Apple Plans Samsung Single-Layer LTPS OLED and M5 Chip for iPad Air in Early 2027
Apple plans to put a Samsung single-layer LTPS OLED display and an M5 chip in the iPad Air in early 2027, potentially ending the model's longest-running exterior design in Apple's tablet lineup. The iPad Air has kept the same shell since its fourth generation launched in 2020, through M1, M2, M3 and M4 chip generations. A redesign would follow Apple's 2024 iPad Pro overhaul, which introduced OLED and the first full chassis rework since 2018, sharply reducing thickness.
Apple plans to equip the iPad Air with a Samsung single-layer LTPS OLED panel and an M5 chip in early 2027. The update could bring the model its first major external redesign in four years.
Since the fourth-generation iPad Air was released in 2020, successive versions have retained the same exterior, making it the longest-standing design in Apple's tablet lineup. Internally, the device has gone through M1, M2, M3 and M4 chips, but the enclosure has remained unchanged.
In 2024, Apple introduced OLED to the iPad Pro with its first full chassis redesign since 2018, significantly reducing thickness. The iPad Air and iPad mini have long shared a design language; the original 2012 iPad mini inspired the appearance of the following year's iPad Air.