Apple iPad Air 13-inch (M4): Specs, Price, Pros & Cons
Apple's spec page for this tablet lists an M4 chip with an 8-core CPU, a 9-core GPU and hardware ray tracing, and it never gives a refresh rate. The larger Air uses an LED-backlit IPS panel without ProMotion, the variable refresh Apple keeps for the iPad Pro.
The 13-inch label rounds up: measured as a rectangle, the screen is 12.9 inches across. Apple rates this model at 600 nits and the 11-inch Air at 500. Beyond screen area, that's the one real difference between them, since the cameras, chip, memory and ports all match.
For reading, a backlit LCD this large suits magazines, technical PDFs at full page size and anything where color and layout carry meaning. Type is as sharp here as on the 11-inch, only larger, because both screens run at 264 pixels per inch. The display is fully laminated, with P3 wide color, True Tone and an antireflective coating. At 616 g, it's a two-handed tablet that wants a table or a lap.
Touch ID sits in the top button, and a Smart Connector takes a keyboard. It supports Apple Pencil Pro and Apple Pencil (USB-C), both with hover. The 12MP Center Stage front camera is mounted on the landscape edge, for calls with the tablet docked sideways, and the rear 12MP camera records 4K video at up to 60 fps. Apple's own N1 chip handles Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 6. Cellular models add Apple's C1X modem, GPS and an eSIM, with no SIM tray to open. Apple says the enclosure is 100% recycled aluminum.
Category strengths
Where the Apple iPad Air 13-inch (M4) beats the median
- Much more RAM ?12 GB vs 5 GB (median)
- A much higher-resolution front camera ?12 MP vs 5 MP (median)
- A much higher-resolution rear camera ?12 MP vs 8 MP (median)
- Has 5G support ?
- Higher resolution ?2,732 px vs 2,112 px (median)
- A bigger screen ?13" (33.02 cm) vs 11" (27.94 cm) (median)
- Higher peak brightness ?600 nits vs 490 nits (median)
- A slimmer body ?6.1 mm vs 7 mm (median)
- A slightly higher pixel density ?264 ppi vs 245 ppi (median)
Where the Apple iPad Air 13-inch (M4) trails the median
- A heavier build ?616 g vs 430 g (median)
- No expandable storage (microSD) ?
How this VS Score was computed
Score 58: each known spec is measured against the median of LCD tablets (5 products), then weighted. 53% of the scoreable weight could be used. See how we score
| Specification | This product | Cohort median | Score weight | Points moved |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAM | 12 — held to half its range (fewer than six products in this class list it) | 5 | 2 | +50.0 |
| Weight | 616 | 430 | 2 | −30.0 |
| Rear camera | 12 | 8 | 1 | +25.0 |
| Front camera | 12 — held to half its range (fewer than six products in this class list it) | 5 | 1 | +25.0 |
| Screen size | 13 | 11 | 1.5 | +13.5 |
| Expandable storage (microSD) | No — held to half its range (fewer than six products in this class list it) | 60% of the class have it | 0.5 | −12.5 |
| 5G support | Yes — held to half its range (fewer than six products in this class list it) | 33% of the class have it | 0.5 | +12.5 |
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 7 — held to half its range (fewer than six products in this class list it) | Wi-Fi 6 | 0.5 | +12.5 |
| Peak brightness | 600 | 490 | 1 | +11.0 |
| Thickness | 6.1 | 7 | 1 | +7.0 |
| Pixel density | 264 | 245 | 1 | +4.0 |
| Internal storage | 128 | 128 | 1.5 | +0.0 |
| Battery life | 10 | 10 | 2 | +0.0 |
Not scored: Biometric unlock (standard for the class (100% have it)); Resolution (one resolution dimension is not a sharpness measure; pixel density is scored instead); Refresh rate (unknown: not scored); OLED display (not applicable: only 0% of this class have it); Laminated display (too few comparable peers (1, need 3)); AnTuTu benchmark (unknown: not scored); Battery capacity (unknown: not scored); Wired charging (unknown: not scored); USB-C (standard for the class (100% have it)); Records 4K video (too few comparable peers (2, need 3)); Stylus support (standard for the class (80% have it)); Keyboard support (too few comparable peers (2, need 3)); Stereo speakers (standard for the class (100% have it)); Accelerometer (standard for the class (100% have it)); Gyroscope (too few comparable peers (2, need 3)); Compass (too few comparable peers (2, need 3)).
Editor’s note
The M4 is far more chip than reading, browsing and note-taking need, so on a reading tablet most of it goes unused. Video work is the case for it, since the media engine encodes ProRes in hardware, and so are long illustration sessions with the Pencil. The USB-C port drives one external display at up to 6K. Add a monitor and a keyboard on the Smart Connector, and the chip finally has work to do.
I'd push back on Apple over the display. At this price, leaving out ProMotion is a real omission for the two jobs a big screen invites: scrolling long documents and drawing with the Pencil. Apple keeps OLED and ProMotion for the iPad Pro.
The base 128 GB fills fast if you edit video, and the cheapest configuration is Wi-Fi only. The box holds the tablet, a USB-C cable and a 20 W adapter, so the Pencil and a keyboard both add to the price.
Apple's ten-hour battery figure comes from its own test at 50% brightness with auto-brightness off. Reading at a brighter setting will cut into it.
Owners of the 11-inch Air have no reason to move up, since only screen area, brightness and weight change. The bigger page pays off at a desk, where the extra weight stops mattering.
Specifications
Design
Display
Performance
Battery
Cameras
Productivity & connectivity
Sensors
Sources and verification
Where the specifications come from
- Official product pagesupport.apple.com
Verification
- First published
- Specifications last checked
- Sheet completeness
- 38 of 47 specifications verified; the rest show as Unknown and are never estimated or scored
- Page type
- Product specification page — Compiled from the manufacturer’s published specifications and the cited sources; this is not a hands-on test.
- Basis
- Research-based: specifications and editorial text were compiled from the documents listed here and the manufacturer’s published data. We have not tested this unit ourselves; where independent measurements are mentioned they belong to the linked publication.
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Price history
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The bottom line
The Apple iPad Air 13-inch (M4) earns a VS Score of 58, above the median of the 5 LCD tablets it is measured against (a score of 50 is level with that median).
- Who it’s for
- Someone who wants a large, bright tablet for full-page PDFs, illustration and desk work, and doesn't need the iPad Pro's screen.
- Who should look elsewhere
- Anyone buying it mainly for books at night, since a backlit tablet this heavy is a poor fit and an e-paper reader costs far less.
- The trade-off that matters
- Apple spent this model's budget on the M4 and paired it with an LCD without variable refresh, the wrong order for a tablet you mostly look at.
- The main alternative
- Apple iPad Air 11-inch (M4): lighter and cheaper, and the better buy unless you need the page area.
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