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iPad 12 Rumored to Get iPhone 17's A19 Chip, Breaking Apple Tradition
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My guess it may mainly be because of relative cost, plus other factors such as power utilization vs. performance.
For example, that's why I think Apple jumped to M4 so quickly, and de-emphasized M3.
I wonder if the A19 has far fewer bad CPUs than A18 too as a mature iteration of N3? Or could they be developing a binning plan which - for example - allows iPad mini to get more GPUs (or higher clocked CPUs) than the ones that go into the iPad and AppleTV? Consolidating products around binned iterations of the same family would therefore make economic sense to Apple rather than having multiple variations of different CPUs.
The old rumour was the AppleTV was getting A17Pro which is what is in the iPad mini right now but that's known to run hot and have a higher failure rate making each CPU more expensive. If the iPad gets A19 then the knock on effect should be the iPad mini getting A19 and by extension the AppleTV getting the same. This then makes sense if the A19 is to be a long term CPU - getting made for a few years as it's likely to spent at least a couple of years in those products and RAM allocation might be important at this stage too.
The AppleTV also has good reason to get efficient cpus since the current 3rd generation lacks the fan that the 2nd generation has. Relying on passive cooling surely demands the most efficient CPU possible.
And also don't forget we have allegedly Apple MacBook getting A19. Would be quite the family then.
So the iPad Air M3 variants are a result of bloody minded market segmentation for the sake of it?
Yes.So the iPad Air M3 variants are a result of bloody minded market segmentation for the sake of it?
It’s kinda hard to believe, tbh, because if the cheapest iPad receives the A19 chip, even if it’s the binned version with one less GPU core, it will be a too good to be true product, by Apple’s standards.
However, if that happens, I’m going to go running to buy one.
However, if that happens, I’m going to go running to buy one.
Doesn't really make sense - but then the iPad lineup has been a bit mad for a while now. If we assume that the Mini and Air get upgraded along with the iPad we will have
Pro - M5
Air - M4
Mini - A19Pro (binned)
Base - A19
This would mean that the iPad and iPad Mini offer a higher performance chip for single core than the more expensive Air. If Apple are going to keep offering the Air with the previous gen M chip, then I would suggest that the Mini would be better off with the previous gen A Pro chip and the base iPad with the previous gen A chip such that the base, Mini and Air all have the same single core speed.
Pro - M5
Air - M4
Mini - A19Pro (binned)
Base - A19
This would mean that the iPad and iPad Mini offer a higher performance chip for single core than the more expensive Air. If Apple are going to keep offering the Air with the previous gen M chip, then I would suggest that the Mini would be better off with the previous gen A Pro chip and the base iPad with the previous gen A chip such that the base, Mini and Air all have the same single core speed.
Yeah agreed. I’ve just bought an iPad 11 for my partner for Christmas with a 3 year old chip. She won’t be bothered in the slightest or even know what chip it’s got in it, but me having to pay for it was through gritted teeth knowing how outdated it is. Will be even worse if next years model comes with an up to date A19 but it is what it is!
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People don’t care what chip a tablet will get. Its a tablet with iPadOS. But they care about the display and convenience. Still no laminate display in 2026 and not even wireless charging for the pencil. At least don’t make the pencil a pain in the ass to charge. Nothing to do with cost. They know if the pencil charges wirelessly the Air sales will plummet.
Because the Air is redundant in the line up and by crippling the iPad they can sell more Air models. See USB C pencil.
I wonder if Apple changed their minds about using the A17 Pro for the next Apple TV and decided to use the A19 as well? People were expecting Apple to release it this year, but apparently it’s coming out next year.
Yes, and the next iPad mini will probably get the binned A19 Pro, especially since the iPhone Air isn’t selling well so plenty of stock will be available for the mini.
Stop being selfish and think of the AAPL holders. You're literally robbing them of an extra $3.29 in profit!
/s
Even the iPad threads aren't safe from iPhone Air slander 🤣
Yay iPad mini is left behind !
The next-generation low-cost iPad will use Apple's A19 chip, according to a report from Macworld. Macworld claims to have seen an "internal Apple code document" with information about the 2026 iPad lineup.
Prior documentation discovered by MacRumors suggested that the iPad 12 would be equipped with an A18 chip, not an A19 chip. The A19 chip was just released this year in the iPhone 17, and it would be unusual for Apple to use a current-generation chip in the low-cost iPad due to cost.
Apple's most affordable iPad has not had a current-generation chip since the iPad 4, which is back when Apple was still designing AX chips for its tablet lineup. The iPad 5 that came out in 2017 used the A9 chip that was originally introduced in the 2015 iPhone 6s, and since then, the iPad has been equipped with an A-series chip that's a generation or two behind the chip in the most recently released iPhone.
The current iPad 11 that was released in March 2025 uses the A16 chip that first debuted in the iPhone 14 in 2022, for example. The iPad 10 (October 2022) used the A14 (September 2020), the iPad 9 (September 2021) used the A13 (September 2019), and the iPad 8 (September 2020) used the A12 (September 2018). A 2024 A18 chip for the 2026 iPad would be in line with prior launches.
The model numbers listed in Macworld's report are also unusual. It says that J581 and J588 are the codenames for the upcoming 12th-generation iPad, but codenames are typically sequential. Codenames are how Apple references unreleased devices in its software. In prior code leaks, J581 and J582 appeared to reference the low-cost iPad 12.
Prior leaks have suggested that the iPad mini will use the A19 chip, but the iPad mini was previously referenced in Apple code as J510 and J511. Apple sometimes changes its plans and makes updates to unreleased devices, so the A19 chip for the iPad can't be ruled out entirely.
It is not yet clear if Macworld is correct about the A19 chip for the iPad given previous information, but other parts of the report seem more in line with expectations. Macworld suggests the next-generation iPad Air will use an M4 chip, and that both the upcoming iPad and iPad Air will be equipped with Apple's N1 networking chip.
The iPad Air typically gets an M-series chip that's a generation behind the chip in the iPad Pro, and since it's been updated to the M5, the M4 makes sense for the next iPad Air. Apple has also been adding the new N1 networking chip to newly released devices, starting with this year's iPhones. The N1 chip is an Apple-designed Bluetooth and Wi-Fi chip that's more energy efficient than chips designed by third-party companies.
Apple is expected to release the new iPad Air and iPad models early in 2026.
Article Link: iPad 12 Rumored to Get iPhone 17's A19 Chip, Breaking Apple Tradition
This is a bit of a nothing burger - Apple updates chips in the base iPad and iPad Air on the basis of which chips are most cost-effective for them to produce. These chips are not designed specifically for these devices, so it comes down to which chip makes more sense for them to use in terms of their supply and cost of production. It’s not about the consumer, that’s just marketing fluff after the fact.
More importantly, it’s iPadOS that is going to effect your perception of the iPad’s performance far more than the SoC inside it.
More importantly, it’s iPadOS that is going to effect your perception of the iPad’s performance far more than the SoC inside it.
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I was thinking the same thing… another alternative would be them adopting N3P chips for all the devices. Economy of scale.
I think they can safely update the iPad Air with an M5 chip (maybe a binned one), and let the other features to determine the sales of the iPad Pro: thinner design, OLED display, fuller sound with 4 speakers, better cameras, Face ID…
That way, all the devices (including the MacBook Air) would have either an A19, A19 Pro, or an M5 chip.
If I was Tim Cook I would leave all the products on an N3P process, as well as ensuring a “baseline” with better GPU capacities in order to move the iOS 26 graphics and have better compute muscle for AI features.
Also, let’s not forget that the next gen of Apple Silicon, the A20/M6, will be manufactured using the expensive and with lower yield N2 node. If they plan to stay a year and a half on a node, better if that’s the N3P
Let's hope both the base and iPad mini get updated chips to be closer to the latest chips available.
To be fair to this "tradition" starting at the iPad 5, the iPad 2 was still for sale for a while after the 3 was available, until the 4th generation stopped being sold too!
The Air, not the iPad 5 was available when the iPad 2 was still on sale
The Air has much, much higher GPU performance, something that actually matters for those who care.
