This new iPad Air, on the surface, isn't anything groundbreaking. It's a bit faster, a bit thinner, a bit lighter, and a bit shinier than all the tablets I've used before. But, taken altogether--and taken along with the second-gen Apple Pencil--it feels like an entirely new experience. I haven't been this struck by a new device in a while.
Over the years, I've owned three or four iPads, a few Android tablets, and a few convertible touchscreen laptops running various OSes. I've always been partial to Samsung because of the S Pen, and I've owned a couple of Galaxy Tabs and the Chromebook Pro: I love taking handwritten notes during meetings, and I like writing my first drafts by hand.
But this device, with the Pencil, is leaps and bounds better than any other tablet I've used. Writing and drawing on it feels completely intuitive and fluid. The responsiveness of the interface with the pencil is amazing--it reproduces my handwriting (chicken scratch that it is) perfectly. And more than that, the built-in handwriting recognition in the OS is frankly astounding. Either using the Scribble feature to handwrite form entries or using the Notes app's feature that lets you search your handwritten notes, everything works FAR better than I expected them to. Let me reiterate: my handwriting is atrocious. And yet, this iPad is able to decipher my hieroglyphics with a frequency that actually makes the feature really useful--I was expecting it to be little more than a gimmick, as in the past handwriting recognition apps have been completely useless for me. There've been a few times where I actually giggled out loud when the iPad recognized something I'd written that I could barely read myself.
Outside of how perfectly the iPad, iPadOS14, and Pencil have all integrated into my workflow, the design of the device itself is very nice, and the build quality is excellent. The tablet feels oddly light while still feeling very sturdy. And it's thin--even Apple's marketing images really don't do it justice. And obviously the new processor is nice, though I won't pretend to have done enough to even come close to pushing its limits. But the entire experience has been very smooth, even playing around with video editing and trying to find the most graphically-intensive games on the App Store I could. Haven't seen any lag or stuttering at all.
All that said, it's not perfect. I do wish Apple was finally putting OLEDs into more of their devices outside of the iPhone. The screen on this really is gorgeous, don't get me wrong. And the blacks aren't awful or anything. But given how great everything else is on this device, having a backlit screen--as advanced and pretty as it is--just feels weird. And I'm kind of ambivalent about the power button TouchID. Don't get me wrong, I'm thrilled the Home button is gone, but I think I'd kinda prefer FaceID. The TouchID on this iPad works great, and it does work very quickly, but I'm spoiled by being used to just tapping the screen on my iPhone and having it unlock itself automatically.
Anyway, those minor gripes aside, this is a great little device, it fit itself into my workflow immediately. I think the highest praise I can give it is that it's amazing how quickly it effectively disappeared: within a couple days of using it, I stopped noticing it, because everything about writing and taking notes with the iPad and the Pencil felt second nature, it felt like it had always been there. Couldn't be happier with this purchase.
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Compare Apple iPad products
| Price | From: - | From: $299.00 | From: - |
| Ratings | (22,966) | (20,979) | (5,029) |
| Display | 10.9 inch Retina display | 10.2 inch Retina display with True Tone | 8.3 inch Liquid Retina display |
| Secure authentication | Touch ID | TouchID | Touch ID |
| Chip | A14 Bionic chip with Neural Engine | A13 Bionic chip with Neural Engine | A15 Bionic chip with Neural Engine |
| Camera | 12MP photos | 8MP photos | 12MP photos |
| Video | 4K video recording | 1080p HD video recording | 4K video recording |
| Apple Pencil Compatibility | Apple Pencil (2nd generation) | Apple Pencil (1st generation) | Apple Pencil (2nd generation) |
| Smart Keyboard Compatibility | Compatible with Smart Keyboard Folio, Magic Keyboard and Bluetooth keyboards | Compatible with Smart Keyboards and Bluetooth keyboards | Compatible with Smart Keyboard Folio and Bluetooth keyboards |
| Connector | USB-C connector | Lightning connector | USB-C connector |
Customer reviews
I was so nervous buying an iPad over Amazon. But I’m so happy I did! I got this iPad for $569 when the usual price is $600. The set up was easy , came with an adapter and charger. Came in the official apple packaging so it was very official. iPad was already fully charged! This is my first iPad purchase and couldn’t be happier! It took 3 business days to get to me despite the pandemic ! No troubles at all . Totally recommend:)
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Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2020
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2020
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on October 26, 2020
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Space Gray
Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2020
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on January 6, 2021
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase
Happy camper!
By jaszyboo on January 6, 2021
I was so nervous buying an iPad over Amazon. But I’m so happy I did! I got this iPad for $569 when the usual price is $600. The set up was easy , came with an adapter and charger. Came in the official apple packaging so it was very official. iPad was already fully charged! This is my first iPad purchase and couldn’t be happier! It took 3 business days to get to me despite the pandemic ! No troubles at all . Totally recommend:)
By jaszyboo on January 6, 2021
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Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2020
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Space GrayVerified Purchase
Reviewed in the United States on November 15, 2020
Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: GreenVerified Purchase
Faster, Better than last ipad or android tablets I had
By deevee on November 14, 2020
Nothing beats the speed and functionality of this new iPad. The processor is zippy I have an iPhone 12 and it’s as fast as that one. Definitely will last you years of use with its speed and quality. Got it for a special Amazon discount right after it was released. Thanks
By deevee on November 14, 2020
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Top reviews from other countries
F B Avelino
Excelente!!!
Reviewed in Brazil on February 15, 2021Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Sky BlueVerified Purchase
Excelente!!!
Reviewed in Brazil on February 15, 2021
iPad Air 2020 novo em folha, aparência e usabilidade praticamente igual ao modelo Pró.Reviewed in Brazil on February 15, 2021
Bastante superior ao meu ultimo iPad, o iPad 6 (2028).
E bonito demais!
Recomendo!!!
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Renata
Chegou dentro do prazo, funciona perfeitamente, mas o plug da tomada é americano
Reviewed in Brazil on February 20, 2021Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Sky BlueVerified Purchase
Maurício Franco
Pode comprar sem medo
Reviewed in Brazil on November 3, 2021Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Sky BlueVerified Purchase
Pode comprar sem medo
Reviewed in Brazil on November 3, 2021
Comprei no dia 1/11 e recebi hoje, 03/11, entrega mais que rápida! Sobre o produto, não tenho muito o que falar, pois Apple é excelente, sempre. O preço, todo mundo já sabe, é salgado, mas é um aparelho que vai durar muito tempo, se bem cuidado! O adaptador de tomada é padrão americano, como outros já apontaram aqui, mas é algo simples de ser resolvido!Reviewed in Brazil on November 3, 2021
Vocês que estão em dúvida, pode comprar sem medo, entrega garantida e qualidade Apple!
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suely
Formidável
Reviewed in Brazil on May 1, 2021Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: Sky BlueVerified Purchase
Ziggisoo
Inaccurate advert
Reviewed in Australia on January 14, 2021Style: WiFiSize: 64GBColor: SilverVerified Purchase
Inaccurate advert
Reviewed in Australia on January 14, 2021
The iPad itself is good. The issue I have is with the charger. I purchased the item in Australia and I was sent a USA charger which meant I was unable to charge the iPad. I contacted the seller who advised that in the small print under the model number, a bunch of letters and numbers means it’s from the US! Seriously, as if a reasonable person would know that. From reading the reviews after the fact, I can see this is a repeat reported issue. They should be more up front with this rather than trying to hide it. When I emailed them I was offered an adapter and the picture attached is what I received!Reviewed in Australia on January 14, 2021
So, the small amount of money I received on this iPad was spent on purchasing a genuine Apple charger for Australia! My advice, would be to enquire first and ensure you are receiving a product that you can actually use immediately in Australia.
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