The iPad Air line of devices is known as Apple’s thinner lineup of tablet computers. This is a comparison of the iPad Air 5 vs the iPad Air 4 to help you decide which one to buy.
Release Dates
iPad Air 4 – October 2020
iPad Air 5 – March 2022
Colors Options
iPad Air 4: Space Gray; Silver; Rose Gold; Sky Blue; Green
iPad Air 5: Space Gray; Starlight; Pink; Purple; Blue
Display
The displays on the iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 are the same. Both have a 10.9-inch LED backlit Multi-Touch display with IPS technology. The resolution on the devices are 2360‑by‑1640 resolution at 264 ppi. And the SDR brightness on both devices are 500 nits max (typical).
Plus the displays on both devices have a wide color display (P3) and True Tone features.
Chipset
The iPad Air 5 has a faster chipset than the iPad Air 4. Specifically, the iPad Air 4 has an A14 Bionic chip with a Neural Engine whereas the iPad Air 5 has the newer M1 chip with a next-generation Neural Engine.
Storage
Both devices have storage options of up to 256GB. And both devices have 64GB and 256GB options.
Camera
On the rear of both the iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 is the same 12-megapixel Wide camera. But on the front, the iPad Air 5 has a 12-megapixel Ultra Wide camera whereas the iPad Air 4 has a 7-megapixel FaceTime HD camera. The rear camera on both devices have a ƒ/1.8 aperture, digital zoom up to 5x, and Smart HDR 3 for photos.
In terms of video, the cameras on both devices have 4K video recording at 24 fps, 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps; 1080p HD video recording at 25 fps, 30 fps, or 60 fps; 3x video zoom; Slo-mo video support for 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps; and time-lapse video with stabilization. The iPad Air 5 has extended dynamic range for video up to 30 fps.
Ports
Both the iPad Air 4 and the iPad Air 5 have a USB-C connector.
Connectivity
The iPad Air 4 supports 4G LTE cellular connectivity. However, the iPad Air 5 has a newer 5G Superfast connectivity feature.
And the iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 both have Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11a/b/g/n/ ac/ax), 2.4GHz and 5GHz, simultaneous dual band, and speeds up to 1.2 Gbps. Plus both devices have Bluetooth 5.0 technology integrated. The Wi-Fi + Cellular model has 5G (sub-6 GHz) and Gigabit LTE (up to 32 bands) whereas the iPad Air 4 has Gigabit LTE (up to 30 bands).
Compatibility
The iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 both work with the Apple Pencil (2nd generation); Magic Keyboard; and Smart Keyboard Folio.
Size/Weight
The size of the iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 are the same, but the weight is slightly different. These are the size specifications of both devices:
Height: 9.74 inches
Width: 7.02 inches
Depth: 0.24 inch
The iPad Air 4 weighs slightly less at 1 pound for the Wi-Fi only version and the 1.01 pounds for the Wi-Fi + Cellular model. And the iPad Air 5 weighs 1.02 pounds for the Wi-Fi only version and 1.02 pounds for the Wi-Fi + Cellular model.
Battery Life
The battery life on the iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 are the same at up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi-Fi or watching video and up to 9 hours of surfing the web using a cellular data network.
Audio
Both the iPad Air 4 and the iPad Air 5 have a two speaker audio landscape mode.
Security
Both the iPad Air 4 and the iPad Air 5 have the Touch ID fingerprint sensor for unlocking the device and paying for items.
SIM Cards
The iPad Air 4 and iPad Air 5 both have Nano-SIM (supports Apple SIM) and eSIM.
Want To Buy The iPad Air 5 Or iPad Air 4? Here are some options:
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