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New Low-Cost iPad Coming Next Week: What to Expect
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Yes, if you care for your eyes, compare with the air or pro. It might not bother you if you’re young. It doesn’t mean it’s good for your eyes
Although you could use a matte screen protector
I'm upgrading from my 2016 iPad Air 2 to this new 12th-generation iPad, and the screen is my only concern. I mainly use it for streaming, not for anything creative, and especially in dark environments.
I'd like to think that the non-laminated screen shouldn't bother me too much in my case.
EugW
macrumors P6
If streaming in dark environments, non-laminated is fine. I speak from experience as someone who has the iPad Air 2, iPad 9th gen, and iPad Pro M4.
The iPad Pro M4 is the best of course, but not because it is laminated. It’s the best because it has tandem OLED and Face ID.
philstubbington
macrumors 6502a
Here’s hoping. An upgrade from my iPad Air 3G is overdue. Not going to make the same mistake and go for a low storage option. Although the 64g on the 3G wasn’t the lowest option, I think?
EugW
macrumors P6
Depends. 128 GB is fine for basic use, esp. if you have iCloud storage, but I personally prefer 256 GB. We have a 2 TB iCloud storage plan.
My kids have been totally fine with 64 GB actually, so 128 GB would be a big upgrade for them, but again they share our 2 TB family iCloud storage.
philstubbington
macrumors 6502a
Yup - I think 256g is probably the minimum spec for me. I don’t use it for much to be honest - a glorified TV most of the time but also like to have some music and photos on it too. I find the storage management to be the biggest pain compared to my iPhone, Mac and Apple TV. Like you I have 2 Tb cloud shared with my wife and 2 other relatives.
kharma45
macrumors newbie
I went from iPad Air (4th generation) to A16 base iPad and the screen is honestly fine. I had the Air and base mode side by side in store and didn't really think the Air warranted the price increase. Is it better? Yes. Is the base model good enough? Also yes. I don't regret the downgrade.
I look forward to seeing the screen go all the way to the edge yet also have thick bezels… 😀
Yeah I think it’ll be the A18 to cut cost. I believe that one also supports Apple Intelligence — as to what that is 🤷♂️
This sounds like a nice upgrade! I do wonder how much the screen difference would bother me versus other Apple screens I use. I’m not sure, and I don’t know how its speaker quality is, but baring that it ain’t bad at all.
One of the new products that we could see next week is a refreshed version of the low-cost iPad. As with the iPad Air, we're not expecting major changes, but it is expected to get some meaningful internal upgrades.
Design
The 12th-generation iPad isn't going to get a design update this year, and we're expecting it to have the same 11-inch edge-to-edge display with Touch ID Side Button and thick bezels.
Apple last updated the iPad's design with the 10th-generation model, giving the device a more modern look to better match the designs of the iPad Pro and iPad Air models. It's still a relatively new design, and Apple doesn't update the low-cost iPad's chassis often.
The low-cost iPad is only available in a single screen size, and it is Apple's thickest tablet at 7mm. It features a Retina LCD display with no ProMotion support, no P3 wide color, and no lamination (display technology that cuts down on glare, provides a more responsive feel, and allows for a thinner size) compared to Apple's other tablets.
Apple makes the low-cost iPad in several fun colors, and we could see some new shades in 2026. Current colors include blue, pink, silver, and yellow.
No changes are expected for the rear camera, front camera, USB-C port, or compatibility with accessories like the Apple Pencil.
A-Series Processor
The low-cost iPad will likely be equipped with Apple's A19 chip, which is the chip that Apple used for the iPhone 17. It is built on a 3-nanometer process and it will offer speed and efficiency improvements over the A16 chip that's in the current model.
The A16 chip that Apple used in 2025 does not support Apple Intelligence, but the A19 does, so that will mark a major update for Apple's affordable tablet. The 2026 model should be able to support Apple Intelligence features that are unavailable with the 2025 model.
The A19 also offers hardware-accelerated ray tracing for gaming improvements. The 11th-generation iPad has 6GB RAM, but Apple will need to bump that up to 8GB for Apple Intelligence.
N1 Chip
Apple introduced its own Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, called the N1, in the iPhone 17 models. The N1 was added to the iPad Pro, and it's possible that Apple plans to add the chip to all future devices coming in 2026 and beyond.
The N1 chip supports Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6, and Thread networking technology for smart home devices.
The 11th-generation iPad is limited to Wi-Fi 6, so if the 12th-generation version gets Wi-Fi 7, it will be able to connect to faster 6GHz networks for the first time. Bluetooth 6 would also be an improvement over Bluetooth 5.3. There is a chance that Apple is reserving the N1 chip for its more premium devices, based on leaked internal code. If that's the case, the iPad won't include the N1 chip.
Apple Modem
Apple has designed C1 and C1X modem chips that it has used in iPhones and iPads in 2025, and the next-generation version of the iPad could also get an Apple-designed modem chip for cellular models.
Apple's modem chips are more power efficient than Qualcomm chips while providing similar performance.
Pricing
The 11th-generation iPad is priced starting at $349 for 128GB of storage, and there are so far no indications that pricing is going to change for the 12th-generation model.
Launch Date
Apple will likely launch the low-cost iPad sometime next week, just ahead of the Special Experience planned for March 4.
Article Link: New Low-Cost iPad Coming Next Week: What to Expect
It was on the 3rd Gen Air, as it only came in two variants: 64GB and 256GB (as did the Mini 5, Air 4, Air 5 and Mini 6.) I would have bought 128GB with the latter, but 256GB when I didn't need it was too much of a price jump.
philstubbington
macrumors 6502a
Ah, okay. My wife had an iPad with even less storage but maybe that wasn’t an Air?
32GB/128GB were the options on the base iPad from its introduction in March 2017 until the 9th Gen came out in September 2021.
You might not like it, but it's not going to damage your eyes! 😂
At least no more so that staring at any other screen.
Superman730
macrumors regular
Yea, that stinks. I want to get my kid an iPad for his March birthday and I was hoping it would be an updated base model. I don't think a 9 year old has any use for the updated iPad Air but I also don't want to purchase an A16 iPad that'll most likely go obsolete in two years.
Superman730
macrumors regular
EugW
macrumors P6
Yeah that’s unfortunate, and I’m waiting for an updated iPad too, but I don’t think the A16 iPad will be obsolete that soon, unless you’re set on getting AI. One concern I have isn’t AI per se but Photos Cleanup (which is dependent upon AI but doesn’t require the full AI install).
For the record, Apple will support the A16 iPad with full iPad OS updates until at least 2030, and with security updates until at least 2032, so there is a lot of life left in it even if it doesn’t support AI and only has 6 GB RAM.