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iPad Air Is it worth buying an Air 4 in 2022?
- Thread starter DeepSix
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Buy yesterday if you need it. Buy tomorrow if you want it.
I do think the iPad Air 4 is worth it in 2022, as the gen 5 will be probably just a specs bump. Given that, I doubt we'll see any price change, contrary to iPad mini 6 which comes with a pretty drastic design change.
That said, I definitely would wait (if you can) the rumoured March 6th Apple event. You'd either get the newer iPad Air 5 at the same price, or the iPad Air 4 with a decent discount from the retailers.
That said, I definitely would wait (if you can) the rumoured March 6th Apple event. You'd either get the newer iPad Air 5 at the same price, or the iPad Air 4 with a decent discount from the retailers.
It’s certainly worth waiting to see what the not yet announced Air 5 will have to offer before answering the questions.
iPA4 is still a fast tablet. I doubt you’ll be able to tell the difference between the a14 and a15. I’m wondering if they’ll bump the base from 64gb to 128gb.
I don’t think we’ll see deeper sales than $499 for the base config Air 4 (at least not immediately after Air 5 release). Higher storage and cellular may get discounted more deeply (probably because they have higher margins).
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I just bought a brand new one today at Best Buy. They have them for $100 off so just $499.
I did as wellI just bought a brand new one today at Best Buy. They have them for $100 off so just $499.
I just bought a brand new one today at Best Buy. They have them for $100 off so just $499.
which color did you get?
Absolutely wait for the refreshed iPad Air this spring. It’s way too old to be buying for anything above $400.
With the edu discount, you can get 10% off even on launch day.
With the edu discount, you can get 10% off even on launch day.
The major change is going from A14 to A15 processor. Otherwise reported to be the same overall design. If $100 or more off, I'd probably go with the Air 4. Especially with a known price.
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The CPU upgrade isn’t significant. A14 to A15 is kinda like A12X to A12Z so I wouldn’t make a decision based on chipset alone.
Same camera setup for Air 5 as mini 6 is a given. It’s the RAM and base storage that are still unknown.
That's my point. Since the processor is the "major" change, I'd go with the Air 4 especially if discounted.
Air 4 will be about 18 months old by spring and is due for a refresh. The refresh is very likely close.
It's unlikely the Air 5 will have a price hike. It's $200 away from 11-inch iPad Pro and I doubt Apple will close that gap.
Air 5 is expected to get a much better front camera. A15 is a given and there's a possibility of more RAM. Just the camera and A15 are worth the wait in my opinion.
The A15 is more of a sidegrade to A14 than a proper upgrade. The cameras may be worth spending extra based on one’s priorities but the chipset certainly is not.
The Air 4 isn’t worth $600 but at $500 or less with same CPU performance as Air 5? Then sure. Only thing that would change that calculus for me is an upgrade in RAM or base storage.
Personally though, with FaceMaskID, I’m more inclined to jump straight to the 2021 iPad Pro for $700 on sale than go for the Air 5.
Yes, I agree with your thoughts. If there's even a reasonable possibility of a RAM upgrade, I'd prefer to hold off. For me, I use iPad Air at home and disable biometrics so even with improved Face ID, I wouldn't benefit from it.
For me, I use the iPad out of the house and pretty much the only reason I bought an Air 4 was for TouchID and the pretty colors.
If FaceID with mask had already been available at the time, I would’ve gone M1 iPad Pro 11” all the way. 4GB RAM hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing since iPadOS 13.
Right now I'm leaning towards just getting a
I wish Apple would sell versions of iPads without cameras. Some of us just don’t care about having a camera on iPads.
I’m actually really tempted to just get the 11 Pro (5th gen) instead of Air 4 or 5. Seems the 11 Pro is more future proof and if the pro motion is all that said to be, I think the extra money is well spent.
I wish Apple would sell versions of iPads without cameras. Some of us just don’t care about having a camera on iPads.
I’m actually really tempted to just get the 11 Pro (5th gen) instead of Air 4 or 5. Seems the 11 Pro is more future proof and if the pro motion is all that said to be, I think the extra money is well spent.