iPad iPad Air 3: 4K, thinner, 3GB RAM?

[Wiesenlooser]

Perhaps I am wrong. I am mostly just providing another point of view. I think the people here who are saying Apple will definitely have Pencil support on the Air 3 are those that want the Pencil, but not the Pro, and so, in their opinion Apple would be stupid to leave it out. Apple may just believe that a screen with half the real estate may not be suitable for Pencil support. Also, we have no idea what the manufacturing cost of adding Pencil support is. What about the performance and battery cost? Can the Air 3 truly support it without giving up too much in some other area?

I just have a hard time envisioning Apple turning the Air 3 into a smaller version of the Pro for $200+ less. Maybe next Fall when they presumably will have an A10X the Air 3 will launch with the A9X and Pencil support. I just don't know if that will happen any sooner than that without some other major concession to keep them separate.

I get your point of view and I dont say I am 100% certain they will support the pencil on the air. I just feel like the last thing the ipad line can need right now is another lackluster year. Basically nothing has happened to the ipad (air) line besides getting thinner and faster since 2012 (!). The iPad air 2 was basically just an 's version of the ipad air.

Really, the Apple Pencil is the first thing that is truly exciting for the ipad line since the retina display. Can Apple really afford to slow down sales for a higher ASP, when sales have been going nowhere but down lately?

Without pen support, the buying decision will be rather hard. I just dont think that the ipad pro size is the right size for most people. So either they will prevent customers from buying an ipad air or shove the pro down their throat which wont satisfy them aswell.

Oh and dont forget that they also skipped half a generation with the delaying of the launch. So they had more than enough time to implement the pencil support. We dont even know if it really is that expensive. The main reason why it didnt launch alongside the pro could also be the limited supply of pencils.

 

[khaosuser]

The air2 went from 469g to 437g... 0.96 lbs.

Let's say the Air3 weighs 400g (0.88 lbs)...You would give up another hour of battery life for that?! C'mon, are you serious?

If Apple wants to get more iPad 2, 3, and 4 users to upgrade their iPads, do you really think that is going to convince them to pull the trigger?

Late to reply but I'd be okay with that. For my purposes (<-- key word there is MY), I don't tend to use the iPad all day and find my iPad lasts ages for me when I'm using it. So for ME, if they reduced the battery a little bit to make the chassis smaller, I'd be okay with that. This contrasts with the iPhone, where I feel they should increase the battery size because it's battery life is pretty prohibitive.

 

[bufffilm]

Late to reply but I'd be okay with that. For my purposes (<-- key word there is MY), I don't tend to use the iPad all day and find my iPad lasts ages for me when I'm using it. So for ME, if they reduced the battery a little bit to make the chassis smaller, I'd be okay with that. This contrasts with the iPhone, where I feel they should increase the battery size because it's battery life is pretty prohibitive.

Well, it's been awhile since my last trans-Atlantic trip...but I really needed all the battery life then. Sometimes you have to think about use cases beyond the every day ones.

Giving up an hour of battery life to save 32 grams is not a trade-off I would make. And I don't think I'm alone in that dept. At least I hope not.

 

[Mitchdeno]

When is the rumoured release date of the iPad Air 3?

I think every year rumours are apple releasing products in March,, does not ever happen I certainly wouldn't hold my breath on that one

 

[khaosuser]

Well, it's been awhile since my last trans-Atlantic trip...but I really needed all the battery life then. Sometimes you have to think about use cases beyond the every day ones.

Giving up an hour of battery life to save 32 grams is not a trade-off I would make. And I don't think I'm alone in that dept. At least I hope not.

I fly trans-Atlantic quite a lot and have never had trouble with the iPad's battery but I accept your point.

 

[Smeaton1724]

I dont know about the smart connector (mainly for the reason that the iPad Air is too small for a full sized keyboard), but the Pencil HAS to come to the iPad Air. The iPad Pro is awesome but for many it is just too big (also for me). I almost bought one but just couldn't bring myself to do it because I would mainly need it for lectures at university and for that it is just too much.

The main differentiator between the Pro and the Air will be the size and the performance. The Air line hasnt been updated for over a year and they shouldnt hold pencil support back.

The Pencil support is EXACTLY what many, many current Air user or students need.

The iPad has struggled lately. The last thing Apple can allow itself to do is holding back features.

Agreed. They held the entire device launch back (March 2016 estimated launch, iPad Pro unveiled September 2015), that's why I think the Air 3 or 'The iPad' whatever they call it WILL have pencil support.

Delay the main device, get some traction with people who must have the latest tech, artists etc. Then release the new 'normal' iPad with pencil support and not only do people get rid of their old iPad 2,3,4 and Air. They also buy a pencil aswell. The icing on the cake would be 32GB minimum and a 256GB maximum.

New Device plus accessory would result in huge gains and restore confidence in the iPad category.

 

[Cashmonee]

Agreed. They held the entire device launch back (March 2016 estimated launch, iPad Pro unveiled September 2015), that's why I think the Air 3 or 'The iPad' whatever they call it WILL have pencil support.

Delay the main device, get some traction with people who must have the latest tech, artists etc. Then release the new 'normal' iPad with pencil support and not only do people get rid of their old iPad 2,3,4 and Air. They also buy a pencil aswell. The icing on the cake would be 32GB minimum and a 256GB maximum.

New Device plus accessory would result in huge gains and restore confidence in the iPad category.

If the Air 3 has Pencil support and starts at 32 GB with a similar processor, who would buy the Pro for $300 more? Further, Pro signifies more than just a larger screen. If it was just going to be a larger screen, they would have called it Plus like the iPhones. I don't know whether the Air will have Pencil support or not, but if it does, I am not sure the Pro makes much sense in Apple's lineup, not at that price.

 

[Dranix]

If the Air 3 would get Pencil support it will be much more expensive, too. The special screen does cost more...

 

[yillbs]

If the Air 3 has Pencil support and starts at 32 GB with a similar processor, who would buy the Pro for $300 more? Further, Pro signifies more than just a larger screen. If it was just going to be a larger screen, they would have called it Plus like the iPhones. I don't know whether the Air will have Pencil support or not, but if it does, I am not sure the Pro makes much sense in Apple's lineup, not at that price.

Which is why the four speaker setup, the pencil, and the keyboard ( from apple ) likely won't be coming out for any version of apple ipad air, any time soon anyways. They need to justify the price, and 300 for a screen isn't it.

 

[Smeaton1724]

If the Air 3 has Pencil support and starts at 32 GB with a similar processor, who would buy the Pro for $300 more? Further, Pro signifies more than just a larger screen. If it was just going to be a larger screen, they would have called it Plus like the iPhones. I don't know whether the Air will have Pencil support or not, but if it does, I am not sure the Pro makes much sense in Apple's lineup, not at that price.

I agree to a certain extent but it won't just end up differentiating because of a larger screen. I doubt the Air 3 will have the A9X or 4GB Ram (It would be nice). As for the Pro I don't think it should command that extra cost for 32GB, I think the iPP should have 2 capacities 128GB and 256GB but that is just my opinion. Although I have one, I really don't think the iPP 1st generation represents 'value' like I do the Air 2 64GB.

 

[aces99]

If Apple is smart, only the iPad Pro will have support of the pencil. At least for the first and second years.

If Apple was smart all iPads would have pencil support. How many iPad Pro's are sold compared to the rest of the iPad line. iPad Pro sales are small compared to the rest of the iPad sales. If all the iPads had pencil support then developers would be more inclined to make apps with pencil support. Which in return would make even more people buy iPads and apps because of the pencil support. It's a win win and seems like the smarter play for Apple.

 

[bufffilm]

If Apple was smart all iPads would have pencil support. How many iPad Pro's are sold compared to the rest of the iPad line. iPad Pro sales are small compared to the rest of the iPad sales. If all the iPads had pencil support then developers would be more inclined to make apps with pencil support. Which in return would make even more people buy iPads and apps because of the pencil support. It's a win win and seems like the smarter play for Apple.

No matter how much you and others clamor for it, don't expect pencil support in the Air till 2017 at the earliest, and that's if you're lucky. Don't want to wait that long...buy the iPP. That's what Apple is hoping for.

As for more apps to support the pencil, part of that will hinge on whether Apple revises the App store.

 

[CE3]

I have the surface 3 and its a wonderful device. I am glad it has full Windows on it so I can run full Windows applications like photoshop and illustrator etc.

Yes, that's the benefit of a Windows tablet. There would be no proper (or profitable) Windows tablet if it didn't run full Windows because they have no good apps for mobile. iOS, on the other hand, has an incredible selection of premium apps - the App Store is its foundation, and those apps will continue to evolve and become more powerful in the coming years. OS X is a totally different beast and not nearly as dependent on its App Store. I like both operating systems and think they serve their respective devices well. My iPhone and iPad play very well with my Mac, and this is only going to get better going forward.

- Battery life back up to Air 1 (or better)
-

My air 2's battery life has significantly improved over the past year. Initially I was getting a solid 8 hours of web browsing and video, whereas the Air 1 gave me at least 10. Today I usually manage between 11-14 hours.

My Air 3 wish list is 4GB of RAM, A9X, and improved sound. I think pencil support is likely. It's probably going to be either pencil support or 3D Touch, unless they can design a display for both.

 

[sanke1]

If Air 2 has 4K resolution, it would be pushing almost 3x (3 times the pixels) compared to Air 2.

Do we want a REPEAT of iPad 3 scenario all over again?

 

[aces99]

I doubt the iPad Air 3 will have 4K. I will be shocked if it does.

 

[aces99]

No matter how much you and others clamor for it, don't expect pencil support in the Air till 2017 at the earliest, and that's if you're lucky. Don't want to wait that long...buy the iPP. That's what Apple is hoping for.

As for more apps to support the pencil, part of that will hinge on whether Apple revises the App store.

I don't care if the Air 3 gets pencil support or not. I don't use pencil much and don't think I would use it much more if it does get pencil support. I just think it would be smarter for Apple if it does. Apple sells way more iPads than they do iPad Pro's. Getting pencil support on the new iPad makes more sense and is smarter than just the iPad Pro only. Getting pencil support on as many IOS devices as possible will give developers more incentive to make apps that support pencil. Which in return Apple will sell more IOS devices to people wanting Pencil support. I am on the fence if it will have it or not this year. Either way it makes no difference to me.

 

[Dranix]

Getting pencil support on as many IOS devices as possible will give developers more incentive to make apps that support pencil. Which in return Apple will sell more IOS devices to people wanting Pencil support.

But nearly every drawing app already has Pencil support…

 

[GrindedDown]

I agree, 4k of a phone or tablet is simply unnecessary and for nothing other than being on a spec sheet. It sucks system resources and battery pushing that many pixels; hence why Android devices with 4k have HUGE batteries but still relatively poor usage times.

The could up the smaller iPhone line to 1080ish (and fix the scaling issue that causes the Plus graphics to stutter/lag/etc) along with the Plus and the Air to iPad Pro resolution but that's ll they need to go right now really.

I have yet to see one true benefit to 4k on a mobile device

The only practical application I have found for 4K would be for virtual reality use on smartphones. I have been trying Google cardboard and used it quite a bit. It's very awesome and there really are some incredible things you can do. Viewing your panoramas or any of your other pics on VR is absurdly awesome. The resolution right now though is terrible (relatively speaking. 4K would solve that.

 

[aces99]

But nearly every drawing app already has Pencil support…

Now just think how many more iPads Apple would sell if you they could use pencil on all the iPads rather than just the iPad Pro. I don't use pencil much but I would be more inclined to buy the newest iPad if it had pencil support. But I will not buy the iPad Pro because I don't want a device that big. The size of the iPad Air line fits me just perfect. I know Apple sells a lot more iPads than they do IPP and it would be smart for them to get pencil support on as many IOS devices as possible.

 

[Dranix]

Sure but are you willing to pay 200-300$ more for an Air 3 to get this?

 

[aces99]

Is it really $200-300 just for pencil support? If it costs that much to get it then the answer would be no. I don't care about pencil support all that much but there are a lot of people that do. Weather they would pay that kind of premium to get it is another story. But I really can't see it costing that much just for pencil support. I was thinking around $50-60. But I could be wrong.

 

[Dranix]

You need a special screen. Di you really believe the iPad Pro costs as much as it does because Apple thinks it can rip off 300 more $ or that perhaps the tech simply is more expensive?

 

[aces99]

No but not all of the price difference is just because of pencil support. There are other factors like the fact that the overall size of the IPP is a lot bigger and has a lot bigger screen, more ram, bigger battery, new, faster A9X chip, etc. But I agree it is hard to justify putting pencil support on the iPad Air line and getting people to pay for it. My point was it would be smart for Apple to get pencil support on as many IOS devices as they can without jacking the price up much from the current pricing model.

 

[sanke1]

My predictions for Air 3

1. Design similar to iPhone 6/6S
2. Better iPad Pro like speakers
3. 30% faster A9 Chip (Compared to A8X of Air 2 and A9 of 6S)
4. IPad Pro resolution for screen.
5. Same 2 GB RAM
6. 2nd gen TouchID
7. Same camera as Air 2
8. 0.1 mm thinner than before.
9. No 3D Touch but pencil support would be there.
10. Probable: No headphone jack.

Overall a boring update for Air 2 users.

 

[Eric5273]

What they should do is have a 9.7" version of the iPad Pro which will have pencil and smart connector support. Then they can also have a 9.7" version of the iPad Air which does not, and which would probably have a slightly thinner body.