iPad Air Let's guess the basic specs of upcoming iPad Air 5

[TigeRick]

Since we basically know the specifications of upcoming iPad Air 5 except two important details, I have decided to create a poll let everybody guessing what is the RAM size and storage capacity Apple going to make.

Bear in mind, iPad Air 5 going to be half a year later than iPad mini 6 which makes me rethink the reasons behind. And the basic 9th gen iPad has been upgraded to 64GB storage size.

 

[Username-already-in-use]

I would like to see them go 6GB RAM + 128GB storage, to really differentiate it from the iPad 9 and the Mini 6. If they stuck with 4GB RAM + 64GB storage, I would consider that a disappointment.

The Air range has always worked the best when it pays down some previously-pro level features.

 

[rui no onna]

The mini has traditionally been $100 cheaper than the Air and they usually have similar specs so I expect the Air 5 at $599 to be just a bigger mini 6.

It would be nice if it came with 6GB+128GB but I don't see that happening unless there's a price increase.

 

[JPack]

I think 4/128GB to match iPhone 13.

Given SE 2022 is coming with 3GB (Kuo), my gut feeling says Apple will be keeping costs low.

 

[rui no onna]

I think 4/128GB to match iPhone 13.

Given SE 2022 is coming with 3GB (Kuo), my gut feeling says Apple will be keeping costs low.

iPhone 13 is $799 though. Even the 13 mini is $699. Heck, the 64GB 12 and 12 mini are $699 and $599 respectively.

It's also not unusual for Apple to release new lower capacity configurations when they move a model down market. Hence, there's no guarantee the 128GB on the iPhone 13 will make its way unscathed after the inevitable $100 price drop come Fall 2022.

 

[JPack]

iPhone 13 is $799 though. Even the 13 mini is $699. Heck, the 64GB 12 and 12 mini are $699 and $599 respectively.

It's also not unusual for Apple to release new lower capacity configurations when they move a model down market. Hence, there's no guarantee the 128GB on the iPhone 13 will make its way unscathed after the inevitable $100 price drop come Fall 2022.

iPhone users definitely pay a premium for the storage and memory. Looking back, iPad Air launched during the same time as iPad (8th gen) which had 32GB. Given 64GB is standard on the $329 iPad, I think it seems more likely than not that Air will go to 128GB, even if it means Air gets a price bump.

For iPhone storage, I don't think Apple has de-featured a base model before. Apple tends to delete big storage models as it ages (e.g. XR and 11 no longer offered in 256GB).

 

[rui no onna]

iPhone users definitely pay a premium for the storage and memory. Looking back, iPad Air launched during the same time as iPad (8th gen) which had 32GB. Given 64GB is standard on the $329 iPad, I think it seems more likely than not that Air will go to 128GB, even if it means Air gets a price bump.

64GB was base for both iPhone SE 2020 (April 2020) and iPhone 12 (October 2020). A base storage upgrade on the low end isn't really an indicator of an upgrade for mid-range. Indeed, I believe the base storage line up then was 64/64/128GB. Also, low storage capacity makes for easier upsell to the more expensive Pro models.

For iPhone storage, I don't think Apple has de-featured a base model before. Apple tends to delete big storage models as it ages (e.g. XR and 11 no longer offered in 256GB).

They've done it on earlier iPhone models (granted, 5c and older).

 

[Digitalguy]

I would say 6GB RAM and 64GB of storage. iPhones need less RAM than iPads because they don't have the same multitasking capabilities. I don't think we'll see an increase in storage, but I don't think Apple would be afraid to give the air something more than the mini given that they are no longer released together like they had been in 2019. With the current cycle "one year each" an improvement for each device over the other can be expected (instead of the mini purely catching up with the air and the air just catching up with the mini)

 

[*~Kim~*]

I voted 4GB + 128, the Mini having a history of being underspecced or left behind meant that it wasn’t really a surprise that it got the same storage options as the base, though disappointing. Can’t see the Air being the same though it seems a little soon for 6GB as it hasn’t been long since the Pro was still being sold with it.

Having said that the fact that the Air wasn’t updated in the same year as the Pro got 8GB (just googled) is now making me rethink that. If the 4GB A9x Pro is for the drop this year, the Air 6 definitely gets 6GB, as it’s an easier sell to those users that don’t want to pay 2021 Pro prices.

 

[Username-already-in-use]

I voted 4GB + 128, the Mini having a history of being underspecced or left behind meant that it wasn’t really a surprise that it got the same storage options as the base, though disappointing. Can’t see the Air being the same though it seems a little soon for 6GB as it hasn’t been long since the Pro was still being sold with it.

Having said that the fact that the Air wasn’t updated in the same year as the Pro got 8GB (just googled) is now making me rethink that. If the 4GB A9x Pro is for the drop this year, the Air 6 definitely gets 6GB, as it’s an easier sell to those users that don’t want to pay 2021 Pro prices.

This was my thinking. The 2020 Air 4 with A14 4GB gave the 2018 Pro with A12X 4GB a run for its money, especially for those who didn’t need ProMotion or LiDAR.

 

[Digitalguy]

upgrading the RAM instead of the storage makes much more sense, since 6GB is still less than the M1 while 128GB is on par with it....

 

[*~Kim~*]

If the Air 5 (just realised I accidentally said 6 before, while typing on the Mini 6!) gets 128 then we can guarantee 256 base for the Pro at the next refresh.

If it doesn’t, storage options will have been unchanged for 3 generations, which I can’t really see.

 

[Digitalguy]

If the Air 5 (just realised I accidentally said 6 before, while typing on the Mini 6!) gets 128 then we can guarantee 256 base for the Pro at the next refresh.

If it doesn’t, storage options will have been unchanged for 3 generations, which I can’t really see.

I can see very easily the storage being unchanged, storage options are a means to get to buy the higher tier...
Having said that I agree that if they ever increase to 128, the pro will likely go to 256

 

[rui no onna]

If it doesn’t, storage options will have been unchanged for 3 generations, which I can’t really see.

It happens. Goodness knows they used 16GB as iPad base for way too long (6 generations: OG iPad to Air 2/mini 4).

The reason I voted for 4GB+64GB as the expected base is because I'm sadly used to Apple's stinginess. I'd love to see 6GB+128GB base but I've learned to temper my expectations.

I have a 32GB iPad 7th gen which has maybe 10-12GB available to the user after OS+Other/System Data. I expect the reason why Apple upgraded the iPad 9th gen to 64GB isn't generosity but because at this point in time, 32GB is barely usable.

 

[rui no onna]

This was my thinking. The 2020 Air 4 with A14 4GB gave the 2018 Pro with A12X 4GB a run for its money, especially for those who didn’t need ProMotion or LiDAR.

2020 Pro with A12Z 6GB is the one that has LiDAR (released Spring 2020, around 6 months before Air 4).

 

[Digitalguy]

This was my thinking. The 2020 Air 4 with A14 4GB gave the 2018 Pro with A12X 4GB a run for its money, especially for those who didn’t need ProMotion or LiDAR.

maybe in 2020, now that a refurbished 2018 pro has similar or even cheaper price than an air 4, the 2018 is still a better device with quad speakers and promotion (and smaller bezels) while A14 barely makes any difference to A12X

 

[*~Kim~*]

Unchanged base would be nothing new, but when the base was 16 they did at least add higher end models over those years to cater for that demand. Perhaps we’ll see the change being 64/256/512.

 

[rui no onna]

Unchanged base would be nothing new, but when the base was 16 they did at least add higher end models over those years to cater for that demand. Perhaps we’ll see the change being 64/256/512.

It was actually 16/32/64 for quite a while. Apple only added 128GB since OG Air 2013 (well, iPad 4 got it, too but that specific config was released 2013 as well). Storage was pretty restricting for me so storage upgrades was something I paid particular attention to.

With that said, I'd appreciate a 512GB option for the Air 5. Dunno if Apple sees a large enough market for one to bother with though. On the iPhones, the market is so much bigger than iPads so there's more room for various configs. Plus there's 24-36 month carrier financing making the difference between storage options just $3-10/month instead of $100-300 outright.

 

[snipr125]

I reckon Apple will give the Air 5 something extra than just the incremental updates (A15, Centre stage and 5G), to get it somewhat closer to the 2021 iPad Pro. Quad speakers maybe. The A15 bionic will probably be the full fat version from the Iphone 13 Pro (5 Core GPU at 3.32 Ghz), but not necessarily 6GB RAM as it wont be used for filming Apple Pro Res videos.

 

[Digitalguy]

I reckon Apple will give the Air 5 something extra than just the incremental updates (A15, Centre stage and 5G), to get it somewhat closer to the 2021 iPad Pro. Quad speakers maybe. The A15 bionic will probably be the full fat version from the Iphone 13 Pro (5 Core GPU at 3.32 Ghz), but not necessarily 6GB RAM as it wont be used for filming Apple Pro Res videos.

Quad speakers not happening. Just like promotion. Those are pro only for the foreseeable future. 6GB would only correct the stingy 4GB on the Air 4. This has nothing to do with pro res, iPads are not iPhones, they need more RAM than iPhones because they have many more multitasking features than iPhones.

 

[1BadManVan]

Base model 9th gen got bumped to 64gb. I’m guessing 128gb for the air, A15 and 6gb of ram.

Still missing promotion, quad speakers, less ram and less powerful chip from the pros. So still a decent amount of difference between them.

 

[snipr125]

Quad speakers not happening. Just like promotion. Those are pro only for the foreseeable future. 6GB would only correct the stingy 4GB on the Air 4. This has nothing to do with pro res, iPads are not iPhones, they need more RAM than iPhones because they have many more multitasking features than iPhones.

Hmm the quad speakers are not really a ‘Pro’ feature considering the exact same speaker grilles are already there on the Air 4. Apple just turned off the 4 way driver to keep it stereo (sound comes out of all four speakers on the air 4). I hope your right that it gets 6GB RAM though.

 

[Digitalguy]

Hmm the quad speakers are not really a ‘Pro’ feature considering the exact same speaker grilles are already there on the Air 4. Apple just turned off the 4 way driver to keep it stereo (sound comes out of all four speakers on the air 4). I hope your right that it gets 6GB RAM though.

The fact that Apple went through the trouble of turning them off precisely show that they are indeed a pro only feature and one that has not tricked down to any other iPad since the very first pro (and I bet this will stay this way for the foreseeable future...)

 

[JPack]

Hmm the quad speakers are not really a ‘Pro’ feature considering the exact same speaker grilles are already there on the Air 4. Apple just turned off the 4 way driver to keep it stereo (sound comes out of all four speakers on the air 4). I hope your right that it gets 6GB RAM though.

The Air doesn’t have four speakers. The Pro actually has four speaker chambers.

 

[Chaparral02]

Base model 9th gen got bumped to 64gb. I’m guessing 128gb for the air, A15 and 6gb of ram.

Still missing promotion, quad speakers, less ram and less powerful chip from the pros. So still a decent amount of difference between them.

Plus the Pro had a much Faster SSD Storage (unless the Air 5 does get a faster SSD)
A brighter display 500nits (air) vs 600nits (11" pro)
And Face ID
Plus doesn't also pro have 5 higher quality microphones !
Better camera's + LiDAR Scanner