iPad Air M4 announced with more power and Wi-Fi 7 — price, release date and full specs
Mostly the same from last year
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Among all the other new Apple products announced today, the company has launched the Apple iPad Air powered by the company's M4 processor. Like the previous generation, the Air will be offered in two sizes — 11 and 13 inches — and while little appears to have changed since the previous version (other than the processor), it still looks to be a strong complement to Apple's tablet lineup, and could maintain its place at the top of our list of the best tablets.
Here's all the specs and pricing for the 2026 Apple iPad Air
Price and availability
The iPad Air M4 will start at $599 for the 11-inch model, and $799 for the 13-inch version. The base model for each will come with 128GB of storage. Thankfully, that's the same pricing as the M3 Air, so RAMageddon hasn't come to Apple's tablets yet.
Both models will be available in four colors: space gray, blue, purple, and starlight (a very pale gold).
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | iPad Air 11-inch | iPad Air 13-inch |
128GB | $599 | $799 |
256GB | $699 | $899 |
512GB | $899 | $1,099 |
1TB | $1,099 | $1,299 |
Preorders for both models will open at 9:15 am on March 4, and devices will go on sale on March 11.
iPad Air M4 specs
Apart from the updated processor, the M4 iPad Air will be nearly identical to the M3 version. Here's a quick look at the specs.
| Row 0 - Cell 0 | iPad Air M4 (11-inch) | iPad Air M3 (11-inch) | iPad Air M4 (13-inch) | iPad Air M3 (13-inch) |
Size | 9.74 x 7.02 x 0.24 inches | 9.74 x 7.02 x 0.24 inches | 11.04 x 8.46 x 0.24 inches | 11.04 x 8.46 x 0.24 inches |
Weight | 1.02 | 1.05 | 1.36 | 1.36 |
Resolution | 2360 x 1640 | 2360 x 1640 | 2732 x 2048 | 2732 x 2048 |
Brightness | 500 nits | 500 nits | 600 nits | 600 nits |
Rear camera | 12MP (f/1.8) | 12MP (f/1.8) | 12MP (f/1.8) | 12MP (f/1.8) |
Front camera | 12MP (f/2) | 12MP (f/2) | 12MP (f/2) | 12MP (f/2) |
Battery size | 28.93 Wh | 28.93 Wh | 36.59 Wh | 36.59 Wh |
Battery life (rated) | Up to 10 hours | Up to 10 hours | Up to 10 hours | Up to 10 hours |
Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 7 | Wi-Fi 6E | Wi-Fi 7 | Wi-Fi 6E |
Wireless | Bluetooth 6, Thread, Apple N1 | Bluetooth 5.3 | Bluetooth 6, Thread, Apple N1 | Bluetooth 5.3 |
Apart from the processor, the other major difference is that the M4 iPads will have Wi-Fi 7, as well as Bluetooth 6 and Thread, thanks to Apple's N1 chip, which the company introduced with the iPhone 17.
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Outlook
From what it looks like, the only major change from the iPad Air M3 and the iPad Air M4 is that you'll get better performance owing to the more powerful processor, with no tradeoff in battery life. While it's not exactly apples-to-apples (although it is in some respects), when you compare our benchmark tests of all of Apple's M4 Macbooks, you do see some incremental improvements between the M4 and M3 generations.
Stay tuned for our full benchmarks of Apple's newest and lightest iPad.
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Michael A. Prospero is the U.S. Editor-in-Chief for Tom’s Guide. He oversees all evergreen content and oversees the Homes, Smart Home, and Fitness/Wearables categories for the site. In his spare time, he also tests out the latest drones, electric scooters, and smart home gadgets, such as video doorbells. Before his tenure at Tom's Guide, he was the Reviews Editor for Laptop Magazine, a reporter at Fast Company, the Times of Trenton, and, many eons back, an intern at George magazine. He received his undergraduate degree from Boston College, where he worked on the campus newspaper The Heights, and then attended the Columbia University school of Journalism. When he’s not testing out the latest running watch, electric scooter, or skiing or training for a marathon, he’s probably using the latest sous vide machine, smoker, or pizza oven, to the delight — or chagrin — of his family.
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