We’ve been hearing rumors of iPads with OLED screens for quite some time now, and the rumors are likely to persist for a while, with a new report suggesting we won’t see an OLED iPad until at least 2024.
While this isn’t the first time we’ve heard of that year, its persistence in rumors and leaks has led people to believe it’s an accurate time frame. However, according to ETNews, which sounds like progress is being made – the latest source to claim that OLED iPads will arrive in 2024 – Apple has already started producing final prototypes of these devices.
If accurate, Apple could potentially have an OLED iPad on the market by 2024, however, the company is reportedly conducting more stringent than usual display testing on the unannounced device; Strict quality standards.
ETNews also claims that Apple is using a dry etching process on these OLED panels to make them as thin and light as possible, which in turn should help make the entire iPad lighter than the current model.
If you’re worried about the thin screen being fragile, don’t worry, Apple has apparently taken that into consideration as well. The company is said to be developing “special coatings” to improve the durability of the display. Those are two upgrades we’re likely to see from an OLED iPad, the other one expected to improve image quality.
Analysis: Why switch to OLED?
The ability to make screens thinner and devices lighter isn’t OLED’s main advantage, but an upgrade in image quality.
ETNews mentions image improvement as one of Apple’s areas of focus, but doesn’t elaborate. Thankfully, there are already plenty of existing OLED devices on the market — including the iPhone 13 lineup — which gives us a glimpse into the OLED iPad‘s improvements over existing models.
These include better contrast, improved viewing angles, and reduced battery drain when paired with dark wallpapers and themes; because pixels are lit individually.
On paper, using LCD technology has some advantages over OLED, such as better overall brightness, but in practice most of the brightest smartphone screens happen to take advantage of OLED technology.
For now, the standout exception in the mobile space is the mini-LED-based panel used by the iPad Pro 12.9 (2021), which offers close to OLED benefits but no downsides.
It does mean that Apple will likely continue to use mini-LED displays on its best iPads, while models that currently rely on IPS LCD panels will benefit from the OLED upgrade.
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