I was wondering the same. I recently got the base iPad 10 from my work as a service anniversary gift. Nice device and all, but seeing I can trade it to Apple for $225, I'm considering doing so for the 11" base M2 iPad Air. But at a net additional cost of about $250 extra (after EDU deal), is it worth it?
Storage bump from 64 to 128 is probably the most useful thing to me. I pretty much just browse, Facetime, and watch videos on iPad. My MacBook Air M3 is for productivity.