Apple to Produce 8.5 Million OLED iPad Pro Models This Year

Apple has ordered an initial 8.5 million OLED display panels from South Korean suppliers for its upcoming redesigned iPad Pro models, which are expected to arrive as soon as this month. The refresh will mark the biggest design update to the Pro lineup since 2018.

iPad Pro OLED Feature 2
Apple is relying on different OLED display suppliers for the upcoming ~11-inch and ~13-inch iPad Pro models, with Samsung Display exclusively producing ~11-inch panels and LG Display making the ~13-inch panels. Based on current orders, Samsung will produce 4 million units in 2024, while LG will make 4.5 million units for the year, perhaps suggesting that the larger model is forecast to be slightly more popular.

Industry insiders claim the division of labor is due to changes in Apple's demand outlook for OLED iPad Pro models, as well as the unstable production capacity and yield of the two suppliers, which are both still getting to grips with Apple's requirement for new panel technologies.

Apple is rumored to be aiming for "unrivaled" display quality, as well as a design that cuts down on the thickness and weight of its ‌iPad Pro models. Recent leaked CAD drawings of the upcoming models offer a better idea of just how thin the tablets will be. The larger ‌iPad Pro‌, for example, will be over 1mm thinner.

The number of OLED panels Apple orders from Samsung and LG may change after production of the initial quantity, depending on fluctuations in production yield and possible adjustments to Apple's demand forecast for the new ‌OLED ‌iPad‌ Pro‌ models. Apple's latest shipments forecast is said to have been a decrease from the 10 million units that were projected for 2024 last year.

Apple's ‌iPad Pro‌ models are also expected to be upgraded with faster 3-nanometer M3 chips, and MagSafe charging is a possibility. Apple is also expected to sell the devices with a new Magic Keyboard and an upgraded Apple Pencil. For all the details, refer to our OLED iPad Pro guide.

(Via DigiTimes.)

Related Roundup: iPad Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPad Pro (Caution)

Popular Stories

iphone 16 display

iPhone 17's Scratch Resistant Anti-Reflective Display Coating Canceled

Monday April 28, 2025 12:48 pm PDT by
Apple may have canceled the super scratch resistant anti-reflective display coating that it planned to use for the iPhone 17 Pro models, according to a source with reliable information that spoke to MacRumors. Last spring, Weibo leaker Instant Digital suggested Apple was working on a new anti-reflective display layer that was more scratch resistant than the Ceramic Shield. We haven't heard...
apple watch ultra yellow

What's Next for the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3

Friday April 25, 2025 2:44 pm PDT by
This week marks the 10th anniversary of the Apple Watch, which launched on April 24, 2015. Yesterday, we recapped features rumored for the Apple Watch Series 11, but since 2015, the Apple Watch has also branched out into the Apple Watch Ultra and the Apple Watch SE, so we thought we'd take a look at what's next for those product lines, too. 2025 Apple Watch Ultra 3 Apple didn't update the...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Reaches Key Milestone Ahead of Mass Production

Monday April 28, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple has completed Engineering Validation Testing (EVT) for at least one iPhone 17 model, according to a paywalled preview of an upcoming DigiTimes report. iPhone 17 Air mockup based on rumored design The EVT stage involves Apple testing iPhone 17 prototypes to ensure the hardware works as expected. There are still DVT (Design Validation Test) and PVT (Production Validation Test) stages to...
Beyond iPhone 13 Better Blue

20th Anniversary iPhone Likely to Be Made in China Due to 'Extraordinarily Complex' Design

Monday April 28, 2025 4:29 am PDT by
Apple will likely manufacture its 20th anniversary iPhone models in China, despite broader efforts to shift production to India, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In 2027, Apple is planning a "major shake-up" for the iPhone lineup to mark two decades since the original model launched. Gurman's previous reporting indicates the company will introduce a foldable iPhone alongside a "bold"...
iPhone 17 Air Pastel Feature

iPhone 17 Air Launching Later This Year With These 16 New Features

Thursday April 24, 2025 8:24 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the iPhone 17 Air sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
iPhone 17 Pro Blue Feature Tighter Crop

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 13 New Features

Wednesday April 23, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of April 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
iPhone 17 Pro on Desk Feature

All iPhone 17 Models Again Rumored to Feature 12GB of RAM

Tuesday April 29, 2025 3:36 am PDT by
All upcoming iPhone 17 models will come equipped with 12GB of RAM to support Apple Intelligence, according to the Weibo-based leaker Digital Chat Station. The claim from the Chinese leaker, who has sources within Apple's supply chain, comes a few days after industry analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that the iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max will all be equipped with 12GB of RAM. ...

Top Rated Comments

Contact_Feanor Avatar
15 months ago
"Apple to Produce 8.5 Million OLED iPad Pro Models This Year"

And people thought the iPad lineup was confusing with just 6 models before, wait until they have 8.5 million models!
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iPay Avatar
15 months ago

I'm asking here because I don't know.
I've seen this type of statement several times in different news items.

When articles refer to things like "getting to grips with Apple's requirement for new panel technologies" does this mean Apple designed the panel, and gave the design to the manufacturers to make, or is it more of a "We want a panel of X size, with Y brightness, and Z refresh rate. Now go off and design and make that for me please"?
Seems Apple had design requirements in this case (+ price, of course). Quoting from the same source as this article:

Usual OLED panels for typical smartphones cost anywhere from $50 to $60, while OLED panels for the 11-inch iPad Pro could be priced around $280 to $290. The pricing of the OLED panel for a 13-inch iPad Pro could be $380-$390. This is because of the larger screen size and the tandem OLED panel technology that Apple has opted for. This new technology, which uses two layers of OLED stacked on top of each other, will greatly improve the brightness and reliability of OLED panels. The tandem structure OLED panel from LG Display reportedly improves the lifetime of the panel by 4x, while the efficiency improves by 1.5x-2x compared to OLED with a single-layer structure.

Due to this price increase, the pricing of the iPad Pro is also expected to be higher. Some reports claim that the newer-generation 11-inch iPad Pros will be priced $100-$150 higher than current-generation iPad Pro models. The 13-inch iPad Pro that is expected to be launched this year could be $150-$200 pricier than 13-inch iPad Pros with Mini-LED screens.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Apple Mac Daz Avatar
15 months ago
My wallet is waiting come on Apple release them
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bluegt Avatar
15 months ago
Which panel is better? LG or Samsung?

LG is the longstanding king of OLED… :D
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FloridaScrubJay Avatar
15 months ago
My wallet is awaiting the Pro 13”
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jim Lahey Avatar
15 months ago

At some point they'll make a touch screen laptop, everyone will piss their pants with joy and argue about how they were right to wait as long as they did for some inexplicable reason, and iPad sales will plummet...because that's the real reason they've been waiting on a touch screen for so long.
Personally I have no interest in touchscreen MacBooks. But simply, whoever signed off on notched laptop screens must have been dropped on their head as a baby. And whoever agreed to delete Space Gray on the MacBook Pro should be doing hard jail time.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)