It’s hard to believe, but the iPad Air is now a decade old.
That original model launched back in November 2013, and became the expensive iPad ever at the time. It’s long since been replaced by the iPad Pro at the top of Apple’s tablet range, but acts as a middle ground between it and the regular iPad.
The next generation of the iPad Air will be the sixth, and there are plenty of rumours regarding what to expect. Here’s everything you need to know about its potential release date, pricing and key specs.
When will the new iPad Air be released?
The iPad Air was rumoured to be announced at Apple’s October 2023 event, but that never materialised.
With the next Apple event not expected until 2024, we’ll probably be waiting until then for a new iPad Air. This may be just via press releases, but a spring 2024 launch event is more likely.
Apple held similar events in April 2021 and March 2022, but skipped 2023. For context, here’s when recent iterations of the iPad Air arrived:
- 5th-generation: March 2022
- 4th-generation: September 2020
- 3rd-generation: March 2019
The company has already left it longer between new versions than we’d expect. But that doesn’t necessarily mean there’ll be a new model in early 2023 – there are no concrete rumours regarding release date now the October event is over.
In the meantime, you can read our review of the latest iPad Air to see whether it’s worth buying.
How much will the new iPad Air cost?
Pricing is usually one of the last things to be revealed about a new product, so it’s no surprise that there’s no news yet.
For reference, here’s how much the current iPad Air range costs:
- iPad Air (64GB, Wi-Fi): £569/$599
- iPad Air (256GB, Wi-Fi): £719/$749
- iPad Air (64GB, Wi-Fi & Cellular): £719/$749
- iPad Air (256GB, Wi-Fi & Cellular): £869/$899
It’s difficult to predict whether Apple will increase the prices on the next generation. If the rumoured upgrades to the display turn out to be true, it’s very possible.
But the iPad Air represents the middle ground between the $449/£499 regular iPad and $1,099/£1,249 iPad Pro, and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.
For more alternatives, see our guide to the best iPad.
What specs and features will the new iPad Air have?
The big rumour so far concerns the iPad Air’s display. According to DigiTimes (via Forbes), the next Air will be available with a 12.9in display.
That would match what we see on the larger version of the iPad Pro, and be a significant increase compared to the 10.9in 2022 iPad Air. Does that mean we’d still see a smaller Air as an alternative? That’s not clear, but it’d make sense to have two options to choose from.
However, it doesn’t look like the iPad Pro’s miniLED screen will be making its way to the Air. Forbes says it’ll probably stick with the LCD panels we see currently, and there’s no word on a higher refresh rate than 60Hz.
An Omdia report suggests Apple could shift to OLED displays at some point, but it’s unlikely to be in the 2024 iPad Air.
A new processor is one thing we can be almost certain about. According to popular leaker Revegnus, it’ll use Apple’s M2 chipset:
That would make sense, given the M3 chips are now official and M1 powers the 2022 iPad Air. Apple will probably limit M3 to the iPad Pro, at least for now.
MacRumors also thinks we could be getting upgrades to the front and rear cameras, with both hardware and software improvements possible.
But that’s where the leaks and rumours end for now. We’re also hoping to see more than the current 64GB of base storage, but there’s no evidence of that yet.
We’ll update this article once more is revealed. In the meantime, see our guides to the best iPads and best tablets.
