What to Expect From Apple's April 20 Event: New iPads, AirTags and More

Apple is likely to hold its first event of 2021 on Tuesday, April 20, and it's looking enjoy it will be an iPad-centric event. There are numerous iPad refreshes rumored to be coming for the iPad Pro, iPad mini, and low-cost ‌iPad‌.

We may also see the launch of the AirTags, and there are new Macs on the horizon that may be unveiled in April. Below, we've rounded up everything we could possibly see at the April event which means you know what to anticipate when Tuesday rolls around.

iPad Pro
Refreshed ‌iPad Pro‌ models are expected to be the key event at Apple's April event. Apple will overhaul the 11 and 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ models, but don't search for major external changes -- a lot of what's new will be internal.

Both models will feature an updated A14X chip that's just as powerful as the M1 chip in the Mac mini, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro.

There could be some tweaks to the number of speaker holes and their positions, and the camera lenses may protrude less from the camera bump behind the tablets. The new ‌iPad Pro‌ models could support Thunderbolt, making them appropriate for additional external monitors, hard disks, and peripherals furthermore to adding faster data syncing speeds.

The most known new feature aside from the A14X will be limited by the 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌, which is likely to gain a mini-LED display. Mini-LED technology offers impressive wide color gamut performance, high contrast and HDR, and local dimming, which dims the backlight behind black regions of the screen while keeping the bright parts lit for blacker blacks and better contrast.

‌Mini-LED‌ displays are expensive and difficult to manufacture, so for now, the technology is limited to Apple's highest-end ‌iPad Pro‌. Apple's manufacturing partners are experiencing problems with the mini-LED displays, so it is possible the mini-LED 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ will be accessible in limited quantities when it launches.

More information on what's expected for the 2021 ‌iPad Pro‌ refresh are available in our iPad Pro roundup.

Apple Pencil 3
There have been a few rumors about a third-generation Apple Pencil in the works, and it's possible that another ‌iPad Pro‌ models will be accompanied by a refreshed ‌Apple Pencil‌.

The third-generation ‌Apple Pencil‌ looks like the second-generation version, but with a glossy finish. It's not clear what new features might be included if Apple does refresh the ‌Apple Pencil‌, but there have been rumors of a potential black model.

We haven't heard particularly reliable rumors about a new ‌Apple Pencil‌, so it is not really clear if we will see one at the April event.

More on what we realize about the third-generation ‌Apple Pencil‌ are available in our roundup.

iPad mini
There's an ‌iPad mini‌ 6 in the works, but don't expect major changes. Recently leaked dummy models suggest the ‌iPad mini‌ 6 can look quite similar to its predecessor with thick bezels and a Touch ID Home button.

It is possible these models aren't quite accurate as there have been several rumors suggesting the ‌iPad mini‌ will include a larger 8.5 to 9-inch display, which will be an upgrade from the existing 7.9-inch display and would presumably be implemented through a reduction in bezel size.

Models are often suitable for case makers and sometimes whatever the front of the device looks like, so that it could be that the general sizing is accurate aside from the display, that could perhaps feature smaller bezels. It's also possible that there surely is another more significant update for the ‌iPad mini‌ in the works for future years, but it will come at some point after this more minor refresh.

Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said that Apple is working on an ‌iPad mini‌ with a mini-LED display, nonetheless it doesn't seem like that is clearly a feature that's going to be incorporated with this refresh since it's currently technology rumored limited to the 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌.

Japanese site Mac Otakara said the ‌iPad mini‌ 6 could have an 8.4-inch display with slimmer bezels and a design like the iPad Air 3, and that is possibly the most convincing rumor we've heard as the same design can be rumored for another low-cost ‌iPad‌, and at this time, the ‌iPad mini‌ 5 and eighth-generation ‌iPad‌ are very similar.

There were some not believable rumors that Apple would introduce a "Pro" version of the ‌iPad mini‌ with an 8.7-inch full-screen display and chassis that's wider and shorter, but that rumor doesn't make a whole lot of sense, especially because it suggests a launch will come in the next half of 2021 instead of the spring launch that we're expecting.

Everything we know about the ‌iPad mini‌ 6 can be found in our dedicated iPad mini roundup.