New iPad Pro with 'A14X' chip and Thunderbolt to arrive as soon as April

Apple's next-generation iPad Pro is expected to debut in April with a big performance boost, Thunderbolt compatibility and, for the largest-screened model, a Mini LED display.

Citing sources famliar with the matter, Bloomberg reports the updated iPad Pro models will be powered by a new A-series variant that is as performant as the M1 chip currently found in the MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro and Mac mini.

While the 11- and 12.9-inch tablets are predicted to carry over a design from 2020, Apple could incorporate new internal technologies like Thunderbolt connectivity. The faster I/O protocol was deployed in testing and could make it to production models for compatibility with speedy external hard drives and displays, the report says.

Finally, Apple is working to incorporate Mini LED technology in the larger 12.9-inch iPad Pro, offering better local dimming, color reproduction and contrast ratios than conventional LCD screens.

Beyond iPad Pro, today's report claims Apple is developing a thinner and lighter base iPad for release later this year, as well as an iPad mini refresh with a larger screen.

As usual, most of Bloomberg's information echoes months-old predictions first aired by analyst Ming-Chi Kuo and other industry insiders. In September, Kuo said iPad Pro would be the first Apple device to benefit from Mini LED, while a Mac Otakara report in January claimed the tech would be limited to the larger 12.9-inch model. Earlier today, a report from DigiTimes suggested a Mini LED iPad Pro would ship in April at the earliest.

Apple will likely introduce the new iPad Pro line at a special event in the coming weeks, though the company has yet to announce such a gathering.

Stay on top of the latest Apple news right from your HomePod. Say, "Hey, Siri, play AppleInsider," and you'll get latest AppleInsider Podcast. Or ask your HomePod mini for "AppleInsider Daily" instead and you'll hear a quick update direct from our news team. And, if you're interested in Apple-centric home automation, say "Hey, Siri, play HomeKit Insider," and you'll be listening to our newest specialized podcast in moments.

Latest Exclusives

Latest comparisons

12 Comments

sdw2001 17459 comments · 23 Years

About 3 years ago

Makes sense. I just bought an iPad Air 4, and in many ways it’s on par with the current pro. Others than Face ID and refresh rate, it really is. It also uses the A14, though the pro still has the extra core for GPU. The point is I think some differentiation is warranted now.

tmay 6455 comments · 11 Years

sdw2001 said:

Makes sense. I just bought an iPad Air 4, and in many ways it’s on par with the current pro. Others than Face ID and refresh rate, it really is. It also uses the A14, though the pro still has the extra core for GPU. The point is I think some differentiation is warranted now.

I'm on the original 12.9 inch Pro, so it seems obvious that I should upgrade to the 2021 iPad Pro large screen model.

lordjohnwhorfin 866 comments · 18 Years

Wow. What are we going to do with all this power!

CheeseFreeze 1334 comments · 7 Years

lordjohnwhorfin said:

Wow. What are we going to do with all this power!

That’s actually a really good question. I already had this with my 2nd gen iPad Pro. You have a really capable machine, but the operating system isn’t really setup to do serious work (except using creative apps with the pen). I wish my tablet became closer to macOS when attached to a screen and was capable of running native resolution of that screen; transform from a tablet-first setup to a desktop-first one when attached to a monitor, mouse and keyboard

I ended up using a Mac Mini M1 and even there I think: what am I gonna do with this power? Set aside Unity, FCPX etc, I wanted to play games. I booted the App Store, and boy, what a mess that is. I can’t even search by genre and find some really cool FPS games. It’s so mobile-centric and the games, especially Apple Arcade, don’t cut it.
With Apple being so good at hardware and expecting to release higher-end products this year, it’s time they take gaming more seriously.

CheeseFreeze said:

lordjohnwhorfin said:

Wow. What are we going to do with all this power!

That’s actually a really good question. I already had this with my 2nd gen iPad Pro. You have a really capable machine, but the operating system isn’t really setup to do serious work (except using creative apps with the pen). I wish my tablet became closer to macOS when attached to a screen and was capable of running native resolution of that screen; transform from a tablet-first setup to a desktop-first one when attached to a monitor, mouse and keyboard
I ended up using a Mac Mini M1 and even there I think: what am I gonna do with this power? Set aside Unity, FCPX etc, I wanted to play games. I booted the App Store, and boy, what a mess that is. I can’t even search by genre and find some really cool FPS games. It’s so mobile-centric and the games, especially Apple Arcade, don’t cut it.
With Apple being so good at hardware and expecting to release higher-end products this year, it’s time they take gaming more seriously.

Games for Mac and now the larger iPads are a mess. It wasn't always this way. I actually prefer gaming on my Mac. I played all the MoH games for years on my old powerbooks. I usually can't stand the "turn my iPad into a laptop or desktop" thing, but I think you're right here. iPadOS and iOS just don't seem setup to do serious work. In my Mac I have several Excel files, Word Files, Outlook, two browsers with multiple tabs, sticky notes, messages, everything....all I have to do is swipe right and up and I see everything. I love my iPad Air 4, but beyond sending a few emails or maybe editing a single document, it's not the same.