New iPad Air Has an M2 Chip and 13-Inch Screen Option

The iPad Air is Apple’s mid-range tablet, with better hardware than the entry-level iPad and a more affordable price than the iPad Pro. Apple has now updated the iPad Air with newer hardware and a new screen size option.

Apple has revealed an updated 11-inch iPad Air, along with a new 13-inch model. The iPad Pro was already available in two screen sizes, and Apple said that around half of iPad Pro buyers choose the larger screen, so now the company is brining that choice to the more affordable iPad Air. The 13-inch model has 30% more screen space, and the displays on both models are functionally identical, so you won't lose anything by sticking to the 11-inch version.

The new iPad Air has the front-facing camera on the landscape side, instead of the portrait side, similar to the recent 10th generation iPad. That means the camera will now be higher and centered when using the iPad in landscape mode, instead of being off to the side. The stereo speakers are also optimized for landscape mode with spatial audio support.

There's also an M2 chip in both models of the iPad Air. Apple says that should improve general performance, especially in games and other graphically-demanding software. The other big hardware upgrade is that the base storage capacity is now 128GB instead of 64GB, and Apple has added new 512GB and 1TB storage options. Besides the camera, there aren't any notable design changes. There are new blue and purple color options, though, alongside the existing starlight and space gray colors.

It has been almost exactly two years since the last iPad Air update. Apple released the fifth-generation iPad Air in March 2022, introducing new color options, an upgraded front camera with Center Stage support, and 5G support on the cellular models. It also switched to an M1 chip. That was a decent upgrade, but it once again left the iPad with more powerful hardware than most available software could utilize. We’ll have to wait and see if the new model changes that.

The new iPad Air will be available to order on Apple's website starting today, and it will start shipping next week. The 11-inch model will start at $599, and the 13-inch model will start at $799.

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