Apple announces new iPad Pro with M4, iPad Air tablets

Apple on Tuesday announced new versions of its iPad Air and iPad Pro tablets.

"This is the biggest day for iPad since its introduction," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a short video posted on the company's website.  

The new iPad models are the first Apple has released since October 2022, marking the longest stretch between updates since the device launched in 2011.

The iPad Pro, Apple's most expensive and advanced tablet, will come in two sizes, an 11-inch model and a 13-inch model, Apple said. The company called the product its thinnest ever, coming in at 5.1 millimeters thick.

The smaller iPad Pro starts at $999, and the larger 13-inch model starts at $1,299 with 256GB of storage, a slight price increase from its predecessor.

The iPad Pro will snap into a new case that Apple calls Magic Keyboard, which is made out of aluminum and pairs the tablet with a keyboard and trackpad. Apple said that using the case will make using an iPad Pro feel similar to a laptop experience, i.e., "just like a MacBook."

The Magic Keyboard will cost $249 or $299, depending on size. Apple also announced an updated stylus called the Apple Pencil Pro for $129.

The fresh iPad models use a new Apple chip called the M4, an update from the M3 chips that currently power Apple's laptops. Apple said that the M4 chip was an "outrageously powerful chip for AI," noting, as an example, its ability to help power software that isolates subjects from their backgrounds in videos.

"This stunning design and breakthrough display required we make the leap to the next generation of Apple silicon," John Ternus, an Apple hardware executive, said.

Apple said its iPad Pro tablets will use a new kind of display called the OLED — the same technology Apple uses on its iPhones — and