iPad Air Gets M4 Chip, Starts at $599
Apple drops the M4 processor into its mid-range iPad Air with 12GB RAM and new networking hardware.
Apple just gave the iPad Air a serious silicon upgrade. The refreshed tablet now runs on the M4 chip, packing an 8-core CPU and 9-core GPU alongside 12GB of unified memory. That's a meaningful bump for a device positioned as the "value" iPad.
The new Air also features Apple's N1 networking chip for improved connectivity. Pricing holds relatively steady: $599 for the 11-inch model and $799 for the 13-inch version.
Apple is leaning hard on iPadOS 26 as a selling point here, calling the software features "game-changing" — though the hardware specs alone make this a notable refresh. The M4 was previously reserved for the iPad Pro lineup, so its trickle-down to the Air narrows the gap between Apple's tablet tiers considerably.
For anyone sitting on an older Air, this is the upgrade cycle worth paying attention to.