Apple on Tuesday introduced an all-new iPad Air — the most powerful, versatile, and colorful ever. Now available in five gorgeous finishes, iPad Air features an all-screen design with a larger 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display, camera and audio upgrades, a new integrated Touch ID sensor in the top button, and the powerful A14 Bionic for a massive boost in performance, making this by far the most powerful and capable iPad Air ever made. The new iPad Air will be available starting next month.
Earlier this week, Apple showed off the new iPad Air 4 at its virtual product event, and the tablet is sure to eat into iPad Pro sales.
Is the 11-inch iPad Pro worth $200 more? The differences between the iPad Air 4 and the 11-inch iPad Pro are negligible. The iPad Air 4’s display is 0.1 inch larger, the camera system is less advanced and lacks lidar, there’s no ProMotion technology for 120 Hz refresh rates, and there is no TrueDepth camera for Face ID. Are those features worth the $200 difference in price?
Additionally, the iPad Air 4 has Apple’s latest and greatest silicon, the A14 Bionic chip that will very likely power the next iPhone, as well as the first Arm-based Mac that’s due out this year. The iPad Pro released earlier this year is powered by an A12Z Bionic chip, which is just the same chip from 2018 but with a dormant GPU core activated. The A14 is arguably two years ahead of the higher-end model’s processor.
It’s more important for Apple to grow the iPad installed base — Cook disclosed this week that 53% of iPad buyers are new to the tablet — and monetize those users for the long haul with services.
MacDailyNews Take: It doesn’t matter as long as they’re buying an iPad and that iPad is capable of delivering subscription services, optimally, Apple One Premier.
If you don’t cannibalize yourself, someone else will. — Steve Jobs