Rumor: iPad Air 5 gets more Pro features
The most recent iPad Air is already a sort of Pro junior, but more features from the Pro are on the way to the iPad Air 5.
In 2018, Apple came out with a completely new iPad Pro. Just about everything about this new Pro was different from its predecessor and the rest of the range. The bezels – and with it the home button – had to be replaced in favor of an almost borderless screen and the addition of FaceID. Furthermore, the somewhat round design was followed by an angular design that we would later see on the iPhone 12 and – quite radical by Apple standards – the iPad Pro came for the first time with a USB-C connection instead of Lightning.
Air
So Apple has tried to make the iPad Pro a true flagship and “the best iPad” with “the most features” naturally comes with a hefty price tag. After all, cheaper iPads were stuck to the ‘old’ design with a TouchID home button and large bezels. Apple gave us something that is very reminiscent of the Pro in 2020: to celebrate 10 years of iPad, the Air was also overhauled in such a way that it is a kind of Pro. But then based on the Pro from 2018. Because that top model has now also been polished up a bit. In particular, a second camera and the addition of LiDAR gives the Pro that little bit extra.
iPad Air 5
But fear not, the iPad Air 5 is coming and it will get some extra features that we know from the Pro. A Chinese parts farmer has already received some specs of the iPad Air 5, Macotakara claims. They report a number of things that improve the iPad Air a bit.
LiDAR
Actually, we already gave it away a bit: Apple again chooses to bring the new additions to the Pro a level lower. The iPad Air 5 will get a similar camera bump with two cameras and ‘in all probability’ – LiDAR. For those who are no longer clear on the latter: LiDAR scans the environment with lasers and can thus provide a clear picture of what the iPad sees in the environment. Useful for augmented reality, for example. This has not been confirmed, but the source does speak of it. By the way, the two cameras are a regular lens and an ultrawide lens.
mmWave
The iPad Air 5 is also being prepared for support for mmWave, a new technology in the 5G category. This of course applies to the Cellular version of the iPad, which are the versions that can work with cellular data. Reportedly, a number of American providers want to use mmWave, so it is not yet known whether it will help us much.
A15
An update also includes a replacement of the chipset and that is no different with the iPad Air 5. The chip will be the A15 Bionic, which you can also expect in the upcoming iPhone 13 series. This also makes the new Air a tad faster. What remains, by the way, is the housing of the 11-inch Pro and the Liquid Retina screen. The iPad Air does not receive FaceID and will remain so, instead TouchID is incorporated in the power button on the side.
Time unknown
It all sounds like good news for the iPad Air 5, but the timeline has yet to be announced. There seems to be a small update first with the A14 chip of the iPhone 12. The fifth generation iPad Air can therefore wait until 2022. In that respect, this rumor is early, but then you know.
