Mass production of the much-rumored 12.9-inch “iPad Pro” may not begin until the second quarter of 2015, says KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
He believes that the iPad Pro will use an oxide panel to achieve a “high resolution, quick response, and high color saturation,” and that the time needed for component yield and assembly to improve will push back production until 2Q 2015.
While earlier reports had indicated the iPad Pro might see an early 2015 release, an October report by The Wall Street Journal claimed Apple was delaying the mass production of the über-large tablet in order to focus its efforts on producing more iPhone 6 Plus units.
Kuo’s report also includes a forecast for iPad sales, which he believes will fall 54.5% quarter-over-quarter to just 9.8 million units in calendar Q1 of 2015. Kuo says a lack of new apps and saturation of the tablet market will be the culprits contributing to the precipitous drop in sales.
Apple sold 16.35 million iPads during the first calendar quarter of 2014, however iPads sales have been down for three quarters in a row.
