The Digester

Apple unveils iPad Air with M4 chip, Wi‑Fi 7 and 12GB unified memory

Mar 2nd 2026

Apple’s refreshed iPad Air pairs the M4 chip and 12GB unified memory with new N1 and C1X connectivity, iPadOS 26 features and the same starting price, with preorders opening March 4 and shipments beginning March 11.

  • M4 delivers up to 30% faster CPU and GPU performance than the M3 iPad Air and up to 2.3x faster than the M1 model.
  • Unified memory increases to 12GB with 120GB/s memory bandwidth, 50% more memory than the previous generation.
  • The 16-core Neural Engine is three times faster than M1 and is aimed at speeding on-device AI tasks like transcription and video scene removal.
  • New N1 wireless chip adds Wi‑Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and Thread while the C1X modem promises up to 50% faster cellular data and up to 30% less modem energy versus M3.
  • iPadOS 26 introduces a new windowing system, a menu bar, Files and Preview upgrades and broader Apple Intelligence features.
  • The 11-inch starts at $599 and the 13-inch at $799, with 128GB to 1TB options, preorders begin March 4 and deliveries start March 11.

Sources

apple.com