In March 2019, Apple announced the iPad Air (2019), while the iPad 7th-gen was made official in September. Today, the company held an online-only event to announce a bunch of new devices. Apart from announcing the Apple Watch Series 6 and Apple Watch SE, the company also announced the iPad 8th-gen and the iPad Air 4th-gen as the successor models to the aforementioned tablets.
Also read: Apple Fitness+ workout app and Apple One subscription bundle announced
The new iPad offers a large display and all-day battery life. On the other hand, the iPad Air is the world’s first device to feature a 5nm mobile chipset. It also offers a new Touch ID sensor, stereo speakers and five colour options.
iPad 8th-gen specifications and features
The iPad 8th-gen supports both Apple Pencil and the Smart Keyboard
The iPad 8th-gen offers a 10.2-inch LED-backlit Retina display that produces a 2,160 x 1,620 pixels resolution. It is powered by the Apple A12 Bionic chipset that promises 40 percent faster CPU performance and a twofold increase in GPU performance. The Neural Engine present in the chips delivers improved machine learning capabilities like motion tracking in AR apps and an improved experience while photo editing.
The new iPad runs iPadOS 14 and with support for Apple Pencil (1st-gen), the tablet can be used for drawing, note-taking, and more. It is also compatible with the Smart Keyboard. The device offers a conventional Touch ID sensor placed on the bottom bezel. Apple claims that the tablet offers all-day battery life.
The iPad 10.2 has an 8-megapixel main camera with f/2.4 aperture. It offers features like live photos, HDR, auto image stabilisation, 120fps 720p slow-motion video shooting, and 30ps 1080p video recording. It has a 1.2-megapixel FaceTime camera with f/2.4 aperture and support for 720p HD video. Other features of the tablet include stereo speakers, dual microphones, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, nano-SIM, e-SIM, LTE, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, and Lightning connector.
iPad Air 4th-gen specifications and features
The iPad Air 4th-gen is the first device to be powered by a 5nm chipset
The new iPad Air has a 10.9-inch LED-backlit Liquid Retina Display that delivers 2,360 x 1,640 pixels resolution. The display offers features like P3 color gamut support, full lamination, anti-reflective coating, and support for the 2nd-generation Apple Pencil. It comes with a Touch ID sensor that is placed at the top edge of the device, integrated into the power button.
The iPad Air is driven by the all-new Apple A14 Bionic SoC. It is an industry-first 5nm chipset that includes a 6-core CPU that promises a 40 percent improvement in performance, and a 30 percent uptick in graphics. The 16-core neural engine can carry out 11 million operations per second. Like the iPad 8th-gen, Apple is promising all-day battery life. It features a USB Type-C port for charging and data transfers.
For FaceTime, the iPad Air offers users with a 7-megapixel camera with f/2.0 aperture and support for 60fps 1080p video recording. The rear of the iPad Air sports a 12-megapixel flagship-grade camera with f/1.8 aperture, and 240fps 1080p slow-motion video shooting, and 60fps 4K video recording. Both cameras support smart HDR, auto image stabilization, burst mode, and more.
The iPad Air (2020) also comes with other features such as stereo speakers, dual microphones, nano-SIM, e-SIM, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS, and USB Type-C. The iPad Air (2020) is compatible with the Magic Keyboard accessory.
iPad 8th-gen and iPad Air 4th-gen price in India
The 8th-generation iPad starts at Rs 29,000 for Wi-Fi-only variant and Rs 41,900 for the Cellular model. The device comes in 32GB and 128GB storage choices and it can be availed in colours like Silver, Space Grey, and Gold.
The 4th-generation iPad Air begins at Rs 54,900 for Wi-Fi-only edition and Rs 66,900 for the Cellular variant. The tablet can be bought in 64GB and 256GB storage versions. It comes in multiple colours such as Silver, Space Gray, Rose Gold, Green, and Sky Blue. While the new iPad will be available soon at Apple Authorised Resellers, the sales of the iPad Air will kick off in October.