Apple's ultra-thin OLED iPad Pro fails to spark sales surge
Apple's OLED iPad Pro, hailed for its display and ultra-thin design, is reportedly struggling to capture consumer interest as sales plummet well below expectations.
Apple's ultra-thin OLED iPad Pro fails to spark sales surge
Apple's first-generation OLED iPad Pro, launched with much anticipation in May, delivered groundbreaking features such as the thinnest design in the market and the best tablet display ever. However, as of the third quarter of 2024, sales have fallen far behind initial projections.
According to Display Supply Chain Consultants (DSCC), what was expected to be a highly successful product has seen a significant decline in demand.
Apple OLED iPad Pro
The OLED iPad Pro entered the market with two screen sizes, 11.1-inch and 13-inch, and was hailed for its impressive display technology, which includes tandem OLED stacks and LTPS backplanes, all within a super-slim 0.2mm panel. When it launched, Apple expected to ship 10 million units in 2024.
However, the reality has been quite different. By the third quarter, panel shipments had dropped by 40%, with a further 30% decline expected by the end of the year. The larger 13-inch model, priced higher than its smaller counterpart, has been the hardest hit, with a 90% drop in shipments predicted for Q4 2024.
Why sales are falling
Despite its cutting-edge features, several factors contribute to the iPad Pro's underperformance. One of the primary reasons is its high price point.
The 11.1-inch OLED iPad Pro costs $999, while the 13-inch model costs $1,299. For many consumers, these prices are too steep, especially considering that tablets are often viewed as complementary to smartphones or laptops.
Quarterly OLED iPad Pro Panel Shipments by Size and Time Period. Credit: DSCC
As a result, potential buyers may see the iPad Pro as a luxury rather than a necessity, making it easier for Apple to justify such premium prices.
Another factor is iPad longevity. Unlike smartphones, which tend to be upgraded more frequently, tablets have a longer life cycle.
The introduction of a faster M4 processor and superior OLED display hasn't convinced many users to upgrade from their iPads, particularly when rising costs for essentials like food, housing, and energy are putting pressure on household budgets. In that context, upgrading to the latest iPad model is a lower priority for many consumers.
Finally, the need for OLED technology in tablets is limited. While the OLED display offers impressive visual quality, many users aren't swayed by the difference, especially given that the previous iPad Pro models with M2 processors and MiniLED displays still perform exceptionally well.
The shift to OLED doesn't offer enough of a significant upgrade to justify the extra cost for most users, further limiting the overall demand for these high-end tablets.
Apple's earnings are on October 31. More light will be shed on the sales situation then.
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Comments
I seriously consider getting a $950 MacBook Air and skipping iPadOS for good going forward. MacOS is more powerful, but worse for me in a lot of ways as well, and I have a 16" MacBook Pro M3Max as well, but it is too big/heavy for my evening reading/surfing/movie watching, but losing the touchscreen also loses some, I love having the ability to mess with the screen sometimes on the iPad, and sometimes the trackpad. Never been a proponent of putting a touchscreen on a Mac, but if iPad remains neutered, then maybe that is the better answer...
That means that I would have to pay a lot more to get M4 plus new Pencils. No thanks.
And here's the shocking thing - my daughter is still using my old 10.5" iPad Pro from ~2017. So we were all excited to see the apps that were slow and stutter run faster on a brand new iPad Pro - but - they weren't any faster and still stuttered! (Talking PDF viewers and note takers.) Maybe they are performance bound by flash speed, or maybe the rate the programmer set interrupts at or something unrelated to the processor?
So for me, the biggest deal is upgrading the 13" to make it lighter - as a portable device - rather than heavier - as a laptop. My killer app for the iPad is still as a reader - as a replacement for a printer. And please come up with a light keyboard cover again, akin to the 6 ounce one from the 10.5" iPad Pro. I don't need to double the weight of the iPad just so it can rise a half inch above the table. (Amazingly, even the Apple bluetooth Mac keyboard is significantly lighter, and it has no need to be.) Another killer feature would be if they could find a way to iPads could hold their charge for days when off. Typically, whenever I reach for my iPad, it's empty.
Whatever happened sales did not drop 40% iPads, Apples earning reports are available to the public and the overall numbers went up, not down from the same time last year, if Apple or any company expects to sell more if you have an opportunity to upgrade and release your product in a timely manner that is the only chance you have to increase your sales, has Apple upgraded the iPad or the certain desktop Mac computers in a timely manner since the introduction of the M1 Apple Silicon chips many have been missing in action, no upgrades for years, even though the processors are available It’s almost like Intel all over again.
so now we get this. We know the sales rise was real, along with the ruse in sales by dollar, so how real us thus, and if so, what does it mean? A rise in sales if 24% these days, is a lot. We can go back a bunch of years to look at iPhone sales to possibly make some sense of it. When Apple first came out with the big screen iPhones, sales jumped as people were really hyped over it. I warned people, here and elsewhere, that it would affect sales the next year and likely the year after that. So when sales were down about 15% next year, everyone was shocked, and we got more articles about peak iPhone sales and how that was the year before. Then, the next year, sales were flat to the “peak” sales, and the year after, sales rose again.
what happened? When the large screen phones came out a lot of people who would have upgraded the next year, upgraded that year. We also saw some people who would have upgraded two year later upgrading, though in smaller numbers. So when next year came, a lot of people who would have upgraded had already done so the year before and so sales fell. The second year after saw sales flat as some of those who would have bought phones had also already done so. By the third year after, sales were on their normal upward trajectory as very few people upgraded three years early to get the bigger phones.
we know that iPad sales overall had reached a peak, years ago and are down from that. They’re “too good”, which is everyone’s nightmare, if you’re a manufacturer. So it becomes really hard to have new features that move the needle enough to significantly boost sales.
i doybr very much if ipadOS has much to do with thus. I use mine for some heavy purposes and the OS has very little to do with it. I know a bunch of leopard,ex who also have complex apps who don’t let the OS limitations cause them problems. There are a small umber of very vocal people who keep that argument going. It’s not that I wouldn’t want to see some significant OS upgrades, but it doesn’t stop the device from being an excellent tool.
then, as we’ve seen in the forums here, there are those who are opposed to Apple adding these features to iPadOS. They believe that the iPad should be streamlines and straightforward to use. Both views are correct. Apple has been walking a tightrope between trying to add these significant feature sets for this who what mire control and keeping the UI simple for these who want that. It’s not easy. I’m convinced we’ll get more, as Apple adds them, they get criticized for nit being exactly what some people want, and of course, I’m reading how people differ in what they want.
But, if I didn’t have an iMac I don’t know how keen I’d be. I’m in a choir and get sent mp3 rehearsal parts, try adding those to Apple Music on an iPhone or iPad to listen to when out and about, it’s not possible as you need a Mac. It’s hardly a “Pro” feature! It’s lots of silly niggles like this that tarnish using the iPad at times. When an Intel Mac from 10 years ago can add a sound file to your music library but a brand new M4 powered iPad PRO can’t it does make you wonder …
So, yeah, sales are just collapsing. Apple is doomed. Get ready for more iPad disaster when Apple reports 4th quarter earnings on 10/31. "The horror! The horror!"
I have considered one of the new iPad pros as a replacement given the screen is too smashed up to be useable. They are just way too expensive. 3 grand AU to replace everything my current one has is just too much money, as I doubt I’ll notice any performance improvement over my current one given the limitations of iPadOS.
Honestly I think there should only be an iPad, iPad mini and something at the iPad Air price level. Too many models and pro products have gotten really expensive lately.