Apple launches iPad 9th Gen with Center Stage, A13 Bionic and more

Contradicting the rumours, Apple has gone ahead and unveiled its new iPad. This is the 9th Gen iPad.

Apple iPad 9th gen

Apple has announced a new iPad at its California Streaming event. The new iPad comes with new features like Center stage and more storage. However, the design remains the same – unlike the new iPad mini, which is getting a redesign.

The new iPad features a 10.2-inch Retina display on iPad. A new, upgraded ambient light sensor enables True Tone, which adjusts screen content to the color temperature of a room. Alongside 64GB, a 256GB option is also available for users looking to store more apps, games, photos, and videos.

The new iPad mini is powered by the A13 Bionic chipset, which is a big upgrade over A12, running 20% faster for things like graphics and processing. It is said to make the iPad 3x faster than the best-selling Chromebook and 6x faster than the best-selling Android tablet. The chip also makes the camera much better. It improves autofocus and lowlight performance for better selfies. There's also a whole new selfie camera that has 12MP. The optics also include Ultrawide framing and Apple's center stage tech, which will ship as part of iPadOS 15.

The added performance will allow users to seamlessly run advanced apps and games on the most affordable iPad, says Apple. The Neural Engine in A13 Bionic also powers next-level machine learning capabilities, including Live Text coming in iPadOS 15, which uses on-device intelligence to recognize text in a photo that users can take action on.

As for the pricing, the 64GB model costs just $329 or $299 on education discount. It comes in space grey or silver. Plus, there's a cellular option. But the design remains the same, which means, there is Home button and Touch ID is built into it.

“iPad has never been more essential for working, learning, and communicating, and we're excited to bring one of the biggest updates ever to our most popular iPad,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “With the powerful A13 Bionic, more engaging video calls with Center Stage, and double the storage, the new iPad delivers advanced capabilities, versatility, and simplicity at an incredible value.”

Apple has also announced a new iPad mini with a brand new design that includes USB-C, thinner bezels, Touch ID in the top button like the iPad Air. The new iPad - Wi-Fi models of iPad are available with a starting price of ₹30900, and Wi-Fi + Cellular models start at ₹42900, in silver and space grey finishes for the base 64 gigs storage option.