After a long wait, Apple has finally gone ahead and lifted the veil over its newest products this year.?
While we still haven¡¯t got a look at the iPhone 12s, Apple has at least revealed the new iPads -- iPad 8th Generation and iPad Air at the September 15 keynote.
ALSO READ:?Apple Watch Series 6 With Blood Oximeter, Budget Watch SE Revealed
The 2020 iPad Air is packing a ton of upgrades from its previous model, powered by the new A14 processor -- the same processor iPhone 12s are going to be powered with. The CPU is packing major processing upgrade under the hood.?
For display, we're seeing a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display with a laminated panel.?Aesthetically, it is not that different from the second-generation iPad Pro with flat edges and thinner bezels. The iPad Air has now let go of thick bezels but hasn't really let go of Touch ID. Instead, you get it integrated on the power button on top. The iPad Air isn't getting FaceID yet though.
It has also integrated the second-generation Apple Pencil that charges it wirelessly, as well as support for the newly launched Apple Magic Keyboard. However, another noteworthy inclusion in this upgrade is a USB Type C port as opposed to the conventional Lightning connector.?iPad Air 4 starts at a price tag of $599 and will be available in Wi-Fi and LTE variants.?
iPad 8th generation is the most basic in the lot targeted towards students, We¡¯re seeing a similar design language with the non-laminated 10-inch Retina display with thick bezels and a TouchID sensor at the bottom. There are, however, some noteworthy upgrades underneath.
Under the hood, we¡¯ve got a slightly faster A12X processor, which while dated still packs a considerable amount of punch. The iPad 8th generation still features a conventional Lightning connector for charging. Also, it still supports the first generation of Apple Pencil. iPad 8th Generation starts at a price tag of $299 in the US.?
iPadOS 14, available beginning Wednesday, September 16, brings new features and designs that take advantage of the unique capabilities of iPad, such as its large Multi-Touch display, and versatile accessories. iPadOS 14 further integrates Apple Pencil into the iPad experience. When taking notes on iPad, Smart Selection uses on-device machine learning to distinguish handwriting from drawings, so handwritten text can easily be selected, cut, and pasted into another document as typed text using the same familiar gestures. Shape recognition allows users to draw shapes that are made geometrically perfect and snap right into place when adding diagrams and illustrations in Notes. Data detectors work seamlessly with handwritten text, recognising phone numbers, dates, addresses, and links, making it easy for users to perform actions like tapping a handwritten number to make a call.
iPadOS 14 also brings Scribble to iPad, allowing Apple Pencil users to handwrite directly in any text field, making actions like replying to a quick iMessage or searching in Safari fast and easy ¡ª all without ever needing to put Apple Pencil away. Scribble uses on-device machine learning to convert handwriting into typed text in real time, so writing is always kept private and secure.
The new iPad Air will be available in October at Apple Authorised Resellers. Wi-Fi models of iPad Air will be available with a starting price of Rs 54,900 and Wi-Fi + Cellular models start at Rs 66,900. The new iPad Air, in 64GB and 256GB configurations, will be available in five beautiful finishes including silver, space gray, rose gold, green, and sky blue.?
Apple iPad 5th generation and later, and iPad mini 4 and later.?Apple Pencil (2nd generation), available for purchase separately for Rs 10,900, is compatible with iPad Air. Magic Keyboard and the Smart Keyboard Folio for iPad Air are available for purchase separately for Rs 27,900 and Rs 15,900, respectively, both with layouts for over 30 languages, including simplified Chinese, French, German, Japanese, and Spanish. Smart Folios are available for iPad Air for Rs 7,500 in black, white, and three new seasonal colours including deep navy, cyprus green, and pink citrus.