Apple's new M2 iPad Air is here in an all-new 13-inch size, refreshed 11-inch model

Apple's big Let Loose iPad event has now come to a close and the company announced everything that we expected it to. In fact, surprises were very few and far between which means that we saw Apple unveil the new iPad Air, the best and most powerful tablet ever to carry that moniker. The new tablet is available for preorder today with prices starting from $599, and it'll ship to those who preorder next week.

The updated tablet doesn't feature a big industrial design change although there are new colors for buyers to choose from. Apple says that the tablet can be had in charcoal gray, light violet, denim, and age while all of those colors are options whether or not you choose the smaller 11-inch version of the larger 13-inch tablet.

2

Yes, you read that right, and the rumors were true - Apple today added an all-new 13-inch model to the popular iPad Air lineup. The existing 11-inch version is still present and has been updated accordingly, but it's the addition of a new 13-inch version of the iPad Air that will likely capture many people's attention. It's the same size as the new OLED M4 iPad Pro, for example, but costs considerably less. The 13-inch iPad Air starts at $799 while the iPad Pro starts at an eyewatering $1,299. It's important to note that the iPad Air comes with 128GB of storage and the iPad Pro comes with 256GB, but for those who just want a bigger screen, the iPad Air is a great option at this price.

Beyond the display, other improvements over the previous model include the addition of the M2 chip, replacing the outgoing M1 silicon that's starting to get a little long in the tooth - especially on the back of today's M4 announcement. Apple has also moved the FaceTime camera to the side of the iPad Air's display as rumored, making it more suited to being used in landscape orientation during video calls.

Other notable features include support for 5G on the cellular iPad Air while Wi-Fi 6E is offered across the entire lineup. Apple understandably focused on AI during the event, saying that the M2's 16-core NEural Engine is 40% faster than the one found in the M1. The announcement press release also pointed out that, combined with machine learning accelerator in the CPU and a more capable GPU for improved on-device machine learning, the new iPad Air offers "exceptional AI performance."

Apple is expected to announce iPadOS 18 during the WWDC event on June 10 with AI set to be a key feature. Apple is clearly setting the tone with this new iPad Air ahead of time, too.