Apple’s newest tablet has it all. Performance, battery life, 5G and a wide range of use cases.
Apple’s tablet lineup is complete. Or at least, on the same page. Apple announced the fifth-generation iPad Air during its Peek Performance event in early March. The new Air has a beefed-up processor, new color options,5G connectivity and Center Stage, Apple’s fancy video call feature for the front camera. For the last five days, I’ve been testing the iPad Air, replacing my iPad Pro — which is normally within arms reach at all times — with the new Air. Outside of display differences (both in size and quality), I haven’t missed my iPad Pro one bit. And heck, I imagine with another week of use, I won’t even miss my Pro’s 12.9-inch screen. My experience with the iPad Air has been everything I figured it would be with strong performance and long battery life. And as much as I hate to admit it, there’s a touch of buyer’s remorse thrown in. A few years ago it felt as if Apple had all but forgotten about the iPad Air. But in 2020 we saw a fresh new design come to the fourth generation iPad Air. Just 18 months later, Apple has once again updated the iPad Air. Only instead of a complete design overhaul for the fifth-generation Air, this year’s update focuses on performance. That means the outside of this year’s iPad Air looks identical to the 2020 model, save for new colors. The iPad Air now comes in space gray, pink, purple, blue and starlight. The iPad Air still has a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display that reaches nearly edge-to-edge. There’s a new 12-megapixel ultra wide FaceTime camera centered at the top of the screen. After Apple released the ninth-generation iPad, the iPad Air was the only tablet left in the lineup that lacked Apple’s Center Stage feature for the FaceTime camera. The new iPad Air gains Center Stage, which uses the wide-angle camera to keep you in the frame of video calls in FaceTime and third-party apps like Zoom. It’s a handy feature to have and use, and one I’m sure iPad Air owners will find convenient as well. On the right edge of the tablet are the volume up/down buttons and a space to store/charge a second-generation Apple Pencil. If you opt for a cellular model, you’ll also find a nano-SIM card tray on the right side of the iPad Air. You don’t have to use the SIM tray, however, as the Air supports eSIM technology that allows you to set up service with your carrier of choice with the tap of just a few buttons. The iPad Air now supports 5G cellular connectivity, but not mmWave, only the slower Sub6 standard. Don’t be discouraged, though. Just like with the new iPhone SE, the lack of mmWave isn’t a dealbreaker due to the lack of widespread rollout and issues with signal interference. On the top of the iPad Air is the top button that continues to double as a fingerprint reader with Touch ID built into it. It’s fast and easy to wake and unlock the iPad Air by pressing and then resetting your finger on the top button. As with the last refresh of the iPad Air, for the first day or so I missed my iPad Pro’s Face ID unlock method, but as I sit here writing this review, my muscle memory is already reaching for the top button to unlock the iPad Air or authenticate my password manager.
