Apple Event part 2: The new M1 iPad Air (the affordable version of the ipad pro 2021?)
Posted by Tehillah Mwakalombe on 10th Mar 2022
Other than the new installment to the IPhone SE line, apple also announced A new iPad Air with an M1 chip and 5G support. An iPad Pro wasn’t announced yet, but we're still expecting an iPad Pro later this year. As Apple updates its tablets twice a year, or at least that's how it's been over the past couple of years.
iPad Air, great value for price
The iPad Air got an upgrade at the latest Apple event after the air didn't receive an update in 2021. The 2022 iPad Air takes the 2020 iPad Air's design and powers it up with Apple's M1 chip; the same processor that runs on the newest Macbooks and the 2021 iPad Pro as well as 5G support.
The M1 chip is definitely the headline feature, since it allows the iPad Air to match the iPad Pro in performance (although the Air is likely to have less RAM).
Other updates to the iPad Air include the new ultrawide front camera with Center Stage, which automatically pans during video calls to keep you in view as you move around, and notices when others join in, smoothly zooming out to include them too. All iPads now feature this.
On the back there's a 12MP camera, which looks unchanged from the previous-gen iPad Air. However, The USB-C port is up to two times faster, with data transfers up to 10Gbps. The screen is still a 27.69 cm (10.9-inch) Liquid Retina display with 500 nits of brightness, True Tone support, and an anti-reflective coating.
The iPad Air has landscape stereo speakers, Touch ID built into the home button. The iPad Air runs iPadOS 15.4 preinstalled.
“The new tablet has a 100% recycled aluminium build, 100% recycled tin in the main logic board, and 100% recycled rare earth elements in the enclosure and audio magnets.”
The new iPad Air comes in Space Gray, Starlight, pink, purple, and "a stunning new blue". It will be available in 64GB and 256GB models. The new iPad Air will be up for pre-order in 29 countries and regions this Friday, and will be released on March 18.
The new tablet also supports the 2nd gen Apple Pencil: Draw, take notes and mark up screenshots and photos. as well as the Magic Keyboard, the Smart Keyboard Folio, and the Smart Folio covers. These come in black, white, Electric Orange, Dark Cherry, English Lavender, and Marine Blue.