Everything You Should Know About The New iPad Air (2020)
The new iPad Air is here and its considerably cheap but still manages to beat their own iPad Pro in several ways. Today we are going to talk about some pros and cons of the iPad Air and several accessories we thought you might like to use with.
The latest iPad Air only costs 599$ which is amazingly 200$ less than the iPad Pro which currently costs about 799$. Even it is cheap, they added some pretty admirable features and have removed some features that was included in the Apple iPad Pro. You will be perfectly able to choose between those two items after reading this quick review and comparison.
Body and Display
iPad Air only comes in 10.9” size and with an impressive Liquid Retina display (2360×1640). So if you had the same sized iPad Pro with a Magic keyboard case, this will fit into it just fine because the dimensions are the same. That same detail can be considered as a limitation too because iPad Pro has a 13-inch version and this doesn’t. The retina display is coated with an oleophobic material to prevent attracting fingerprints.
The Touch ID is back with a side mounted fingerprint scanner (no Face ID this time but there is a 7MP selfie camera). It is quite fast to use the Touch ID to unlock your iPad Air than tapping on the screen and using Face ID. Other than that, you can also use the Touch ID to unlock secured apps in your iPad.
A USB-C port comes as the charging port. Ironically, Apple somehow decided to include a 20W Power Adapter in the box (what happened to their eco-friendly policy).
The next debatable thing is about the colours. iPad Air doesn’t come with any kind of bold colours. It only comes in Silver, Space Gray, Rose Gold, Green, Sky Blue. It may not be a problem for you at all but there are some people who are fond of buying items in a specific colour.
Refresh rate is another downgrade in the iPad Air. iPad Pro has a 120hz refresh rate and in iPad Air it is downgraded to 60hz. It is no issue until you see the difference of those two (if you are used to a 10hz display) and a 60hz display doesn’t drain as much as a 120hz display does.
Camera
iPad Air includes a single 12MP Wide camera (similar to the Google Pixel) and doesn’t support ultra wide or LiDAR Technology and there is no flash. Keep in mind that an iPad is for mostly business purposes and not meant for mobile photography so the lack of those two things I just mentioned is not something you should worry about (and remember this is 200$ cheap).
Performance
Despite having only 4GB of RAM, performance of the iPad Air is quite similar to the iPad Pro (which has a 6GB of RAM). Probably lowering the refresh rates caused this stability in performance with a less RAM. Apple used their latest A14 Bionic chip as the core of the iPad Air. Latest technology always provides better performance.
So these are the specifications and some pros and cons of iPad Air. I compared it with the iPad Pro to give you a better understanding conclusion. In my own opinion, buying an iPad Air is much better and economically logical than buying an iPad Pro. You can save the rest of the money to buy those much needed accessories I’m going to show you about.
Accessories for iPad Air (2020)
Keyboards and Mouse
Keyboard is an essential device if you are using your iPad on a desk. It is much easier to type with a physical keyboard than using the touch keyboard. Let’s take a look at several keyboards for iPad Air.
Arteck Bluetooth Keyboard
This is a keyboard made for every Bluetooth supported devices. I decided to put this in here because it is the cheapest keyboard to use with an iPad. There some keyboard cases which are costs way more than this. The disadvantage of using a keyboard like this are you can’t carry it easily with iPad and you will have to use an iPad stand to hold the iPad. Other keyboard cases are perfectly portable just because they are cases.
Check Arteck Bluetooth Keyboard from here
Magic Keyboard
If you already have a Magic Keyboard that you used to work with your iPad Pro you don’t have to buy another one again because it will work perfectly with your iPad Air too. The amazing thing is you can charge your iPad using the Magic Keyboard. You can connect the charger to the keyboard while the iPad is mounted. Since this holds the iPad magnetically you can adjust the perfect angle for better viewing. Unfortunately, this costs way more than a normal Bluetooth keyboard, almost half the price of the iPad Air (300$).
Smart Folio Keyboard
This is a somewhat downgraded version of the Magic Keyboard. This doesn’t have a track pad ( so you have to use a mouse) and the charging function but it is super thin. Most importatntly this costs only 100$ (which is still overpriced like a lot of Apple products)
Logitech M355 Portable Wireless Mouse
If you are going to buy a Bluetooth keyboard or a Folio keyboard you must buy an external mouse to use because only the Magic Keyboard has the track pad. This Logitech mouse is the perfect thing to buy. It is super cute and small, definitely portable even in your pocket. This mouse is powered with an AA battery that will hold it power up to 18-months (depends on the usage).
Multiport Adapters (Dongles)
The iPad Air has only one USB-C Port which is absolutely not enough for you. You can’t transfer data while the iPad is being charged (or vice versa). There may be some solutions for this problem right here.
Stouchi 6 in 1 iPad Dongle Adapter
This thing is just amazing simply because the way it attaches itself to the iPad. It actually looks like a part of the iPad. You will have the ability to use a 4K HDMI, USB 3.0 port, 3.5mm headphone jack, 60W Type-C charging port and a memory card reader (that’s so much right?). Unfortunately, you can’t attach it to the iPad if you are using a case or a keyboard. So you must use a stand or you have to let the adapter hang out without attaching it.
Falwedi 6 in 1 Adapter
This is a normal adapter which just hangs out when it is connected to the iPad. This adapter too allows you to use USB Type-C port, 4K HDMI port (30Hz), x3 USB 3.0 ports, SD card reader and a TF card reader. This does not have a 3.5 mm audio port.
Charging and Battery
I already recommended several power adapters and power banks from the previous article about iPhone 12. So I’m not going to go through a lot here, just recommending another suitable item for use. It is always good to have a backup battery and a charger.
Anker PowerCore 10000 PD Redux
This is a 10000 mAh charger that will be able to completely charge your iPad Air for at least two times. It has both USB-A and USB Type-C port. The type-c port is also for charging the power bank (the cable is not included). There is a LED indicator on the top of this to show the battery status. It is quite small when comparing to the other portable chargers, might be a good choice for you.
RAVPower 65W 2-Port PD Charger
If you are going to buy a portable charger, you should buy this too. It has two ports (literally the name says) that can be used to charge both iPad and the portable charger at the same time. The prongs are foldable which makes this quite easy to carry around.
Storage
The storage in the iPad Air cannot be extended. You have to buy an external hard drive if you are willing to use some extra storage.
Samsung T7 Touch Portable SSD
This is actually a very fast and a very small one. It looks like a bunch of credit cards bound together. Really cool thing about this Portable SSD is it has a fingerprint unlock facility to verify the security of your data. And there is a LED indicator to show the status of the SSD. This is a really good storage option if you are considering about the security and speed. This comes in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB versions.
Apple Pencil
If you are an artist or a graphic designer, Apple Pencil is the most important thing you should own. Even if you are not an artist, it is really helpful to use this kind of pencil to because it keeps you away from using the touch keyboard. This Apple Pencil will stick to your iPad magnetically and charge itself while attached which is really convenience.
BAGSMART Carry Case
Carry case is an extremely helpful item when you are using lots of accessories with your iPad. This case includes 2 large elastic loops and 4 small ones. A mesh pocket for carry SSD, Portable charger or something like that. Actually this bags helps you to carry almost every item I just mentioned above (no the keyboard). Cables, SSDs, Power Banks, Chargers, Pencil and even the Mouse will have enough room in this BAGSMART carry case.
Now I think I have completely described almost everything about the iPad Air and its accessories. It is up to you for decide between these items wisely and choosing what’s best for you.
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