Kuo: Apple plans to release a foldable iPad in 2024, featuring a carbon fiber kickstand, as well as an updated iPad mini, after a quiet 2023 for the iPad
Apple could be on track to release a foldable iPad as early as next year, according to supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Context & Ripple Effects
Kuo's earlier coverage positioned the next iPad mini around a chip upgrade and explicitly said a foldable device was unlikely to replace the mini. The new report extends that product split: Apple is reportedly pairing a refreshed small tablet with a separate foldable design after a quiet year for the iPad line.
The report also revisits Kuo's longer-running iPad forecasting, including his earlier predictions of new iPad sizes and a mini refresh. Its significance is not a single replacement device, but a potentially broader iPad range with distinct form factors.
First-order effects
- Apple's reported 2024 iPad plan would add a foldable model with a carbon-fiber kickstand while preserving an updated iPad mini as a separate product.
- The iPad mini's proposed new chip becomes its stated differentiator, rather than the device serving as a bridge to the foldable iPad.
Second-order effects
- Apple's iPad lineup would require clearer segmentation between a compact, chip-led mini and a larger foldable model built around a new physical design.
- Component and accessory choices would diverge across the range: the reported kickstand creates a distinct hardware requirement for the foldable, while the mini refresh centers on its processor.
Third-order effects
- If this roadmap holds, Apple's tablet strategy shifts from periodic size and chip updates toward form-factor segmentation, with foldables added alongside rather than in place of conventional iPads.
- The pattern would make the iPad family less dependent on one all-purpose tablet design, though the supplied coverage does not establish product timing beyond Kuo's reporting.
The trend: Apple's reported iPad roadmap points to a broader move toward differentiated tablet form factors, keeping compact models while testing foldable designs.