Apple upgrades (airily light): The iPad Air gets an M3 chip
Apple has updated the iPad Air. The only new feature is the M3 chip, which is designed to deliver more performance in terms of AI functions.
Not much has changed with the new iPad Air since 2024. Once again, Apple is offering it with an 11 or 13-inch display. You can choose between the same four colours: Light blue, yellow, pink and dark grey. The iPad is only better equipped in terms of performance thanks to the M3 chip.
Source: Apple
If you're interested in what you can do with the iPad Air, our colleague David Lee has extensively tested last year's version with the M2 chip. He is impressed by the larger 13-inch version.
M3 chip strong enough for AI functions
Apple emphasises that the performance of the M3 chip is better suited to the Apple Intelligence functions. This is Apple's AI system, which is based on Siri and ChatGPT. Apple Intelligence for iPad can already be used with the M1 chip and iPadOS 18.
According to Apple, the AI tools run up to 60 per cent faster. However, the manufacturer is only comparing the new iPad Air with the two-year-old model with the M1 chip - and not with the one-year-old iPad Air with the M2 chip. According to our colleague Samuel Buchmann, the improvement over the M2 chip is around 20 per cent. He reports in detail about the M3 chip here.
What are the AI functions actually good for? Colleague Florian has tried out some of them. In the Photos app, for example, you can use Apple Intelligence to remove objects from an image or search for a specific photo using a description. In the Notes app, you can draw a quick sketch and have it converted into an attractive illustration.
Apple has also brought ChatGPT on board as an AI partner. The chatbot can be used on the iPad Air for any questions free of charge and without an account.
Source: Apple
Apple also ups the ante with accessories
The accessories for the iPad Air are catching up with the iPad Pro. Apple has enlarged the trackpad on the new Magic Keyboard. In addition, 14 function keys have been added for quick access to volume, screen brightness and the like. The additional USB-C port on the side of the keyboard is also practical. It differs from the Magic Keyboard of the iPad Pro in its white colour. However, it is slightly cheaper than the black version for the iPad Pro.
Source: Michelle Brändle
The current Apple Pencil Pro can be used on the iPad Air, but this was already possible with its predecessor. It offers even more possibilities than the regular Apple Pencil (2nd gen).
Find out more about the Magic Keyboard and the Apple Pencil Pro in my review of the iPad Pro (2024):
Price and availability of tablet and accessories
The upgrade of the iPad Air with the M3 chip is not groundbreaking. It remains unclear how much of an impact the improvement will have in everyday use. If you are looking for a successor to an older iPad, it could still be of interest.
The iPad Air costs the same at launch as it did last year. You pay 599 francs for the 11-inch model and 799 francs for the 13-inch model. The devices will be delivered from Wednesday, 12 March.
The Magic Keyboard in white will cost you 269 francs for the 11-inch model and 299 francs for the 13-inch model.
You can pre-order the models here:
Header image: Apple
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In my world, Super Mario chases Stormtroopers with a unicorn and Harley Quinn mixes cocktails for Eddie and Peter at the beach bar. Wherever I can live out my creativity, my fingers tingle. Or maybe it's because nothing flows through my veins but chocolate, glitter and coffee.
