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iPad Air Review

mirsadm 13y ago
As usual Anandtech has one of the best reviews. My only complaint is the CPU benchmarks are more or less useless. I understand there aren't any good cross platform benchmarks right now but using JS benchmarks is completely inaccurate. Not only are there major variations between scores on the same device (across different browsers and versions) but the same browser isn't even available on both platforms. I'd love to see how the A7 really stacks up against the Snapdragon/Tegra but it doesn't seem like we'll be seeing that any time soon.
- AndyJPartridge 13y ago
  Agreed with the review. Also agree that any benchmarks are useless. We need to code for the lowest common platform, in order to get the best sales.
- calinet6 13y ago
  > As usual Anandtech has one of the best reviews. No one does reviews like Anand—even other reviewers at Anandtech. When I see him as the author, I know I'm in for a treat. I mean, down to the metal, and a full understanding and clear explanation of what it means! Just top quality, every single time, even going back ten or fifteen years to the Pentium and Athlon era. I learned so much from his clear and passionate explanations of CPU structure and design decisions. I still love that the author name link goes straight to his e-mail address. I think I'll thank him directly.
  - acchow 13y ago
    Brian Klug is really good too. Check out the HTC One Review: http://www.anandtech.com/show/6747/ http://www.anandtech.com/show/6747/
- threeseed 13y ago
  Especially not with companies like Samsung deliberately rigging benchmark tests.
blinkingled 13y ago
Another great review as usual from Anandtech. Wow, Apple is still skimping on RAM at the expense of user experience. It would've been a great time to bump the RAM up to 2GB given the switch to 64-bit iOS 7 seems to be causing 20-30% higher memory consumption. It was already kind of bad on previous gen 32-bit iPads. It's still tempting to upgrade from the brick that the iPad 3 now feels but I'll live with it until the one with finger print reader, more RAM and fully baked iOS 7.1.x are out.
- nwh 13y ago
  iOS7 does have memory compression though.
  - blinkingled 13y ago
    Right. But it still seems to be an overall increase of 20-30% for lightest of the use cases. >In general you’re looking at a 20 - 30% increase in memory footprint when dealing with an all 64-bit environment. At worst, the device’s total memory usage never exceeded 60% of what ships with the platform but these are admittedly fairly light use cases. With more apps open, including some doing work in the background, I do see relatively aggressive eviction of apps from memory. The most visible case is when Safari tabs have to be reloaded upon switching to them. Applications being evicted from memory don’t tend to be a huge problem since the A7 can reload them quickly.
    - glhaynes 13y ago
      I've always expected they would start to serialize open tabs to the flash storage to keep from having to reload them from the network. Seems (to me) like that'd be easy to do.
      - diroussel 13y ago
        Yes it would be easy, but the flash in these devices is quite slow compared to an SSD. Also what is the impact on energy usage?
  - 13y ago
yalogin 13y ago
Looks like Apple hit home runs with all of their updates this cycle. Interestingly I haven't seen this universal praise for any other Apple update cycle before. Unfortunately I am not in the market for any device right now.
- ScottWhigham 13y ago
  I would disagree that they hit homeruns on everything. The most obvious "single" would be the iPhone 5C which, by all accounts, is underselling expectations significantly. As a consumer, Apple "lost the game" by not introducing an iPhone with a larger screen size. Why are HTC and Samsung doing so well in the phone market? Because they offer what clearly millions of people want: a 5" screen. If Apple had introduced a 5" screen iPhone this cycle, how many would they have sold? I can't tell you how many people who have, this year, switched from long time iPhones to Samsung/HTC for this reason (my family included). That said, I'm buying the iPad Air as an upgrade to my iPad 2 and I'll be updating my 2011 MBP as well because I think they've really hit homeruns for those two.
  - apl 13y ago
    > Why are HTC and Samsung doing so well in the phone market? Because they > offer what clearly millions of people want: a 5" screen. Not sure that's supported by the data. Do you have a specific reason for assuming that and not one of the countless other differences is the reason why people pick, say, an HTC or Samsung over an iPhone? (As in: preference for Android; availability; etc.)
  - nicholassmith 13y ago
    "The most obvious "single" would be the iPhone 5C which, by all accounts, is underselling expectations significantly." No one has proven this, it's just a rumour circling the internet. Anecdotally I've seen plenty 'in the wild', but potentially not as many as the 5S (hard to tell aside from the gold), so it's unclear whether it's been a sales disappointment.
  - rsynnott 13y ago
    > The most obvious "single" would be the iPhone 5C which, by all accounts, is underselling expectations significantly. Hrm? Apple's first-week iPhone sales significantly beat analyst estimates and their own records. It doesn't seem plausible that those were all 5Ses. > Why are HTC and Samsung doing so well in the phone market? Because they offer what clearly millions of people want: a 5" screen. HTC are not doing well in the phone market. As for Samsung, the Note 3 managed 5 million channel sales in one month, with total sales of the series over a couple of years of only 40 million. 40 million sales over two years is a drop in the bucket for Samsung's sales; the bulk of their sales are of low-end devices (with small screens). > If Apple had introduced a 5" screen iPhone this cycle, how many would they have sold? Well, I know I wouldn't have bought one, whereas I did buy a 5S. Not everyone wants giant phones.
jason_wang 13y ago
The device I really wish exists is an iPad Air minus the computing power. Just a screen to stream videos to from a iPhone, a laptop or a cable box. A portable screen that's a lot less powerful than an iPad but a bit more powerful than a digital picture frame. Surprisingly this is for my parents. They watch videos all the time and watching videos on an iPhone is too small, on a laptop is too bulky and on an iPad is too expensive.
- nwh 13y ago
  A first generation iPad then?
  - teamonkey 13y ago
    The 1st-gen iPad I have has been upgraded into obsolescence. Even watching a YouTube video without the app running out of memory is almost impossible.
    - uxwtf 13y ago
      Easy to jailbreak and then MxTube is incredibly useful. Not only does it play any video without crashing, it can save them.
- mirsadm 13y ago
  How about a cheap Android tablet? If it is just for watching videos then there are plenty of very cheap Chinese tablets that will work.
  - jason_wang 13y ago
    This is where I'm leaning right now. A sub $200 Android tablet. But there's something to be said about not having to learn a whole new interview for my parents.
- ricardobeat 13y ago
  You're out of luck, the processor costs something like $10, taking it it out would hardly nudge the price. Get a cheap android tablet or a mini LED projector instead.
programminggeek 13y ago
"The iPad Air is the most significant upgrade to the 9.7-inch iPad in its history." I would actually say the iPad to iPad 2 transition was a bigger jump, but maybe just because it's so easy to forget how much bigger and bulkier the original iPad was. The iPad came out what 3 and a half years ago and it's faster, lighter, better resolution, and has gone from a "who would ever buy that" to one of the most popular computers in the world. It has completely upended PC sales and forced a radically different Windows experience on millions of users (for better or worse). In all honesty, what is most remarkable about Apple is that they can take a industry leading (or defining) product like the iPad and make pretty significant improvements every year or two like clockwork and have those changes not just be superficial, but meaningful changes that make a difference to the end user.
- product50 13y ago
  Have you tried/used the iPad Air? How can you pass a judgment on something based on reviews when the reviewer himself is asserting something opposite to you?
  - Groxx 13y ago
    How can you pass judgement on anything you haven't experienced yourself?
    - uptown 13y ago
      "How can you pass judgement on anything you haven't experienced yourself?" People do this all the time. Have you no opinions on rape, child abuse, or murder? I realize judging a physical device is different than moral, ethical and legal issues - but people will have varying levels of experience on almost everything in this world - and the person with the most experience isn't always the most-qualified to pass judgement.
      - Groxx 13y ago
        That's my (apparently missed / poorly made) point, in broadening what they did to literally everything in life. People pass judgement by collecting info from multiple sources, from related things they've done, etc. So calling someone out for doing so without having experienced something is pretty naive / willfully ignorant of how they live their life. Absolutely, argue, you might inform them of something new and swing their decision. But dismissing their opinion entirely is wrong in many ways.
Segmentation 13y ago
I wasn't planning on buying an iPad Air, as I'm still happy with my iPad 2, but that comparison chart on the first page really sold me that the iPad Air is the first real upgrade to the iPad 2. My only complaint is I want high capacity, and I find it so ridiculous that to go from 16GB to 64GB I have to pay $200 extra. Two hundred dollars for 48GB. I think the last time I paid that much for 48GB was ten years ago. Edit: I wish Apple would put a microSD reader on the iPad. Purely for storage expansion. I realize they don't do this because it would basically kill their storage upgrade options and they'd probably lose money. No one would feel compelled to upgrade beyond 16GB. microSD readers exist on the smallest devices nowadays, so form factor or weight is certainly no excuse.
- qq66 13y ago
  I think the main reason that Apple doesn't include MicroSD is that they want to control the entire product experience, including data ingress and egress. Not only to protect lucrative margins, but also because they know that if the user screws something up by deleting files off the SD card etc, they'll blame Apple whether that's fair or not. That assertion of control makes iOS unsuitable for many users, but Apple has consciously chosen a market segment and its proven itself a large one.
  - barista 13y ago
    Also because they can charge $100 for 16 GB of storage. The same microsd card would cost you $10 or less.
  - Glide 13y ago
    I wonder what the genius bar lines would be like if Apple products were a lot more open and allowed for that kind of customizability. There's probably some correlation between simple(r) products and good customer service.
- cubicle67 13y ago
  I'd love to be able to expand my wifes iPad, but I think Apple don't offer it (the ability to expand the capacity) for two reasons, the first of which is price - the retail difference between 16Gb and 128Gb is almost pure profit. The second resaon though, is that it introduces a level of complexity Apple are unlikely to be comfortable with[1]. Users now have to be aware of where stuff is being saved (flash or sd card), and the OS UI needs to be updated to provide this option. [1] unfortunately, iCloud seems to wildly disprove my point ...
qq66 13y ago
It's always a pleasure to read something truly well written; a rare luxury in the world of iPad reviews.
psbp 13y ago
I'm waiting for the iPad Pro. Assuming "Air" and "Mini" are hints of a mac to tablet replacement (coalescence?) strategy, an iPad that challenges the Microsoft Surface's role as a hybrid device would be spectacular.
- barista 13y ago
  That is MacBook air I think. Except no touch, no tablet form factor, no pen and worse screen.
- rsynnott 13y ago
  With MacOS 10.9? That sounds pretty awful, really. Apple has shown little indication of going remotely as far as Microsoft on trying to merge desktop and tablet interfaces.
Zak 13y ago
One thing that I think gives the iPad a considerable advantage is its 4:3 aspect ratio. Despite having larger bezels on the ends than the sides, it's an inch shorter than a Nexus 10 in its largest dimension. The article mentioned 10" tablets and 15" laptops seeming to be on the way out. The difference in largest dimension is even more pronounced with laptops. The last 15" 4:3 Thinkpad was 13.2" wide. The current 15" 16:9 models are 14.7" wide. It's about the same thickness and weight with less depth, but it seems like a much bigger machine because its largest dimension is bigger.
skc 13y ago
So I guess next iPad revision will be the TouchID version. So we know Apple will still be printing money for the next 24 months at least
ohwp 13y ago
I liked to know more about the weight per size, so here a small list: iPad : 680 g / 6186 cm3 = 0.1099 g / cm3 iPad 2 : 601 g / 3944 cm3 = 0.1523 g / cm3 iPad Air: 469 g / 3060 cm3 = 0.1532 g / cm3 iPad 3 : 650 g / 4213 cm3 = 0.1542 g / cm3 iPad 4 : 650 g / 4213 cm3 = 0.1542 g / cm3
- ScottWhigham 13y ago
  I'm trying to understand how you would use that information. Other than "product dimensions" and "product weight", why do you need to calculate/know more? It's interesting and all - I just don't guess I see what the value of knowing the g/cm3 is.
  - ohwp 13y ago
    "It's interesting and all" Well it's just that. Apple is promoting their size/weight ratio so I just wanted to know there progress. Nothing more nothing less ;)
    - jasonpbecker 13y ago
      No, they are not advertising the ratio. They are advertising reducing both. By your size/weight ratio, the original iPad would be the "ideal", but any one who has used any of these devices knows that's absurd. Density is far less important than the actual size and weight. High density is a demonstration that they've utilized all the available space (since the density of the components themselves are not changing) for components and need less room for heat. Alternatively, it could be a sign that the internal structure matters less than less and only the exterior components (aluminum and glass) are meaningfully different from one version to another. What makes the iPad Air attractive is not density, it's that there's less of it all around.
  - smackfu 13y ago
    Density determines how heavy something feels.
- ableal 13y ago
davidmr 13y ago
> It seemed like a foregone conclusion that the 10-inch tablet market was done for, with all interest and excitement shifting to smaller, but equally capable 7 or 8-inch tablets instead. Did I miss something? I've been happy with my 10" ipad for years and, especially with the 2048x1536 display, have never felt the need to go smaller. I know most of the android tablets are smaller, but I've been completely satisfied. I suppose I've never used the ipad mini, so it might be all that and a bag of chips. Is this really the trend? It wouldn't be the first to pass me by, but I'm still surprised.
- mcculley 13y ago
  I completely agree. I love my current iPad and don't want a smaller form factor for what I use it for (e.g., reading and small amounts of typing, Duolingo every morning). I already have a smaller form factor device that is wearable but painful to read or type on for bigger jobs (my phone) and a larger device with a full size keyboard for doing lots of typing and serious work (laptop). I welcome the iPad Air because it is the device I enjoy the most but faster and lighter.
- jdietrich 13y ago
  Going down to 7" has a drastic effect on portability. You can fit a Nexus 7 into a coat pocket and use it much more comfortably while standing, which is a really big deal for a large part of the market. A 7" tablet isn't much worse than a 10" when used on your sofa, but it is vastly better on a crowded train. I think that the 7" form factor is the sweet spot between a smartphone and a Macbook Air, and that 10" tablets are becoming a niche item.

As usual Anandtech has one of the best reviews. My only complaint is the CPU benchmarks are more or less useless. I understand there aren't any good cross platform benchmarks right now but using JS benchmarks is completely inaccurate. Not only are there major variations between scores on the same device (across different browsers and versions) but the same browser isn't even available on both platforms. I'd love to see how the A7 really stacks up against the Snapdragon/Tegra but it doesn't seem like we'll be seeing that any time soon.

AndyJPartridge 13y ago
Agreed with the review. Also agree that any benchmarks are useless. We need to code for the lowest common platform, in order to get the best sales.
calinet6 13y ago
> As usual Anandtech has one of the best reviews. No one does reviews like Anand—even other reviewers at Anandtech. When I see him as the author, I know I'm in for a treat. I mean, down to the metal, and a full understanding and clear explanation of what it means! Just top quality, every single time, even going back ten or fifteen years to the Pentium and Athlon era. I learned so much from his clear and passionate explanations of CPU structure and design decisions. I still love that the author name link goes straight to his e-mail address. I think I'll thank him directly.
- acchow 13y ago
  Brian Klug is really good too. Check out the HTC One Review: http://www.anandtech.com/show/6747/ http://www.anandtech.com/show/6747/
threeseed 13y ago
Especially not with companies like Samsung deliberately rigging benchmark tests.

blinkingled 13y ago

Another great review as usual from Anandtech. Wow, Apple is still skimping on RAM at the expense of user experience. It would've been a great time to bump the RAM up to 2GB given the switch to 64-bit iOS 7 seems to be causing 20-30% higher memory consumption. It was already kind of bad on previous gen 32-bit iPads. It's still tempting to upgrade from the brick that the iPad 3 now feels but I'll live with it until the one with finger print reader, more RAM and fully baked iOS 7.1.x are out.

nwh 13y ago
iOS7 does have memory compression though.
- blinkingled 13y ago
  Right. But it still seems to be an overall increase of 20-30% for lightest of the use cases. >In general you’re looking at a 20 - 30% increase in memory footprint when dealing with an all 64-bit environment. At worst, the device’s total memory usage never exceeded 60% of what ships with the platform but these are admittedly fairly light use cases. With more apps open, including some doing work in the background, I do see relatively aggressive eviction of apps from memory. The most visible case is when Safari tabs have to be reloaded upon switching to them. Applications being evicted from memory don’t tend to be a huge problem since the A7 can reload them quickly.
  - glhaynes 13y ago
    I've always expected they would start to serialize open tabs to the flash storage to keep from having to reload them from the network. Seems (to me) like that'd be easy to do.
    - diroussel 13y ago
      Yes it would be easy, but the flash in these devices is quite slow compared to an SSD. Also what is the impact on energy usage?
- 13y ago

yalogin 13y ago

Looks like Apple hit home runs with all of their updates this cycle. Interestingly I haven't seen this universal praise for any other Apple update cycle before. Unfortunately I am not in the market for any device right now.

ScottWhigham 13y ago
I would disagree that they hit homeruns on everything. The most obvious "single" would be the iPhone 5C which, by all accounts, is underselling expectations significantly. As a consumer, Apple "lost the game" by not introducing an iPhone with a larger screen size. Why are HTC and Samsung doing so well in the phone market? Because they offer what clearly millions of people want: a 5" screen. If Apple had introduced a 5" screen iPhone this cycle, how many would they have sold? I can't tell you how many people who have, this year, switched from long time iPhones to Samsung/HTC for this reason (my family included). That said, I'm buying the iPad Air as an upgrade to my iPad 2 and I'll be updating my 2011 MBP as well because I think they've really hit homeruns for those two.
- apl 13y ago
  > Why are HTC and Samsung doing so well in the phone market? Because they > offer what clearly millions of people want: a 5" screen. Not sure that's supported by the data. Do you have a specific reason for assuming that and not one of the countless other differences is the reason why people pick, say, an HTC or Samsung over an iPhone? (As in: preference for Android; availability; etc.)
- nicholassmith 13y ago
  "The most obvious "single" would be the iPhone 5C which, by all accounts, is underselling expectations significantly." No one has proven this, it's just a rumour circling the internet. Anecdotally I've seen plenty 'in the wild', but potentially not as many as the 5S (hard to tell aside from the gold), so it's unclear whether it's been a sales disappointment.
- rsynnott 13y ago
  > The most obvious "single" would be the iPhone 5C which, by all accounts, is underselling expectations significantly. Hrm? Apple's first-week iPhone sales significantly beat analyst estimates and their own records. It doesn't seem plausible that those were all 5Ses. > Why are HTC and Samsung doing so well in the phone market? Because they offer what clearly millions of people want: a 5" screen. HTC are not doing well in the phone market. As for Samsung, the Note 3 managed 5 million channel sales in one month, with total sales of the series over a couple of years of only 40 million. 40 million sales over two years is a drop in the bucket for Samsung's sales; the bulk of their sales are of low-end devices (with small screens). > If Apple had introduced a 5" screen iPhone this cycle, how many would they have sold? Well, I know I wouldn't have bought one, whereas I did buy a 5S. Not everyone wants giant phones.

jason_wang 13y ago

The device I really wish exists is an iPad Air minus the computing power. Just a screen to stream videos to from a iPhone, a laptop or a cable box. A portable screen that's a lot less powerful than an iPad but a bit more powerful than a digital picture frame. Surprisingly this is for my parents. They watch videos all the time and watching videos on an iPhone is too small, on a laptop is too bulky and on an iPad is too expensive.

nwh 13y ago
A first generation iPad then?
- teamonkey 13y ago
  The 1st-gen iPad I have has been upgraded into obsolescence. Even watching a YouTube video without the app running out of memory is almost impossible.
  - uxwtf 13y ago
    Easy to jailbreak and then MxTube is incredibly useful. Not only does it play any video without crashing, it can save them.
mirsadm 13y ago
How about a cheap Android tablet? If it is just for watching videos then there are plenty of very cheap Chinese tablets that will work.
- jason_wang 13y ago
  This is where I'm leaning right now. A sub $200 Android tablet. But there's something to be said about not having to learn a whole new interview for my parents.
ricardobeat 13y ago
You're out of luck, the processor costs something like $10, taking it it out would hardly nudge the price. Get a cheap android tablet or a mini LED projector instead.

programminggeek 13y ago

"The iPad Air is the most significant upgrade to the 9.7-inch iPad in its history." I would actually say the iPad to iPad 2 transition was a bigger jump, but maybe just because it's so easy to forget how much bigger and bulkier the original iPad was. The iPad came out what 3 and a half years ago and it's faster, lighter, better resolution, and has gone from a "who would ever buy that" to one of the most popular computers in the world. It has completely upended PC sales and forced a radically different Windows experience on millions of users (for better or worse). In all honesty, what is most remarkable about Apple is that they can take a industry leading (or defining) product like the iPad and make pretty significant improvements every year or two like clockwork and have those changes not just be superficial, but meaningful changes that make a difference to the end user.

product50 13y ago
Have you tried/used the iPad Air? How can you pass a judgment on something based on reviews when the reviewer himself is asserting something opposite to you?
- Groxx 13y ago
  How can you pass judgement on anything you haven't experienced yourself?
  - uptown 13y ago
    "How can you pass judgement on anything you haven't experienced yourself?" People do this all the time. Have you no opinions on rape, child abuse, or murder? I realize judging a physical device is different than moral, ethical and legal issues - but people will have varying levels of experience on almost everything in this world - and the person with the most experience isn't always the most-qualified to pass judgement.
    - Groxx 13y ago
      That's my (apparently missed / poorly made) point, in broadening what they did to literally everything in life. People pass judgement by collecting info from multiple sources, from related things they've done, etc. So calling someone out for doing so without having experienced something is pretty naive / willfully ignorant of how they live their life. Absolutely, argue, you might inform them of something new and swing their decision. But dismissing their opinion entirely is wrong in many ways.

Segmentation 13y ago

I wasn't planning on buying an iPad Air, as I'm still happy with my iPad 2, but that comparison chart on the first page really sold me that the iPad Air is the first real upgrade to the iPad 2. My only complaint is I want high capacity, and I find it so ridiculous that to go from 16GB to 64GB I have to pay $200 extra. Two hundred dollars for 48GB. I think the last time I paid that much for 48GB was ten years ago. Edit: I wish Apple would put a microSD reader on the iPad. Purely for storage expansion. I realize they don't do this because it would basically kill their storage upgrade options and they'd probably lose money. No one would feel compelled to upgrade beyond 16GB. microSD readers exist on the smallest devices nowadays, so form factor or weight is certainly no excuse.

qq66 13y ago
I think the main reason that Apple doesn't include MicroSD is that they want to control the entire product experience, including data ingress and egress. Not only to protect lucrative margins, but also because they know that if the user screws something up by deleting files off the SD card etc, they'll blame Apple whether that's fair or not. That assertion of control makes iOS unsuitable for many users, but Apple has consciously chosen a market segment and its proven itself a large one.
- barista 13y ago
  Also because they can charge $100 for 16 GB of storage. The same microsd card would cost you $10 or less.
- Glide 13y ago
  I wonder what the genius bar lines would be like if Apple products were a lot more open and allowed for that kind of customizability. There's probably some correlation between simple(r) products and good customer service.
cubicle67 13y ago
I'd love to be able to expand my wifes iPad, but I think Apple don't offer it (the ability to expand the capacity) for two reasons, the first of which is price - the retail difference between 16Gb and 128Gb is almost pure profit. The second resaon though, is that it introduces a level of complexity Apple are unlikely to be comfortable with[1]. Users now have to be aware of where stuff is being saved (flash or sd card), and the OS UI needs to be updated to provide this option. [1] unfortunately, iCloud seems to wildly disprove my point ...

qq66 13y ago

It's always a pleasure to read something truly well written; a rare luxury in the world of iPad reviews.

psbp 13y ago

I'm waiting for the iPad Pro. Assuming "Air" and "Mini" are hints of a mac to tablet replacement (coalescence?) strategy, an iPad that challenges the Microsoft Surface's role as a hybrid device would be spectacular.

barista 13y ago
That is MacBook air I think. Except no touch, no tablet form factor, no pen and worse screen.
rsynnott 13y ago
With MacOS 10.9? That sounds pretty awful, really. Apple has shown little indication of going remotely as far as Microsoft on trying to merge desktop and tablet interfaces.

Zak 13y ago

One thing that I think gives the iPad a considerable advantage is its 4:3 aspect ratio. Despite having larger bezels on the ends than the sides, it's an inch shorter than a Nexus 10 in its largest dimension. The article mentioned 10" tablets and 15" laptops seeming to be on the way out. The difference in largest dimension is even more pronounced with laptops. The last 15" 4:3 Thinkpad was 13.2" wide. The current 15" 16:9 models are 14.7" wide. It's about the same thickness and weight with less depth, but it seems like a much bigger machine because its largest dimension is bigger.

skc 13y ago

So I guess next iPad revision will be the TouchID version. So we know Apple will still be printing money for the next 24 months at least

ohwp 13y ago

I liked to know more about the weight per size, so here a small list: iPad : 680 g / 6186 cm3 = 0.1099 g / cm3 iPad 2 : 601 g / 3944 cm3 = 0.1523 g / cm3 iPad Air: 469 g / 3060 cm3 = 0.1532 g / cm3 iPad 3 : 650 g / 4213 cm3 = 0.1542 g / cm3 iPad 4 : 650 g / 4213 cm3 = 0.1542 g / cm3

ScottWhigham 13y ago
I'm trying to understand how you would use that information. Other than "product dimensions" and "product weight", why do you need to calculate/know more? It's interesting and all - I just don't guess I see what the value of knowing the g/cm3 is.
- ohwp 13y ago
  "It's interesting and all" Well it's just that. Apple is promoting their size/weight ratio so I just wanted to know there progress. Nothing more nothing less ;)
  - jasonpbecker 13y ago
    No, they are not advertising the ratio. They are advertising reducing both. By your size/weight ratio, the original iPad would be the "ideal", but any one who has used any of these devices knows that's absurd. Density is far less important than the actual size and weight. High density is a demonstration that they've utilized all the available space (since the density of the components themselves are not changing) for components and need less room for heat. Alternatively, it could be a sign that the internal structure matters less than less and only the exterior components (aluminum and glass) are meaningfully different from one version to another. What makes the iPad Air attractive is not density, it's that there's less of it all around.
- smackfu 13y ago
  Density determines how heavy something feels.
ableal 13y ago

davidmr 13y ago

> It seemed like a foregone conclusion that the 10-inch tablet market was done for, with all interest and excitement shifting to smaller, but equally capable 7 or 8-inch tablets instead. Did I miss something? I've been happy with my 10" ipad for years and, especially with the 2048x1536 display, have never felt the need to go smaller. I know most of the android tablets are smaller, but I've been completely satisfied. I suppose I've never used the ipad mini, so it might be all that and a bag of chips. Is this really the trend? It wouldn't be the first to pass me by, but I'm still surprised.

mcculley 13y ago
I completely agree. I love my current iPad and don't want a smaller form factor for what I use it for (e.g., reading and small amounts of typing, Duolingo every morning). I already have a smaller form factor device that is wearable but painful to read or type on for bigger jobs (my phone) and a larger device with a full size keyboard for doing lots of typing and serious work (laptop). I welcome the iPad Air because it is the device I enjoy the most but faster and lighter.
jdietrich 13y ago
Going down to 7" has a drastic effect on portability. You can fit a Nexus 7 into a coat pocket and use it much more comfortably while standing, which is a really big deal for a large part of the market. A 7" tablet isn't much worse than a 10" when used on your sofa, but it is vastly better on a crowded train. I think that the 7" form factor is the sweet spot between a smartphone and a Macbook Air, and that 10" tablets are becoming a niche item.