Review: Apple iPad Air (M2, 13-Inch)

I used to think the iPad wasn’t for me. For the longest time, I couldn’t justify spending hundreds of dollars on a tablet for entertainment. I don't draw or sketch, and I don't use fancy editing software for photos or videos. I prefer traditional pen and paper, and I already use a Kindle to read books. I knew if I bought an iPad, it would inevitably end up in a drawer collecting dust.

That outlook changed when the TV in my room broke. As someone with ADHD, I constantly need background noise to stay focused. This wasn't an issue when I worked in an office, pre-pandemic—the open floor plan made for a noisy environment that stimulated me throughout the day. When I started working from home, alone in my room, I filled the quiet space with podcasts. Once that was no longer stimulating enough, I moved on to playing my comfort shows and movies on the TV. When the big screen broke, I reluctantly pulled out the 5th-gen iPad Air I had in a drawer thinking it'd be a temporary solution.

But over the past year, I've grown attached to it. It's larger than my iPhone and more convenient to carry around than my MacBook. (The smaller footprint also makes it easier to place anywhere.) When it's not at my desk while I'm working, I use it in the kitchen while cooking dinner or washing the dishes, in the bathroom while doing my hair and makeup, and in my bedroom while folding laundry. It's also an excellent travel companion while flying or taking the train.

So when Apple announced new iPads and noted that the iPad Air now comes with a larger, 13-inch display option (alongside the standard 11-inch model), I was ecstatic. A bigger screen means more expansive movies and a bigger workspace. It's otherwise an incremental update—the only other noteworthy change is the M2 chip for faster performance—but the new screen size on Apple's midrange tablet means you no longer have to pick between a small display within budget or shell out for an expensive iPad Pro.

Updated June 4, 2024: An earlier version of this review stated the M2 powering the iPad Air had a 10-core GPU and that it was three times faster than the A12 Bionic chip. The company has since updated its site, stating it has a 9-core GPU and that it's faster than the A14 Bionic chip. We've updated this article to reflect this.

Bigger and a Bit Brighter

The new iPad Air feels stale in its design—especially following the redesigned iPad Pro, with its razor-thin and lightweight chassis. Ironically, this tablet is a few grams heavier and a full millimeter thicker than the Pro—there's not much meaning to the word “Air” anymore in Apple's lineup. It doesn't help that the color options continue to dwindle. In 2022, Apple removed the green iPad Air, and now we've lost the pink. You're left with purple, blue, starlight, and space gray.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

The only aesthetic change on the iPad Air is the front-facing camera placement. As with the 10th-gen base iPad and M4-powered iPad Pro, Apple moved the 12-megapixel sensor to the center in landscape orientation. It's far more natural for video calls, because you don't have to awkwardly stare at the side of the tablet to make eye contact. There's still Center Stage support, which pans and zooms to ensure your face is always in the frame while on video calls.

The major upgrade with this tablet is the bigger display. The 13-inch LCD screen is slightly brighter than its predecessor and 11-inch counterpart, with a 2,732 x 2,048-pixel resolution and the ability to hit 600 nits of peak brightness in Standard Dynamic Range (which is the same amount as the previous iPad Pro with M2).

This display does get bright for the most part. When I wasn't working, I usually kept the brightness at about 20 to 30 percent—especially while watching TV before going to sleep. Since my desk is near the edge of a window, I usually keep it at 50 percent or slightly above that on sunnier days. But it struggles under direct sunlight. I realized this on a recent trip to Seattle. I was sitting on my bed in my hotel room catching up on an episode of Vanderpump Rules and, as the light was shining fully through the window, I had to crank the brightness up to see the content comfortably.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

In these moments, I wish Apple would’ve swapped the Liquid Retina panel for a mini-LED panel from the previous iPad Pro generation. The backlighting technology would allow for a brighter screen. And, when coupled with the deeper, and crisper tones, it'd make for a far better viewing experience overall. I'd like to remind you that this is a $800 tablet with an LCD screen and 60-Hz refresh rate—most other high-end tablets feature OLED with 120-Hz screens. An upgraded screen technology would help justify the extra $200 on the 13-inch iPad Air over the smaller size.

Regardless, it's still far more enjoyable to use than the 10.9-inch screen I relied on every day. The 13-inch size is more convenient as a secondary display alongside my MacBook. Between browser windows, tabs, and apps, I didn't feel like I was cramming stuff onto the screen. The same applies to entertainment—if I'm bingeing a show, I carry the iPad all over the house to keep watching. I never got tired of staring at this screen.

Reliable and Versatile

Powering the iPad Air is the M2 chip (the same silicon featured in the MacBook Air from 2022), which packs an 8-core CPU and a 9-core GPU (it's worth noting Apple originally announced it had a 10-core GPU but has since updated its site). The chip is two years old, but Apple claims it's nearly 50 percent faster than the M1 and three times faster than the iPad Air with the A14 Bionic chip. Apple also doubled the base storage option from 64 gigabytes to 128 gigabytes.

Coming from the M1 iPad Air, I didn’t notice much of a difference in performance. If you’re coming from an older A-series chip, it’ll likely be easier to pick up on. Regardless, the M2 felt quick and smooth. On a typical workday, I’d have about 10 to 15 tabs open across several windows (on both Chrome and Safari), not to mention additional apps like Gmail, iMessage, Slack, Telegram, YouTube, and Zoom running simultaneously. The iPad Air never once felt sluggish.

Battery life remains the same, despite the bigger size. Apple claims 10 hours of web browsing or watching video on Wi-Fi. I never hit the claimed amount, but battery life varied depending on how I used it. On a busy workday—using Chrome, Safari, Slack, and Zoom (for two back-to-back video calls)—I hit 5 percent after about six hours. On a random Sunday night after binge-watching Broad City, I was at 82 percent after three and a half hours. Either way, it shouldn't give you trouble.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

The iPad Air is also compatible with accessories like the new Apple Pencil Pro ($129) and Apple Pencil USB-C ($79). It's sadly not backward-compatible with the second-generation Pencil. I didn't use the Pro stylus for much other than note-taking here and there, but I appreciate the new “squeeze” feature, which triggers the tool palette when you squeeze the lower half of the stylus. It's more natural than double tap (which is included with the Pencil Pro too). I don't recommend the USB-C model though. It's hard to justify the lack of features for the price.

And, while the iPad Air works with the new Apple Pencil Pro, it's not compatible with the new Magic Keyboard case—which has a row of function keys and a larger trackpad. It only works with the original Magic Keyboard case ($349) instead. I didn't think I'd notice a difference, but using the original version reminded me how frustratingly small the trackpad is and how convenient it is to be able to adjust the brightness and volume by pushing a button.

Apple's keyboard case isn't worth the high price anyway. You're better off buying third-party accessories (from companies like Logitech or Zagg) which make similar, more affordable options. I do like the Smart Folio ($99) though, which made it easy to prop the tablet up on surfaces so I could watch TV while doing chores around the house.

While adding a keyboard and trackpad to the iPad Air makes it more like a laptop, iPadOS is still unintuitive for my workflow. I wrote most of this review on the iPad Air, but couldn't wait for it to reach low battery so I could switch back to my 15-inch MacBook Air. Apple's Stage Manager makes it slightly more bearable since it allows me to have group apps and adjust windows, rather than use split screen mode. However, it's not conducive to my day-to-day tasks, like working in Condé Nast’s custom content management system. It's perfectly great for basic things like word processing, answering emails, taking video calls, and light photo or video editing.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

It's important to weigh your options depending on your budget. The most expensive iPad Air configuration (13-inch, 1 TB of storage, and 5G connectivity) with accessories like the Magic Keyboard Case and Apple Pencil Pro comes out to $1,927. You can get an M2-powered MacBook Air with 1 TB of storage for $1,799. It's only about $130 less, but the latter is a full-blown computer with macOS. Please don't feel the need to upgrade if you have an M1-powered iPad Air.

If you're looking to buy your first iPad or want to upgrade from a much older model, I'd first suggest you hunt for the 5th-gen iPad Air. It's two years old but not much different from the latest version, and you can probably find it on sale. Since the M2-powered 11-inch model starts at $599, I suggest waiting until the base model's price is down to $450 or less.

As someone who watches probably too much TV and is constantly working on the go, I'd buy the 13-inch iPad Air with M2 solely for its larger display. It's a great option for students or content creators who don't need to harness the power of the iPad Pro but want a bigger screen. The only thing that would make this tablet better is if the Air continued to live up to its name as the lightest iPad of them all. Hopefully, Apple is saving that for the next generation.