iPad Air - page 3

Want to start the school year with an iPad? This refurbished iPad Air might be a great fit, especially since most students are on a budget and might not need the latest processor for their schoolwork or note-taking.

Shopping for refurbished tech is a smart way to ensure your school year starts on the right foot, and this fourth-gen iPad Air from 2020 is on sale for only $349.99 (compared to $599 for a sixth-gen iPad Air). It comes in sky blue, space gray and rose gold. Or, you can get a green one — with four times as much storage — for only $399.99.

An iPad Air with an OLED display rather than the current LCD seems a safe bet considering the number of leaks indicating one is in development. But sources can’t agree on when — the latest report says 2026.

That said, Apple already has an OLED tablet for those who want one now.

The number of iPads shipped during Q2 2024 grew sharply when compared to the same quarter of last year, according to market analysts. It’s the first year-over-year increase in Apple’s tablet shipments since 2022.

The long-awaited launch of powerful new iPad models is credited for the improvement.

Amazon bargain site Woot! currently runs a sale with deals on iPad and MacBooks, including brand new, new (open box) and refurbished models, through August 6. Discounts range up to 31% off. So let it be Christmas in mid-summer with some new (to you) Apple gear.

“Jobs nods his head in approval from the Clouds,” Woot! says at the top of the sale page.

Are you ready for some football … with iPads? This upcoming college football season should see plenty of Apple tablets teaming up with coaches and players on the sidelines. Two powerhouse NCAA Division I conferences — Southeastern (SEC) and Atlantic Coast (ACC) — recently struck deals with Apple to use iPads in college football games.

iPad’s “unique capabilities and versatility make it the ideal solution to support coaches and student-athletes,” said Scott Brodrick, a manager in Apple’s worldwide iPad product marketing group. “With an unrivaled combination of advanced displays, powerful performance, portability, fast connectivity, all day battery life and versatile accessories, iPad will let coaches and players make in-game adjustments and empower athletes to compete at the highest level.”

Checking the health and maximum capacity of the battery in older iPad models isn’t as easy as it should be, but we can walk you through the process. Finding out how worn out the tablet’s battery is can help you decide if it’s time for a new model.

But for those who already upgraded to the latest iPad Pro or iPad Air, checking battery health is a snap.

If you can’t wait for Amazon Prime Day July 16 and 17, turns out you don’t even need to — every Prime Day, deals start leaking out early. Right now you can take up to $90 off the recently released M2 iPad Air, for example. And that’s just the biggest savings on a top model. Plenty of early Prime Day deals on M2 iPad Air models with lesser specs can be had, too. See the examples below.

The new 11-inch and 13-inch M2 iPad Air models are great tablets, but not everyone wants to throw down $600 or more. And not everyone needs bleeding-edge performance. That’s why sales on the previous models like the one right now at Best Buy are such great opportunities. You can chop $200 off M1 iPad Air and enjoy it for years to come.

iPhone 15 Pro and 2nd gen HomePod are not the only Apple devices to ship with a Thread router. The company has secretly shipped all its recent iPad and Mac models with the smart home radio as well.

Unlike on the iPhones though, the Thread router is not active. This could explain why Apple has not advertised its inclusion in the specs page of its new Macs and iPads.

Apple’s 2024 iPad Air ships with a binned M2 chip featuring a 9-core GPU. The company’s original announcement claimed it packs a 10-core GPU.

The Cupertino giant silently updated the iPad Air’s tech specs page to reflect this change.

Apple’s recently released M2 iPad Air packs modest upgrades over its predecessor and the same processor as 2022’s M2 iPad Pro. How do the two Apple tablets with identical M2 chips compare? Find out in our M2 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Air comparison.

While the new midrange tablet seems tempting, an iPad Air is still an Air, not a Pro.

Should your next computer be a MacBook or an iPad? Apple is making the iPad more powerful and capable every year — it might be good enough that you don’t need a traditional computer in your life.

While macOS is still more powerful and versatile, the iPad’s hardware offers unique capabilities that no Mac can match. The iPad is easier to pick up and use, more portable and more reliable. It’s worth considering over a laptop if you don’t do a lot of specialized work.

Here are the pros and cons, MacBook vs. iPad: Price, easy of use, portability and more. Keep reading below or watch our video.

M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air users are justifiably excited by Apple Pencil Pro’s fantastic and highly functional new features. But now they’re discovering a delightful feature Apple didn’t highlight at its recent “Let Loose” event. The stylus casts a shadow of the selected tool in use on the screen.

That feature may not equal the functional importance of the new squeeze gesture or haptic feedback, but judging by user reactions in the videos below, it’s pretty much the coolest thing ever.

The iPad buying cycle has slowed because iPad owners increasingly hold onto their old tablets for longer periods than in the past, a new analysis showed Wednesday.

However, the just-ended wait for the latest iPad Pro and iPad Air could be a big reason why. It was a long one. The previous generations both came out in 2022.

The new M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air finally make it easy to manage your tablet’s battery heath from the Settings app. iPadOS finally has a Battery Health menu in its 17.5 version, but it only works with the new iPads, not older models.

The new feature lets you limit charges to 80% capacity, which can extend the battery’s lifespan.

Apple’s new M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air are now on sale. Customers who preordered the tablets are also getting their units today in launch countries.

If you did not preorder the new iPads, you can pick one up from your nearest Apple store or authorized retail store.

The first reviews of the 2024 iPad Air paint the tablet as a budget version of last year’s iPad Pro.

Here’s the consensus of the early M2 iPad Air reviews: If you want a big-screen iPad, but don’t need (or don’t want to pay for) high-end features like an OLED screen, Face ID and Apple’s most powerful processor, this is the tablet for you.

M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air are so new they haven’t even reached customers yet and there are already deals on many configurations. There are discounts on a variety of screen sizes and built-in storage options.

Savvy shoppers can save up to $50 by buying these hot new tablets from Amazon.

Savvy, bargain-conscious Apple shoppers know new model releases can also herald the lowest-ever prices on recent, not-actually-new but new-to-them products. And with the recent rollout of M2 iPad Air, great deals on M1 iPad Air abound.

These limited-time deals on Amazon — including a new price drop that makes the M1 iPad Air just $399.00 (33% off) are great examples.

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: Apple’s “Let Loose” event is over, and the new iPad Pro and iPad Air are officially here. In our postmortem, we discuss the pros (tons) and cons (not many) of the new tablets. Plus, we go over what we got right and wrong in the run-up to the event.

Also on The CultCast:

• Apple Pencil Pro and the new Magic Keyboard for iPad sound great for artists.
• Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro gain some cool new features.
• The first M4 chip benchmarks look promising.
• That eye-catching “Crush!” ad for the iPad Pro lands Apple in hot water.
• And we have a winner in our “Let Loose” event predictions challenge.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

Depending on which model of iPad you own, it might be time to upgrade to the new iPad Air with M2. Announced on May 7, 2024, the new iPad Air features a speedy Apple M2 chip. It’s a great middle-of-the-road iPad, with plenty of storage on the base model and a nice display that’s now available in a 13-inch size. It’s easily upgradable with the Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard.

However, whether it’s worth upgrading to the M2 iPad Air depends on which iPad you already own — so we put together a buying guide to help you make the decision. Check the infographic below or watch the video.

The new M4 iPad Pro brings big technological leaps to Apple’s high-end tablet. It packs a cutting-edge OLED display and a fast M4 chip inside the “thinnest Apple product ever.” Upgrades in the M2 iPad Air, unveiled Tuesday alongside the Pro model during Apple’s “Let Loose” event, aren’t as impressive. An in-depth M4 iPad Pro vs. M2 iPad Air comparison, however, shows that the midrange Apple tablet likely makes a better choice for many users.

So, are you confused about buying the M4 iPad Pro versus the M2 iPad Air? This comparison will help you decide.

The new Pitaka MagEZ Folio 2 serves as a case and holds the recently released M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air in landscape and portrait orientations as a stand, the company said Wednesday. It provides an option for new tablet owners in search of an affordable case and stand.

“We are thrilled to introduce the Pitaka MagEZ Folio 2, the ultimate accessory for the new iPad Pro,” said Pitaka CEO James Zheng. “Designed with the modern professional in mind, this folio combines sleek design, premium materials, and innovative features to elevate the iPad Pro experience.”

Apple unveiled the 2024 iPad Pro and iPad Air on Tuesday, and third-party accessory-makers were prepared. Logitech, Otterbox, Zagg, Pitaka and ESR have all already unveiled peripherals for the new tablets.

There are keyboard cases, cases, screen protectors ands more.

Following the iPhone’s footsteps, Apple has switched entirely to eSIM on the 2024 iPad Pro and Air. The two tablets’ cellular models lack a physical SIM slot altogether.

With this move, Apple has transitioned two major product categories to eSIMs.