A well-known Apple supply chain analyst said that Apple's 2024 iPad product line update will include the new iPad Air, and a new 12.9-inch version is said to be launched soon. There are rumors in the market that Apple will launch new iPads in 2024, of which the iPad mini and iPad Pro are the most popular. In a report by Tianfeng International analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the often-overlooked iPad Air seems to have another option.

Ming-Chi Kuo wrote in a Medium article on Sunday that two iPad Air models are planned to be mass-produced in the first quarter of 2024. Based on the 10.9-inch model, a 12.9-inch model will also be launched. Although this model does not have the miniLED technology of the iPad Pro, it will still get some display improvements by using the same specifications of the oxide backplane.

This is not the first time there have been rumors of a larger iPad Air. In October this year, a report also made the same size claim.

Ming-Chi Kuo also said that two OLED iPad Pros will replace the miniLED version by the end of the first quarter or the second quarter of 2024. These models will use new form factors, M3 processors, and OLED panels will use Tandem design and LTPO backplanes.

Mass production of the OLED version will be delayed to the first or second quarter, rather than the beginning of the first quarter as planned, apparently due to OLED panel supply issues.

Ming-Chi Kuo warned that if the price of the new 10.9-inch iPad Air remains unchanged and the price of the 12.9-inch iPad Air "will definitely be more expensive," then Apple may increase the price of the OLED iPad Pro models to "maintain" the "price gap" between the two series.

Regarding "more affordable models", Ming-Chi Kuo believes that the mass production of the new iPad mini will be postponed to the second half of 2024, while the previous forecast was the first quarter. The 11th generation iPad will also be mass-produced in the second half of the year.

At the same time, Ming-Chi Kuo believes that the ninth-generation iPad will "enter the phase-out period" before the end of 2024.