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Apple Could Launch M4 iPad Air This Spring, Skipping M3 Chip Entirely

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Apple may choose to refresh its iPad Air models in the spring with an M4 chip, skipping the M3 generation for the lineup entirely, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman has suggested.

ipad air gradient
Apple released the M2 iPad Air in 11-inch and 13-inch screen sizes in May of last year, and the going assumption, backed by rumors, was that Apple would refresh the iPad Air this year with an M3 chip upgrade.

However, writing in his Power On newsletter over the weekend, Gurman said he "wouldn't be terribly surprised" if Apple opts for the M4 chip instead. From the report:

The new iPad Airs — code-named J607, J608, J637 and J638 — will be more about specification upgrades than design changes. The current version, introduced last year, has the M2 chip. I wouldn't be terribly surprised if the 2025 models get bumped up to the M4, matching the iPad Pro. That would mean the Pro has less of an edge over the Air, but that shouldn't be too shocking. Most Macs rely on the same chip family, and iPads could do the same.

Gurman's claim runs counter to previous rumors that indicated Apple plans to keep the ‌iPad Air‌ one step behind the ‌iPad Pro‌ in terms of processor generations. However, Apple surprised many when it announced M4 iPad Pro models in May 2024. Those devices were expected to feature the M3 chip right up until the last minute of their unveiling but skipped the generation entirely, and there's no hard and fast rule that says the company won't do the same thing for the iPad Air.

No design changes are expected for the next-generation iPad Air, but it could include Apple's upcoming custom 5G modem, which will also be introduced in the iPhone SE, low-cost iPad, and iPhone 17 Air in 2025.

Apple is also developing a new version of the Magic Keyboard for the iPad Air. It isn't expected to have an aluminum top case like the iPad Pro, but it could have a function row of keys and some other features from the iPad Pro Magic Keyboard.

Related Roundup: iPad Air
Tags: M4, Mark Gurman
Buyer's Guide: iPad Air (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iPad

Top Rated Comments

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brofkand
16 months ago
What difference does it make? There is nothing on iPadOS that can stress the M2 as it is.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
M
MEMSMaster
16 months ago
It was pretty thoroughly reported in the microelectronics press at the time of release that the M3 process turned out to be a manufacturing dead end for TSMC and that the M3 would fairly quickly be replaced by a more robust process step, which is the M4. So this is not a surprise.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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theluggage
16 months ago

What difference does it make? There is nothing on iPadOS that can stress the M2 as it is.
I'd say that it mainly makes a difference to Apple, and whether it's worth their while continuing to produce M2 or M3 chips. However powerful it is, ultimately, the M4 was designed as the replacement for the M2/M3 and the extra performance is largely a consequence of new and improved production processes (& the opportunity to use more transistors). In the long term there's no reason to think that including an M4 will be more expensive for Apple than sticking with a M2.

It also looks like the M3 (and the manufacturing process it used) might be more of a stop-gap than the M1 or M2, and allowed Apple/TSMC to plant their flag on the "3nm" hill* - Apple didn't waste any time moving the iPad Pro, MBP, iMac and Mini to M4 c.f. earlier iterations.

I guess one clue will be what happens when the M4 MacBook Air launches Real Soon Now - if Apple follow their previous routine then the current base M3 MBA will get a price cut and replace the current entry-level M2 MBA as their sub-$1000 offering - which will suggest that the M3 will be hanging around as the new entry-level processor.

However... they could just keep the M2 MBA for another year as the bargain bucket choice or just go all-M3. Those are not (very small) hills that I plan to die on but would make sense if the M3 is going to be rapidly dropped.

If there's no M3 Air then there's no "economies of scale" to support a M3 iPad - especially as they would actually have to design an M3 iPad first.

Anyway - I don't think this idea of the "economy" model actually using old CPU tech - rather than just having lower specs - is a particularly good "look". There are plenty of other ways to distinguish mid-range and high-end tablets, such as cameras, displays, case materials.

* (It's a very small hill)
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
fatTribble Avatar
fatTribble
16 months ago
I definitely don’t need the latest processor, but the geek in me would feel queasy buying a new Apple device with a chip that was released a year ago or more. Maybe I should go for a walk and get more fresh air. 🤭
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
joelhinch Avatar
joelhinch
16 months ago
When the Pro sales were reported to be in a slump, this doesn't make much sense.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
C
Cervisia
16 months ago

When the Pro sales were reported to be in a slump, this doesn't make much sense.
It actually does. With the low ipad pro sales Apple should finally realize that the cpu doesn't matter for most ipad buyers. Right now only the cheapest macbook air and the ipad airs use the M2, the coming macbook air refresh would only leave the ipad airs. And we all know Tim loves supply chain efficiency, and now they can stop producing a cpu with very little upsell potential to lose. If the Pro and Studio get M4 Max and Ultra chips in the summer, the whole M2 line can be shut down.

If they omit the cheapest Macbook Air, which would get the M3, they can also shut that down.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
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