As expected, Apple has just presented its new tablets during an online conference. On the menu: two new iPad Airs in 11 and 13 inches and two new iPad Pros with an astonishing M4 chip.
It was time ! It had been 564 days since the iPad range had changed. A long wait which has just come to an end through a presentation only broadcast via video streaming – we are used to it – this May 7, 2024. The Apple firm has just announced the partial renewal of its range of tablets, accompanied by some new adapted accessories. Among which, in particular, a new Pencil Pro with new advanced functions without exploding in price. The event lasted less than forty minutes, but the list of new features is no less long, with four new iPad models and two new Magic Keyboards. But the biggest surprise comes from the announcement of two new iPad Pros equipped with Apple’s brand new “in-house” M4 processor, still absent from the Mac range! Mark Gurman, the famous Bloomberg journalist who is the best informed in the world about Apple, was right once again since he had hinted at the arrival of the iPad Pro M4 several days before their official announcement. Hats off!
What are the characteristics of the 2024 iPads?
To all honor, let’s start with the flagship, namely the iPad Pro range. And it was indeed the thunderbolt announced by journalist Mark Gurman since the two iPad Pros in the range are the first devices from the brand to benefit from the “in-house” M4 chip, even though no Mac has yet got it right! The surprise is big but seems to be explained in two ways. As noted above, iPads are replaced less often than Macs and their longevity must therefore be ensured. In addition, Apple is expected to make very important announcements in the field of Artificial Intelligence during its next developers conference, WWDC, which will begin on June 10. And it’s a safe bet that some of the AI functions in iOS and iPadOS 18 systems will take advantage of the immense computing capabilities in this area integrated into the new M4 processor. During the presentation, Apple referred to the new Neural Engine, that is to say the part of the processor dedicated to AI and its 10 computing cores. We can bet that we will talk about it in detail next June.
This new Neural Engine is accompanied by a new CPU assembly (main processor) now equipped with 4 high-performance cores and six energy-efficient cores, which would make the M4 up to 50% faster than the M2 which equipped previous iPad Pros . As for the graphics part, The M4 is now equipped with 10 GPU cores making the new iPad Pro up to 4 times faster than the iPad Pro M2 and 10 times faster than the first iPad Pro of 2019!
During the presentation, we had the impression that the direct transition from M2 to M4 for iPad Pros had been partly dictated by the transition to the brand new OLED screen which now equips both models, both the 11 and 13 inches. . Let us already notice, therefore, that the “small” iPad Pro model is no longer lagging behind its big brother: in the previous range, only the large model was equipped with a miniLED screen, while the 11-inch was satisfied with an LCD. But Apple indicated that for the 13-inch model of the new range, Apple had been forced to design an OLED screen in two interlocking layers, Apple calls it Tandem OLED, to achieve the brightness of 1600 peak beds. Two screens placed on top of each other indicate an increased computing power requirement. We therefore wonder if the 11-inch iPad Pro is not likely to display slightly better graphics performance than that of the 13-inch. That said, the level of performance promised is such that it should not be noticeable.
To continue with the impressive superlative, it must be said, Apple announced that the M4 was capable of reaching this incredible level of performance while consuming half as much energy, therefore releasing less heat. For the record, the new iPad Pro integrates thin sheets of graphite inside to better diffuse heat, helped by the copper alloy integrated into the logo that we see on the back. It is probably these advances that have allowed Apple to make the new iPad Pros even thinner: 5.3 mm versus 5.9 mm for the 11-inch iPad Pro and 5.1 mm versus 6.4 mm for the large model. . Yes, you read correctly, the 13-inch iPad Pro is thinner than the 11-inch. The new iPad Pros are also lighter: 444 g versus 468 g for the 11-inch and 582 g versus 685 g for the large model. We can’t wait to hold them in our hands!
If the iPad Pros are undoubtedly the stars of its range of tablets, Apple has not forgotten the iPad Air which has been renewed. So much so that there are now two models with a large model equipped with a 13-inch screen which comes with the 11-inch iPad Air. The two new iPad Air are now equipped with the M2 processor, which equipped the iPad Pros in the 2022 range. Suffice it to say that they will have no power problem even for the most intense tasks. The most surprising thing is that the iPad Pros are the lightest, contrary to what the Air name might suggest. The 11-inch iPad Air actually weighs 462 g, compared to 444, remember, for the iPad Pro M4. And the 13-inch iPad Air weighs 617 g, compared to 582 for the 13-inch iPad Pro.
All the new iPads presented, Air and Pro, have a few things in common. Particularly at the level of the front camera now placed in the middle of one of the long sides, a placement inaugurated by the entry-level 10th generation iPad introduced in 2022. A change dictated by the fact that iPads are increasingly more often used in landscape mode than in portrait mode, in particular because more and more users are adding a keyboard. Apple also seems to have wanted to respond to this trend by announcing two new Magic Keyboard models, adapted to the two sizes of iPad 11 and 13 inches and compatible with both iPad Air and iPad Pro. And also with the characteristic of integrating a row of function keys which was missing from the previous model of Magic Keyboard and which many users complained about.
The other thing common to all the new 2024 iPads is the new Apple Pencil Pro. As the name suggests, it is an improved version of the Pencil. This is equipped with two new sensors allowing it first of all to detect the pressure that is applied to the stylus by pinching it with two fingers, which allows you to change the tool to go from a pencil to a eraser or a brush for example. This mechanism replaces the double-tap of the previous Pencil model, which however remains in the catalog. The other sensor is a gyroscope capable of detecting the rotation of the Pencil between the fingers to vary the settings of a tool in use: a bit like changing the angle of attack of a highlighter For example.
We still noted two absences during this presentation. Or rather two models which have not been entitled to any update. The iPad mini 6 remains in the catalog without change. And the entry-level iPad 10 also remains in the catalog, but with at least a price drop making it finally acceptable since it starts at 439 euros.
What are the prices for 2024 iPads?
No need to wait if you want to equip yourself with the new iPads. You can order them immediately even if they will not be delivered until May 15. Be careful, however, the price has jumped again! However, we appreciate that the basic storage has increased from 64 GB to 128 GB on the iPad Air and from 128 to 256 GB on the iPad Pro. And can go up to 1 and 2 TB respectively.
- iPad Air M2 11 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 128 GB: 719 euros / 889 euros
- iPad Air M2 11 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 256 GB: 849 euros / 1019 euros
- iPad Air M2 11 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 512 GB: 1099 euros / 1269 euros
- iPad Air M2 11 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 1 TB: 1349 euros / 1519 euros
- iPad Air M2 13 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 128 GB: 969 euros / 1139 euros
- iPad Air M2 13 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 256 GB: 1099 euros / 1269 euros
- iPad Air M2 13 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 512 GB: 1349 euros / 1519 euros
- iPad Air M2 13 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 1 TB: 1599 euros / 1799 euros
- iPad Pro M4 11 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 256 GB: 1219 euros / 1469 euros
- iPad Pro M4 11 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 512 GB: 1469 euros / 1719 euros
- iPad Pro M4 11 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 1 TB: 1949 euros / 2079 euros
- iPad Pro M4 11 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 256 GB: 2429 euros / 2679 euros
- iPad Pro M4 13 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 256 GB: 1569 euros / 1819 euros
- iPad Pro M4 13 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 512 GB: 1819 euros / 2069 euros
- iPad Pro M4 13 inches Wi-Fi / 5G 1 TB: 2299 euros / 2549 euros
- iPad Pro M4 13 inch Wi-Fi / 5G 256 GB: 2779 euros / 3029 euros
How to watch the keynote on video?
Were you unable to see live announcements of the latest iPads, the Apple Pencil Pro and the new accessories that come with them? Never mind ! The conference can be viewed on a delayed basis whenever you want, both on the page dedicated to Apple events on the official website of the brandor on its YouTube page. Simply launch your Internet browser, the YouTube application on your smartphone or connected smartTV to relive the event as if you were there and enjoy the always astonishing and pleasant production quality of Apple’s presentation videos. And even if the presentation obviously took place in English, French subtitles are naturally available so as not to miss any detail. A stream with a sign language translation is even available. Even out of curiosity, it’s worth the detour. Especially since this time again, the presentation did not last very long.