Apple updates iPad, iPad Mini; adds Centre Stage feature

The wait for 2021 Apple iPhones is still on. The Cupertino-based giant did kickstart its fall event with a hardware announcement, but for its iPad. Apple announced the 9th version of its popular iPad, which made its debut in 2010, and also the new iPad Mini.

The iPad business has remained strong for Apple, growing by over 40 per cent last year. Apple even has over 1 million apps designed especially for iPads.

The 9th generation 10.2-inch iPad features A13 Bionic, Center Stage, support for Apple Pencil (1st generation) and Smart Keyboard, and iPadOS 15.

Apple has added the True Tone display to its iPad. A new, upgraded ambient light sensor enables True Tone, which adjusts screen content to the colour temperature of a room. In addition, it has A13 Bionic chip, which Apple claims will deliver a 20 per cent performance boost over the previous generation, making it 3x faster than the best-selling Chromebook and up to 6x faster than the best-selling Android tablet.

The Neural Engine in A13 Bionic will also power next-level machine learning capabilities, including Live Text on iPadOS 15, which will use on-device intelligence to recognize text in a photo. Apple has also doubled the base storage – with the new iPads starting with 64GB of storage.

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Along with the new iPad, Apple also announced the new iPad mini. Featuring a larger 8.3-inch Liquid Retina display, the iPad will be powered by A15 Bionic chip (delivering up to 80 per cent faster performance than the previous generation), a USB-C port for faster connectivity and support for Apple Pencil (2nd Generation). The new iPad mini's cellular models will come with 5G support.

Apple has introduced the Center Stage feature for both - the iPad 9th gen and the new iPad mini. This feature automatically pans the camera to keep the user in view. Both, the iPad 9th generation and iPad Mini, feature 100 per cent recycled aluminium in the enclosure. iPad also uses 100 per cent recycled tin in the solder of the main logic board, and 100 per cent recycled rare earth elements in the magnets in the enclosure.

The Apple iPad 9th generation Wi-Fi models will be available starting $329 (US), and Wi-Fi + cellular models start at $459 (US), starting with 64GB of storage. It will also come in 256GB option.

The Wi-Fi models of iPad mini start at $499 (US) and Wi-Fi + cellular models at $649 (US). The new iPad mini, in 64GB and 256GB configurations, comes in pink, starlight, purple, and space gray finishes. Both the new iPads will be available in the US starting September 24.

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