I’m planning to buy Apple’s new iPad Pro OLED 2024 as soon as the company’s May 7 launch event concludes, and I have more than one reason to pre-order it for a day-one purchase. I’ll pick it up from the Apple Store at 8am ET on its release date.
I want the new iPad for writing an in-depth iPad Pro OLED review, of course. But, as much as I enjoy being an iPad tech expert, I need a lot more reason to justify spending my money, somewhere in the ballpark of $999, on a tablet. And I suspect consumers, especially in this economy, have the same valid concerns. Based on weeks of credible iPad Pro 2024 leaks, here’s what I expect will end convincing me on May 7.
🙌 It’s going to be a big iPad Pro design refresh. It’s only been a little over a year and a half since the last-gen iPad Pro 11 and iPad Pro 12.9 launched, but they were iterative updates. The transition from an LED-backlit screen to an OLED screen represents the first major iPad Pro upgrade since 2018. It isn’t an iterative update.
This iPad Pro is six years in the making. It isn’t an iterative update.
Think about that. This iPad Pro is six years in the making. The older iPad Pro design had the dated home button and a lot more bezel, and it felt like a big change. I’m expecting a similar jump in this year’s iPad Pro update. The cynical Apple watchers might not understand the immediate benefits of OLED, but having tested a bunch of OLED TVs, like the recent Samsung S95D OLED, I’m a fan of the technology.
🤝 Best ‘Sidecar’ companion. I didn’t always rely on an iPad Pro when traveling, especially because I would always have my MacBook Pro 14 with me. I find the MacBook and macOS more efficient for working on The Shortcut. But as soon as I started using Apple’s Sidecar functionality, things changed.
Sidecar allows me to use any recent iPad as a multi-monitor display. Suddenly, I can leave my six-monitor setup (powered by a Mac Pro) at home without regret and at least travel with two screens (I haven’t fallen in love with the idea of travel monitors because an iPad Pro can do so much more in the same form factor).
I enjoy the stacked dual-screen Lenovo Yoga Book 9i design even more than a combo MacBook and an iPad and, as I noted in my Apple Vision Pro review, I use Apple’s AR headset for virtual monitors. But since I often prefer macOS to Windows and two physical screens based in reality, upgrading to a new iPad Pro is my preference.
🔋 OLED battery life boost. I expect Apple will tout impressive battery life gains from the iPad Pro OLED. Apple CEO Tim Cook and other executives are almost surely going to make a big deal about this and show us some major performance graphs.
The screen technology can exhibit true black colors by turning off individual pixels, something LED-backlit displays cannot do. So, like the current line of OLED-equipped iPhone displays, like the one I used in my iPhone 15 Pro Max review, we’ll see better battery life from the new iPad Pro (especially when using Dark Mode).
⚖️ The iPad Pro dimensions may change. The current iPad Pro lineup is fairly thin at 5.9mm (11-inch) and 6.4mm (12.9), but if I’m carrying both an iPad and a MacBook Pro with me in a bag, I won’t argue with a thinner and lighter design. I very much welcome a sleeker iPad Pro 2024.
New iPad Pro dimensions always mean I have to rebuy accessories. But there may be perks this time around. Apple is expected to announce refreshes of both the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro and an all-new Apple Pencil on May 7.
🤖 Future-proofing for Apple’s AI push. We might not understand the full scope of Apple’s AI roadmap until the WWDC 2024 keynote on June 10. However, the new iPad Pro OLED specs may include Apple’s M4 chipset that’s expected to have new artificial intelligence capabilities, beating the rival Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus and X Elite chips to the market by a couple of weeks.
Apple’s phone-based chip, the Apple A17 Pro already beats Qualcomm’s mobile chip found in Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 phones (as tested in my Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review). So it’ll be no surprise to see Apple fiercely challenge its competition that has already announced plans to release AI processors.
Where I’m not fully sold on the iPad Pro OLED 2024 is where I have questions ahead of the May 7 launch event. As with any more advanced technology that Apple comes out with, we almost always see a price increase. The current iPad Pro 11 costs $799, and I expect the new iPad Pro OLED to be in the ballpark of $999 (at least for the storage size that I want).
I’m also curious as to which iPad Pro OLED colors will be available to buy at launch. The current-gen Pro iPads come in just Silver and Space Gray. I’m a fan of the bolder Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra colors and the leaked iPhone 16 colors. I do fear that the more dynamic hues will be reserved for the rumored iPad Air 2024.
Then, there’s the question of whether I want the iPad Pro 11 or the iPad Pro 12.9. I’ve never found a true winner, as my comparison testing of the two iPad sizes. I’ve been left with the results time and time again: I love the 12.9-inch screen size (when used in Sidecar mode, it mimics a MacBook Pro 14 or MacBook Air 13 display for a more seamless workflow). But the 11-inch version of the iPad Pro fits into a smaller backpack or even a Sling bag along with the laptop, and it’s cheaper.
I’ll be able to answer all of these questions on May 7 and come to a final decision. To that end, I have pre-scheduled X Spaces so that you can get my post-Apple-event analysis and commentary, and even ask me questions live.
