Apple iPad Air (3rd generation) vs Apple iPad Air (4th generation)

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iPad Air (3rd generation) compared with iPad Air (4th generation)

	AppleiPad Air (3rd generation)	AppleiPad Air (4th generation)
Overview
Released
Released	March 2019	October 2020
Display
Screen size
Screen size	10.5″	10.9″
Resolution
Resolution	2224 × 1668	2360 × 1640 (better)
Sharpness
Sharpness	265 pixels per inch (better)	264 pixels per inch
Panel
Panel	LCD	LCD
Brightness
Brightness	500 nits	500 nits
Display type
Display type	Retina; LED-backlit IPS LCD (IPS confirmed by Notebookcheck)	Liquid Retina; LED-backlit IPS LCD; 10.86 inches measured diagonally as a rectangle
Pixel density
Pixel density	264 ppi	264 ppi
Display features
Display features	P3 wide colour; True Tone; fully laminated; anti-reflective coating with 1.8% reflectivity; oleophobic coating	P3 wide colour; True Tone; fully laminated; anti-reflective coating with 1.8% reflectivity; oleophobic coating
Performance
Chip
Chip	A12 Bionic	A14 Bionic
Memory
Memory	3 GB	4 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	64 GB, 256 GB	64 GB, 256 GB
CPU
CPU	64-bit A12 Bionic; M12 motion coprocessor; 3 GB RAM confirmed by iFixit	6-core A14 Bionic; 4 GB RAM (Notebookcheck)
GPU
GPU	–	4-core GPU
AI engine
AI engine	Neural Engine	16-core Neural Engine
Cameras
Rear camera
Rear camera	8 MP	12 MP (better)
Ultra wide camera
Ultra wide camera	None	None
Front camera
Front camera	7 MP	7 MP
Rear camera
Rear camera	f/2.4 five-element lens; backside illumination; hybrid IR filter; autofocus; wide colour and Live Photos; HDR; panorama up to 43 MP; burst; timer; auto image stabilisation	Wide; f/1.8 five-element lens; backside illumination; hybrid IR filter; autofocus with Focus Pixels; wide colour and Live Photos; Smart HDR 3; panorama up to 63 MP; auto image stabilisation; burst; timer
Front camera
Front camera	FaceTime HD; f/2.2; Retina Flash; wide colour capture; backside illumination; auto HDR; burst; timer	FaceTime HD; f/2.2; Retina Flash; wide colour capture; backside illumination; Smart HDR; auto image stabilisation; burst
Video recording
Video recording	Rear 1080p; slow-motion at 240 fps; stabilised time-lapse; video stabilisation; 3x video zoom; front 1080p at 30 fps	Rear 4K at 24, 30 or 60 fps; 1080p at 30 or 60 fps; slow-motion 1080p at 120 or 240 fps; stabilised time-lapse; cinematic stabilisation; continuous autofocus; front 1080p at 60 fps
Battery and connections
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 10 hours	Up to 10 hours
Battery capacity
Battery capacity	30.2 Wh (better)	28.6 Wh
Mobile data option
Mobile data option	Yes	Yes
Stylus
Stylus	Supported, sold separately	Supported, sold separately
Keyboard made for it
Keyboard made for it	Yes	Yes
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Up to 10 hours Wi-Fi browsing, video or music; nine hours cellular browsing	Up to 10 hours Wi-Fi browsing or video; nine hours cellular browsing
Charging
Charging	USB power adapter or USB computer charging	20W USB-C power adapter supplied; charging via adapter or computer
USB-C
USB-C	Lightning; 3.5 mm headphone jack; Smart Connector	USB-C with charging and data transfer up to 5 Gb/s; external 4K displays; Smart Connector
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	Dual-band 802.11a/b/g/n/ac; HT80 with MIMO	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax); simultaneous dual band; HT80 with MIMO
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 5.0	Bluetooth 5.0
Mobile network
Mobile network	Gigabit-class LTE; nano-SIM with Apple SIM support and eSIM; cellular model weighs 464 g	Gigabit-class LTE; nano-SIM and eSIM; cellular model weighs 460 g
Stylus support
Stylus support	Apple Pencil (1st generation), sold separately	Apple Pencil (2nd generation) and Apple Pencil (USB-C), sold separately
Keyboards
Keyboards	Smart Keyboard, sold separately	Magic Keyboard and Smart Keyboard Folio, sold separately
Design
Weight
Weight	456 g (better)	458 g
Thickness
Thickness	6.1 mm	6.1 mm
Height × width
Height × width	250.6 × 174.1 mm	247.6 × 178.5 mm
Operating system
Operating system	iPadOS	iPadOS
Biometrics
Biometrics	Touch ID in Home button	Touch ID in top button
Speakers
Speakers	Stereo speakers	Landscape stereo speakers
Microphones
Microphones	Dual microphones	Dual microphones
Sensors
Sensors	Three-axis gyro; accelerometer; barometer; ambient light; compass; iBeacon; GPS and GNSS on cellular model	Three-axis gyro; accelerometer; barometer; ambient light; compass; iBeacon; GPS and GNSS on cellular model
Materials
Materials	–	100% recycled aluminium enclosure
Colours
Colours	Silver, Gold, Space Grey	Silver, Space Grey, Rose Gold, Green, Sky Blue
Software at launch
Software at launch	iOS 12; orders opened 18 March 2019, with shops receiving it the following week	iPadOS 14
In the box
In the box	iPad Air; Lightning to USB cable; USB power adapter	iPad Air; USB-C charge cable (1 m); 20W USB-C power adapter