"Thinner, lighter, and more
powerful" iPad Air features 9.7-inch Retina display"; new $400 iPad
Mini with Retina display also announced; both launching November 1.
Today during a news event in San Francisco, Apple unveiled the its
fifth-generation iPad, the iPad Air, described as "thinner, lighter, and
more powerful" than any Apple tablet before it.
The iPad Air features a 9.7-inch Retina display and is 7.5mm thick. The
iPad Air weighs 1lb, down from 1.4 lbs from the previous model. This
makes the iPad Air the lightest full-size tablet in the world, Apple
said.
The iPad Air is powered by Apple's A7 chip, which also runs the iPhone
5s. It features a 5mp camera, as well as dual microphones and Siri. It
does not feature the thumbprint scanner featured on the new iPhones.
The 16GB iPad Air will ship on November 1 for $500 in silver and white
color configurations. A cellular model will be available for $629.
Also during the event, Apple announced an all-new iPad Mini, dubbed the
iPad Mini with Retina Display. It will feature a 2,048x1,536 Retina
Display and the new A7 chip. The tablet will be available also on
November 1, starting at $400 for a 16GB model.
The iPad 2 will remain on the market for $400, the same price as a new iPad Mini.
Apple also announced today that lifetime iPad sales have reached 170
million. The company added that its tablet marketshare is 81 percent.