Here Are 8 Things to Know About Apple's New iPad With the A16 Chip

While the headline feature of Apple's new lowest-cost iPad is an A16 chip, the device has some other new features and changes.

iPad A16 Colors
Apple's official name for the new entry-level iPad is iPad (A16), but we are referring to the device as the iPad 11 in this article.

Below, we recap eight smaller iPad 11 details you might have missed.

  • In the iPad 11, the A16 chip has a 5-core CPU and a 4-core GPU, whereas the A16 Bionic chip in the iPhone 14 Pro, iPhone 14 Pro Max, iPhone 15, and iPhone 15 Plus has a 6-core CPU and a 5-core GPU.
  • The iPad 11 does not support Apple Intelligence.
  • The iPad 11 is the first entry-level iPad with a 512GB storage option.
  • The iPad 11 supports Smart HDR 4, up from Smart HDR 3 on the previous model. Smart HDR 4 makes photos look "even more detailed and vivid."
  • The iPad 11 supports Bluetooth 5.3, up from Bluetooth 5.2 for the previous model.
  • While cellular iPad 10 models have a SIM card slot in all countries, the iPad 11 relies entirely on eSIM technology worldwide.
  • The iPad 11 is still compatible with the first-generation Apple Pencil.
  • Apple says the iPad 11 has an 11-inch display, while the iPad 10 is listed as having a 10.9-inch display. However, Apple is simply rounding up more with the iPad 11, as both devices actually have a 10.86-inch display.

Apple makes no mention of the iPad 11 having its custom C1 modem, so cellular models might still have a Qualcomm modem. We await teardowns.

It is also unclear how much RAM is in the iPad 11, but we are working to confirm this detail as soon as possible. iPhones with the A16 Bionic chip have 6GB of RAM, but the iPad 11 has a regular A16 chip with reduced CPU and GPU specifications, so it is unclear if the iPad 11 has 6GB of RAM. The iPad 10 has 4GB of RAM.

The new iPad can be pre-ordered now, and it will launch on Wednesday, March 12. In the U.S., the Wi-Fi model starts at $349.

Related Roundup: iPad
Buyer's Guide: iPad (Neutral)
Related Forum: iPad

Popular Stories

M5 MacBook Pro

Apple Announces New 14-Inch MacBook Pro With M5 Chip

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:07 am PDT by
Apple today updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, which is also available in updated iPad Pro and Vision Pro models. In addition, the base 14-inch MacBook Pro can now be configured with up to 4TB of storage on Apple's online store, whereas the previous model maxed out at 2TB. However, the maximum amount of unified RAM available for this model remains 32GB. Like...
Apple iPad Pro hero M5

Apple Debuts New iPad Pro With M5 Chip, Faster Charging, and More

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:16 am PDT by
Apple today announced the next-generation iPad Pro, featuring the custom-designed M5, C1X, and N1 chips. The M5 chip has up to a 10-core CPU, with four performance cores and six efficiency cores. It features a next-generation GPU with Neural Accelerator in each core, allowing the new iPad Pro to deliver up to 3.5x the AI performance than the previous model, and a third-generation ray-tracing ...
maxresdefault

Here's Everything Apple Announced Today

Wednesday October 15, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We didn't get a second fall event this year, but Apple did unveil updated products with a series of press releases that went out today. The M5 chip made an appearance in new MacBook Pro, Vision Pro, and iPad Pro models. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up our coverage and highlighted the main feature changes for each device below. MacBook Pro M5...
iphone air thickness

Apple Said to Cut iPhone Air Production Amid Underwhelming Sales

Friday October 17, 2025 8:29 am PDT by
Apple plans to cut production of the iPhone Air amid underwhelming sales performance, Japan's Mizuho Securities believes (via The Elec). The Japanese investment banking and securities firm claims that the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are seeing higher sales than their predecessors during the same period last year, while the standard iPhone 17 is a major success, performing...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple's Next Rumored Products: New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and More

Thursday October 16, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro with its next-generation M5 chip, but previous rumors have indicated that the company still plans to announce at least a few additional products before the end of the year. The following Apple products have at one point been rumored to be updated in 2025, although it is unclear if the timeframe for any of them has...
Vision Pro M5 Announcement

Apple Updates Vision Pro With M5 Chip, Dual Knit Band, and 120Hz Support

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:14 am PDT by
Apple today updated the Vision Pro headset with its next-generation M5 chip for faster performance, and a more comfortable Dual Knit Band. The M5 chip has a 10-core CPU, a 10-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, and a 16-core Neural Engine, and we have confirmed the Vision Pro still has 16GB of RAM. With the M5 chip, the Vision Pro offers faster performance and longer battery life compared...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

New 14-Inch MacBook Pro Has Two Key Upgrades Beyond the M5 Chip

Thursday October 16, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with an M5 chip, and there are two key storage-related upgrades beyond that chip bump. First, Apple says the new 14-inch MacBook Pro offers up to 2× faster SSD performance than the equivalent previous-generation model, so read and write speeds should get a significant boost. Apple says it is using "the latest storage technology," ...
MacBook Pro M5 Screen

New MacBook Pro Does Not Include a Charger in the Box in Europe

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:59 am PDT by
The new 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip does not include a charger in the box in European countries, including the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, and others, according to Apple's online store. In the U.S. and all other countries outside of Europe, the new MacBook Pro comes with Apple's 70W USB-C Power Adapter, but European customers miss out....
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday October 14, 2025 8:43 am PDT by
Apple's AirPods Max have now been available for almost five years, so what do we know about the second-generation version? According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the new AirPods Max will be lighter than the current ones, but exactly how much is as yet known. The current AirPods Max weigh 0.85 pounds (386.2 grams), excluding the charging case, making it one of the heavier...
macbook pro blue

Apple's M5 MacBook Pro Imminent: What to Expect

Tuesday October 14, 2025 4:35 pm PDT by
Apple is going to launch a new version of the MacBook Pro as soon as tomorrow, so we thought we'd go over what to expect from Apple's upcoming Mac. M5 Chip The MacBook Pro will be one of the first new devices to use the next-generation M5 chip, which will replace the M4 chip. The M5 is built on TSMC's more advanced 3-nanometer process, and it will bring speed and efficiency improvements. ...

Top Rated Comments

rui no onna Avatar
8 months ago
I'm pleasantly surprised that Apple didn't increase the base price to $449.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SteveJobs2.0 Avatar
8 months ago
Ridiculous that a brand new product cannot do Apple intelligence.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Billy_Bob Avatar
8 months ago
In its current incarnation, "Does not support Apple Intelligence" is a feature, not a bug. Grab one while you can!
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
dannyyankou Avatar
8 months ago
Why do I have the feeling that most of the complaints are coming from people typing on a 13 inch iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard that they collectively spent over $1,500 on?
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BelgianChoklit Avatar
8 months ago
It's a great price for what you're getting.
Score: 15 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Johnny907 Avatar
8 months ago
lol so not just an A16 but a BINNED A16?
Wow, Apple. Our expectations were low but holy bleep.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)