Shop E Store Apple skipped updates to its cheapest iPad this year (and last year as well), leaving it with an A14 chipset that’s more than four years old. They lowered the price from $449 to $349 earlier this year, but we should finally see a real makeover next spring. Here’s what you can expect:
apple intelligence
The next generation of entry-level iPads will likely support Apple Intelligence, but it’s unclear which chipset will be used. Given the fact that the first generation 3nm process is more expensive, it will likely be an A18 chip. Apple is probably only using the A17 Pro chip in the new iPad mini because there was a readily available binned chip left over from the iPhone 15 Pro manufacturing process.
That means you’ll get features like Notification Overview, Image Playground, Genmoji, all-new Siri, ChatGPT, and more on the new iPad. If it launches next spring, Apple should have released all Apple Intelligence features by then.
Improved connectivity
iPad 11 may support new connectivity standards such as Wi-Fi 6E (or Wi-Fi 7) and Bluetooth 5.3. This is a step up from the current entry-level iPad’s Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2, which enables things like lower latency.
According to Apple, Apple’s first 5G modem could debut with the cellular version of the iPad 11. bloomberg:
The first modems will also arrive on lower-end iPads next year, and the 2026 update will also come to Pro versions of the iPhone and iPad.
new magic keyboard
Apple is also working on a new lower-end Magic Keyboard for the iPad, which could be supported on the iPad 11. This will likely be a more traditional keyboard design rather than the folio style that the iPad 10 currently uses.
release date
Apple does indeed plan to release the iPad 11 next spring, alongside the iPhone SE, iPad Air, and others, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Garman.
Starting in 2022, it will have almost the same design as the current version, but will be faster. This model is scheduled to be released in the spring at the same time as the new iPhone SE and iPad Air.
Assuming nothing changes, it will be 2.5 years before Apple’s lowest-end iPad is finally refreshed.
Are you excited about the upcoming entry-level iPad? Let us know in the comments.
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