Calling it the most exciting update since the introduction of the original iPad, Apple CEO Tim Cook and his band of renouns announced a new iPad Lineup using the M4 Apple Silicon processor.
Let’s take a closer look at the details below.
iPad Air
But first, Apple kicked off their highly produced keynote to introduce the new iPad Air, which is capable of editing videos, playing games with intensive graphics, and even doing the books.
The new iPad Air is powered by the less powerful M2 processor and comes in two liquid-retina display sizes – 11 inches and 13 inches.
With 30% more screen real estate than the 11-inch, the 13-inch iPad Air is capable of split view for using multiple apps at the same time.
Image Credit – Apple
The front-facing camera has also been moved to the landscape edge to make video conferencing more natural looking. There is also better bass for improved audio quality.
The iPad Air is 50% faster than the previous generation and has three times faster performance thanks to the M2 chip and COB graphics.
The iPad Air can also harness AI to make photos better, lift graphics elements from an image and place them on another, and support Apple Pencil’s new hover feature to preview a movie before it’s final.
Image Credit – Apple
iPad Pro with M4
Moving on to the iPad Pro, Apple has moved to an OLED display that is two displays in one.
The move to OLED enables the iPad Pro to be “impossibly thin” at 5.1 inches to 5.3 inches, making it thinner than the iPad Nano, and weighting between .98 and 1.28 pounds.
The iPad Pro comes in 11-inch and 13-inch models with a breakthrough new display design which incorporates two Ultra Retina XDR OLED screens overlaid over each other to generate the XDR performance that iPad users crave.
This “Tandem OLED” design supports over 1000 nits of full-screen brightness, and 1600 nits of peak HDR brightness. The result is bright specular highlights with more accurate and deeper blacks.
Image Credit – Apple
The iPad Pro is also protected by nano-textured glass that preserves the P3 color gamut and contrast with less glare. It also enhances the iPad’s ultra-wide display.
Image Credit – Apple
M4
Internally, Apple has leaped to the next generation of Apple Silicon, making it the first platform to feature the M4 platform, skipping M3 altogether.
M4 is Apple’s second generation 3 NM processor which offers 4 performance cores and 6 efficiency cores, for 50% faster performance over the M2 platform. There is also a 10-core GPU with dynamic caching, ray tracing, and mesh shading.
The next-generation GPU provides up to 4x faster rendering performance than the previous M2 design and uses half the power.
Compared to a laptop chip in a PC, the M4 delivers the same performance at 1/4 the power. Users can render ProRes videos up to 50 percent faster, and AV1 videos 4x faster than M2.
Image Credit – Apple
The M4 also has a 16-core neural engine for up to 38 trillion operations per second, 16x that of the first-generation design. Apple is leveraging this new neural engine to harness the power of AI in future applications.
Apple has also improved thermal performance by 20% by incorporating graphite sheets into the main housing, with copper interwoven into the Apple Logo to wick away excessive heat.
Image Credit – Apple
Cameras and Keyboards
The iPad Pro has a 12 MP F4 camera with LiDar Scanner and true tone adaptive flash. There’s also a new charging system designed to pair and charge the new Apple Pencil.
Apple has even redesigned the optional Magic Keyboard, with a function bar and a larger, more responsive trackpad. The result is that the iPad Pro promises to perform like a MacBook Pro.
Apps
iPadOS has also been optimized to take advantage of pro apps like Shaper 3D CAD, Z-Brush 3D modeling, Final Cut Pro 2, and Logic Pro 2 for video and audio applications.
Final Cut Pro 2 and Logic Pro 2 got a huge update. iPad Pro 2 can render 2x faster and can now support live multi-cam streaming of up to 4 cameras at once, switching each with remote focusing, white balance adjustment, and zoom capability.
Image Credit – Apple
Final Cut uses a new Final Cut Camera app that can connect to multiple iPhone or iPad cameras and switch between them during a live streaming shoot.
It will then automatically transfer and sync those feeds during editing and can edit using a Thunderbolt 4 connection to an external drive. The result is 4x faster performance, even when editing in RAW.
Logic Pro 2 for iPad gets a new series of instruments that are improved with AI. Session Players adds bass and a keyboard with simple controls to dial in the performance.
Logic Pro also gets a plugin called Chroma Glow, which makes audio sound like it was recorded in a professional studio. Logic Pro’s Stem Splitter feature can also break out voice, instruments, bass, and drums when remixing is needed without the original recordings.
Apple Pencil
Apple has unveiled the next-generation Apple Pencil Pro, which promises to take the pencil experience to a new level. Apple Pencil Pro has a new sensor to bring up a new tool pallet with a simple squeeze.
Haptic feedback and a gyroscope also make the Apple Pencil Pro more reactive. Apple Pencil Pro also now supports Find My, making it easier to locate when it gets misplaced.
Hover and squeezing an element lets users choose a layer to work on, while brushes can be chosen by barrel rolling the device. Users can even select and adjust Bokeh in an image using the Apple Pencil and animate an image while recording the pencil’s movement in real-time.
Image Credit – Apple
Pricing and availability
The iPad Air starts with 128GB and doubles up to 1TB. It starts at $599 for the 11-inch and $799 for the 13-inch. Preorders start today, with shipping beginning next week.
The iPad Pro will get a boost in storage, starting at 256GB and doubling up to 2TB. The retail price of the iPad Pro starts at $1199 for the 11-inch model, and $1399 for the 13-inch model.
Meanwhile, the Magic Keyboard will cost $299 for the 11-inch and $349 for the 13-inch. And the Apple Pencil Pro is $129. And the 10th Generation iPad gets a price cut starting at $349.
Customers can order all three today, with shipping coming next week. The new iPad Pros and Magic Keyboard are currently available for preorder through the Apple Store, with authorized retailers coming soon. Users can pick up the Apple Pencil Pro at the link below.
[source: Apple]
Order links:
Apple 11 inch iPad Pro with M4 and OLED Display (B&H)
Apple 13 inch iPad Pro with M4 and OLED Display (B&H)
Apple 11 inch iPad Air with M2 (B&H)
Apple 13 inch iPad Air with M2 (B&H)
Apple Pencil Pro (B&H)
Apple Magic Keyboard for 11″ iPad Pro M4 (Black) (B&H)
Apple Magic Keyboard for 13″ iPad Pro M4 (White) (B&H)
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