When Apple announced the 2021 iPad Pro at its Spring Loaded event, it revealed everything but a release date, saying only that the hardware would be in stores in late May.

Now that may have been optimistic for the more advanced 12.9-inch model. Pre-orders for the new iPad Pro hardware opened yesterday on Apple's site, and delivery dates for the larger version suggest that early adopters will be forced to wait longer.

As Bloomberg first discovered, trying to add the 12.9-inch iPad Pro to a shopping cart on Apple's website shows an estimated delivery date between June 24 and July 8, even for the basic model

while the estimated delivery date for the 11-inch iPad Pro is late May, the most likely culprit for this delay is the mini LED technology debuting on the larger model. While we have not yet had the opportunity to review the new iPad Pro, this new technology should be a significant improvement over the previous generation in terms of image quality.

However, this improvement requires more than 10,000 LEDs on each panel, which is a big step up from the 72 used in the previous generation.

Other generational changes are shared between the 11-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models. The M1 chip, used in last year's MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and Mac mini, is now included, with a 50% increase in CPU performance over the previous generation, an improved front-facing camera, and Thunderbolt support. iPad will also support 5G for the first time, but the cellular version will an additional $200.

Thankfully, other Apple products announced last month do not seem to have such long delivery times. The flashy-looking purple iPhone 12 will ship in early May, with the new Apple TV following a bit later. The colorful new 24-inch iMac will ship in late May for the entry-level model, and a version with an 8-core GPU and additional ports will ship in early to mid-June. Curiously, the $29 single AirTag will arrive in the first half of May, but if you want the $99 value four-pack, you'll have to wait until June.