iPad Air (2019)

THE UNDERRATED MIDDLE CHILD.

THE REAL REASON TO BUY THIS IPAD AIR IS THE GRUNT HIDDEN BEHIND ITS COLORFUL LAMINATED DISPLAY. IT’S ONE OF APPLE’S MOST POWERFUL IPADS, RIVALING THE PERFORMANCE MANY TODAY’S BEST LAPTOPS.

PLEASE WELCOME BACK the iPad Air, now the awkward, destined-to-be-underrated middle child of Apple’s tablet lineup.

No, it’s not as cute as the new baby, the 7.9-inch iPad mini, and its traditional looks make it a wallflower compared to the head-turning redesigned iPad Pro 11 and iPad Pro 12.9. It took us a few days of testing to realize why it’s still important in 2019.

Over time, we found it’s the iPad for people who want ‘a little more’ than what the entry-level iPad 9.7 offers. It has a superior 10.5-inch display with thinner bezels, a faster chipset that matches the power in the iPhone XS, and a higher-resolution frontfacing camera.

You also have new options for an Air: it has larger storage configurations, compatibility with the excellent Apple Smart Keyboard cover, and performance numbers double those of the iPad 9.7. It’s a wholly better 2-in-1 productivity tool and a winner for Back to School shoppers.

We’re still left with wanting more. iOS 12 remains fairly limiting for Apple’s post-PC ‘computer’ pitch, a problem that exists even if you pay for the top-shelf iPad Pro 12.9. The supports multitasking, sure, but too often we found a MacBook better for handling moderately complex workflows. It also only works with the first-gen Apple Pencil, not the magnetic second-gen Pencil, and that optional Smart Keyboard doesn’t light up like a MacBook keyboard. That makes it hard to type in the dark.

More than anything, the iPad Air 2019 is a repackaged version of the iPad Pro 2017 Apple has stopped selling. It’s nearly identical in looks and solid 10-hour battery life. Only it has a serious internal specs bump and addresses our main reservation of the otherwise likable Pro: it finally has a palatable price.

You can look at it as the awkward middle child of Apple’s iPad lineup, but it’s also the cheapest iPad with real power and 2-in-1 functionality. Meaning, come Back to School season, it may have the last laugh.

DESIGN

“This is the new iPad Air,” I exclaimed to my coworkers this week. Their reaction? “Really? It doesn’t look any different.” I walked away in shame (but agreeing). Don’t go into this purchase expecting big changes from this traditional-looking iPad. It won’t wow anyone like the all-screen iPad Pro 11 and iPad Pro 12.9.

But it does have fan-favorite features you won’t find on the new Pros: a 3.5mm headphone jack, and the equally-reliable Touch ID button. And the size, while subtly different from 9.7-inch iPads, allows for the fully-sized 10.5-inch Apple Smart Keyboard to be attached (the same one used by the iPad Pro 10.5).

It’s Apple’s thinnest non-Pro iPad at

6.1mm (the Pro is 5.9mm and the iPad 9.7 is 7.5mm), and also weighs just 1lb (456g). Its ‘Air’ moniker actually means something – only iPad mini (2019) is lighter at 0.66lbs (300.5g) among iPads currently on sale.

SMART KEYBOARD

Apple’s Smart Keyboard compatibility is the reason to spring for the iPad Air over the temptingly priced iPad 9.7 that only works with Bluetooth keyboards. It’s one of the things you can’t pass up if you’re looking for 2-in-1 productivity from an iPad.

This is the cheapest iPad with Apple’s Smart Connector, which magnetically fastens the fabric tri-fold keyboard cover to the bottom (in landscape) of the tablet. No need to fumble around with those often unreliable third-party Bluetooth keyboards.

You’re forced to use low-pile keys, which isn’t a problem if you’ve adjusted to recent MacBooks or Mac Magic Keyboards. What’s different is that this keyboard has a one-piece custom-woven fabric design with 64 keys etched out using lasers. Laser-etched fabric keys sound cool, and they have real-world benefits: they’re water- and stain-resistant, and impervious to debris. I carelessly ate a croissant over the iPad Air – for testing purposes – and simply wiped away the many pieces that didn’t make it into my mouth. Contrast that with various MacBooks I’ve taken to the Apple Store for repair when a single crumb gets trapped underneath the delicate butterfly keyboard.

APPLE PENCIL

Every iPad that Apple sells now supports an Apple Pencil, and this is the first iPad Air to be compatible with the pressure-sensitive stylus. But it only works with the first-generation Apple Pencil and Logitech Crayon.

That means it’s incompatible with Apple Pencil Gen 2, which launched alongside the iPad Pro 11 and iPad Pro 12.9. You don’t get easy magnetic charging, the flat-sided design (Gen 1 is barrel-shaped and rolls away – constantly), automatic pairing, and gesture features like tap to wake the screen and double tap to switch tools.

PERFORMANCE

The real reason to buy this iPad Air is the grunt hidden behind its colorful laminated display. It’s one of Apple’s most powerful iPads, rivaling the performance many today’s best laptops.

It doubles the performance of the entry-level iPad 9.7 (2018), according to our tests, offering another perk for anyone seeking serious productivity and looking for a long-term investment. It’s equipped with Apple’s custom A12 Bionic chipset, the same powerful System-on-a-Chip inside the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max.

The chip scored an 11,575 in the allimportant a multi-core benchmark test. Among tablets, it’s only bested by the iPad Pro 11 and iPad Pro 12.9, which has the A12X Bionic chipset and a 17,845 score. The iPad 9.7, with its iPhone 7-era A10 Fusion chip, gave us a 5,786 score. It’s also better than two-year-old iPad Pro 10.5 (9,326).

VERDICT

The new iPad Air (2019) has serious horsepower hidden behind its laminated screen and uses Apple’s excellent Smart Keyboard for proper 2-in-1 for productivity. Its traditional design and first-gen Apple Pencil compatibility make it look dated, but it doubles the performance of the entry-level iPad 9.7. The ‘Air’ revival is a potential Back to School winner this year.