Apple readying first iPad redesign in six years

Making the change in material would bring iPads closer to iPhones, which Apple has transitioned from aluminium to glass backs in recent years. (File Picture: AP Photo/Matthias Schrader

Apple is working on a new iPad Pro with wireless charging and the first iPad mini redesign in six years, seeking to continue momentum for a category that saw rejuvenated sales during the pandemic.

The tech giant is understood to be planning to release the new iPad Pro in 2022 and the iPad mini later this year.

The main design change in testing for the iPad Pro is a switch to a glass back from the current aluminum enclosure. 

The updated iPad mini is planned to have narrower screen borders while the removal of its home button has also been tested.

The iPad became an increasingly key part of Apple’s portfolio over the past year as people looked for new ways to work, study and stay entertained at home during Covid-19 lockdowns.

Sales of iPads jumped 43% during the last six months of 2020 compared with a year earlier. 

The gains continued in the first three months of 2021 when the tablets generated $7.8bn (€6.4bn) - a 79% increase from the same quarter a year earlier.

For the new Pro model, the switch to a glass back is being tested, in part, to enable wireless charging for the first time. 

Making the change in material would bring iPads closer to iPhones, which Apple has transitioned from aluminium to glass backs in recent years.

Apple’s development work on the new iPad Pro is still early, and the company’s plans could change or be cancelled before next year’s launch, sources said.

- Bloomberg