Apple has reportedly abandoned plans for a foldable “iPad Ultra” following years of disappointing sales performance for the iPad Pro.
The claim comes mainly from a Weibo writer known as “Instant Digital,” who posted these comments in response to a question about whether the iPad will join the rumored “Ultra” series of Apple devices. Instant Digital listed the Apple Watch Ultra, M-series Ultra chips, “iPhone Ultra,” and “MacBook Ultra” with an OLED display as products on the way, but clearly excluded the iPad from that group, citing the weak market performance of the iPad Pro. They added that Apple now has “no plans” to release an iPad Ultra.
The iPad Pro’s sales problems have been well documented. In October 2024, it was reported that the M4 iPad Pro’s shipment projections had been significantly cut back after weaker than expected demand following the launch earlier that year. DSCC analyst Ross Young lowered his full-year 2024 forecast from 10 million to just 6.7 million, with shipments of the 13-inch model expected to decline by more than 50% and 90% in the third and fourth quarters, respectively.
Young said the sluggish adoption is partly due to the high price, with the 11-inch model starting at $999 and the 13-inch at $1,299, levels that deter consumers who view tablets as secondary devices alongside a smartphone or laptop. iPad revenue has declined for three years in a row, and the category accounts for just 6.73% of Apple’s total revenue in 2025.
In his latest book “Power On”, BloombergMark Gurman said Apple was producing a 20-inch foldable iPad, describing the project as a top priority for Apple’s Senior Vice President of Materials Engineering and future CEO John Ternus. Gurman noted, however, that the device “may end up being a mysterious experiment that never sees the light of day, according to several people who have worked on it.”
The rumored foldable iPadable has had a long and troubled development history. Last October, it emerged that engineering challenges related to weight, features, and display technology had pushed Apple’s intended launch from 2028 to 2029 or later. The device is reportedly developed with a large Samsung OLED display, Apple focused on reducing the visible crease, like the upcoming foldable iPhone.
Prototype units reportedly weigh 3.5 pounds, making them heavier than a 14-inch MacBook Pro and nearly three times the weight of a 13-inch iPad Pro. The device could have been priced as high as $3,900, nearly three times the $1,299 starting price of the 13-inch iPad Pro.
There is also uncertainty about how the product will be distributed. In March, Gurman noted that a “big” foldable iPad would challenge Apple’s tradition of keeping the Mac and iPad as separate product lines, with some internally describing it as a foldable iPad and others as an all-display MacBook. When closed, the device is reportedly Mac-like, with an aluminum shell and no external display. The design is said to be similar to the Huawei MateBook Fold, an 18-inch foldable tablet currently priced at $3,400.
These reports come on the heels of Apple’s rumored plans to expand its “Ultra” brand to more product lines. At least three Ultra devices are believed to be in the works this year alone: a foldable iPhone Ultra priced at around $2,000, AirPods Ultra with Visual Intelligence cameras, and a MacBook Ultra with a touch-enabled OLED display priced up to 20% more than the current MacBook Pro range. The source you are talking to Macworld then confirmed the names iPhone Ultra and MacBook Ultra.
Apple already uses the “Ultra” moniker for the Apple Watch Ultra, M-series Ultra chips, and CarPlay Ultra. The iPad Ultra may seem like a family-friendly, top-of-the-line hardware test, but with the iPad Pro already struggling to find buyers at its current price, the question of whether there’s enough demand for a more expensive iPad may be asking itself.