iFixit has started one of its traditional teardowns on the 12.9-inch M1 iPad Pro, which began arriving to customers on its May 21 launch date. iFixit's teardown delves into the new "XDR" mini-LED display, which is one of the iPad's major new features.
The M1 iPad Pro features new 5G antennas at the sides to enable 5G connectivity, and there's a 10566 mAh (40.33Wh) battery inside.
As for the display, it's slightly thicker than the Liquid Retina display from the prior-generation iPad Pro (0.5mm), and "quite a bit heavier." Unlike a traditional LED display, the mini-LED display in the iPad Pro features a giant grid of tiny LEDs that introduce the contrast and quality improvements seen in the 2021 iPad Pro.
There are 2,596 local dimming zones in the M1 iPad Pro, and each one is a square with four tiny LEDs inside. The non-XDR iPad display, meanwhile, uses a single strip of LEDs along one side, so this inside look at the display gives a great explainer on what's different between the 2020 iPad Pro and the 2021 12.9-inch version.
iFixit shared a YouTube video opening up the iPad Pro, and the full teardown with photos, writeup, and repairability score isn't yet available, but it should be coming in the future.
