iPad Pro mini-LED panels may be ready soon — MacBook Pros to follow

iPad Pro 2020
(Image credit: Laptop Mag)

Rumors of an Apple event in March have been swirling lately with some disagreement on when exactly it may be held and what might be announced.

A new report from DigiTimes suggests one of the products we should expect is a refreshed iPad Pro 12.9 that will finally introduce the long-rumored mini-LED displays (via MacRumors).

DigiTimes sources indicated that suppliers have been secured for both the mini-LED chips and backlight units for the displays with production beginning in the first quarter of 2021. This would align well with a March announcement and April rollout of the new iPad Pro.

The report does focus on the iPad Pro 12.9, leaving open the question of whether the smaller iPad Pro won't be updated until later this year or if it will simply lack the new mini-LED panel.

The report also threw its support behind the longstanding claim from Ming-Chi Kuo that the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models expected in the second half of 2021 will feature the new mini-LED displays along with the return of an HDMI port and SD card slot.

The MacBook Pro refresh would be more likely to be announced during WWDC 2021 or perhaps at a fall event. 

While mini-LED isn't exactly a revolutionary change it should represent a significant improvement to the Apple display lineup with higher contrast ratios and brightness, deeper black and improved power efficiency. March is right around the corner so we shouldn't be waiting too much longer.

Sean Riley

Sean Riley has been covering tech professionally for over a decade now. Most of that time was as a freelancer covering varied topics including phones, wearables, tablets, smart home devices, laptops, AR, VR, mobile payments, fintech, and more.  Sean is the resident mobile expert at Laptop Mag, specializing in phones and wearables, you'll find plenty of news, reviews, how-to, and opinion pieces on these subjects from him here. But Laptop Mag has also proven a perfect fit for that broad range of interests with reviews and news on the latest laptops, VR games, and computer accessories along with coverage on everything from NFTs to cybersecurity and more.