We’ve been hearing about it for years Apple’s hypothetical plans to design a foldable iPad. We already repeated this in 2019, and since then we’ve regularly seen new rumors and leaks pointing in all sorts of directions, from setting a date and time to its launch to “confirming” that the project will be canceled. All of this, of course, without Apple saying a single word about it publicly.

How could it not be otherwise, rumors of a foldable iPad They were perfectly complemented by those from the foldable iPhone, which we have also been talking about for a long time, but which still looks like it will not come to market. So much so that, as we told you at the end of last year, Samsung thinks (and must have reasons) that Apple’s leap into the market for devices with foldable screens will start with the tablet and that the smartphone will come later.

Shortly after Samsung’s opinion emerged, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that Apple would delay the launch of the first foldable iPad until at least 2025, perhaps waiting for the price of this type of screen to drop. However, we started 2023 with new information that again pointed to 2024 as the year chosen by the Cupertinos for their launch, which seems somewhat complicated today because All indications are that Apple is now focusing primarily on the Apple Vision Pro.

In this context, and according to a Digitimes report (behind a paywall) Apple is already hard at work preparing the supply chain for the production of the foldable iPad with the goal of bringing it to market in 2025.. This information is important because Digitimes tracks the supply chain quite closely, which is a very reliable source of the future plans of technology companies.

According to sources cited in the said Apple publication The final design does not exist yet. foldable iPad, mainly due to cost-cutting efforts, but also due to concerns about the screen, especially its creasing, and the hinge, two key elements of this type of device. At this point, I would work with Samsung and LG to come up with panel solutions and mechanical designs that alleviate this problem while being easy to manufacture to keep costs down.

Although it is scheduled to hit the market in 2025, it has also been suggested that It could be announced sometime in 2024. So perhaps the company will opt for a similar calendar used with the Apple Vision Pro, meaning it could introduce the foldable iPad during WWDC 2024 and start selling it in early 2025.