iPad iPad Air 2020 v iPad 9th gen?

[Danando1993]

I’m looking to buy an iPad as a Christmas gift mum for my mum who is currently using an iPad Air 2 (from 2016 I think?)

She doesn’t need the latest and greatest but I’m torn between a 9th gen regular iPad for £300 or an apple refurbished iPad Air 2020 for £439.

I feel like the 2020 air would feel like more of an upgrade as the air 2 and 9th gen are basically the same design and spec wise the 2020 air is better, just wondering if there’s any justification for going with the 9th gen iPad or another option?

Edit - I’ve now noticed I can get the 10th gen iPad on Amazon for £437 to add another option into the mix

 

[d5aqoëp]

Get the latest device your finances allow. The 2020 devices might get 2 years most for updates.

 

[Reverend Benny]

If your mum have heaps of Ligntning cables laying around, and running an iphone 14 or below it might be an idea to get the 9th gen, the others are USB-C chargers.
Went for the 9th gen for my mum and the only downside is the screen in comparisson to the air.
But, its not a HUGE difference but noticeable.

 

[ericwn]

I’d also talk to her. My mom would hate to give up the home button and is not technically minded at all and would rather not have something drastically new but something that just works for her without a hassle.

 

[RudolphRedNose]

It sounds like she doesn't need the extra power of the A14.

Personally I love my 9th gen. Does everything I need it to do. You could tell me it has the latest chip and I'd probably have believed you. Some people say the lower RAM is a problem/will be a problem in the future. I don't think it will - at least not for me.

It's still on sale so you should get at least a couple of years of updates, plus it'll likely still be good for some time after that anyway.

In regard to the screen, again, you could tell me it's the latest. I mainly use it for YouTube/Streaming. This all comes from the relative position of my last Apple product being an iPhone 4.

Your mum is used to the form factor of the 9th, so there may be no need to change that up?

If I had to name a downside, its quite heavy. When I do upgrade in a few years I'd like to say I'd go for a Mini or Air, but I feel they're a bit too much money, so I may sway back to Android where I know I can get a similar media device for half the price.

 

[jm31828]

It sounds like she doesn't need the extra power of the A14.

Personally I love my 9th gen. Does everything I need it to do. You could tell me it has the latest chip and I'd probably have believed you. Some people say the lower RAM is a problem/will be a problem in the future. I don't think it will - at least not for me.

It's still on sale so you should get at least a couple of years of updates, plus it'll likely still be good for some time after that anyway.

In regard to the screen, again, you could tell me it's the latest. I mainly use it for YouTube/Streaming. This all comes from the relative position of my last Apple product being an iPhone 4.

Your mum is used to the form factor of the 9th, so there may be no need to change that up?

If I had to name a downside, its quite heavy. When I do upgrade in a few years I'd like to say I'd go for a Mini or Air, but I feel they're a bit too much money, so I may sway back to Android where I know I can get a similar media device for half the price.

I have a 9th gen and an Air 5 with the M1 chip that I picked up on sale with long return windows to compare the two and see which I'd like to keep.

I had both side by side opening apps I commonly used, and went to websites I use frequently. It is surprising that the apps/websites opened at almost exactly the same speed on each, with the ones that were just a bit more "beefy" taking maybe a half second longer on the 9th gen to open vs. the Air.

I also like to take video clips on hikes, and put them together into a 5 minutes video in iMovie to post on Youtube. The other day I did a test, taking those video clips and making the same movie on each of these iPads and exporting them. The Air with the M1 chip was faster, but not by much- surprisingly when the Air was finished with the export, the 9th gen was about 80% complete, and finished just a few seconds later.

That is the heaviest thing I'd do on this device- and I don't think the RAM difference will matter with iMovie, LumaFusion, or the usual social media apps and websites.

It is nice having that extra overhead with the M1 and the added RAM for potential future-proofing.... but at $250 for the 9th gen and $499 for the Air, my concern is whether the Air is worth twice what I paid for the 9th gen.

 

[Danando1993]

Thanks for the comments guys, interesting indeed. I suppose my reluctance to go with the 9th gen is that side by side with the air 2 it’s very similar expect for the chip but in all honesty she wouldn’t need anything more spec wise. The nice to have would be the refreshed design.

 

[mandopicker101]

I have a 9th gen and an Air 5 with the M1 chip that I picked up on sale with long return windows to compare the two and see which I'd like to keep.

I had both side by side opening apps I commonly used, and went to websites I use frequently. It is surprising that the apps/websites opened at almost exactly the same speed on each, with the ones that were just a bit more "beefy" taking maybe a half second longer on the 9th gen to open vs. the Air.

I also like to take video clips on hikes, and put them together into a 5 minutes video in iMovie to post on Youtube. The other day I did a test, taking those video clips and making the same movie on each of these iPads and exporting them. The Air with the M1 chip was faster, but not by much- surprisingly when the Air was finished with the export, the 9th gen was about 80% complete, and finished just a few seconds later.

That is the heaviest thing I'd do on this device- and I don't think the RAM difference will matter with iMovie, LumaFusion, or the usual social media apps and websites.

It is nice having that extra overhead with the M1 and the added RAM for potential future-proofing.... but at $250 for the 9th gen and $499 for the Air, my concern is whether the Air is worth twice what I paid for the 9th gen.

I suppose you get into use cases - I have an iPad 9 supplied by work to use as a mobility device with an HP laptop as the primary choice…except I use the iPad for 80% of the time as it’s not so crippled by corporate security policies. An Air 5 would be ideal as it has greater multitasking features (Stage Manager) and better integration with external monitors. The iPad 9 does fine with my monitor, just the black bars on the side.

I’m thinking of an Air when my own iPad 8 shuffles off the support roster.