 10.9-inch model.

The iPad Pro (2024) tablets have codenames J717, J718, J720, and J721. The series will be powered by the powerful 3nm M3 SoC. Apple will release revised accessories for the line including a new Apple Pencil, and a new Magic Keyboard. There is also speculation that the iPad Pro will gain support for MagSafe wireless charging. And Apple is moving the front-facing camera to a landscape orientation. The iPad Air (2024) will see a processor upgrade from the M1 to the M2. The tablets will also have a landscape-oriented front-facing camera.

In the middle of an industry-wide slump, Apple released no new tablets last year for the first time since it launched the first iPad in 2010. With that year off, Apple is hoping that strong demand is generated for the refreshed iPad models.