iPad and MacBook lines to gain mini-LED by mid 2020

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has previously said he expects Apple to move some devices to mini-LED and now a new research note expands on that. In a note picked up by MacRumors the analyst says that he expects high-end iPad and MacBook products to ship between late 2020 and mid 2021.

The use of mini-LED in products has multiple benefits for Apple. As Kuo notes, it will allow the company to move display manufacturing away from Samsung, instead turning to LG Display. A number of mini-LED component suppliers will also be used, says Kuo, including Epistar, Zhen Ding, Radiant Opto-Electronics, Nichia, Avary Holding, and TSMT.

Apple will also be able to make displays thinner and lighter by moving to mini-LED without impacting color and brightness capabilities. That's important for Apple as it continues to focus on providing some of the best displays in the business. On that note, Kuo points out that the new mini-LED displays will have as many as 10,000 individual LEDs – a huge increase over the 576 used in the upcoming Pro Display XDR.

Given the costs associated with producing mini-LED displays it's expected that iPad Pro and MacBook Pro will be the first to receive them. Sizes of 10-12 inches and 15-17 inches are expected, respectively.

On timing, Kuo says that he expects the iPad Pro to arrive in either the fourth quarter of 2020 or first quarter of 2021. The MacBook Pro will arrive in either the first or second quarter of 2021, according to the note.