iPad Pro With LG-Supplied Mini-LED Display to Launch During Q1 2021: REPORT

LG will supply Apple with mini-LED displays for new iPad models set to launch in the first quarter of 2021.

There’s been no shortage of reports over the past few months confirming that Apple is actively working on mini-LED display technology for its next-generation MacBooks and iPads Pro, but the only real question continues to be when we’ll actually see the technology arrive.

Now, evidence continues to grow that 2021 will bring an iPad with mini-LED. An unconfirmed report from Korea’s ETNews says LG Display will supply this cutting-edge screen to Apple, with production supposedly beginning before the end of 2020. Earlier leaks indicated this will go into an iPad Pro that’ll debut in the first half of 2021.

LG Display has been tagged to produce the new displays for Apple, with mass-production expected to kick off by the end of 2020, ensuring that the displays are ready to be assembled into new iPad Pro models that could begin shipping as soon as next March.

The timing would be somewhat appropriate, since it would be a year after the current iPad Pro model was released. Apple has also traditionally released at least some iPad models during that timeframe.

The jury is still out on whether Apple will offer 5G-capable versions of the new iPad Pro models, but they will almost certainly feature an enhanced version of Apple’s A14 chip — likely an A14X.

While the report does not reveal which model or models of the iPad will come with a Mini-LED in the first quarter of 2021, popular leakster, L0vetodream, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, and Digitimes have all claimed in the past that the iPad Pro 12.9 will be the first device to get the Mini-LED treatment. Other iPads might follow soon.

The use of mini-LED will bring many of the same advantages of OLED, including improved contrast, power efficiency, and brightness capabilities. The new screens will also likely be thinner and lighter than the standard LCD-based screens that are in use today.