Shulou(Shulou.com)12/24 Report--

CTOnews.com, December 10 (Xinhua)-- Apple plans to overhaul its iPad product line in 2024, aimed at reducing product mix and boosting sales, according to Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman.

Elsewhere, Goolman said Apple's M3 MacBook Air will be released in the spring and the Vision Pro will be launched as well. In addition: the inventors of the multi-touch screen and Touch ID will step down; the product designers of iPhone and Apple Watch will leave next year.

Ten years ago, the iPad series had only one large and one small product line, and the previous year's old version would be sold at a discount.

Over time, Apple gradually introduced more models, and in addition to the standard and mini series iPad, Apple also expanded new low-end entry-level models, high-end Air and flagship Pro versions, and even later Pro versions were subdivided into two major product lines.

Of course, this strategy must have been originally conceived to attract consumers at all levels, all to sell more iPad, so much so that Apple has made the Mac secondary for years in a row (why your next Mac is a Mac).

But obviously, all of this has already marked the price secretly, and the result is that the iPad product line has become so chaotic that even many consumers who know a lot about electronics will be confused. For example, CTOnews.com often sees friends asking which model they should buy [sweat].

Today, Apple currently sells five main iPad models: Pro, Air and Mini, and the ninth and tenth generations of entry-level iPad.

To be honest, in most cases, there are only slight differences in screen and size between these products, and most of the chips and functions are similar except for entry-level models, and there will really be a lot of people who don't know which one to buy. What's more, there is a very large price difference between the mass storage version and the free version, which leads users to wonder whether to charge more or not.

For example, the current 6799-yuan 11-inch iPad Pro is only a few millimeters larger than the 4799-yuan iPad Air, and other differences are negligible for most users; the 10.9-inch iPad 10 is almost the same as Air, but they are only 1200 yuan short, and only 64GB and 256GB are available.

What is more speechless is that at present, the compatibility of Apple's series of accessories is not uniform at all. for example, there are three kinds of Apple Pencil on sale, of which the new low-end stylus is not suitable for Apple's cheapest entry-level iPad, while the most high-end Pencil is not compatible with the latest iPad.

With Mac becoming popular again after the outbreak, Apple is now fully aware that it needs to sort out its iPad product line as soon as possible, while the once-neglected Mac provides a blueprint, Gurman said.

Compared to the iPad, the Mac series models are easier to distinguish, especially when it comes to laptops.

Currently, Apple offers only two different sizes of MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro and the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Air, and there are obvious differences between the two series. The Pro model has a far-leading display and processor, but the price is also far ahead.

Apple hopes to bring this "clarity" to the iPad line. First, it wants to reduce the confusion between iPad Pro and Air. This means major changes to the Pro series, including accessories such as OLED screens and new mold designs, M3 chips and improved keyboards, which will further consolidate its position as the top model of Apple's iPad series.

In terms of screen size, iPad Pro and Air do have similarities. The iPad Air will be divided into 10.9 inches and 12.9 inches, while the Pro will be 11 inches and 13 inches, drawing on the distinction between MacBook Air and Pro (the latter has a slightly larger screen).

Thanks to this, iPad Air is obviously slightly lower-end than Pro, but it is also much better than the standard version of iPad, which avoids the current mess of iPad Air and iPad 10. It is worth mentioning that the new Pro and Air models will be released around March.

Goolman also mentioned that when the 11th-generation iPad is released, Apple will phase out the ninth-generation model, and the iPad mini will be updated and iterated, mainly with a faster processor.

With the end of production of the ninth-generation iPad, Apple will also phase out a number of older Apple Pencil and other accessories, thus further cleaning up the product line.

When it comes to accessories, the new generation of smart keyboards will fit perfectly with iPad Pro, thus increasing the differentiation with Air. It is said that Apple has no plans to launch new accessories for the iPad Air, and the new 12.9in iPad Air will continue to use the current generation of smart keyboards, so users will have to choose the iPad Pro if they want a better keyboard.

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