Alongside the unveiling of the Apple Watch Series 6 and iPad Air 2020 during the online Apple Event earlier comes the new 8th generation iPad. The company touts this new entry to be the most advanced of the series, featuring a huge jump in performance among other things.
The new iPad unfortunately skipped the new look introduced by the Pro series, which also found its way on to the 2020 iPad Air. Instead, the 8th gen sports 10.2-inch Retina display and a similar design to its predecessors, save for some minor and updated bits.
Under its hood is the A12 Bionic chip, which Apple claims to over 40-percent faster CPU performance and graphics capability. Paired with the processor is the company’s Neural Engine for advanced machine learning capabilities such as enhanced photo editing, motion tracking in augmented reality (AR) apps, and Siri performance. The new Apple tablet comes with storage of up to 128GB, and is offered in a choice of WiFi only or WiFi + Cellular.
As you might expect, 8th gen iPad will include full support with compatible Magic Keyboards, as well as the first gen Pencil accessory. Like most of the other recently introduced mobile devices by Apple, it will also run on the new iPadOS 14 system out of the box and offers new features and apps.
Other than that, the new iPad comes with 8MP sensors for its front and rear cameras. Apple did not provide specifics for its battery, but claims that the device will have a 10-hour battery life. In case you’re wondering, it will still be using a Lightning port for charging and wired data transfer. Also included in the box is a 20W USB-C power adapter and USB-C to Lightning cable.
The brand new 8th gen Apple iPad will be available on 18 September in the US, while its availability in Malaysia has yet to be confirmed. According to the brand’s local website, the 32GB model will retail at RM1,499 for WiFi only, and RM1,999 for WiFi + Cellular. Similarly, the 128GB model is priced at RM1,849 and RM2,399 respectively. The new iPad will be available in three colours: Space Gray, Silver, and Gold.
(Source: Apple [News room] [Malaysian website])
