This doesn't seem odd or unusual to me. New products will have the newest generation of chips. I seem to remember this happening several times with iPhone relea

This doesn't seem odd or unusual to me. New products will have the newest generation of chips. I seem to remember this happening several times with iPhone releases, where new low-end models have newer (and potentially faster) chips than old high-end models. The Air vs. small Pro choice might be a little difficult right now, since the Pro is presumably near the end of its form factor lifespan while the Air has just inherited most of that form factor from its more expensive sibling. I suspect that ProMotion and bigger storage options would be the key deciding factor for most people, and LiDAR might be a factor for some niche workloads.