Apple iPad Pro, MacBook with mini LED display, new AirPods, AirTags to launch in 2021

Apple will launch the iPhone 13 series later this year. Alongside, the company is expected to launch more hardware and software services in 2021. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has revealed Apple’s launch plan for 2021 in his latest investor note. The analyst claims that Apple will release its first augmented reality device in 2021, alongside AirTag item trackers and other products.

Kuo claims that the long-rumoured AirTags will launch in 2021. AirTags is Apple’s version of Bluetooth tags that could be used to track the attached item using your iPhone. There are multiple similar products available from other brands, but Apple’s AirTags are expected to redefine the category using UWB (ultra-wideband) technology found on the iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, and the Pro models.

The analyst also claims that Apple will launch an augmented reality device in 2021. Details about the AR device were not shared in the 9to5Mac report that cited Kuo’s note. It was previously rumoured that Apple will launch its AR glasses sometime in 2022 ‘at the earliest’. YouTuber Jon Prosser had also leaked the alleged prototype design of the Apple Glass. It will look like regular spectacles on the outside and have a plastic frame, at least in the first-generation.

The Apple AR glasses will rely on a paired iPhone, much like the Apple Watch. It will have two displays in the lenses which can be interacted with using gestures in front of them. Moreover, there will be a LiDAR sensor in the frame, which was launched in the new 2020 iPad Pro. Apple Glass will feature wireless charging support.

For 2021, Apple will continue its transition to Apple Silicon from Intel for the Mac. Apple is also tipped to undertake the transition to mini LED display for the iPad Pro and Mac. Kuo had previously tipped that the 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro will come with mini LED displays and Apple Silicon. 

The 12.9-inch iPad Pro launching in Q1 2021 could be the first iPad to come with a mini LED display.

Kuo also added that the new redesigned AirPods will launch in 2021. The entry-level AirPods will have similar design elements to the AirPods Pro. There could be a small stem and replaceable silicone ear-tips.