iPad compared: new model vs 9th generation vs Air 5 and 4

With the new 10th generation iPad and iPad Pro M2 the offer Apple on the tablet market extends further, the final choice must necessarily reflect your real needs and for this reason we think that a comparison between different models may help to better understand which direction to move. Here we will focus on 3 “comparable” iPads, thus avoiding inserting the Pro M2 which belongs to a different price range and is in fact a product in itself due to its intrinsic characteristics. The models taken into consideration are therefore:

to which we add a model that, although no longer officially in the price list, is still proposed on the Apple website refurbished (and it is obviously also used):

Left to right: iPad 9th gen, iPad 10th gen, iPad Air 5, iPad Air 4

The four iPads are proposed all in the double 64 and 256GB format both WiFi and WiFi + cellular. From this point of view, therefore, there is no kind of difference. The dimensions are similar among the models equipped with 10.9-inch displays (identical between the 2 Air), while the 9th generation iPad with 10.2-inch display is slightly taller and narrower than the others, as well as being the thickest and heaviest respectively with 7.5mm and 487g (even 29g more than 4th generation iPad Air).

Here the differences concern the presence of the 2160×1620 Retina display on iPad 9th gen he was born in Liquid Retina 2360×1640 on iPad 10a, iPad Air 5a and 4a. The first is also the only one – of the four – to be equipped with a screen with a diagonal of 10.2 in. The two Airs also offer a full lamination display with anti-reflective coating, features that are lacking on the remaining models. The remaining specifications are common to the four models.

The processor is the element with which the generational change is mainly emphasized. iPad 9th generation is equipped with Apple A13 Bionicthe new 10th gen iPad shares with 4th gen iPad Air theApple A14 Bionic while the 5th gen iPad Air is the only one to offer an Apple Silicon solution with its own M1. In many contexts this configuration can make a real difference.

On the battery side, the four are equivalent: “up to 10 hours of WiFi browsing or video playback, up to 9 hours of web browsing on a cellular network, USB-C charging“.

For Apple Pencil the iPad Air are a story in themselves, since they are compatible with the 2nd generation version. Different speech instead for iPad 9th gen, which stops at 1st generation of the stylus, and for the new iPad, which instead requires a adapter USB-C to 1st generation Apple Pencil.

There are also differences regarding the keyboard compatibility: Smart Keyboard on the 9th gen iPad, Magic Keyboard Folio on the 10th gen one, Magic Keyboard and Smart Keyboard Folio on the two iPad Airs.

On the back all the iPads examined offer the cam from 12MP with f / 1.8 apertureexcept for iPad 9 which has a camera from 8MP f / 2.4 and it is the only one that is not compatible with 4K video recording.

The front camera is definitely more important for obvious reasons: here to share the sensor from 12MP are iPad 9, 10 and Air 5, Air 4 has a 7MP cam without extended dynamic range for videos up to 30fps, a feature that the other three products are equipped with.

There are two speakers on each model, positioned horizontally on iPad 10, Air 5 and 4. And all are obviously equipped with Touch ID as an authentication system and for payments via Apple Pay, with the substantial difference that iPad 9th gen keeps the Home buttonwhile for the others the sensor is integrated into the power button.

There are no differences in the sensors: in addition to the Touch ID we find the 3-axis gyroscope, the accelerometer, the ambient light sensor and the barometer. Same goes for the SIM, with compatibility for nano-SIM and eSIM.

There are differences on the connectivity side, with iPad 9 the only one to offer WiFi 5 – the others are updated to WiFi 6 – and Bluetooth in version 4.2 – 5.0 on the iPad Air and 5.2 on the new iPad 10. The 9th generation iPad remains the latest Apple tablet to be equipped with a 3.5mm jack. iPad 9 and iPad Air 4 are compatible with 4G LTE networks, 5G support is present on iPad 10 and iPad Air 5.

As for the connection cable, the Lightning is only present on iPad 9all other models have switched to the more popular USB-C (EU thanks).

Last but not least, the prices. The cheapest of the four is iPad 9th genwith starting price of 439 euros for the 64GB WiFi only variant. To go up we find iPad 10th gen (from 589 euros) and iPad Air 5 (from 789 euros). As mentioned, 4th generation iPad Air is no longer officially in the price list but Apple offers it refurbished starting from 539 euros. It could be a compromise solution if you want to save something (especially compared to the latest iPad Air) while relying on a device with Liquid Retina, Apple A14 Bionic processor and 12MP rear camera.