Display Shipments for M4 MacBook Air and Low-Cost iPad Expected to Start in October

Display panel shipments for refreshed versions of the MacBook Air and the low-cost iPad will begin in October, display analyst Ross Young said in a tweet for subscribers. Apple is working on new M4 versions of the 13-inch and 15-inch ‌MacBook Air‌ models, as well as a new version of the 10.9-inch ‌iPad‌.

m2 macbook air new blue
Apple is expected to refresh the MacBook Pro, Mac mini, iMac, and iPad mini in October of this year, and it would make sense for a new low-cost ‌iPad‌ to be introduced alongside those devices. Panel shipments that start in October suggest that the low-cost ‌iPad‌ would not be ready for an October event.

As for the ‌MacBook Air‌, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has said that new models with M4 chips will come out in the first quarter of 2025, and on Twitter, he added that the October display shipment timing sounds correct for a Q1 launch.

The October panel shipment timing is unusual for the ‌iPad‌, so we will need to see what Apple has planned in the coming months. Rumors right now suggest that we can count on an October event that features at least some new Macs and iPads.

Related Roundups: iPad, MacBook Air
Related Forums: iPad, MacBook Air

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Top Rated Comments

Dulcimer Avatar
7 months ago
Would be nice to see M4 MBA earlier. Maybe they’re desperate to get off the more expensive N3B process?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MayaUser Avatar
7 months ago
M4 air display production in October when the release should be in March\April?! Kind of odd
Ipad is expected with the mini at October event
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
StuBeck Avatar
7 months ago
Makes it seem like we don't have as good of grasp of release times as we once thought. I remember when the M2 MBP's came out, everyone was convinced for 6 months prior that they were a 2H of the year item...and then they were released in January.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JPack Avatar
7 months ago
Early ship dates allow Apple to pull in the launch date if needed. They want to maximize the revenue of the M4 brand by selling MBP first. If sales lower than expected, they can launch MBA.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MacMikePro Avatar
7 months ago

Makes it seem like we don't have as good of grasp of release times as we once thought. I remember when the M2 MBP's came out, everyone was convinced for 6 months prior that they were a 2H of the year item...and then they were released in January.
Well to be fair with that specific example, those MBP’s were indeed suppose to come out in October of that year, they just got delayed due to all the component shortages going on during that time. This was confirmed basically by Apple themselves as the press release videos were all labeled with “October 2022” or something like that, even though they all got released in January 2023. I can’t remember exactly what it was, but I remember the funny slip up.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
spizzi Avatar
7 months ago

How do they know this for sure? Does this mean there is something different about the new panels?
I have the exact same thought/question: is this suggesting an upgraded panel?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)