Apple's new iPads have been 'repeatedly postponed,' suppliers say

Apple has long been heavily rumored to be working on brand-new OLED iPad Pros and a refreshed iPad Air with a potential all-new 12.9-inch variant, but when those tablets would actually launch has been a bone of contention. In just the past few weeks we've seen various claims of when they would arrive with March, April, and now May tipped as potential launch timeframes. But while it could be taken as leakers not really knowing what's going on inside Apple's supply chain, that same supply chain has potentially shed some light on the confusion.

According to Apple's suppliers, the new iPads have been "repeatedly postponed" with DigiTimes' report mentioning that a new product launch could potentially happen in May. That's the timeframe that we'd previously been given by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, suggesting that might finally be when the new tablets are unveiled officially.

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Gurman had previously pointed to early May as a likely window and had said that Apple's supply chain partners had already started to ramp up production ahead of time. Both LG Display and Samsung Display have also been rumored to have started working on displays for the new tablets.

• Read more: Apple's new M5 iPad Pro OLED displays from Samsung and LG enter mass production, ready for 2026
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Apple has not updated the iPad Pro or iPad Air since 2022 and 2023 was the first year that no new iPads of any description were released. However, 2024 looks set to see the arrival of multiple newly updated tablets.

If all of the rumors turn out to be true the new iPad Pro will be the best tablet Apple has ever made. Both 11- and 12.9-inch models are rumored to be getting a refresh with the new OLED displays. Those displays are expected to provide better colors, deeper blacks, and more while the internals are expected to gain Apple's latest M3 chip - an upgrade over the previous M2 Apple silicon.

As for the iPad Air, this year is set to see the current 11-inch size joined by a new 12.9-inch model that will offer an alternative for people who want a large-screen tablet but don't want to pay for the Apple Pro. The new models are both expected to use M2 chips, upgrades over the M1 of the previous model.

Both the new iPad Pro and iPad Air lineups have been tipped to move the FaceTime selfie camera from the top of the display to the side just like the 10th-gen iPad.

Alongside the new tablets, we're also expecting Apple to announce a new Magic Keyboard with a sturdier construction as well as the Apple Pencil 3.