Apple using the best OLED panels for new iPad Pro, says report

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It’s no secret that Apple is gearing up to announce the next-generation iPad Pro models with OLED panels for the first time. A few days ago, the company even announced the “Let Loose” iPad event for May 7 to announce these new slates. 

With only a week left for the event, a new report has shed light on the OLED panels Apple has used on the next-gen iPad Pro models. 

Dedicated display analyst Ross Young of Display Supply Chain Consultants (DCSS) is at work again and has revealed that Apple is equipping the new iPad Pro models with OLED panels.

The Cupertino firm has selected the “best OLED tablet panels on the market” for its new tablets. In a note to the investors, Young claims,

The OLED iPad panels are expected to be by far the best OLED tablet panels on the market with LTPO, 120Hz refresh, a tandem stack and glass thinning resulting in ultra-thin and light displays with high brightness, extended battery life and long lifetime.

Only the best OLED panels for iPad Pros

The road for the 2024 iPad Pro models is already paved. The new Apple flagship tablets are not getting any significant makeover; only the FaceTime camera is rumored to change spot—from vertical to horizontal. 

The Pro Apple tablets are also rumored to receive the new Apple silicon, which we suspected to be the M3 chip, but recently, Mark Gurman claimed in a report that Apple is skipping M3 and heading to M4 for the new iPad Pros. 

It’s a convoluted claim, to say the least, but today’s Ross Young’s report is all about the OLED panels.

The analyst elaborates further after stating that Apple is using the best OLED panels in the market.

These OLED panels use organic material to emit light, and they don’t require a backlight like LCDs. 

Each pixel is illuminated individually, resulting in better contrast and blacks due to their ability to reduce brightness and blackout pixels in the darker areas. 

However, the downside is that the panels are prone to OLED burn-in. When Apple launched the iPhone X back in 2027, the company claimed to have addressed the issue, but we will have to wait and see what happens with the iPad OLED panels. 

Apple currently uses regular LED panels for the 11-inch iPad Pro and Mini-LED panel for the 12.9-inch variant. 

Mini-LEDs use backlight to balance the contrast and produce perfect blacks like the OLED panels, but not as efficiently. 

Young also states that the OLED panels Apple is employing are thinner due to the absence of backlighting, and because of this new display tech, the new iPad Pro models will be thinner. 

Either way, the wait is only a week. We will be able to fill in the blanks after the May 7 virtual event, which will apparently be accompanied by an in-person event in London.

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