It was hard to see how Apple could improve on the first iPad Air – arguably the finest tablet ever produced at the time.
And then it went and did so with the iPad Air 2. You can talk all you like about what counts as “too thin” but there’s no denying that this tablet is a feat of engineering that for the time pushed the limits of what makes a premium slate. Plus, unlike the iPhone 6 Plus it doesn’t bend either!
Not only that, but the relentless desire to make the thing thinner has resulted in a better screen too, as the layers that make up the backlight, touchscreen digitizer and LCD screen are so close that Apple now claims there is zero air in between them.
The result? A less reflective display that looks brighter and more colorful. And it really is.
Since its arrival though, Apple has launched a new fleet of slates, with the iPad Pro 11 and iPad Pro 12.9 (2018) taking up position at the top of the firm’s tablet offering and the iPad 9.7 launching as budget option.
So, in the face of that competition – and the other slates that have launched since the Air 2 – is the iPad Air 2 still worth buying?
Update: Apple has announced that iPadOS 15, the newest version of its iPad-dedicated operating system, will work on the second-gen iPad Air, so you’ll get features like seamless multitasking, an app library and home screen widgets that can be placed anywhere.
iPad Air 2 price
- Starts at around $399 (£379, AU$569)
- You can now get it for cheaper, but you can no longer buy from Apple
- Check out the latest iPad deals and sales
The launch of Apple’s new Pro slates and iPad 9.7 have resulted in the lowering of the iPad Air 2 price which now starts at around $399 (£379, AU$569) – originally $499 (£399, AU$699) – for the 32GB, Wi-Fi only model.
That’s not as much of a drop as you might expect but then this is still a very capable tablet.
You can’t buy the iPad Air 2 directly from Apple anymore, but you can find it at other retailers around the world and if you take your time to search around you’ll likely find it even cheaper than the prices above.
That said, it’s becoming increasingly hard to find it new – and that rarity may be contributing to the still quite high price – so if you want it you should snap it up fast.
Of course, with the much newer iPad 9.7 starting at $329 (£319, AU$469), the iPad Air 2 isn’t quite as compelling at it once was.
That said, if you’re happy to get a pre-owned or ‘refurbished’ Air 2, the price drops significantly – we’ve seen it for under $250/£250.
Design
- A solid tablet that can be held easily for hours
- The iPad Air 2’s design does warrant the high price
At 6.1mm thick, the Apple iPad Air 2 is still one of the slimmest tablets on the market. It’s not actually the thinnest, but we’re at the point now where fractions of a millimetre really don’t matter.
Thinness for its own sake can be an error – there is a point of diminishing returns where only marginal improvements can be achieved, at the cost of structural integrity, battery life and overall performance – but Apple hasn’t reached that point yet.
The iPad Air 2 feels like a very solid tablet that can be held easily for hours without it getting uncomfortable. The iPad Air 2 is hardly a big tablet, but the Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 is both smaller and lighter with the same size display.
Where the Apple device wins though is the overall packaging. Samsung’s option is good, but clearly an assemblage of distinct parts. The plastic back, the larger-bezelled screen and the rim are all competing parts, where the iPad Air 2 is a complete package, smooth and easy to hold in one hand.
I was almost loath to put it in a case – it needs to be protected if you’re going to be running it around town, as that back and chamfered edges will scuff up eventually – but if you’re going to be a sofa-warrior with your new tablet, the Smart Cover will do just fine and won’t obscure the impressive design.
The sad thing here is the loss of the silencing switch, which has departed due to size restrictions.
Apple would argue that this is because the new Control Center makes the option available throughout the OS with just a flick of the hand, but in truth I’m really going to miss being able to silence the tablet without even looking.
The power button remains at the top and the volume keys have shuffled a little upwards now free of the silence key, but otherwise the only real design changes are the speaker grill at the bottom of the tablet (now a single row of holes, rather than the two before) and the Touch ID on the home key.
You’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between the iPad Air 2 and the iPad Air without a spotter’s guide, but the iPad Air 2 has a deeper black bezel which helps enhance the picture – plus it now comes in gold to join space gray and silver.
The camera stays where it has been, both front and back, with the new 8MP iSight snapper not jutting out as it does on the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus. The fact no tablet camera needs to be that high res, nor should people be taking pics with a tablet anyway, is something to discuss in another article.
Does the iPad Air 2’s design warrant the high price tag? Yes, more than any other tablet on the market. It brings a premium build, quality finish, great looks and while it doesn’t need to be this thin, the structure doesn’t seem to have had an effect on the actual performance of the tablet, and does add something in the palm.
- Check out our selection of the best iPad Air 2 cases
Before the launch of the Apple iPad Air 2, I’d have been hard pressed to predict Apple’s improvements.
I wondered if Apple might have shaved some weight off, added some bits to the camera, shoved an upgraded processor in there (or at least matched that of the iPhone 6) – but that seemed like a very middling upgrade.
But somehow, the combination of the above, plus the improved screen and Touch ID, has created a very complete package. Not one that I’d ever recommend to those that have the iPad Air, but definitely a brilliant jump for anyone coming from the iPad 3 or earlier.
Pencil lasers
- Thinner, lighter and even more premium
Apple showed off its improvements to an already-impressive tablet by lasering through the pencil it used to demonstrate the thickness of the iPad Air. While the width is obviously a design element, it’s worth reiterating here as it’s a really key feature of this tablet.
The 437g weight is more important than the thickness, in fairness. The width of the thing is largely unnoticeable in the hand, especially when we’re talking millimetres, and is more of a marketing tool.
But the lower weight, combined with the smooth, ceramic-style back, makes the new Apple iPad Air 2 feel like a really premium product.
On top of that, it’s closer than ever to perfect when it comes to being a laptop replacement when teamed with a Bluetooth keyboard. The reduced weight and thickness enhance the tablet’s elegance and portability, and that pushes the iPad Air 2 further into consideration.
Touch ID and Apple Pay
On the iPhone, Touch ID is a brilliant addition. It’s a way to add a passcode without really noticing it’s happened, and (when widely implemented) will allow you to pay for things on the go without your credit card around.
This makes a lot of sense to me, and is a really great addition to the mobile ecosystem.
I’m not as bothered about it on the iPad Air 2, mostly because I don’t feel the need to secure my tablet as much as my phone. I take it out of the house less, I pull it out of the bag less, and generally don’t worry about security on it as much.
It’s still a great feature – I was confused when Apple didn’t include it on the original iPad Air – but given the fact that the iPad is an unwieldy substitute for a credit card, it’s not vital here.
It’s a nice-to-have feature, rather than a crucial one. Apple is making a big deal about the fact you can secure apps with it as well, but this is only useful if you want to secure certain apps (which, admittedly, some people will want to do – it’s more convenient to only have the key things locked down).
It would be nice to have the Mail app use Touch ID, and then I could get rid of it on the lock screen. I’m already considering turning it off, as it’s more cumbersome to press given the dimensions here, and the fact the tablet mostly stays at home.
Apple Pay has now launched in both the US and UK. You can use it on the iPad Air 2 but only on purchases within the App Store itself: don’t go lugging it out of the house and try to buy your shopping with it.
A8X chip
- Excellent all-round performance
- Better efficiency = better battery life
The A8X chip is screamingly fast, according to Apple, and nothing I’ve been able to do on the new iPad has suggested otherwise.
It’s hard to know how to really push a tablet with this kind of power, as the likes of Real Racing or Sky Gamblers have always looked rather good on the larger screen.
And even though this is second (and a bit) generation 64-bit architecture from Apple, which does have some efficiency upgrades, we’re still light years away from that being a useful addition, when really all it does right now is make apps a bit bigger and take up more room internally.
The big change here appears to be to the battery life – it’s no coincidence that the graphical capabilities of the Air 2 are 2.5x that of the Air, and that means stuff can be run more efficiently.
There’s also the ability to use the touchscreen more effectively – the response time of the touch is much increased here, and browsing with the iPad Air 2 is a pleasurable experience.
That’s not directly linked to the chipset at the heart, but it does help.
All new screen
- Our favorite feature: brighter and more vibrant
- Better outdoor performance with reduced reflectivity
The new screen technology on the iPad Air 2 is one of my favorite changes here. The improvement in thinness is negligible, the camera superfluous, but the screen of a tablet is something that always needs refining. I love it when brands show ambition, whether they do it by increasing the resolution, the contrast ratio or the brightness.
The iPad Air screen was pretty neat in itself, with resolution of 1,536 x 2,048. The Air 2 has kept that sharpness, but because the internal layers of the screen are laminated together, there is less air between the components (in fact, Apple says there’s no air whatsoever) which leads to deeper blacks and more vibrant colors. Pictures really come alive when viewed on the iPad Air 2, markedly so compared to its predecessor.
The other benefit of that compressed screen is that it reduces reflectivity – combine that with the anti-reflection coating, and watching films with a light behind you isn’t impossible.
Credit: Republished with permission from DisplayMate Technologies
Laboratory testing at DisplayMate Technologi
