Rumors about Apple shifting to miniLED displays across a number of its product lines started all the way back in September of last year, but the timeline for the release has been a moving target.
Last month, reliable Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo amended his previous estimates and indicated that the first miniLED products wouldn't arrive until Q1 of 2021. We now have further clarification from another analyst with a solid track record, Jeff Pu of GF Securities, who provided an updated timeline for the forthcoming MacBook Pro, iPad Pro and iMac (via MacRumors).
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According to Pu, a refreshed iPad Pro 12.9-inch will be the first miniLED product from Apple to make its way to consumers; It will arrive in Q1 of 2021, aligning perfectly with Kuo's projections.
Next up will be the 16-inch MacBook Pro, which will arrive in Q2 2021 and it will be followed sometime in the second half of 2021 by a new 27-inch iMac with a miniLED display.
This notably leaves out a number of the miniLED products that we have seen rumored in the past, including a 14-inch MacBook Pro, a 10.2-inch iPad, and, finally, a 7.9-inch iPad mini. Whether the predictions indicate that these products won't make it to market in 2021 or will arrive late in 2021, is unknown.
We were impressed with the first miniLED laptop from MSI that we saw back in CES. The laptop it was on, the MSI Creator 17, is already shipping.
Apple's motivation for using miniLED is that the technology offers a solid compromise between standard LED and microLED, with weight and space savings that Apple appreciates, along with a boost in contrast ratios, brightness, and black levels.
As we move closer to the second half of 2020, we expect to hear more about the rest of the planned miniLED lineup from Apple.
