Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Blake123abc

macrumors member
Original poster
Aug 8, 2019
35
3
Hello, I'm thinking about possibly purchasing an iPad this year, when do new iPads get announced usually? is it worth getting one now/in a month or two or waiting for the next gen iPad Air? I'm mostly going to just be using the iPad for web browsing around the house, checking e-mails, etc. and want an iPad that'll last awhile before needing to upgrade again.

Thank you
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,648
12,785
Around 1.5 years has been the gap between the recent models.

However, I don’t think it’s likely to be updated this year mainly because it’s already very close to the iPad Pro.
 
  • Like
Reactions: one more

iStorm

macrumors 68000
Sep 18, 2012
1,789
2,213
There’s a buyer’s guide on this site.

I always say if you need it, buy now; if you want it, buy tomorrow. There will always be something new around the corner. The Air (or even the regular iPad) will last you a long time with basic web browsing and email.
 
  • Like
Reactions: one more

MacCraig Pro

macrumors regular
Jan 1, 2012
135
64
Manchester, UK
Hello, I'm thinking about possibly purchasing an iPad this year, when do new iPads get announced usually? is it worth getting one now/in a month or two or waiting for the next gen iPad Air? I'm mostly going to just be using the iPad for web browsing around the house, checking e-mails, etc. and want an iPad that'll last awhile before needing to upgrade again.

Thank you
I’d say a 4th or 5th gen would suit your needs then even without it being the latest version given what you’ve said your needs are. Save your money.
 

one more

macrumors 601
Aug 6, 2015
4,556
5,742
Earth
iPad Air 5 is great as it is, IMO, and for your described use you could probably go with a base 64 GB model.

Air 5 came out in March 2022 with M1, so the next evolutionary step would probably be giving it an M2 chip and perhaps more baseline storage of 128 GB. However, then it will get even closer to iPad Pro 11”, except for ProMotion, cameras and FaceID.

From what we know now, the next important step would be going OLED, but then again, iPad Pro will be first in line.

So I would not expect anything major happening to Air this year or even next, depending how fast this OLED transition will happen.
 

Algus

macrumors 6502
Jun 8, 2014
352
328
Arizona
Honestly for the basics the cheapest iPad is just fine. My dad still uses an ancient iPad Pro 9.7 and while it would certainly choke on newer games, it's got plenty of horsepower for web browsing and media consumption. Even if Air 6 were released tomorrow, the Air 5 would still be fantastic for your use case for years to come.
 
  • Like
Reactions: MacCraig Pro
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.