Review: Apple iPad Air (M3, 13-inch)

It feels like it was just yesterday that Apple launched the M2-powered iPad Air. In fact, it's been 10 months, but that's still far too soon for a new version in my book. Yet here we are, with a new iPad Air—this time with an M3 chip. The tablet delivers a minor boost in performance compared to its predecessor, but it does come with features like ray tracing, mesh shading, and dynamic caching to power graphics-intensive tasks. This is a first for the iPad Air, making it the most affordable way into these advanced capabilities for those who need it—like creative professionals or gamers—who don't want to splurge on the iPad Pro.

But that's it as far as new features go for the seventh-generation iPad Air. Apple used the same chassis, so you'll have a choice between the 11-inch and 13-inch display sizes. While it's a perfectly fine tablet in terms of usability, Apple failed to address the major critiques from last year's model: its density, battery life, and lack of an OLED (or even mini LED) panel. All of these are factors that would've helped justify a next-generation iPad Air so soon.

Reuse and Recycle

In my review of the M2-powered iPad Air (8/10, WIRED Recommends), I described the design as stale compared to the redesigned iPad Pro (6/10 WIRED Review). Now, seeing Apple recycle the same chassis as last year's model, my feelings haven't changed. It's comical that the iPad Air is still a few grams heavier and almost a full milimeter thicker than the iPad Pro. The tablet feels lightweight and slim regardless, but it's not as impressively thin as its more expensive counterpart—especially when you add accessories to it. And, while Apple didn't take away color options this time (we lost the pink last year and the green before that), it didn't add any, either. You'll have a choice between blue, purple, starlight, and space gray.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

You also have a choice between an 11-inch display or a 13-inch display. Apple sent me the latter, which I prefer since the extra screen real estate makes it that much more comfortable to use as a secondary display and to watch TV. It's slightly brighter than the smaller model, with 2,732 x 2,048 resolution (264 ppi) and hits 600 nits of peak brightness in Standard Dynamic Range. It gets plenty bright for the most part, but you'll have to increase it to full brightness in direct sunlight. I had to do this while watching an episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians in front of my bedroom window. Otherwise, I typically keep it at a little under 50 percent brightness.

As with last year's tablet, I continue to question why Apple didn't nix the LCD panel and replace it with mini LED (as seen on the iPad Pro from 2021 and 2022), at least on the larger model. This feels like a no-brainer for multiple reasons in addition to the fact that it would allow for an even brighter screen).

For starters, it goes hand in hand with the M3 chip's graphics architecture. This iPad will attract a lot more creatives who are in the market for a powerful tablet (and a large screen). To fully leverage the processor, it's intended to be used with apps like Adobe Photoshop or Final Cut Pro—where editing content requires a certain attention to color accuracy.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

It's a solid contender for gamers too, who would likely prefer the vibrancy and higher refresh rate that would come with a mini LED panel. Plus, as I pointed out in last year's review too, it would also finally measure up to other high-end tablets on the market that come equipped with an OLED screen and a 120-Hz refresh rate (the iPad Air has a 60-Hz refresh rate) and help justify the extra $200 cost over the 11-inch model.

As Reliable As Ever

Now, let's dive into that M3 chip. It's not the most recent chip in the M-series lineup—Apple introduced it back in 2023. It powers the MacBook Pro (14-inch, 2023), 24-inch iMac (2023), and last year's MacBook Air (13-inch and 15-inch). Since then, Apple has released the M4 chip, which is found in the latest version of the iPad Pro. But considering the frequency at which Apple releases new chipsets, the M3 still qualifies as a fairly new and powerful one, despite being entry-level.

It has an 8-core CPU and 9-core GPU, which is the same as the M2 chip. However, the M3 is built on a 3-nanometer process (instead of a 5-nanometer process), which not only enhances the chip's speed and efficiency but also allows for features like ray tracing, mesh shading, and dynamic caching.

With dynamic caching, the processor will allocate memory for each task dynamically to dial it up or down as needed, allowing for a more efficient use of resources. Ray tracing and mesh shading, on the other hand, are used for graphics-intensive apps and games. For example, ray tracing can allow game developers to accurately illustrate lighting elements like shadows and reflections; mesh shading helps scenes within games to appear smoother, without skips.

As great as this sound, you probably won't notice much of a difference compared to last year's model in terms of basic usage. As far as stats go, Apple claims CPU performance is up to 35 percent faster than the iPad Air with M1 (8/10, WIRED Recommends), with graphics that are 40 percent faster.

I still have both the M1 and M2 versions and honestly, it was tough to spot a distinction in performance between all three. The M3 felt a bit snappier than the M1, but you'll likely only see a noticeable change if you're coming from an older A-series chip.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

As far the M3 specifically, you can be rest assured that performance feels speedy and swift. Throughout the workday, I always have at least 10 tabs open across multiple Chrome windows and additional apps like iMessage, Slack, YouTube, Spotify, Gmail, and Telegram open. I never felt like the iPad Air struggled to handle any of it.

I mainly used the tablet to get work done using the updated Magic Keyboard Case. Apple gave it a similar treatment as the latest version for the iPad Pro. You won’t get the aluminum palm rest, but it does come with a larger built-in trackpad and a row of function keys for screen brightness, volume control, Do Not Disturb, and more. It’s slightly more affordable now, too—the 13-inch version now costs $319, which is $30 less than the original version (it's compatible with the first-gen case too, if you already own it). If you need them, the iPad Air packs support for the Apple Pencil Pro and Apple Pencil (USB-C) as well.

The new keyboard case delivers a solid experience, especially for getting work done. But I prefer third-party keyboard cases like the Logitech Combo Touch Keyboard Case ($230). It's not as expensive, but it also comes with a detachable keyboard and kickstand, which is a lot better if you're planning to use your iPad for work and to watch TV. It's also not as top heavy, so it's easier to place on your lap.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

However, using the iPad Air to get work done continues to be a struggle with iPadOS—a complaint I have with every iPad review. It continues to feel unintuitive for my workflow. If not for Stage Manager, which allows me to group multiple apps (instead of using the dreaded split screen mode), I wouldn't have had the patience to type up the majority of this review on the iPad Air—I feel like I'm moving at a glacial pace compared to when I'm using my MacBook Air. But while it may not play nicely with Condé Nast’s proprietary content management system, the Air will do a relatively good job with tasks like word processing, answering emails, taking Zoom calls, and photo or video editing.

It's worth noting that the iPad Air comes with support for Apple Intelligence, which is available with iPadOS 18.1 and newer (as do all M-series iPad models, along with the iPad Mini with the A17 Pro). It doesn't transform the experience exponentially, but it's nice to have access to artificial intelligence features that I've already been using on my iPhone and Mac—like the Clean Up Tool (which erases objects from the background in Apple Photos), Message Summaries (which summarizes the main points in texts), and Writing Tools (which can proofread your copy or change the tone of sentences) for emails, on the tablet.

Photograph: Brenda Stolyar

Battery life remains the same as previous versions. Apple claims up to 10 hours of browsing the web on Wi‐Fi or watching video (on both sizes). While using it to stream some episodes of my favorite shows in the background during the day, I reached seven hours before the iPad Air hit 14 percent. So it should get you through a full workday when it comes to basic tasks. But with the ability to now edit more heavy-duty content and play more graphics-intensive games, thanks to the M3, it would've made sense for Apple to increase the battery life by a few hours—especially on the larger model.

Depends What You’re Looking For

If you do want the iPad Air solely for the M3's advanced graphics capabilities and the versatility that comes with a tablet, this is the most affordable way, as far as Apple's iPad lineup goes. It starts from $599 for the base 11-inch model, and $749 for the 13-inch model tested here. Your only other option would be the iPad Pro with M4, which starts at $1,299 for the base 13-inch model—but you can find it on sale for as low as $1,099 at third-party retailers.

However, before adding the tablet to your cart, it's important to break down all of the options, particularly if you want to use it for work. The priciest iPad Air configuration (13-inch, 1 TB of storage, and 5G connectivity) paired with the Magic Keyboard Case and Apple Pencil Pro will cost you $1,897. You can get a new M4-powered MacBook Air with 1 TB of storage for $1,799—which packs the latest entry-level chip with all the same support for ray tracing, mesh shading, and dynamic caching as well.

If you don't need the graphics boost and are simply looking to upgrade from an older iPad Air, or maybe want to buy your first, the M2-powered iPad Air is still a great choice—especially if it's on sale (the 1 TB model is currently on sale at Walmart for $899). You'll get the majority of the same features as with the M3 version, including support for Apple Intelligence. If you're still set on the M3, you should try and wait until you can get the iPad Air at a discount. It delivers a great experience, but it doesn't bring anything vital to the table that warrants paying full price.

If anything, it's reminiscent of when Apple launched the 13-inch MacBook Air with M2 back in 2022, and the internet joked Apple had used leftover MacBook Pro models from 2020. The following year, the company debuted an all-new, fully redesigned version. It feels like we're on the precipice of an even thinner, faster, and better model. Perhaps Apple just had to clear out all the older iPad Air models it had lying around first.