Macworld (2019-06)

76 MACWORLD JUNE 2019

FEATURE REVIEW: iPAD AIR (2019)

Apple’s new iPad Pros (go.
macworld.com/nw19) are
high-end tablet marvels, with
a new slim-bezel design,
Face ID, crazy-fast A12X chip, and new
wireless Apple Pencil. But when Apple
introduced the overhauled third-
generation models, it also blew up the
price. The old 10.5-inch Pro was $649
and the new 11-inch replacement is $799,
while the 12.9-inch model jumped from
$799 to $999.
That leaves a big price gap for anyone
who doesn’t want an iPad Pro, but wants
more than the basic $329 iPad (go.
macworld.com/9718). Apple is filling that
gap with a strange middle-child product
that borrows the design of the old 10.5-
inch iPad Pro, the name of the retired-for-
years iPad Air, and
an odd mix of
hardware features.
Starting at
$499 with 64GB
of storage, the
iPad Air is a set of
compromises and
tradeoffs that may
be just the thing
for users who
want more than an
iPad but don’t
want to pay steep
Pro prices.

MORE THAN AN iPAD

Compared to the 9.7-inch iPad, the iPad Air

is a significant upgrade. Sure, the entry-

level configuration of the iPad Air costs

$170 more, but you get a lot of bang for

your buck.

The most obvious difference is the

form factor. The iPad Air is just slightly

bigger (9.8 x 6.8 inches to the iPad’s 9.4 x

6.4 inches) and has slightly smaller bezels,

giving room for a more generous 10.5-inch

display. Despite being a little bigger, it’s

also a few grams lighter and 1.4 millimeters

thinner. Holding it gives the impression

that it’s a lot less chunky (iPad Air indeed)

though it’s not quite as thin as the new

iPad Pro. If you’re familiar with the older

10.5-inch iPad Pro, you’ll notice almost no

difference here. In fact, the dimensions are

Sure does look like the 10.5-inch iPad Pro, doesn’t it?