The new iPad Air 4 is here and we tell you its main news as well as the first impressions it generates this new tablet that makes things very difficult for Apple's Pro range.
Pro design, heart of Pro
Apple has opted for a radical design change in its new iPad Air 4, which now becomes practically identical to the iPad Pro that debuted in 2018 and of which we already have two generations. A front in which the screen predominates with a frame around it in which there is nothing in the way, neither notch nor home button, and flat sides that end with the curved design that until now had characterized the last generations of iPad. We thus have a 10,9-inch screen on an iPad with the same dimensions as the 11-inch iPad Pro, which means that the frame is slightly wider, totally invaluable on the other hand.
Apple has finally eliminated the home button from its mid-range iPad, as it did two years ago on the iPad Pro, but it has not opted for Face ID as an unlocking system, but for a fingerprint sensor that you have attached to the power button of the iPad Air, which is therefore larger. A strange decision, since the front frame could house all the necessary hardware for facial recognition, however it has decided to take the route of completely redesigning its fingerprint sensor to place it on a physical button.
The rest of the exterior appearance of the iPad Air is practically identical to the 11-inch iPad Pro. The four speaker grilles (two on each side) that offer audio almost indistinguishable from that of the iPad Pro, despite the fact that it does not have that spatial audio that changes according to the orientation of the device, the magnetic holder for the Apple Pencil 2 that also serves to recharge it, and even the USB-C that replaces the Lightning connector or the Smart Connector on the back that allows you to connect keyboards without the need for them to have Bluetooth connectivity or battery to function.
Something that is exclusive to this new iPad Air is the possibility of choosing between several colors: blue, green, pink, silver and space gray. The colors are quite subtle, and in the case of the blue model, which you can see in the video and photographs in this article, depending on the incidence of light, it may look like the same silver iPad as always. Personally I would have preferred somewhat more intense colors, although blue when seen in all its splendor is simply beautiful.
If we look inside, we have an A14 processor exactly the same as the one in the new iPhone 12, and this is great news because it ensures extraordinary performance both at the CPU and GPU level, surpassing the ones in some benchmarks. iPad Pro 2020, and staying very close in others. Animations are fluid, games run smoothly, the multi-window, the change of applications ... It is a real delight to use this iPad Air 4, and although it has 4GB of RAM (2GB less than the iPad Pro 2020) we can be sure that this iPad Air will give war for many years.
Maximum productivity
The iPad Pro was launched with the idea of abandoning the concept of the iPad as a "product to consume content" and to begin to think of it as a product that also served to "create content." After several generations there are few who doubt that an iPad Pro is a perfect work device for many users (I myself have been without a laptop for two years), and now it is the iPad Air that wants to convince those users who do not want to spend the cost of a Pro but do want an iPad as a work tool efficient.
USB-C, Apple Pencil, and keyboard and trackpad support are key elements in making this a reality, and they are all present on the iPad Air 4. Connect any external disk or USB memory, download photos from any camera, use USB microphones... all this is possible thanks to Apple's decision to take this USB-C connector beyond its Pro range. To this we can add the possibility of using keyboards, mice and trackpads, including of course the wide catalog of compatible keyboards that brands like Logitech create for these devices. The keyboard that you see in the video and in these images is the Logitech Folio Touch, available in the Apple Store. Write, take notes by hand, browse, use Word or Excel, import photos, files, edit videos… This iPad Air has no limits.
Differences with the iPad Pro
It is inevitable to make continuous references to the iPad Pro when you analyze this iPad Air, because its similarities are enormous, and the audience it is aimed at, in many cases is the same. But it also has its differences, more or less important details that Apple has wanted to keep reserving for its iPad Pro, and that some users may make them clearly opt for one or the other. I'll start with the one that's most important to me: Touch ID instead of Face ID. The absence of the facial detection system in this iPad Air for me, accustomed to the iPad Pro for almost two years, is what bothers me the most when I use it. Many of you will say that it is silly, because the Touch ID works excellently, but it is not "transparent" for the user. With Face ID you just have to be sitting in front of your iPad, with Touch ID you have to remove your hand from the keyboard and bring it closer to the power button. I doubt that many people who have already entered the Pro range down to the iPad Air this year, so the vast majority will not even notice what I am telling you.
The other big differentiating factor is the screen, with a 60Hz refresh rate, instead of the iPad Pro ProMotion display with 120Hz refresh rate. How do you notice those 60Hz difference? On a day-to-day basis, most users will not even notice it, but if someone puts an iPad Pro next to it and scrolls quickly through web pages, they will notice that there are fewer jumps on the iPad Pro than on the iPad Air. It does not seem important enough to me to put a negative point on this tablet, contrary to what I mentioned before about Face ID.
Regarding the camera there are also differences, due to the absence of the ultra wide angle and the LiDAR sensor. The wide-angle lens (the normal one to understand) is identical in this iPad Air 4 and in the iPad Pro 2020, offering the same properties when capturing photos and videos: 12MP, 4K 60fps videos, 3x zoom, video stabilization, 1080p 240fp slow motions, etc. We also found no flash on the iPad Air's camera. The same thing happens in the front camera, without having the options that the TrueDepth system of the iPad Pro offers thanks to the FaceID sensor, but sharing the 1080p video with HDR, and the 7Mpx photos. In short, excellent features for a device in which, in my opinion, photography is still something almost circumstantial for most users.
A very "Pro" iPad Air
The changes that Apple has included in this iPad Air 4 have shortened the distances between the Pro range and the mid-range of Apple tablets. This is great news for those who were thinking about acquiring an iPad Pro 11 ″, because now for less money (€ 649 for the iPad Air compared to € 879 for the iPad Pro 11 ″) they can get a device with practically identical features. If you have already used the iPad Pro and its facial recognition, this iPad Air may make you miss that function, but if you could never try it, the iPad Air is going to leave a great taste in your mouth and save you a lot of money that it can help you to buy the Apple Pencil and a keyboard case that will turn this iPad Air into an excellent machine to work and enjoy your multimedia content. Apple has destroyed the competition in this price range, again.