The iPad Air (2020) is an iPad Pro with some of the more niche features removed –and that's exactly why I bought mine as a replacement for my years-old iPad Pro. The Pro was the better tablet but the Air was the better buy, and I haven't regretted buying the more affordable tablet because the Air is so good.
But two years is a long time in tech, and my Air is now less powerful than the iPad mini 6. So I'm excited to see reports that the iPad Air is getting an earlier-than-expected upgrade in time for Apple's Spring event.
The iPad Air (2022): Faster. Smarter. More focused.
According to MacRumors, the fifth-generation iPad will get the same A15 Bionic chip as the current iPad mini as well as a 12-megapixel front camera, quad-LED True Tone flash, 5G in the Wi-Fi+Cellular models and Center Stage support so the camera can keep you in focus as you move around. There aren't expected to be any significant changes to the design – the iPad Air (2020) already dropped Lightning for USB-C – but as with the iPhone 13 there may be some new colour options.
I don't think I'll upgrade this time around, and that's testament to how good the iPad Air already is: the performance of mine is already brilliant, and I don't use video calling enough to get excited about Center Stage. But if you're in the market for an iPad Pro and don't have iPad Pro money, I think you'll be quite delighted with the 2022 iPad Air: it'll make one of the very best tablets even better.
