All iPads iPad (9th gen) to replace iPad Air (1st gen) -or another model?

[macstatic]

In our family we have an iPad Air (A1475 1st generation) with 128GB and wifi/cellular (we've never used cellular) which we've been using for trivial stuff like checking email, browsing the Internet, reading books (ePub/PDF) etc. Unfortunately it's getting slow for stuff like surfing the web, and some sites don't even work (they work fine on another, more recent iPad though, and even installing an alternative browser apps such as Opera won't help so I'm assuming it's an iOS limitation -the latest it can take is version 12.5.7).

So we're considering the 9th generation iPad (10.2") with 256GB. On paper at least this looks to be a good upgrade, and will probably even let my daughter play Roblox (which she now borrows my 5th generation iPad Mini with 256GB for). Apart from that we want an iPad that would last for a while (i.e. iOS updates as well as quality built). Would the above fit the bill, or does it have any non-obvious shortcomings?

Is this a good choice, or are there better options?
The 10th generation iPad I suppose, but it's quite a bit more expensive and has a USB-C connector (we have several iPhones and iPads which all use Lightning connectors, so this would introduce yet another standard).
Alternative there's always the second hand market, but that introduces so many additional choices that I wouldn't know where to start.
What do you suggest?

 

[mrkapqa]

to me the IPAD 9th looks very promising,
just prefer the traditional resolution, it feels to me very nice in the hand and at a glance, only downside seems to me that the audio department is maybe not so good versus the newer 10th model, but could be wrong.
easily would prefer the 9th IPAD, since it has also headphone jack, and would use the usb/lightning port for the ethernet connection.

 

[rui no onna]

The 9th gen is fine.

I don’t think the 10th gen (A14/4GB) will have much longer useful life than the 9th gen anyway. You’d probably need to jump to M1/8GB (Air 5, M1 iPP) to get notably longer useful life.

 

[Digitalguy]

Based on my predictions (https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/predictions-for-ipados-updates-over-the-next-8-years.2391411), iPad 9 should get till iPadOS 20 so you are covered for a while and even after that browsing will still work fine for a couple more years at least. The iPad 9 will feel very much like your mini 5 in terms of speed and tab reloads (similar CPU, same RAM).

 

[macstatic]

Wow! Thanks for all those comments. Seems like I can't go wrong with the 9th gen. iPad

Having concluded this, for an even more budget-friendly option, which iPad(s) on the second-hand market could be a viable option as well? I realize that for every generation older I'd probably be losing out on an iOS/iPadOS upgrade, and probably also lower battery life, but worth looking into anyway, then compare prices.

Sometimes old doesn't necessarily mean "useless" as it depends on its use: like an old 16GB iPad Mini (1st gen.) which I still find useful for simple stuff like reading, writing notes, address book/calendar etc. Unfortunately it's barely usable for surfing the web as several sites no longer work with it, which is one of the reasons I also got myself the 5th gen. iPad Mini (along with its bigger storage space).

 

[okkibs]

You could look at the iPad Air 4 in the Apple refurbished store. It has minor upgrades in terms of performance, display quality and so on, over the iPad 9th gen, and a noticeable improvement in audio quality. The regular iPads have bad speakers.

 

[Digitalguy]

I realize that for every generation older I'd probably be losing out on an iOS/iPadOS upgrade, and probably also lower battery life, but worth looking into anyway, then compare prices.

Not if you go with an older pro or air... If you look at my table linked above, older pros, even from 2018, may receive updates for just as long as the iPad 9. And something like an air 4 from 2020 even for longer. But if lightening is a plus for you, stay with the 9, it's the most up-to-date device with that port.
I wouldn't buy anything older than an iPad 8, absolutely avoid the iPad 6 and 7.

 

[macstatic]

I'll look into the ones the two of you suggested.
Why should I stay away from the iPad 6 or 7?

Yes, having a Lightning connector is a plus (as we already have multiple iPads and iPhones using those), but I suppose there are adapters for this as well.

 

[max2]

9th generation iPad (10.2") is ok but I wanted faster and more storage space so I got iPad Pro!

 

[Digitalguy]

Why should I stay away from the iPad 6 or 7?

Yes, having a Lightning connector is a plus (as we already have multiple iPads and iPhones using those), but I suppose there are adapters for this as well.

Because they have a much older chip, which, while technically supported has not received many of the new features over the past couple of years since it lacks a neural engine and is quite a bit slower (while the 8 and 10 are much faster and similar between them, but with different storage tiers).
Adapters? Not really, but different cables yes

 

[RaphaZ]

For that purpose, the iPad 9th gen is great.

 

[macstatic]

Because they have a much older chip, which, while technically supported has not received many of the new features over the past couple of years since it lacks a neural engine and is quite a bit slower (while the 8 and 10 are much faster and similar between them, but with different storage tiers).

Good to know.
I was about to try out and possibly buy an iPad 9 today, only to find out that the price had increased around US$ 90 just the past couple of days!
I hope this isn't a regular price increase (as everything is getting more expensive these days), but hopefully will drop again -I assume they'll stop selling the 9th generation at some stage ....(soon?) and only have the 10th generation available, then sell the final stock at reduced cost (I hope).

Otherwise I'll have to look for a second hand 9th gen, or one of the other models you suggested.

Adapters? Not really, but different cables yes

You're right -I was a little quick in commenting there
So at least there's a simple solution for using an iPad with a USB-C connector, charging it or USB-syncing to the Mac.