IPad Air (3rd generation)

Last updated
iPad Air (3rd generation)
IPad Air logo 2019.svg
IPad Air 3 Mockup.png
Also known asiPad Air 3, iPad Air (10.5-inch)
Developer Apple Inc.
Manufacturer Apple Inc.
Product familyiPad Air
Type Tablet computer
Generation3rd
Release dateMarch 18, 2019
LifespanMarch 18, 2019 – September 15, 2020
Introductory price$499 USD
£479 GBP
$649 CAD
$779 AUD
€549 EUR
DiscontinuedSeptember 15, 2020
Operating system Original: iOS 12.2
Current: iPadOS 17.2, released December 11, 2023 [1]
System on a chip Apple A12 Bionic with 64-bit architecture and Apple M12 motion co-processor
CPU 2.49 GHz Hexa-core (2x high performance Vortex + 4x high efficiency Tempest)
Memory3 GB LPDDR4X RAM (LPDDR4X)
Storage64 or 256 GB flash memory
Display10.5 inches (270 mm) (2,224 x 1,668) px (264 ppi), 500-nits Max Brightness, Wide-Color Display (P3), True Tone Display, Fully Laminated Display, 1.8% Reflectivity and Apple Pencil (1st generation) support
GraphicsApple-Designed 4-Core
SoundStereo (both at bottom)
Input Multi-touch screen, headset controls, M12 motion co-processor, proximity and ambient light sensors, 3-axis accelerometer, 3-axis gyroscope, digital compass, dual microphone, Touch ID fingerprint reader, barometer
CameraFront: 7 MP, ƒ/2.2 aperture, burst mode, exposure control, face detection, auto-HDR, auto image stabilization, Retina flash, 1080p HD video recording Rear: 8 MP, ƒ/2.4 aperture, five-element lens, Hybrid IR filter, Live Photos, face detection, HDR, panorama, wide-color capture, timer mode, burst mode, 1080p HD 30fps video recording, video stabilization, slo-mo, time-lapse
Connectivity
Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + Cellular:
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac at 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz and MIMO

Bluetooth 5.0

Wi-Fi + Cellular:
GPS & GLONASS
GSM
UMTS / HSDPA
850, 1700, 1800, 1900 MHz
LTE
Multiple bands
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 29, 30, 34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 66, 71
Power30.2  W·h, up to 10 hours of battery life.
Online services App Store, iTunes Store, Apple Books, iCloud, Game Center
Dimensions250.6 mm (9.87 in) (h)
174.1 mm (6.85 in) (w)
6.1 mm (0.24 in) (d)
MassWi-Fi: 456 g (1.005 lb)
Wi-Fi + Cellular: 464 g (1.023 lb)
Predecessor iPad Air 2
Successor iPad Air (4th generation)
Related iPad Mini (5th generation)
iPad (7th generation)
Website https://www.apple.com/ipad-air/

The iPad Air (3rd generation) [2] (colloquially referred to as iPad Air 3) is a tablet computer developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. It was announced and released on March 18, 2019, alongside the 5th-generation iPad Mini.

Contents

The device was released five years after the previous iPad Air 2, as the iPad (5th generation) was released in 2017 as the successor to the iPad (4th generation) released in 2012. The entry-level iPad lineup continued starting iPad (6th generation) released in 2018, while the third generation iPad Air was positioned as an iPad Air lineup.

Its case design is identical to the iPad Pro 10.5 inch; internal hardware includes an upgraded Apple A12 Bionic SoC, a 10.5-inch Retina Display, 3GB of LPDDR4X memory, and support for Bluetooth 5.0 and Apple Pencil (first generation). [3]

It was discontinued on September 15, 2020, following the introduction of the iPad Air (4th generation). [4]

Features

Hardware

Available in three color options (including Silver, Space Gray and Gold), the gold color option of the third-generation iPad Air is now updated introduced with the iPhone 8.

It features an upgraded, 7MP front camera (used first in the iPhone 7 and up to the iPhone XS), compared to the 1.2MP camera found in the previous generation. However, it retains the same, older 8MP rear camera which cannot record in 4K video as such. [5]

It has a 2.49GHz six-core processor, the Apple A12 Bionic chip. That chip has a 66% faster clock speed than the 1.5GHz triple-core Apple A8X in the second-gen. It also has a True Tone display, which allows the LCD to adapt to ambient lighting to change its color and intensity in different environments, and P3 wide color gamut to allow the LCD shows more vibrant colors.

This iPad Air retains the Lightning port, keeps the headphone jack, and has a slightly larger battery of 30.2 watt-hours (up from 27.6 W·h), rated by Apple to provide the same "10 hours" of active use. [6] The third-generation iPad Air is the final model to include a home button, Lightning port and headphone jack; the fourth-generation iPad Air does not. It is also the final iPad Air model available with white bezels on the silver and gold models. The iPad Air (4th generation) is only available with black bezels on all color iPads.

Software

The third-generation iPad Air first shipped with iOS 12.2. In September 2019 it received an iPadOS 13 update. In September 2023, third-generation iPad Air was listed as one of the devices that can be updated to iPadOS 17.

Reception

The third-generation iPad Air received positive reviews. It was praised for its laminated screen, Smart Keyboard case capability, as well as a speedy SoC. However, it only supports the first-generation Apple Pencil, uses the 2017's 10.5-inch iPad Pro design and only has two speakers compared to four on the Pro models. [7] In addition, while the current Pro models provide some support for HDR, the Air 3 does not.

Hardware issues

Some devices of this model, which were manufactured between March 2019 and October 2019, have issues where the screen may flicker or flash before permanently dying. [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] As a result of this Apple released a recall program which allows users to send in their device for replacement up to two years from the date of purchase. [8]

Timeline

Timeline of iPad models
iPad Pro (6th generation)iPad Pro (5th generation)iPad Pro (4th generation)iPad Pro (3rd generation)iPad Pro (2nd generation)iPad Pro (1st generation)iPad Pro (6th generation)iPad Pro (5th generation)iPad Pro (4th generation)iPad Pro (3rd generation)iPad Pro (2nd generation)iPad Pro (1st generation)iPad Air (5th generation)iPad Air (4th generation)iPad Air (3rd generation)iPad Air 2iPad Mini (6th generation)iPad Mini (5th generation)iPad Mini 4iPad Mini 3iPad Mini 2iPad Mini (1st generation)iPad Air (1st generation)iPad (10th generation)iPad (4th generation)iPad (4th generation)iPad (3rd generation)iPad (9th generation)iPad (8th generation)iPad (7th generation)iPad (6th generation)iPad (5th generation)iPad 2iPad (1st generation)IPad Air (3rd generation)

Source: Apple Newsroom Archive. [13] Apple products use the convention 1 GB = one gigabyte (one billion bytes), meaning that 16, 32, 64 and 128 GB storage devices contain a total of 14.9, 29.8, 59.6 and 119.2 GiB, respectively. Formatting and apps take up some of this total storage, leaving 11.5, 27.5, 56.5 and 114 GiB available to the user. [14]

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References

  1. "About iPadOS 17 Updates". Apple Support. iPadOS 17.2.
  2. "iPad Air (3rd generation) - Technical Specifications". support.apple.com. Retrieved 2021-05-05.
  3. Joe Rossignol (March 18, 2019). "Apple Launches New 10.5-Inch iPad Air With A12 Bionic Chip and Apple Pencil Support, Starts at $499". MacRumors. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved May 29, 2021.
  4. "IPad Air 4 (2020) review". 7 June 2021.
  5. "iPad - Compare Models". Apple. Retrieved 2019-03-19.
  6. "iPad Air - Technical Specifications". Apple. Retrieved 2020-03-25.
  7. "iPad Air (2019) review". TechRadar. June 3, 2019. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
  8. 1 2 "iPad Air (3rd generation) Program for Blank Screen Issue - Apple Support". support.apple.com. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  9. Carman, Ashley (9 March 2020). "Apple will fix third-generation iPad Air screens that permanently go black". The Verge. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  10. March 2020, David Nield 08 (8 March 2020). "If your 3rd-gen iPad Air has a faulty screen, Apple might fix it for free". TechRadar. Retrieved 13 October 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. "If your 2019 iPad Air suddenly goes dark, Apple will fix it for free". Macworld. 9 March 2020. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  12. Siegal, Jacob (9 March 2020). "Apple offers free iPad Air 3 repairs to fix blank screen issue". BGR. Retrieved 13 October 2020.
  13. Apple Inc. (2010–2011). iPad News – Newsroom Archive. Retrieved June 7, 2018.
  14. https://www.macworld.co.uk/feature/ipad/whats-iphone-ipod-ipads-true-formatted-storage-capacity-3511773/ Macworld
Preceded by iPad Air (3rd generation)
2019
Succeeded by