Apple is expected to soon foray into the foldable market. Rumours in the past have suggested that the Cupertino company might bring a foldable iPad before a foldable iPhone. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has now hinted that it is doubtful that Apple will replace the iPad mini with a foldable model. He believes that a foldable iPad will be significantly higher priced than the iPad mini, which might make it an unreasonable choice. Instead, Apple could be working on a premium version of the iPad.
Kuo speculates that the higher price of a foldable iPad could prevent Apple from replacing the iPad mini. Furthermore, he believes that the Cupertino company is working on a more premium version of the iPad mini. Its mass shipment is expected to begin by the end of 2023 or the first half of 2024.
A past report had suggested that Apple might come with a foldable iPad before releasing a foldable iPhone. This iPad model is expected to arrive in 2024 and might be in the ‘super-premium’ price range. Apple might be hesitant about a foldable iPhone as it might have to set its price around $2,500 (roughly Rs. 2,07,000) to prevent any competition with the current iPhone lineup.
In related news, Apple recently launched the new iPad (2022) in India. Its price starts at Rs. 44,900 for the 64 GB Wi-Fi-only model and goes up to Rs. 74,900 for the 256GB Wi-Fi + Cellular variant. It gets a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display with a 1,640×2,360 pixel resolution and 500 nits of brightness.
The iPad 2022 gets an A14 Bionic chip that is claimed to provide up to 20 percent better performance and 10 percent better graphics than the previous generation of iPad models. The iPad (2022) gets a 12-megapixel image sensor on the front and the back.
