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My sister is still using my iPad 2 as a facebook live streamer and mini TV. It's a great device that hopefully will last a few more years.

My mom is still using hers also - I need a new one because I am running out of space (The only app I use on it is Kindle).
 
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My mom is still using hers also - I need a new one because I am running out of space (The only app I use on it is Kindle).

Are you all talking about the iPad Air 2? Because I have an iPad 2 and it’s so slow it’s just about useless. I have an iPad Air 2 as my current iPad and if this new iPad has a laminated display I’m on board.
 
Are you all talking about the iPad Air 2? Because I have an iPad 2 and it’s so slow it’s just about useless. I have an iPad Air 2 as my current iPad and if this new iPad has a laminated display I’m on board.

It's not laminated. The length and width of the iPad 7 is the exact same as the 2019 iPad Air, but it is thicker at 7.5mm versus the iPad Air 3/iPad Pro 10.5" which is 6.1mm.
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They should do better than the 2015 era 1st-gen Pencil.

It's not like it's bundled. They'll still charge you $100 for it!

Buy a Logitech Crayon for $49 instead.

That 2015 era 1st Gen Pencil is still miles better than 90% of all of the other crap "styluses" on the market. Besides, why would you expect a 2nd Gen Pencil on the base model iPad? That makes zero sense.
 
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It's not laminated. The length and width of the iPad 7 is the exact same as the 2019 iPad Air, but it is thicker at 7.5mm versus the iPad Air 3/iPad Pro 10.5" which is 6.1mm.
[doublepost=1568144492][/doublepost]

Buy a Logitech Crayon for $49 instead.

That 2015 era 1st Gen Pencil is still miles better than 90% of all of the other crap "styluses" on the market. Besides, why would you expect a 2nd Gen Pencil on the base model iPad? That makes zero sense.
It's not laminated. The length and width of the iPad 7 is the exact same as the 2019 iPad Air, but it is thicker at 7.5mm versus the iPad Air 3/iPad Pro 10.5" which is 6.1mm.
[doublepost=1568144492][/doublepost]

Buy a Logitech Crayon for $49 instead.

That 2015 era 1st Gen Pencil is still miles better than 90% of all of the other crap "styluses" on the market. Besides, why would you expect a 2nd Gen Pencil on the base model iPad? That makes zero sense.

Yeah, I just looked at Apples website.
 
Yeah, I just looked at Apples website.
At $329, this iPad is still a decent value. A few things that would have been made it better:

- 7MP FaceTime camera. At this point, 1.2MP seems like more of a hindrance than simply standardizing on 7MP cameras all the way throughout the lineup.
- Updating to the A10X Fusion of the A11 Bionic...Either would have provided a decent boost to the iPad without seeming overmuch relative to the iPad Air. However, the A10X Fusion has WAY better Metal scores than the A12 Bionic in the iPad Air 3, which makes it a probable no go, but simply leaving the A10 Fusion from the iPad 6 in there just seems lazy.
- Bluetooth 5.0...From a technology standpoint, I am not sure it really matters, but I would think it's time to move the whole lineup to BT 5.0.
- Laminated display - I'm ambivalent on this one, but only because it would increase the cost of the repairs for end-users and institutions. It would certainly be better for the Pencil and its users. I certainly am perplexed as to why Apple took the time to make a thicker iPad Air/iPad Pro chassis. Alas, that must be cheaper than a laminated display.
- More base storage - Would be nice, but I think that breaks the $329 price point, so I understand. However, 32GB runs out quickly.

Cannot think of anything else, considering the target market and pricing.

EDIT: Like earlier posters, 3GB of DRAM instead of 2GB would be most welcome.
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There are now 16 different models to compare on Apple's website https://www.apple.com/ipad/compare/# under "compare all"
Yeah, it's a great tool for those who want to compare the differences between their older iPad and a newer one.
 
Man Apple seems to hate the A11 and I guess putting an A12 on it was going to be getting too close to the iPad Air.

It is more likely the price point ( and Apple's targeted profit margins ). The A10 is a 16nm chip. That's going to be cheaper than the 10nm (A11 ) or 7nm ( A12 and up ) chips. Since the screen got bigger and they added a "smart connector" they are doing cost offsets in part with the SoC chip.

We'll see if that $329 price holds up. Over the last 10 months there have been regular sales for the 9.7" iPad at $249-69 range. I suspect this new system isn't going to make it to Christmas before it too will pragmatically be right back into that range. So Apple will be looking to still do well even when the system is sold "discounted".

Plus the free year of Apple TV+ and free month of Arcade. Apple is trying to keep the margins healthy on this device, hence the much cheaper fab solution.

It is largely the same iPad. Slightly wider case (to fit screen ) that matches the current iPad Air's l x w dimensions. (so share smart connector keyboard probably ). very slightly heavier. Drops "3G" CDMA coverage from cellular (Verizon isn't taking new devices on that anyway). Same affordable cameras ( that are a bit dated at this point ).
 
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I have a decision to make. My 11 year old is gonna get an iPad this fall.

The choice will be either a 6th gen at the current $250 price range or a new 7th gen at $330.

That extra $80 would just about pay for the pencil.

I wonder what the differences are between the 6G and 7G?

1. A10Fusion speed - is the 7G clocked faster than the 6G?
2. RAM - does the 7G have more RAM?
3. Longevity - will the 7G get an additional one or two more iPadOS updates?

Other less important items would be (for me) ...

1. TouchID - does the 7G have the 2nd generation TouchID (not a big deal for me)?
2. Bluetooth - does the 7G have BT5?
3. Wifi - does the 7G have faster wifi?

I regret not jumping on the Xfinity deal for the 128GB iPad 6 for $120.
 
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I have a decision to make. My 11 year old is gonna get an iPad this fall.

The choice will be either a 6th gen at the current $250 price range or a new 7th gen at $330.

That extra $80 would just about pay for the pencil.

I wonder what the differences are between the 6G and 7G?

1. A10Fusion speed - is the 7G clocked faster than the 6G?
2. RAM - does the 7G have more RAM?
3. Longevity - will the 7G get an additional one or two more iPadOS updates?

Other less important items would be (for me) ...

1. TouchID - does the 7G have the 2nd generation TouchID (not a big deal for me)?
2. Bluetooth - does the 7G have BT5?
3. Wifi - does the 7G have faster wifi?

I regret not jumping on the Xfinity deal for the 128GB iPad 6 for $120.


https://www.apple.com/ipad-10.2/specs/

Touch ID isn't specific but if the radio , cameras, and CPU SoC are the same it is probably the same on the new system. (so hitting price point).

If can wait until "Black Friday" it won't be surprising if this new one hits the that $249 range. There will be a number of 9.7 to flush out of the inventory level at most retailers though. Until that get purged the new system will hold the $329 better but when the 9.7's are pragmatically gone they 10.2 probably will slide down there also.

It is probably not clocked any faster. The RAM likely the same. Apple is probably offseting higher screen and smart connector and minor case change costs with "same old stuff" at lower costs to get to the same price.

If the extra screen space does nothing for your usecase (little to no multitasking) and the smart connector does nothing for your usecase (no smart keyboard ) then the 9.7 on clearance probably will work just as well. Where iPadOS is going in the future the screen space probably has utility.


Technically the 9.7" will make it to Vintage/Obsolete status at least a year earlier than the 10.2". There probably won't be a large difference in support coverage since the internals are basically the same. Maybe an extra year.
 
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I have a decision to make. My 11 year old is gonna get an iPad this fall.

The choice will be either a 6th gen at the current $250 price range or a new 7th gen at $330.

That extra $80 would just about pay for the pencil.

I wonder what the differences are between the 6G and 7G?

1. A10Fusion speed - is the 7G clocked faster than the 6G?
2. RAM - does the 7G have more RAM?
3. Longevity - will the 7G get an additional one or two more iPadOS updates?

Other less important items would be (for me) ...

1. TouchID - does the 7G have the 2nd generation TouchID (not a big deal for me)?
2. Bluetooth - does the 7G have BT5?
3. Wifi - does the 7G have faster wifi?

I regret not jumping on the Xfinity deal for the 128GB iPad 6 for $120.

Just get the iPad 6...you'll have a better choice of cases from the get go.

In response
1. It doesn't matter, it won't be appreciably faster either way.
2. Doubt it, but too soon to know. 2GB is fine, sure 3GB would be nicer, but not the end of the world.
3. The iPad 7G is almost identical to the 6G and both will age out at the same time. Plenty of people in these threads are using iPad 2 and Air 2, so I'm not sure I see the concern.

1. TouchID - Either is fast enough
2. Bluetooth 4.2 - annoying, but not the end of the world either.
3. Wi-Fi - same specs as the iPad 6, most likely no faster at all. Still tops out at 866Mbps. LTE is faster with additional bands supported.

Your 11-year old won't know the difference and he'll have a Pencil to boot...just my 2¢.
 
Just get the iPad 6...you'll have a better choice of cases from the get go.

3. The iPad 7G is almost identical to the 6G and both will age out at the same time. Plenty of people in these threads are using iPad 2 and Air 2, so I'm not sure I see the concern.

The Mac Pro 2010 and 2012 were basically identical and Apple aged them out. The A10 is a dual edge sword. It is cheap but it is also missing all of the ML compute that Apple is shifting to. Apple may shuffle the 9.7 out the door a year or so ahead of the 10.2. ( screen size diff and time to Vintage/Obsolete ). [ Apple is going to have to supercede the 10.2 to start its Vintage/Obsolete clock. ]

If trying to goose this iPad purchase the max years the 7G has a better shot of getting there.
 
Man Apple seems to hate the A11 and I guess putting an A12 on it was going to be getting too close to the iPad Air.
Yup, and they need to keep at least a 50% margin of profit on it, like any other single product they sell...A10 is four years old and is developing and production costs is totally recouped.
 
Does retina screen mean this is now a laminated display? (or whatever it is called that is in all other iPad models so they are thinner and the screen is closer to the glass)
 
The A10 is a disappointment but the market placement makes some sense.

It's clearly not designed as an upgrade from the 6th gen device. It's targeted at those folks who have older iPads but want to cheaply get into iPadOS. With a free subscription to AppleTV+ (or whatever it is), iPadOS, and support for pencil, it's a decent device.

It's just not a significant upgrade from the 6th gen. And it's not enough for an upgrade form the 5th gen (for me).

I'm all for the US$329 price point though. A10X or A11 and I would pick one up, but not the A10.
 
"A10 Fusion chip", haha. Barely an upgrade from the 1,5 year old 6th gen iPad at all. Same chip, same format (but a hair bigger screen), still 1 gen pencil, same price. If the price was good 1,5 year ago it's not today anymore. No new iPad for me this year either...
Agreed. I’ll wait to see if the iPad Pro gets upgraded in a month. Edit: I’m still on a mini 2 which is massively slow loading apps. I am hoping the pro 11” will get the A13 cpu next month.
 
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