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I’ve used many iPads over the years, and one thing has become clear: the iPad Air is my personal ideal tablet. Testing the new M4 model only confirmed this fact. You can now pre-order the iPad Air starting at $599, with general availability on 3/11.
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The fact is, the iPad Air isn’t the most powerful tablet on the market. But that means I don’t ever worry about overpaying for excessive processing power, like I would with the iPad Pro. Yet the Air is still reliable enough that I can multitask with demanding apps without risking one of them crashing, unlike the base model iPad. It’s the perfect middle-ground tablet.
The M4 processing power
As a writer who also does photography, video, and some graphic design on the side, I’ve found that the iPad Air is the most affordable tablet that can comfortably handle my workload without a single stutter. It starts at $599, $400 less than the iPad Pro, yet its M4 processor, faster connectivity, and 12GB of unified memory seem almost too good to be true for the price.
| Geekbench 6 scores | Starting price | Single-Core CPU Benchmark | Multi-Core CPU Benchmark | GPU benchmark |
| iPad Air (M4) | $599 | 3,690 | 12,996 | 52,278 |
| iPad Pro (M5) | $999 | 4,153 | 16,414 | 75,259 |
| iPad 11 | $349 | 2,596 | 6,237 | 19,848 |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab S10 FE+ | $560 | 1,353 | 3,923 | 6,982 |
In benchmark tests measuring tablet performance, the iPad Air’s M4 performed dramatically better than the similarly priced Galaxy Tab S10 FE+. I also included the iPad Pro with the latest M5 processor in the table above, but you can see that the iPad Air performs closer to the Pro at a similar price to the S10 FE+.
If you wanted to compare these three tablets to laptops, the iPad Pro would be like a high-end laptop, while the iPad Air could perform like an ultrabook. The Tab S10 FE+, however, would be like a mid-range Chromebook in this comparison.
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Compared to other tablet brands, the GPU benchmark is through the roof on Apple’s M-Series iPads. This measures the graphic processor’s performance, such as gaming graphics rendering, video editing and rendering, animation, image processing, AI effects, and apps with augmented reality (AR).
What a stronger processor means for users
A higher GPU score means that the iPad Air can process graphics faster than other tablets, handle higher-quality games, and run visual AI models more efficiently. In this case, the iPad Air’s GPU is 7.5 times faster than the Tab S10 FE+, making it better at handling creative apps and gaming.
For me, this translates into faster video renders and more reliable video editing on Final Cut for iPad. I’ve used this iPad Air for work with the Magic Keyboard for iPad Air for days and haven’t experienced any app crashes like I do when trying to multitask with the base model iPad. I’ve also used it for games, to illustrate with the Apple Pencil Pro, and to manage my productivity.
ZDNET’s buying advice
Let’s be honest: the iPad Air isn’t the tablet most users need, especially when you can get a fantastic base-model iPad for $300. However, the iPad Air is the tablet I’d recommend for anyone willing to spend around $600, as it delivers the best performance value among mainstream tablets. You also have two size options, whether you prefer something that fits more comfortably in your hands, or one that goes wide enough for greater content consumption.
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The iPad Air with the Magic Keyboard is strong enough to replace a midrange laptop for intermediate users, especially thanks to iPadOS 26, which lets you stack and resize your windows as needed. The only way I’d recommend that an intermediate or even some power users buy an iPad Pro or a higher-end tablet is if they plan to use it almost exclusively for professional video or music.
