Apple Announces Fourth-Generation iPad with Lightning Connector, New A6X Chip - MacRumorsOpen MenuShow RoundupsShow Forums menuVisit ForumsOpen Sidebar
Skip to Content

Apple Announces Fourth-Generation iPad with Lightning Connector, New A6X Chip

Apple today announced an update to its full-size iPad, upgrading its processor with a faster A6X chip and implementing the new Lightning connector that debuted with the iPhone 5. The new processor delivers up to two times the CPU and graphics performance of the prior chip, while maintaining 10 hours of battery life and the same design as the prior iPad.

Ipad4
The new iPad now supports many new international LTE carriers, as well.

The fourth-generation iPad comes in black and white with the same pricing and storage configurations as the third-generation iPad models, starting at $499 for the 16 GB Wi-Fi models and $629 for the 16 GB cellular models.

Pre-orders for the new iPad begin on Friday, October 26 through the Apple Online Store in the US, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.

The Wi-Fi configurations will begin shipping November 2, with the LTE configurations following two weeks later in the US, and then following in other countries.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Don't Buy)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

iPad A16 Colors

Here's When to Expect an iPad 12 With Apple Intelligence

Friday May 1, 2026 8:21 am PDT by
A new entry-level iPad 12 with Apple Intelligence support likely remains months away, based on a comment shared by an Apple executive this week. On an earnings call on Thursday, Apple's CFO Kevan Parekh said that the company's iPad revenue in the March-June quarter will face a "difficult compare" due to the the launch of the entry-level iPad 11 with the A16 chip in March 2025. Parekh is...
ipad blue

It's a Bad Time to Buy the Low-Cost iPad

Thursday May 14, 2026 2:12 pm PDT by
Apple's iPad that's just an iPad with no Air or Pro attached is its most appealing tablet because of the affordable starting $349 price tag, but if you've been thinking about buying one, you should wait. Apple refreshed the iPad in March 2025, so it's over a year old. That's reason enough not to buy when there's a new model on the horizon, but this year, there's even more to lose by...
Apple Card iPhone 16 Pro Feature

Apple Card Promo to Offer Free AirPods Pro 3

Friday May 15, 2026 8:59 am PDT by
Starting as early as next week, customers who sign up for an Apple Card at Apple's retail stores in the U.S. will receive $249 cash back when they purchase AirPods Pro 3, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The promotion has yet to be officially announced by Apple, so exact terms and conditions are not available at this time. AirPods Pro 3 are priced at $249 in the U.S., so customers who...

Top Rated Comments

Diode Avatar
177 months ago
This quick update cycle is going make the ipads depreciate much faster now.
I leave you with this comic from The Oatmeal (http://theoatmeal.com/)....

MacRumors content image
MacRumors content image
MacRumors content image
MacRumors content image
MacRumors content image
MacRumors content image
Score: 64 Votes (Like | Disagree)
WeegieMac Avatar
177 months ago
Very angry, sorry.

I know my iPad does all the same it did, but I waited until the third gen, shelled out £649 for THE top end model, and it got 7 months on the market.

I play a lot of games, and my iPad is left behind before it even got a killer app.

Real Racing 3 ... *sigh*

Can't help but feel scunnered.
Score: 52 Votes (Like | Disagree)
177 months ago
iPad 3 already outdated.
Score: 51 Votes (Like | Disagree)
177 months ago
HOW DARE APPLE RELEASE NEW PRODUCTS! MY IPAD 3 HAS INSTANTLY TURNED TO RUST. :mad:
Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)
177 months ago
iPad 3 already outdated.

And with competition starting to ramp up, that's exactly what they need to do.
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)
177 months ago
How big of difference is the A5 chip to 6?

I feel like it was punched in the mouth with this update just got new iPad
Score: 44 Votes (Like | Disagree)