Apple's entry-level iPad 12 likely won't arrive until late 2026, based on comments from CFO Kevan Parekh during Thursday's earnings call. The company faces a "difficult compare" for iPad revenue in the March-June quarter, following last year's iPad 11 with A16 chip launch.

Parekh's remarks essentially confirm no iPad 12 update this quarter, ruling out a WWDC 2026 announcement scheduled for June 8-12. Apple expects 14-17% revenue growth year-over-year despite constrained supply.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously reported an A18 chip iPad was "ready to go" for 2026, while Macworld's Filipe Espósito claimed an A19 chip instead. Either processor would bring Apple Intelligence support, unlike the current A16 model. The existing iPad starts at $349 with pink, yellow, blue, and silver options.

No major design changes are expected for the iPad 12, suggesting it will maintain the current model's form factor. Apple Intelligence already powers iPad mini, iPad Air, and iPad Pro models, making the base iPad the only current-generation model without the feature.