iPad Air iPad Air 5 is a joke

[mebehere]

This is a 1.5 year update, people.

My 8th gen budget iPad is fast enough. Hell, my mom’s 5th gen is plenty fast.

64GB base storage? Stupid. 256GB for $150 more? Complete money grab.

This thing offers nothing worthwhile. Center Stage? It’s a gimmick.

I watched the presentation. As each minute passed, I thought there was something special coming. Nope.

For those who are going to buy this, you’re getting screwed.

 

[MayaUser]

you dont have to make a topic because you cannot see the reason to upgrade
this negative we can have on everything that every company make
why SSD, hdd is good enough for me...$1000 more? stupid, complete money grab
Just the usbC, M1,8gb ram better support than the old ipad are worth it
For those who are not going to buy this, you are getting screwed, see how it goes? now stop insulting people that for them $600-$700 means nothing if they use the ipad everyday for the next 3-4 years

 

[MayaUser]

this topic should merge with this https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ipad-air-5-comes-with-m1-and-8gb-ram.2336991/
No need for a new topic for this tiny reasons

 

[mebehere]

you dont have to make a topic because you cannot see the reason to upgrade
this negative we can have on everything that every company make
why SSD, hdd is good enough for me...$1000 more? stupid, complete money grab
Just the usbC, M1,better support than the old ipad are worth it
For those who are not going to buy this, you are getting screwed, see how it goes? now stop insulting people that for them $600-$700 means nothing if they use the ipad everyday for the next 3-4 years

I wanted this thing till today. It’s embarrassing how many new features were introduced. More time was spent on the new SE.

 

[mebehere]

this topic should merge with this https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/ipad-air-5-comes-with-m1-and-8gb-ram.2336991/
No need for a new topic for this tiny reasons

This iPad message board doesn’t get many new threads or replies. Just let it be.

 

[MayaUser]

I wanted this thing till today. It’s embarrassing how many new features were introduced. More time was spent on the new SE.

yes, an 1 hour event it was nice not to drag 10 min for every product when the focus was on their new cathegory devices - studio

 

[ericwn]

Not sure what options you were expecting this iPad model to have? This was pretty much on the radar I thought. And I don’t see where anyone is getting screwed over for.
Besides, there’s still the Pro if you want more, although you admit yourself that your iPad already is fast enough for your needs.

 

[Isengardtom]

apple always asks for a lot of money if you upgrade storage, that’s also the case in the macs

 

[Username-already-in-use]

I very much disagree, but each to their own.

Putting M1 and 8GB RAM is very much beyond my expectations for the Air 5. I think it will be a very good option for those looking at an 11” iPad to purchase.

Enjoying the longevity of older iPads (whether 8th or 5th Gen) isn’t a negative on the Air 5, surely it is a positive for the whole iPad range is it not? It is good to know that getting a new iPad today will mean a plenty-fast iPad for a number of years.

 

[Username-already-in-use]

Not sure what options you were expecting this iPad model to have? This was pretty much on the radar I thought. And I don’t see where anyone is getting screwed over for.
Besides, there’s still the Pro if you want more, although you admit yourself that your iPad already is fast enough for your needs.

People get mad at spec bumps for some reason.

 

[iStorm]

This is a 1.5 year update, people.

This is normal, iPads are typically updated every 1-2 years with minor updates.

My 8th gen budget iPad is fast enough. Hell, my mom’s 5th gen is plenty fast.

Sounds like these are still working great for you. What’s the reason to upgrade?

64GB base storage? Stupid. 256GB for $150 more? Complete money grab.

64GB is fine for most people; but I agree 128GB would be better. It’s always been $150 to upgrade from 64GB to 256GB across their devices (basically $50 for each additional 64GB of storage, up to 512GB or 1TB depending on the product). Too bad 128GB isn’t an option if it isn’t going to be the base storage.

This thing offers nothing worthwhile. Center Stage? It’s a gimmick.

What about the faster transfer speeds for those that need to transfer data/photos/videos? What about the 8GB of RAM (double from the 4th gen)? My parents love Center Stage. No longer do they have to sit crammed together and barely be in frame. It also works great for their grandkids who can’t sit still. Maybe none of these new features matter to you, and that’s fine. Apple can’t please everyone every time.

I watched the presentation. As each minute passed, I thought there was something special coming. Nope.

Best not to get your hopes up, you’re just setting yourself up for disappointment. We pretty much knew what was coming from the leaks.

For those who are going to buy this, you’re getting screwed.

It’ll be a fantastic device/upgrade for those that have older iPads. Most people don’t upgrade their iPad very often. Small updates add up over time. I would gladly upgrade to this from my Air 2 had I not upgraded to the 11” Pro last year.

I wanted this thing till today. It’s embarrassing how many new features were introduced. More time was spent on the new SE.

What is it you were wanting in this new iPad? Perhaps the Pro has what you wanted.

 

[JPack]

Doubled RAM, GPU, memory bandwidth, and USB-C port speed. 60% faster CPU. Much better front camera.

“Yeah, this weak sauce is a joke!” 😆😆😆

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

It’s called product segmentation -Apple are masters at making sure each of their products get a decent amount of upgrades at meticulously scheduled intervals.

But these upgrades never “jump” from one product category to the one above.

If Apple does speaker upgrades, display upgrades, big camera upgrades, 128GB internal in the $599 Air then it’s absolutely going to “canibalise” sales of its own more expensive iPads, specially the 11” M1 Pro($799).

Apple never does that.

It’s the exact same reason why the SE 2022 is as lackluster as it is -It’s supposed to be just enough to warrant a sale but never so much that it starts killing sales of more expensive iPhones from the current lineup.

Apple never goes all out for a product in terms of upgrades, except for its absolute most expensive products.

And even the high end products follow strategically planned “spec-bump schedules” as to not give a device too much value over the less expensive ones.

If Apple wanted the “medium” iPad, iPad Air 4th Gen, to compete with the “Large” iPad, iPads Pro, then they would have given the Air 4th Gen much better specs back when it launched in 2020.

Less expensive products are always supposed to very clearly underline the value of the more expensive products. That’s the Apple way.

How do we not get this by now?

 

[asleep]

I’ll be buying one iPad Air 5 Joke to go along with my iPad 9th gen cellular.

I have a use case for both at the same time, and I get enough unwanted tab refreshes with the 9th gen that cost me time and sometimes money.

Not all that excited about the power button fingerprint thingamabob, and I need to find a case that protects the corners because I never drop an iPad flat on a side. But it fills the bill for me and I will be in the queue on Friday.

 

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

Doubled RAM, GPU, memory bandwidth, and USB-C port speed. 60% faster CPU. Much better front camera.

“Yeah, this weak sauce is a joke!” ???

It’s exactly enough to be an exciting upgrade yet not enough to truly compete with iPads Pro.

That’s how Apple has always done it. Never everything consumers want, but mostly more than enough to get a lot to upgrade.

Why do we keep expecting Apple to ruin their perfectly planned product segmentation strategy when they never, ever break away from it?

 

[Isamilis]

This is a 1.5 year update, people.

My 8th gen budget iPad is fast enough. Hell, my mom’s 5th gen is plenty fast.

64GB base storage? Stupid. 256GB for $150 more? Complete money grab.

This thing offers nothing worthwhile. Center Stage? It’s a gimmick.

I watched the presentation. As each minute passed, I thought there was something special coming. Nope.

For those who are going to buy this, you’re getting screwed.

If your need is 128gb, then ignore Air/256 and buy iPad Pro M1/11 128gb with similar price but better screen, speaker, and thunderbolt port. It seems, this is Apple intention to upsell their iPP.

 

[macacam]

Who gets mad at product releases? Go for a walk. While on that walk, assess your current mental health and why a company releasing products would cause such a silly response.

 

[Abazigal]

This is a 1.5 year update, people.

My 8th gen budget iPad is fast enough. Hell, my mom’s 5th gen is plenty fast.

64GB base storage? Stupid. 256GB for $150 more? Complete money grab.

This thing offers nothing worthwhile. Center Stage? It’s a gimmick.

I watched the presentation. As each minute passed, I thought there was something special coming. Nope.

For those who are going to buy this, you’re getting screwed.

Apple basically just killed the market for android tablets costing anywhere near $500.

 

[TechRunner]

Doubled RAM, GPU, memory bandwidth, and USB-C port speed. 60% faster CPU. Much better front camera.

“Yeah, this weak sauce is a joke!” ???

And all for the same price. Not sure what the OP is after. Sounds like a decent enough upgrade to me. As someone who has very basic iPad needs, I'd consider one for every reason you mentioned, plus the slightly larger screen than my 7th gen iPad. My only disappointment in it is the lack of quad speakers, but I can bump up to the 11" Pro if they mean that much to me.

 

[MayaUser]

OP is an android user that hates his tablet, and hes envy now

 

[yitwail]

People get mad at spec bumps for some reason.

And boy, if the base iPad Air 5 had 128gb instead of 64gb, the screams of outrage from everyone who owns an iPad Pro 11 would be deafening.

 

[George Dawes]

Pretty much agree , they should be concentrating on the os not the iPad hardware , I’ve got several of them and it’s finally made me realise they’re fun to play with and not much else , mainly down to the glaring limitations of the fisher price level operating system

 

[ericwn]

People get mad at spec bumps for some reason.

Yup, first world problems.

 

[Digitalguy]

Pretty much agree , they should be concentrating on the os not the iPad hardware , I’ve got several of them and it’s finally made me realise they’re fun to play with and not much else , mainly down to the glaring limitations of the fisher price level operating system

That's what works for them. Great specs sell to many people, regardless of what they can do with them. And helps Apple fans promoting their "better" devices than the less powerful Android tablets.
At the same time, with limited OS capabilities they preserve the Mac, and with Macs having no touch or pen supports, it helps selling both. In the end, it's a winning strategy for Apple, despite all the complaints by some enthusiasts.
But I am sure they will throw some more iPadOS bones at users too at some point...

 

[contacos]

what else did you expect it to do? Even my old iPad Air 2 (I also have the iPad Air 4) still runs fine for what I am pretty much doing. Products are majored. There is only so much you can do with it now. Apple hard ware is fine as it is at this point. They need to put more focus on their software again. Basically iPadOS is crippled by software, not hardware. I honestly have no idea what I would even do with M1 on that thing.