Kuo: Apple Cancels Plans to Release iPad Air With OLED Display in 2022, Plans to Stick With LCD Technology - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Kuo: Apple Cancels Plans to Release iPad Air With OLED Display in 2022, Plans to Stick With LCD Technology

Apple has canceled its plans to release an updated iPad Air with an OLED display next year due to concerns around quality and costs, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today in an investor note obtained by MacRumors.

OLED iPad Air
In March, Kuo reported that Apple had an ‌iPad Air‌ with an ‌OLED‌ display in the pipeline for next year. Today, Kuo has revised his prediction, saying that will not be the case since Apple has canceled those plans due to costs and performance not meeting the company's expectations.

Kuo had previously stated that the 11-inch iPad Pro would be receiving a mini-LED display next year, and Kuo today doubled down on that claim by saying it will be the "focus of [the] iPad line in 2022." Currently, only the 12.9-inch iPad Pro includes the newer mini-LED technology. One reason Kuo states that Apple had canceled its ‌OLED‌ ‌iPad Air‌ is that it may have been detrimental to the sales of the forthcoming 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ with a mini-LED display.

While Apple plans to stick with an LCD display for the ‌iPad Air‌, Kuo says the company continues to research and develop newer display technologies for the ‌iPad‌ line. A report last week suggested that Apple and Samsung had abandoned their joint plans to develop an ‌OLED‌ display for a forthcoming updated 10.9-inch ‌iPad Air‌.

Related Roundup: iPad Air
Buyer's Guide: iPad Air (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

iPhone 18 Pro Rumored Colors

Apple Cutting Back 2026 Hardware Shipments Due to Memory Shortage

Monday August 10, 2026 11:38 am PDT by
Apple is scaling back its hardware shipment plans in 2026 due to DRAM shortages, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today. Kuo made the comment in a longer piece disputing a recent report suggesting TSMC has $1 billion of unpackaged processors waiting on memory chips that Apple has been unable to secure. Kuo said Apple plans processor production at least three months in advance based on the...
M3 iPad Air

iPad Air Could Finally Be Redesigned Next Year

Friday July 31, 2026 6:00 pm PDT by
The iPad Air has looked the same since 2020, making it the longest-running design in Apple's tablet lineup. There is a reasonable case that 2027 could be when that comes to an end. Apple last gave the iPad Air a new enclosure in 2020, when the fourth-generation model introduced flat sides, an all-screen front, and Touch ID in the top button. The subsequent M1, M2, M3, and M4 updates were all ...
m3 ipad air mint

iPad Air OLED Panel Orders Could Be Split With BOE in 2027

Tuesday August 11, 2026 4:36 am PDT by
BOE wants a share of the OLED supply chain for Apple's next iPad Air, aiming to land a secondary sourcing role behind primary supplier Samsung Display, according to a report from South Korea's The Elec. Sources cited by The Elec say the Chinese panel maker is building out its iPad Air OLED effort at its B12 fab in Chongqing, home to BOE's sixth-generation OLED production line, ahead of the...

Top Rated Comments

64 months ago
Me: Customer Cancels Plans to Buy iPad Air in 2022, Plans to Stick With old iPad Air.
Score: 83 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacStreamer Avatar
64 months ago
It never made sense for the Air to get OLED when the 12.9 Pro just got miniLED.
Score: 35 Votes (Like | Disagree)
64 months ago
Getting harder and harder for me to be motivated to upgrade ANYTHING Apple this year.

Would have upgraded one of my iPads to something OLED, now.....meh.

I went into the summer expecting to upgrade my 11PM, Mini 5, and even my AW6. Same for my GF with her XS max and AW3, now......we "might" get the 13PM around the holidays, if at all.

News like this doesn't help to motivate me.

From "I have to have the latest and greatest" to "what I have works so well I'll just.....not" in 2 short years.
Score: 34 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cmaier Avatar
64 months ago

Maybe the real reason is because they’re finally realizing that OLED PWM flickering is not good for anyone. We can only hope.
Where’s even one peer-reviewed clinical study published in a reputable medical journal that says that?
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Bodhitree Avatar
64 months ago
Really, who cares what Kuo or the other ‘leakers’ say? It is so much hot air until Apple officially announce the products.
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Robert.Walter Avatar
64 months ago
Jelly scroll is not as popular as jelly roll?
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)