Upcoming iPad Air Rumored to Feature M1 Chip

The updated iPad Air that Apple is expected to unveil at tomorrow's "Peek Performance" event could include the same M1 chip that's featured in the 2021 iPad Pro, according to information shared by 9to5Mac. Last year's ‌iPad Pro‌ was the first iPad to get Apple's M-series chip, and adding the ‌M1‌ to the ‌iPad Air‌ would put ‌iPad Air‌ performance on par with the current ‌iPad Pro‌ models and the 2020 MacBook Air, 13-inch MacBook Pro, and Mac mini.

new m1 chip
All prior rumors about the ‌iPad Air‌ have suggested that it will be similar to the iPad mini, featuring the same A15 chip along with 5G connectivity. Adding the ‌M1‌ to the ‌iPad Air‌ would make it very similar to the more expensive top-of-the-line ‌iPad Pro‌, and if Apple does opt to do so, ProMotion display technology (with mini-LED in the 12.9-inch model) and the LiDAR camera would be the main differences between the ‌iPad Air‌ and the ‌iPad Pro‌ lines.

The ‌M1‌ chip features a 8-core CPU and a 7 to 8-core GPU, and comparatively, the A15 chip has a 6-core CPU and 5-core GPU, so the ‌M1‌ does offer some speed improvements over the A-series chips.

Apple's "Peek Performance" event will kick off at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time tomorrow, so we don't have much more time before we learn exactly what chip Apple is adding to the ‌iPad Air‌. We'll have coverage here at MacRumors.com and on our MacRumorsLive Twitter account.

Related Roundup: iPad Air
Buyer's Guide: iPad Air (Buy Now)
Related Forum: iPad

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Top Rated Comments

_Spinn_ Avatar
40 months ago
The M1 is overkill for iPadOS currently.
Score: 36 Votes (Like | Disagree)
exoticSpice Avatar
40 months ago
Ah yes more power for iPadOS, that just what we need.
Score: 28 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JonathanLevine Avatar
40 months ago
Who the hell is coming up with these rumors the last few days? Am I the only one who thinks most of the stuff coming out the last few days has just been complete bull? I mean half of this sh*t doesn’t even make sense on any level.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
diddl14 Avatar
40 months ago
If it can dual-boot Mac and iPad OS, I'll take it!
Plus whatever keyboard that goes with it...
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
40 months ago

The M1 is overkill for iPadOS currently.
Good point, its why we are very anxious about iPadOS 16 at WWDC. :)
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Realityck Avatar
40 months ago
I guess we have every rumor possible now being thought of. :eek:
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)