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Just sold my 64GB LTE iPad Air 2, bought on launch day.
Best damn tablet I ever owned. Classy, powerful for it's time.

I remember the topics in 2014 saying that the iPad Air 2 will have a long run b/c of the Triple-Core CPU and 2GB of Ram. Boy they we're right. Worth every penny.

Looking forward using the 2018 10.5" Pro until 2022.
 
I just replaced my 128GB iPad Air 2 last month with the new 512GB 12.9 iPad Pro. While the iPad Pro is amazing (as it well should be), I still didn't feel that the Air 2 had gotten sluggish - I still used it daily for lots of tasks, and it is still being used daily by others in the household with no complaints.
 
Just sold my 64GB LTE iPad Air 2, bought on launch day.
Best damn tablet I ever owned. Classy, powerful for it's time.

I remember the topics in 2014 saying that the iPad Air 2 will have a long run b/c of the Triple-Core CPU and 2GB of Ram. Boy they we're right. Worth every penny.

Looking forward using the 2018 10.5" Pro until 2022.

So what are you using now and why sell so soon?
 
I’ve had my Air 2 64GB WiFi+cellular since October 2014 and it is still fine after 3 years of everyday use. I feel like I can get another (so long as I’m careful about iOS updates). I was tempted this year, but nothing is wrong with my device, so I’m good.

Will see what 2018 brings. Whatever I get I plan on keeping another 3 years hopefully. Wouldn’t mind something like the 10.5” with thinner bezels to be more conducive to split screen. I would look forward to a better camera and more RAM. If FaceID does come about, so long as FaceID works in landscape with no restrictions on angles, I’ll be happy. I use my iPad in landscape mode always unless an app only works in portrait. I also use it as my reader at night in bed. Not interested in any FaceID limitations on the iPad whatsoever.

But, yes, very happy with my Air 2. It has been a worthwhile purchase.
 
I've had my iPad Air 2 128GB Wi-Fi for over 3 years. It's been dependable and has served me well. Had planned on keeping it for another year or two, but I lucked into getting an upgrade to the new iPad 9.7 128GB. The battery life on my Air 2 had taken a hit, so I took it a local repair shop a couple days ago to have a new battery installed. When I picked up the iPad yesterday, I immediately tested it out in the shop to make sure everything was working ok. It wasn't. The Touch ID button was inoperable. So they re-opened the iPad and discovered the tech who did the upgrade had accidentally damaged beyond repair one of the fragile fiber optic cables used by the Touch ID button. Since they couldn't repair that damage, they ordered me a brand new iPad 128GB WiFi to replace the Air 2. I may just sell the replacement iPad and pay the extra $$ to upgrade to the iPad Pro 10.5.
 
I bought a iPad Air 2 off of eBay. Came with 9.xx it wasn’t super speedy but plenty good enough. When I installed iOS 10 , it became pretty slow. Now .... with 11.2.1 , i barely use it Because it’s incredibly slow.
 
My air 2 is fine. Not slow or sluggish. I can't see any reason to upgrade from it. And for me that's saying something!
 
I think it's more a case of the the new iPad Pros are way overpowered.

If you compare the Air 2's A8X processor single-core benchmark (the more important spec) to the Android processors, it would still rank near the top. It's faster than 90% of the Android devices and on par with all the current hardware.

Android requires very little cpu speed and gpu speed to run effectively......so its not even a issue with android devices having less power than comparable ipads and iphones.
 
The Air 2 is the tablet ever created.
Think about the life time of it, shipped with iOS 8.1 and now how all the multitasking as the newer, and works decent smooth still.

For the money vs the screen, speed, size, updates you get, it has been the best 4 years for me.
With my iPhone X and MacBook Pro 2016 slowly taking over, I’ll wait for an OLED tablet.
 
The Air 2 is the tablet ever created.
Think about the life time of it, shipped with iOS 8.1 and now how all the multitasking as the newer, and works decent smooth still.

For the money vs the screen, speed, size, updates you get, it has been the best 4 years for me.
With my iPhone X and MacBook Pro 2016 slowly taking over, I’ll wait for an OLED tablet.
This. I don't have one and never did, but based off on reading here, the Air 2 has remained remarkably snappy, from iOS 8 through now and although I'm not sure that reports are the best now on iOS 11 for the Air 2, no one here is saying it's unusable. When you compare it to the iPad 2, for example, that started to suffer greatly on iOS 7, then yes, it was a longevity device, as many predicted back when it was launched.
 
Are any Air 2 owners (since October 2014 launch) finally upgrading to the new iPad Pro next year? I think this device has served us faithfully for 4 years next year. It feels a little sluggish (but still very usable and smooth which is amazing for a 3 year old device) but I was shocked at just how far ahead the new iPad Pros (and even the regular iPad) are.

https://browser.geekbench.com/ios-benchmarks

The regular iPad beats the Air 2 in all testing fronts (single-core, multi-core, GPU). The Air 2 is the longest I've ever comfortably used an iOS device so I'm pretty excited to upgrade next year after faithfully using it for 4 years.

The iPad Air 2 was my all time favorite iOS device, and while it certainly has begun to show its age, I feel I could comfortably use it for another year.

That said, I got a 10.5” Pro as a gift and holy crap I love it. First impressions only and it’s pretty early, but it’s already my new favorite iOS device.
 
Maybe it is time to think about replacing the battery if your air2 feel sluggish. Mine have some quirks om IOS 11, but sluggish is not one of them.
 
processor loses “gusto”

While I’m sure that CPUs do lose a bit as the heat cycles take their toll, but in reality most of us would ever notice. The “slow downs” are because Apple made some big changes in the iOS API and the now famous battery confessions.

Personally I have used the Air 2 with 11.2.1 and it works fine. Maybe those with speed issues ought to check the battery like our iPhones.
 
While I’m sure that CPUs do lose a bit as the heat cycles take their toll, but in reality most of us would ever notice. The “slow downs” are because Apple made some big changes in the iOS API and the now famous battery confessions.

Personally I have used the Air 2 with 11.2.1 and it works fine. Maybe those with speed issues ought to check the battery like our iPhones.
But iPad aren’t affected followed Apples last statement?
 
Android requires very little cpu speed and gpu speed to run effectively......so its not even a issue with android devices having less power than comparable ipads and iphones.
Android is like windows, largely unoptimised until the most latest release so hardware manufacturers throw buckets of ram and faster CPU at it to get compatible performance vs iOS devices.
 
But iPad aren’t affected followed Apples last statement?

Phones are where Apple’s battery management’s ugly side of iOS has shown up. The big difference between the two is battery size, so if there are problems it’s likely to show only on the iPhone.

But I’m just speculating and why would all of us with Air 2s not have a problem while a small percentage does? Could not the battery health be worse on those?
 
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