Apple CEO Tim Cook speaks during Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California on June 5, 2023.
Josh Adelson | AFP | getty images
Apple Apple announced new versions of its iPad Air and iPad Pro tablet computers in a short video posted to its website on Tuesday.
Apple shares remained flat during trading on Tuesday.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said, “This is the biggest day for the iPad since its launch.”
These are the first new iPad models released by Apple since October 2022, the longest time Apple has gone without updating the product line since its launch in 2011.
Apple said the iPad Pro, Apple’s most expensive and advanced tablet, will come in two sizes, an 11-inch model and a 13-inch model. Apple is touting this product as its thinnest yet, coming in at 5.1mm thick.
The smaller iPad Pro starts at $999, and the larger 13-inch model starts at $1299 with 256GB of storage, which is a modest price increase over its predecessor.
The iPad Pro will fit a new case that Apple calls the Magic Keyboard, which is made of aluminum and combines the tablet with a keyboard and trackpad. Apple said that using the case will make using the iPad Pro feel “just like a MacBook”, which is the name of Apple’s laptop. It will cost $249 or $299, depending on the size. Apple also announced an updated stylus called the Apple Pencil Pro for $129.
The new models will use a new Apple chip called M4. Apple laptops are currently built with M3 chips. Apple said the M4 chip was an “extremely powerful chip for AI”. As an example, Apple executives discussed the company’s Neural Engine, a piece of chip designed for artificial intelligence software that can be used to instantly separate subjects in a video from their background .
“This stunning design and breakthrough display requires us to make the leap to the next generation of Apple silicon,” said Apple hardware executive John Ternes.
Apple said its iPad Pro tablets will use a new type of display, called OLED – the same technology Apple uses on its iPhones – and the new tablets will be brighter and have better colors than older models. The company also said it has developed a technology called “Tandem OLED” to create the screen, branded as Ultra Retina XDR.
The company said the iPad Pro could be a useful tool for professional video makers, and it announced a new app called Final Cut Camera that can control multiple iPhone cameras. According to Apple, the iPad Pro comes with a 12-megapixel rear camera that can record 4K videos. The company also announced an update to the camera flash, which will make it easier to scan documents.
The new tablets and accessories are available for preorder now and will go on sale next week.
Apple said the iPad Air will come in two sizes: an 11-inch size that matches older models, and a larger 13-inch model. Both are equipped with Apple’s M2 chip. The smaller iPad costs $599 for 128GB of storage, and the larger iPad starts at $799.
Apple has moved the front-facing camera to the longer side of the device – landscape mode – to be better for video conferencing, which matches Apple’s more expensive iPad Pro models.
The iPad Air will be available in stores next week and will be available in a variety of colors including blue, purple and gold.
Apple has also dropped the price of its entry-level iPad to $349, down from its previous price of $429.