Apple Reveal iPad Air 9.7 Inch Retina Display 64-Bit Tablet For $499

At Apple’s press event today the company unveiled its newest tablet addition – the iPad Air. The tablet that many people were expecting to be called the iPad 5 has been given a slightly revised name but is still a leaner and meaner tablet creation from Apple. The iPad Air has a 43% thinner bezel than the iPad 4 and a 20% thinner profile at just 7.5mm thick. The display is a 9.7 inch retina display with a 2048 x 1536 resolution. A 64-bit architecture A7 processor (identical to the one found in the iPhone 5S) powers the new tablet. According to Apple’s figures the iPad Air is 8X faster than the first generation iPad and has 72X faster graphics.

The iPad Air packs MIMO functionality for faster WiFi as well as 4G LTE support. There is a 5MP iSight camera capable of 1080p video capture and an improved front facing FaceTime camera. A dual microphone featured is added to improve audio call quality while Apple says 10 hours of battery life is to be expected. Apple have decided to not bother with the Touch ID fingerprint sensor that they added to the iPhone 5S – they did not disclose why they chose not to include this. The iPad Air ships on November 1st to several countries including the USA, the UK, China and Japan. Interestingly this is the first time China gets a new iPad on launch day. The iPad Air will be made available in Silver, White, Grey and Black.

Image and information courtesy of Engadget