If you’re buying a new iPad, you may be surprised by all the different options. The iPad Pro models differ in more than size, and the latest…
If you are considering buying a new tablet or upgrading your iPad for the first time in several years, you may find that you have many more options than you did the last time. The current iPad Pro models differ in more than size, and the latest 9th-gen iPad and 6th-gen iPad Mini are interesting alternatives to the 4th-gen iPad Air. Before we get to recommendations, and which tablet is best for you, the summary table below can give you a clear snapshot of how current generation Apple iPads can vary greatly in terms of price, processing power, accessory support, storage, and cellular options… This guide will help you in choosing the right iPad for you by answering a few simple questions… As recommended in our Best Tablets guide, if you just want a great tablet and don’t have specific requirements, then you won’t miss anything going with the basic and most affordable iPad, which starts at $329 and with luck you may be able to get it for $299 at places such as Walmart and Amazon. Updated in late 2021, the 9th-gen iPad is powered by the A13 Bionic chip and 3GB of RAM. This tablet can easily handle iPadOS 15 and any app or game on the App Store. With a 2160×1620 resolution, its 10.2” display has the same 264ppi as the most expensive models, and uses True Tone technology to automatically adjust brightness and color temperature. The ultra-wide 12MP front camera is actually better than the iPad Air’s 7MP one. It even supports the 1st-gen Apple Pencil and the Smart Keyboard. We can think of a few reasons why the basic iPad may not be enough for you, though: it’s the only iPad model whose display doesn’t have an anti-reflective coating, so it’s not ideal for use in direct sunlight. If you use your iPad for drawing, you will appreciate the fully laminated display and wider color gamut of the more advanced models. Other features missing from the base iPad but that are available in the rest of Apple tablets include: Bluetooth 5.0 and simultaneous dual-band Wi-Fi, and it doesn’t support USB-C but keeps using the Lightning connector. Another reason you may not like the basic iPad is the aesthetics: until this year, the basic iPad had at least one color option with white bezels, now it’s only available with black bezels on either silver or space gray back.
