According to supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple may be on track to release an iPad foldable as early as next year.
said the trusted analyst Tweet Early Monday:
“I am optimistic about the iPad foldable in 2024, and I expect this new model to boost shipments and improve product mix.”
Kuo didn’t provide many new details about the iPad foldable, but he did say that it will feature a “carbon fiber” kickstand produced by Chinese component manufacturer Anjie Technology.
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Thus, I’m taking a cautious approach to iPad shipments for 2023, predicting a YoY decline of 10-15%. Nevertheless, I’m positive about the foldable iPad in 2024 and expect this new model will boost shipments and improve the product mix.— Ming-Chi Kuo (@mingchikuo) January 30, 2023
The 2024 release date Kuo is telling us is much earlier than the latest prediction for the foldable iPad, which came from Display Supply Chain analyst Ross Young in February. Which mentioned that Apple is developing a foldable iPad or MacBook hybrid with a foldable display measuring approximately 20 inches, but predicted that it wouldn’t be ready for release until 2026. Mark Gurman of Bloomberg later reported that Apple was exploring a foldable dual display, He added that the lower half of the screen will serve as a virtual keyboard when using the device as a shell and it will be a MacBook model.
Gorman didn’t provide an exact release date prediction, but he indicated last October that Apple’s iPad foldable could be released “later this decade.”
Gorman even reports that Apple has discussed launching a foldable device with a screen size similar to the 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max. But since there have been no rumors about the foldable iPhone recently, it is difficult to imagine its launch in 2023, as Kuo previously predicted.
In the near future, Kuo expects iPad shipments to decline by between 10 and 15 percent year-on-year in 2023. Given the sales spike most consumer tech companies have enjoyed during lockdowns, and the dips many have seen recently, the drop in This year’s tablet shipments are a big surprise.
Finally, Kuo predicts that the next iPad released by Apple will be the iPad Mini. It is believed that a new model will enter production in the first quarter of 2024, after the device was last updated in 2021.