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iPad Where are the new iPads?!?!?!

C

CSAppleFan

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Feb 26, 2025
3
3
that's it pretty much...just growing impatient lol.

I will be in the market for a new iPad but want to wait for the new Air and 11th gen to see which one makes sense for me and my use case. Which is just as a Teams video call device and note taking mixed in with content streaming, and some gaming.
 
Well the last four regular iPads were released in September to October so you likely have a wait for that.

It’s likely going to be more disappointing for you when it comes to the iPad Air. The last three versions were released in 2020, 2022, and 2024. I’m seeing a pattern there and 2025 does not fit that pattern.
 
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Apparently the iPad Air will soon have had 4 generations since 2020 and the iPad mini only 2 😞

As there are pretty solid rumours for an Air 7 (not involving OLED) and an iPad 11, I would expect to see them late this year before the Air gets single stack OLED in 2027. The Air is averaging a refresh every 18 months or so since the name was revived in 2019.
 
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Patterns are being broken this year, apparently both the air (with a new magic keyboard) and the 11 are coming this Spring
 
I am optimistic, I think it is possible before easter, but the 16E launch needs to be fully cleared first.

So mid March to mid April - at a guess.
 
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snipr125 said:
Will be interesting to see if the Air 7 gets a M3 or M4 chip.
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What would be the point of going from M2 to M3? I think that’s too minor of an upgrade. If anything it’s going to be M4 but I don’t think it’s going to be in March. It’s too soon. Of course Apple does crazy things so who knows what they’re going to do
 
If there's nothing the current iPads cannot do for you, I don't see much reason to wait. iPads are largely the same, with the Pro display being the biggest difference. If anything, I'd wait for WWDC to see if iPadOS gains more functionality, since this will affect your day-to-day usage more, but you already have an interest in iPadOS in its current state.

For your specific use cases, I don't imagine a radical change for video calls, and the screen quality doesn't matter when compression nerfs to potato quality camera feeds. Gaming would certainly benefit from the displays and processing power from the Pro models, depending on what games you enjoy. Content and notes work fine on all iPads.
 
russell_314 said:
What would be the point of going from M2 to M3? I think that’s too minor of an upgrade. If anything it’s going to be M4 but I don’t think it’s going to be in March. It’s too soon. Of course Apple does crazy things so who knows what they’re going to do
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The rumor is that the iPad Air sold better than expected (and the iPad Pro worse) last year, and so they are updating it for even more sales. A new Magic Keyboard that brings it closer to the iPad Pro one (e.g. function keys) is also rumored. Or maybe they are updating the iPad Air to become compatible with the Pro keyboard.
 
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The regular iPad is definitely due for an update. It's been over two years. My guess is March. But i dunno if I believe the rumors about the iPad Air getting the M3 & 90hz screen refresh rate anytime soon. The Air and iPad Pros were both updated less than a year ago. My bet is the Fall at the earliest, but more likely 2026 for those two iPads to get an update.
 
Realityck said:
GPU improvements, neural processing improvements
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Obviously, there’s going to be some performance improvements, but how much does it cost Apple to redesign the board. It might not be worth it for such an instrumental improvement.

klasma said:
The rumor is that the iPad Air sold better than expected (and the iPad Pro worse) last year, and so they are updating it for even more sales. A new Magic Keyboard that brings it closer to the iPad Pro one (e.g. function keys) is also rumored. Or maybe they are updating the iPad Air to become compatible with the Pro keyboard.
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That’s kind of weird because if you’re buying the air at retail price, it’s not such a great deal. You can get the Pro for slightly more. I bought mine because of a deal I got with the carrier and maybe that’s what selling these iPads? I think if I was paying full price I would’ve just went with the Pro
 
Greenmeenie said:
The regular iPad is definitely due for an update. It's been over two years.
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I just want the regular iPad to be fully compatible with the Apple Pencil. Not this worse Apple Pencil ******** Apple is putting users through again.

The regular Apple Pencil and syncs and charges through the magnetic side panel should be compatible with every version of the iPad. Get rid of the one users need to plug in.
 
klasma said:
The rumor is that the iPad Air sold better than expected (and the iPad Pro worse) last year, and so they are updating it for even more sales. A new Magic Keyboard that brings it closer to the iPad Pro one (e.g. function keys) is also rumored. Or maybe they are updating the iPad Air to become compatible with the Pro keyboard.
Click to expand...
the rumors has been on for months and it was not so much because it sold better (although it did, probably because of the new larger model), but because they want to sell a new keyboard, as people were reusing old second-hand keyboards from the old pro which flooded the market after the M4, so now they can sell new very high marging keyboards
 
russell_314 said:
That’s kind of weird because if you’re buying the air at retail price, it’s not such a great deal. You can get the Pro for slightly more. I bought mine because of a deal I got with the carrier and maybe that’s what selling these iPads? I think if I was paying full price I would’ve just went with the Pro
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11" iPad Air starts at $599 while the Pro starts at $999.

Maybe it's just me but I don't consider $400 (or 67% of the Air's price) being just slightly more.
 
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rui no onna said:
11" iPad Air starts at $599 while the Pro starts at $999.

Maybe it's just me but I don't consider $400 (or 67% of the Air's price) being just slightly more.
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That’s only because you’re not comparing identical storage models. You could do the same with the top iPad Air versus the top iPad Pro. Perhaps people don’t actually look at this so it makes it seem even cheaper, which would explain the sales.

A better comparison would be the 256 GB iPad Air to compare with the 256 GB iPad Pro that you mentioned. That’s $699 versus $999. You’re right that’s still cheaper but I feel like if you’re already spending $699 you would get so much more for the extra $300.

On the other side of the coin, someone may not care about things like a faster processor, a better camera that they’ll never use or high refresh rate screen they really can’t see. The $300 would be completely wasted.

I like my iPad Air because it does everything I need. I still think if I was going to make the choice today and if it was full price iPad Air versus full price iPad Pro I would pick the Pro.
 
russell_314 said:
That’s only because you’re not comparing identical storage models. You could do the same with the top iPad Air versus the top iPad Pro. Perhaps people don’t actually look at this so it makes it seem even cheaper, which would explain the sales.

A better comparison would be the 256 GB iPad Air to compare with the 256 GB iPad Pro that you mentioned. That’s $699 versus $999. You’re right that’s still cheaper but I feel like if you’re already spending $699 you would get so much more for the extra $300.

On the other side of the coin, someone may not care about things like a faster processor, a better camera that they’ll never use or high refresh rate screen they really can’t see. The $300 would be completely wasted.

I like my iPad Air because it does everything I need. I still think if I was going to make the choice today and if it was full price iPad Air versus full price iPad Pro I would pick the Pro.
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I know they're not identical storage and if the base Air was still 64GB, then upgrading makes sense. Indeed, I've recommended the $799 M1/M2 iPad Pros with its 128GB base storage over the $599 64GB or $749 256GB M1 Air many a times.

For most consumers though, 128GB is likely enough so that extra $100 for 256GB is also wasted.

Mind, I'm actually inclined to opt for the Air next time I upgrade. For one thing, I get migraines with OLED. For another, 1TB is now available on the Air and it's just $1250 for 1TB cellular vs $1800 for the Pro.
 
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We were forced to buy an iPad 10 because the 7th gen with its 32 GB stopped being usable for what it is being used for, the return window is 30 days, so I expect iPad 11 to be announced on March 24.
 
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DankeBrutus said:
I just want the regular iPad to be fully compatible with the Apple Pencil. Not this worse Apple Pencil ******** Apple is putting users through again.

The regular Apple Pencil and syncs and charges through the magnetic side panel should be compatible with every version of the iPad. Get rid of the one users need to plug in.
Click to expand...
I agree. The plug in Apple Pencil is ridiculous.
 
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navaira said:
We were forced to buy an iPad 10 because the 7th gen with its 32 GB stopped being usable for what it is being used for, the return window is 30 days, so I expect iPad 11 to be announced on March 24.
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You're not alone.

I recently decided to replace my iPad 9 due to increasing lag and an issue where the screen wouldn’t wake after pressing the home button. My wife's iPad 8 was still functioning but, after five years, it seemed like the right time for an upgrade.

While I considered the iPad Air M2, I found its price difficult to justify given the current limitations of Apple Intelligence. Rather than waiting for the iPad 11—likely at a higher price—I opted for two 256GB iPad 10s.

So far, I’ve been very pleased with the purchase. ChatGPT and Perplexity significantly outperform Apple Intelligence and Siri, making a noticeable difference in usability.

Wishing you a great and long-lasting experience with your iPad 10!
 
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I am in the market for iPad Air 13". What are your opinions - should I buy current model or wait for the upgrade?
 
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