On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through Apple's upcoming overhaul of the iPad mini and iPad Air, looking at the future of the product lineup as a whole.
Watch on YouTubeThe headline upgrade for the iPad mini 8 is a switch from LCD to OLED display technology. The device is expected to use a single-stack LTPS panel, which is dimmer than the tandem OLED in the iPad Pro, but a substantial step up from the current display. The screen will also likely grow from 8.3 to 8.7 inches, and ProMotion is a possibility.
On the chip, sources disagree. Code Apple accidentally published in August pointed to the A19 Pro, but other evidence suggests the device will use the unreleased A20 Pro chip instead. The N1 and C1X chips are also highly likely to be present.
Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that Apple is also working on a more water-resistant design, which would make new the iPad mini the first to carry an official IP rating. Apple is said to have developed a vibration-based speaker system that eliminates traditional speaker holes, removing a primary path for water ingress.
The scale of the upgrades strongly suggests a redesigned, thinner chassis to accommodate them. Gurman says the upgrades could push the price up by as much as $100 to around $599. The leaker known as "Instant Digital" has said the device will launch in the second half of 2026 at the earliest.
Apple is also expected to update the iPad Air in early 2027, with the headline change similarly being a switch to OLED. Like the iPad mini 8, the next-generation iPad Air is expected to use a single-stack LTPS panel supplied by Samsung, keeiping costs down relative to the tandem OLED in the iPad Pro. Arriving over six years after the device's last redesign, it is also likely to feature a new design similar to the iPad mini, along with the M5 chip.
The next iPad Pro is expected in spring 2027, with an M6 chip and a vapor chamber cooling system similar to the one Apple introduced in the iPhone 17 Pro, but no design changes are rumored. With the iPad Air set to close the gap significantly by adopting OLED and a thinner design, the Pro's key differentiators will narrow considerably. A more transformative reason to choose the Pro may not arrive until Apple launches its long-rumored foldable iPad, which Gurman says will feature an 18-inch display. The device has faced development hurdles around weight and display technology and is now expected no earlier than 2029, with a price potentially reaching $3,900, up to three times the cost of the current 13-inch iPad Pro.
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If you haven't already listened to the previous episode of The MacRumors Show, catch up to hear our discussion about all of the rumors surrounding Apple's upcoming foldable iPhone, now said to be called the "iPhone Ultra," which is shaping up to be a comprehensive redesign unlike anything the company has shipped before.
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