At its ongoing event in the US, Apple has just announced the new iPad Air 2 – the world’s thinnest tablet. Featuring a chassis that’s just 6.1mm thick, the new iPad Air 2 is an amazing feat of engineering, powered by a second-generation 64-bit A8X processor.
Apple’s iPad Air 2 launch began with a serious question: how do you make the world’s best tablet even better? With the iPad Air 2, it was pretty straightforward: make it more powerful, and make it thinner. The latest iPad Air features a more powerful processor with the new A8X SoC, yet is the thinnest tablet ever made with a chassis that measures just 6.1mm. Apple made that point all the more clear by stating that two iPad Air 2s were thinner than one original iPad.
The A8X processor is an improved version of that found in the new iPhone 6. Apple states that it is a “second-generation” 64-bit processor, and runs a little faster than the A8 chipset. In addition, the iPad Air 2 also packs the M8 co-processor as well, collecting data such as footsteps taken to plug into HealthKit. On top of that, Apple is also claiming up to 10-hour battery life.
On the other hand, the 9.7-inch display has also been improved, featuring even more technologies from previous iPads. Despite having the same resolution with the original iPad Air, the display now has no air gaps between the LCD, touch sensor and glass. There’s an anti-reflective coating on top of the display, too, reducing glare by 56%. Touch ID also makes an appearance on the new iPad Air 2. Incorporating the standard security options provided by the fingerprint sensor, Touch ID for the new iPad will also support Apple Pay, allowing you to make in-app purchases and even payments in stores – though the latter option does seem odd.
The iPad Air 2 will also feature a new 8MP f/2.4 iSight camera, which supports features such as 1080p and slow motion video recording, panoramas, burst mode and even time lapse mode. Even the front sensor has been updated, with an f/2.2 sensor.
Apple’s latest iPad Air 2 will be available in three colours (Silver, Gray and Gold), and they’ll all be available on pre-order from today (October 17), and will ship next week. And as usual, there will be WiFi-only and WiFi+Cellular models, with the retail price of each storage option listed below:
(Source: The Verge)
(Featured Image: Engadget)
