Apple Still Has Big iPad Plans for March

We’ve been hearing since last year that Apple has some big new products in store for March, and while that partially came true with last week’s new M3 MacBook Air lineup, the month isn’t even halfway over yet — and neither is Apple.

Although some early reports hinted that Apple would be holding another event to unveil its spring product lineup, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman threw some cold water on that notion in last week’s Power On newsletter, noting that while “new Mac, iPad, Apple Pencil, and Magic Keyboard updates are coming,” we shouldn’t “expect a launch event.”

Instead, Gurman said that Apple’s marketing teams would be announcing them soon, but quietly — and, apparently, separately.

After the new M3 MacBook Air models came out via press release last week — on the first Monday of March, no less — some were wondering what that meant for Apple’s rumored iPad lineup. One theory is that Apple may have simply been clearing the stage so that it could hold an event later this month to focus exclusively on the iPad. Another is that Apple may do the same later this month, with a quiet newsroom announcement heralding the new lineup.

It’s hard to tell which way Apple will go on this one, as the new iPad lineup is rumored to be significant enough that it could deserve some stage time. After all, if everything we’ve heard is true, we’ll be seeing the first-ever OLED iPad Pro with a noticeably thinner design, plus a larger 12.9-inch iPad Air for the first time ever, and a new slate of iPad accessories. Then there’s the fact that these will be the first new iPad announcements in nearly 18 months after 2023 became the first completely quiet year in the history of Apple’s tablet releases — an omission that was conspicuously reflected in Apple’s last earnings report.

However, Gurman hasn’t deviated from his previous stance that we shouldn’t expect a launch event, and it’s fair to say that if Apple did have something in the works, there should be some murmurings about it by now — in fact, Apple might even be getting ready to record some of the sessions for what would undoubtedly be another virtual event.

At one time, Apple’s obsession with thinness would have warranted an event simply to show off the new “impossibly thin” iPad Pro. However, the company has become far more pragmatic about such things in recent years, making it more believable that a quiet announcement may be all that’s in the cards.

Hence, the lack of an event shouldn’t be taken as a sign that Apple’s new 2024 iPad lineup won’t be exciting. There’s been enough smoke in the rumor mill that we already have a pretty good idea of what to expect, and Gurman has confirmed everything we’ve heard — and that we can expect it to arrive in early April at the latest,

When I first wrote that Apple was planning new MacBook Airs and iPads for this spring, I noted that the Macs would arrive first. That did happen. But that doesn’t mean the other products aren’t coming. As I’ve written several times, Apple is preparing to launch revamped iPad Pros, new iPad Airs (including a 12.9-inch version), a Magic Keyboard and upgraded Apple Pencil. Look for that new hardware around the end of March or in April, as that’s when the accompanying iPadOS 17.4 software should be ready to go. Mark Gurman

To recap, we’re expecting a new iPad Air that will likely pack in Apple’s M2 chip, redesigned cameras, and come in two sizes for the first time, with the venerable 10.9-inch model joined by a larger 12.9-inch counterpart.

This will likely be the most significant change to the makeup of the iPad family in years, although the iPad Pro is also expected to finally get an OLED screen and move to the latest M3 chip that’s now gracing Apple’s entire MacBook lineup, with rumors that it’s also set to gain a landscape camera, taking its cue from the 10th-generation iPad released in late 2022. More recent reports have suggested the iPad Air could also follow suit, which would make sense for consistency.

These will be accompanied by a new Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil, but it’s less clear how much these will be about new features rather than changes required by the new iPad designs. For instance, the Magic Keyboard is a form-fitting accessory that will need some changes to accommodate the thinner OLED iPad Pro.

Further, the second-generation Apple Pencil docks to the side of the current iPad Pro, iPad Air, and iPad mini models, where it also charges. If the camera moves to that position on the new models — which most reports suggest it will — Apple is going to have to change that dynamic, requiring a new Apple Pencil that can dock somewhere else or charge in some other way. As for what other features an Apple Pencil could have? Rumors have swirled for years about possible new “Apple Pencil 3” features, but so little has come of these so far it’s hard to say how many are based on solid information and how many are wishful thinking.

While more reliable sources like Gurman confirm that these accessories are coming, he’s been mum on what new features they’ll have, which suggests that we probably shouldn’t get our hopes up too much. The next-gen Apple Pencil could gain some minor improvements like replaceable tips or new touch controls, and the new Magic Keyboard could make some room for the pencil, depending on where it now docks, but other long-rumored features like color sensors seem less likely at this point.

Either way, we shouldn’t have to wait too long to find out. If Apple plans to announce the new iPad lineup by press release, that could surprise us any day now.

[The information provided in this article has NOT been confirmed by Apple and may be speculation. Provided details may not be factual. Take all rumors, tech or otherwise, with a grain of salt.]