Apple iPad Air Review
Introduction
The summer of 2013 was very exciting in the tech world. The arrival of the new generation tablets by Apple, the full-sized Apple iPad Air and the smaller flagship Apple iPad mini 2 built-up the heat and the anticipation amongst mobile users. The big date that we all were expecting was 22nd of October when both slates made their official debut on the tablets’ arena. The first impressions for the large tablet iPad Air is for the most attractive design of the whole line of four generations iPads. The new model slate arrives in a lighter, slimmer and truly fascinating body.
Design and Display
The rumors about the new design of iPad Air turned out to be truth. The sleek tablet sports a similar design to its small-sized sibling iPad mini 2. The panel of the slate is made of aluminum and brings a premium feel once you take it in your hands. The new model measures 240×169.5×7.5mm. In inches, it is (9.45×6.67×0.30 inches). Among the most amazing features of iPad Air is hinted by its name – it is air-like heavy, or to be more exact, the tablet weighs one pound (469g) which officially makes it the lightest full-sized model slate in the mobile world today. For a comparison, the iPad 4 tips the scales at 1.44 pounds. iPad Air is over 20% thinner than its predecessor.
The tablet is armored with a 9.7-inches LED-backlit IPS LCD Retina display with a resolution of 1536 x 2048 pixels. The pixel density of the screen is 264 ppi which is not the best we have seen for this size of the display. The screen is protected by a scratch-resistant glass and an oleophobic coating. The new generation iPad feels great in the hand. It features an ergonomic shape for a full comfort of the user. The new design of the tablet comes with noticeably thinner bezels – 43% slimmer on the sides and the edges compared to iPad 4.
If you notice something missing on the panel of iPad Air, it is the much rumors TouchID feature. Apple has never confirmed that it will equip its new tablets with the innovative biometric technology that is integrated in iPhone 5S. The expectations for the integration of the breakthrough features now move to the next year’s full-sized tablet. Apple iPad Air will be available in silver, white, black and space gray color options. Surprisingly the company has not included a gold shell in the options for the model.
Hardware
iPad Air works with dual-core processor clocked at 1.2GHz and A7 chipset with 64-bit architecture and 1GB of RAM on board. If it sounds familiar to you, it is because the CPU is the same that is powering the newly released flagship of the company Apple iPhone 5S. The co-processor under the hood of iPad Air is M7 motion which will provide twice faster graphics compared to the forth generation iPad. If you are curious about statistics, Apple announced that the new iPad boasts 72 faster graphics compared to the original tablet four years ago. The slate will be available in 4 variants with different storage – 16GB/32GB/64GN/128GB.
Apple has armored the new iPad Air with MIMO wireless technology which means that the slate supports 802.11n standard apart from the most popular “ac” Wi-Fi designation for most of the devices.
The battery of the new tablet is rechargeable lithium with 32.4-watt-hour capabilities. According to Apple it will keep the iPad Air running and fully functional for up to 10 hours before it needs recharging.
The new tablet boasts dual microphones on the front panel for much better sound.
Camera
The camera has always been a weak point for the iPads. The new model brings some improvements in this aspect. iPad Air is equipped with a 5MP iSight rare camera with a resolution of 1944x2592p and the capability to capture 1080p video. Apple promises that the new shooter will bring a better quality of pictures in low-light. On the front panel iof the tablet is located a FaceTime HD camera.
Software and connectivity
iPad Air arrives with the newly launched iOS 7 pre-installed. Owners of the tablet will enjoy abundance of improved apps, such as Keynote, iPhoto, iMovie, GarageBand etc.
It supports Wi-Fi, A-GPS navigation, Bluetooth and LTE.
Availability
The launch date for iPad Air is scheduled for 1st of November. It will be distributed worldwide. The entering price of the device is $499 for the Wi-Fi only model (16GB) and $629 for the Wi-Fi + Cellular. The new tablet will arrive first in China. As we mentioned above, it wil be offered in 4 color options – black, white, silver and space gray. We have seen these colors on the iPhone 5S with a gold shell that will not be available as an option for the slate.
Conclusion
Apple iPad Air is among the most attractive high-end tablets today. Its new design looks great on the 9.7-inches body and brings it closer to the look of the iPad mini line. Many users were left a bit disappointed by the absence of TouchID. There were expectations for a larger display with more impressive resolution for the tablet but have no doubt – the screen of the full-sized slate provides a superior visual experience and clear picture with vivid colors. In terms of performance, the iPad Air is significantly faster than its predecessor and compared to its biggest rivals on the market. The new tablet is a much improved variant of the iPad 4 in the same way as iPhone 5S is the refreshed version of the last year’s Apple iPhone 5. Apple iPad Air will compete against Samsung Galaxy Note 3, Nokia Lumia 2520 and the upcoming Nexus 10.
