iPad Looking for iPad buying advice - if the M4 Air is overkill, what's our best bet?

[hky740]

My wife and I had various iPads for years, but traded in the last one we had (9th gen) more than a year ago. We both miss having a tablet in the house. We've been waiting for the entry-level iPad to get refreshed, but that keeps on not happening.

The iPaid Air is perhaps more than we need to spend at $599, but would it really be overkill for us? Best Buy has some M3 Air's for $499.

It'd be mostly an internet browsing/streaming device, though my wife would do some very basic gaming on it (and I mean basic, like Candy Crush or Monopoly Go).

Looking at non-Apple tablets, none seem like good deals except maybe the Samsung Galaxy Tab A11+ that's $269. (and I'm not even sure about that).

Any buying advice?

 

[FreakinEurekan]

I don't see where a M4 Air is "overkill." Especially if you tend to keep them for several years, there's nothing wrong with spending a little more.

M3 is also fine, so if you can get one for a good price and the specs other than CPU are the same ($100 less is "Good" IMO), go for it.

 

[Zazoh]

I’m also waiting on the base. It’s the only product in the lineup that doesn’t support AI. So a new one should be coming very soon.

 

[Apple_Robert]

You would do better getting the base model, unless you don't have a problem spending $500 for each iPad Air.

 

[rui no onna]

I don't see where a M4 Air is "overkill." Especially if you tend to keep them for several years, there's nothing wrong with spending a little more.

M3 is also fine, so if you can get one for a good price and the specs other than CPU are the same ($100 less is "Good" IMO), go for it.

Yup this. I have a 2021 iPad 9th gen (A13/3GB) that struggles with iPadOS 26. Meanwhile, the year older 2020 iPad Air (A14/4GB) is still chugging along fairly decently.

The Air gets you a bit more longevity. Also, the M-series Airs will likely still perform well on its last iPadOS update compared to the base iPad on its last iPadOS version.

And yeah, the M3 Air at $500 is fine.

 

[thadoggfather]

I’d rather an older gen iPad Pro than an air. For 120hz alone.

 

[I7guy]

My wife and I had various iPads for years, but traded in the last one we had (9th gen) more than a year ago. We both miss having a tablet in the house. We've been waiting for the entry-level iPad to get refreshed, but that keeps on not happening.

The iPaid Air is perhaps more than we need to spend at $599, but would it really be overkill for us? Best Buy has some M3 Air's for $499.

It'd be mostly an internet browsing/streaming device, though my wife would do some very basic gaming on it (and I mean basic, like Candy Crush or Monopoly Go).

Looking at non-Apple tablets, none seem like good deals except maybe the Samsung Galaxy Tab A11+ that's $269. (and I'm not even sure about that).

Any buying advice?

Unless you want to remain in the apple ecosystem the Samsung might be a good option. Otherwise the m3 has 8 gig while the m4 has 12 gig. One thing to note is the base memory on both is 128 gig. The m3 iPad Air should have a long shelf life.

 

[rui no onna]

Unless you want to remain in the super ecosystem the Samsung might be a good option. Otherwise the m3 has 8 gig while the m4 has 12 gig. One thing to note is the base memory on both is 128 gig. The m3 iPad Air should have a long shelf life.

That Galaxy Tab A11+ actually has a relatively decent SoC (Mediatek Dimensity 7300). The non-plus version only has a Mediatek Helio G99 which is pretty slow even for basic tasks.

 

[Fr. Guido Sarducci]

I’m new here, but it didn’t take long to realize that this place isn’t the best for buying advice. It’s full of whiners who seem to hate everything, yet here they are.

I recently bought a 13” M5 pro as the sole device for all of my computing needs, and I think it’s the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Like with just about anything, once you’ve decided how much you want to spend, buy what fits within that window and have fun with it, since in your case it’s a toy not a tool.

 

[klasma]

I’d choose the Air for its better display. The M3 is perfectly fine, however the M4 will give you one more year of OS updates, which may be worth the extra cost. The M4 is discounted to $559 or less (depending on color) at Amazon, as well as at B&H for the blue one.

 

[Greenmeenie]

I know nothing about non apple tablets, so for your basic needs I'd nab the regular iPad 11 now. It's still better than most of the non ipads out there. But if you can wait a few more months, it does look like the iPad 12 should be announced sometime btwn now & WWDC on June 8th. It'll be a great update for the same price. 👍

 

[Miltz]

The new iPad Air M4 is definitely worth it over the M3. Why. 12 gigs of RAM instead of 8. it will definitely last longer and perform better. The M4 trip will also ensure that app iPadOS runs super fast as a device gets older.