Surprise! Apple is starting your week with some new iPad models.
The new iPad Air features a 10.5-inch 2224x1668 display, up from the previous iPad Air model and its 9.7-inch display. This model features a design similar to the current $329 iPad, which is still available, meaning the new iPad Air has thicker bezels with a front camera above the display and a Touch ID fingerprint reader below it. There's also a Lightning port for charging and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Inside is Apple's A12 Bionic processor, the same that's in the iPhone XS and XS Max but not the A12X that's in the iPad Pro. Another notable feature of the new iPad Air is its support for the $99 Apple Pencil, though it's worth mentioning that it supports the first generation Apple Pencil, not the second gen model that works with the iPad Pro.
Apple's updated iPad Air supports the $159 Smart Keyboard, which lets you add a physical keyboard to your tablet that can also provide front and back protection. Other notable features of the new iPad Air include stereo speakers, an 8MP rear camera, a battery that'll get you up to 10 hours of use on Wi-Fi, and a fully laminated display with wide color support and True Tone, which adjusts the color and intensity of the display to match the ambient light, which will help make images on the screen look more natural.
The new iPad Air starts at $499 for the 64GB Wi-Fi-only model and goes up to $649 for the 256GB Wi-Fi model. Models with built-in cellular connectivity are also available for $130 more than the Wi-Fi-only models. The iPad Air is available in Space Gray, Silver, and Gold color options.
Also announced today is a new iPad mini. This is the first new iPad mini model since 2015, and while the new model looks similar to the old, it does have some notable new features. Those include the same A12 Bionic processor that's in the new iPad Air, and Apple says that the new iPad mini offers three times faster performance and nine times faster graphics than the previous iPad mini.
The new iPad mini features a 7.9-inch 2048x1536 display, which is the same size as the previous iPad mini, but Apple says that the new iPad mini's screen is 25 percent brighter than its predecessor. The new screen also offers wide color support and True Tone technology.
Another addition to this new iPad mini is Apple Pencil support. Like the new iPad Air, the new iPad mini supports the first gen Apple Pencil, but the previous iPad mini didn't have any Apple Pencil support.
Also on the iPad mini's spec list are 8MP rear and 7MP front cameras, a Touch ID fingerprint reader, stereo speakers, a Lightning port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Pricing for the iPad mini starts at $399 for the 64GB Wi-Fi only model and goes up to $549 for the 256GB Wi-Fi only model. It's also available with built-in cellular connectivity, which will cost you an extra $130. Color options include Space Gray, Silver, and Gold.
