iPad Air 4 (2020)
The iPad Air 4 (2020) doesn’t bring anything revolutionary to Apple’s tablet range, but a lot of the features that were previously exclusive to the iPad Pro have trickled down to this far more affordable, and therefore more attractive, device,
While this is a tablet that’s unlikely to tempt power-hungry users away from the iPad Pro, it brings a lot of what makes that series of tablets great to a cheaper device, albeit one that isn’t as cheap as the standard iPad. Finally, the iPad Air 4
(2020) is the middle choice between both extremes of Apple’s tablet lineup.
Why go Pro when the Air is this good? Design
The design of the iPad Air has a lot in common with the iPad Pro range. The home button has been dropped in favor of an all-screen design to make it more in line with Apple’s Pro products.
And, indeed, the iPad Air 4 feels a lot more premium than the iPad Air 3. That slate was criticised for its dated-feeling design, and it looks like Apple took notice. We’ve used this tablet alongside the new iPad 2020, which sports the more traditional iPad look, and it’s remarkable how much the Air feels different to that tablet thanks to its straight edges and all-screen front.
There are still thick bezels around the outside of the display, as there are on the iPad Pro, but overall it feels like a big step up compared to the design of last year’s Air.
The edges are more-squared, with sharper edges than on previous tablets from the company, and if you’re upgrading from an older device that may take some getting used to, as those edges don’t sit as comfortably in your palm.
That said, we felt we had better grip thanks to this design, and it gives the tablet as a whole a distinct look and feel that’s more in line with the new iPhone 12 family, and iPad Pro range.
There are four speakers, two
each on the top and bottom edges, and a lock button at the left of the top edge – this also houses the Touch ID scanner if you want to unlock your slate with your fingerprint.
We found this to work well throughout our testing time – our thumb fell naturally on this spot, so little effort was required to reach the button. On the right-hand edge of the tablet are volume up and down buttons, and there’s a magnetic connector below these to which you attach the Apple Pencil stylus for charging.
Display
The iPad Air 4 comes in one size, with a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display – this feels like the optimum size for a tablet to us, as you’re getting a large screen, but one that doesn’t feel gargantuan when you’re holding the device with both hands.
The resolution is impressive at 2360 x 1640, which equates to
264 pixels per inch. We found the screen to be fantastic for watching video, with vibrant colors and a strong peak brightness, so you’ll enjoy a premium viewing experience when watching Netflix or other streaming services.
There are thick black borders around the outside of the display, which means it doesn’t feel as premium as some Android tablets, notably the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 Plus – however that tablet is also much more expensive than the iPad Air 4.
It’s a typical 60Hz display – you don’t get the benefit of the higher 120Hz refresh rate that Apple has introduced to its top-end iPad Pro range, so scrolling through news articles or your apps won’t feel as smooth as it would on the Pro.
Specs, performance and camera
The iPad Air 4 has some of the latest and best internals available in a tablet, and on paper it even beats the iPad Pro, with the latest A14 chipset powering the new Air product, where the newest Pro has the previousgen A13 processor.
We found the A14 Bionic chip to work phenomenally well, with the iPad Air (2020) opening apps in record times and easily handling multitasking and other complex tasks.
We don’t know how much RAM is inside the iPad Air 4 – that’s not a stat that Apple reveals about its new products – but we hope to learn this when someone is able to do a full teardown of the tablet.
On paper, the A14 chipset may sound better than the A12Z that you find in the iPad Pro, and for some tasks that will be the case; however, if you’re multitasking, or need a lot of raw power, the A12Z is the more capable chip, as it has eight cores compared to the A14’s four, and benchmarks show it’s better at those more demanding tasks.
But if you’re not editing video or doing other similarly intensive tasks – or if you’re willing to wait a little longer for your tablet to complete a process – then the iPad Air 4 will be more than adequate.
Your storage options are 64GB or 256GB, and this will be an issue for those who need lots of space but can’t stretch to the price of the more capacious model.
64GB isn’t enough space for most people on a tablet these days – and there’s no microSD support here, so it’s a tough ask to opt for this over a tablet that has 128GB of space or more.
On the rear of the iPad Air 4 is a 12MP shooter with an f/1.8 aperture which serves as your primary camera, and which also comes in useful when you’re using features such as augmented reality.
It’s unlikely that you’ll be using this camera to take ‘serious’ photos, but it’ll do you just fine if you’re looking to take photos to upload to social media or other apps.
The iPad Air for 2020 is a phenomenally well-made tablet that improves upon the last-gen version in a variety of ways, solving issues with that tablet’s dated design and accessories. The jump in price will make this a tougher sell for some, but the iPad Air for 2020 is so impressive that you may have trouble choosing between it and the iPad Pro. James Peckham