The 13-inch iPad Professional M4 (2024) is getting simpler to restore, however the Pencil Professional is “disposable”

The brand new 13-inch iPad Professional M4 (2024) has arrived at iFixit‘s headquarters and this implies one factor and one factor solely: it is dismantled.

The repairability staff calls the slate “a formidable little bit of expertise”, however the Pencil Professional known as “a disposable piece of …”, so there you have got it.

On the show

As pill (and Apple) aficionados know, the 13-inch iPad Professional M4 (2024) boasts a Tandem OLED, often known as the Extremely Retina panel. This show is accessible solely by the display screen, very like its LCD predecessors. Though the adhesive securing the display screen isn’t overly aggressive, the restore course of stays daunting and never for the faint of coronary heart. The Extremely Retina panel is prone to be pricey to exchange, posing a danger of harm throughout repairs.The brand new panel is a outstanding feat of engineering. Manufactured by Samsung and LG, the Tandem OLED panel gives a peak SDR brightness of 1000 nits, a considerable improve from the 600 nits on the sixth technology iPad Professional. The distinction ratio can be doubled, leading to brighter whites and darker blacks.

Apple’s rationalization of the expertise simplifies its complexity. As an alternative of stacking two OLED panels, the normal OLED stack has been modified to incorporate extra electroluminescence layers inside every diode. This enhancement boosts the sunshine and colour transmission, mimicking the impact of stacked OLEDs however sustaining a single OLED on the board. Moreover, Tandem OLEDs have an extended lifespan, making their inclusion a sensible alternative.

On the battery

A big win for repairability within the iPad Professional 13 is the improved battery substitute course of. For the primary time, the battery might be accessed instantly after eradicating the display screen. Whereas there are nonetheless some screws and brackets to navigate, it is a huge enchancment over earlier fashions:

–Shahram Mokhtari, iFixit, Could 18, 2024

Regardless of being the thinnest gadget Apple has ever produced, the brand new iPad Professional prioritizes battery substitute, which is nothing in need of nice information.

Regardless of the victory with battery substitute, the iPad Professional 13’s ultra-thin design brings vital repairability challenges. A number of parts, together with the daughterboard*, audio system, and coax cables, are glued down because of area constraints. Which means trying to take away these elements dangers damaging them, as they don’t seem to be secured with screws. The fragile nature of those parts provides a layer of issue to repairs.

*The motherboard is the principle circuit board in a tool that homes the first parts, such because the processor and reminiscence. A daughterboard is a smaller circuit board that connects to the motherboard to offer further features or options. Primarily, the daughterboard extends the capabilities of the motherboard with out taking on an excessive amount of area.

The Pencil Professional state of affairs (and total impressions)

The Pencil Professional, although a sophisticated device, poses vital restore challenges. Its battery isn’t simply replaceable, making the Pencil Professional a disposable merchandise as soon as the battery dies. That is disappointing given its capabilities.Nevertheless, this does not cease iFixit’s creator from concluding the next: