The iPad Air only exists to sell other iPads

Here’s a fun thought experiment: What would Apple’s tablet lineup look like if you removed the iPad Air? Just the basic iPad at one end (along with the outdated and unappealing iPad mini, which we’ll largely ignore for now) and the iPad Pro at the other. How would you approach this as a retail offering and how would it affect your purchasing decision?

The answer, at least for me, is that it wouldn’t be a fork at all. They would simply be two distinct and isolated products with little connection between them. It would be like comparing the Mac mini and the Mac Pro. Or the Apple Watch SE and Vision Pro, for that matter. There would be no point in comparing their specifications or weighing the pros and cons, you would just have to look at the one that is obviously meant for you and buy it if the price is right. If you want a couch computer, you buy the standard iPad; if you’re a hardcore creative, you buy the iPad Pro. That would make the decision a no-brainer.

Sounds like a good thing, right? Apple surely wants the purchasing decision to be a no-brainer, so that there is as little friction as possible to slow down the process from “wanting an iPad” to “owning an iPad.” He surely wants to make things easier for the customer. Or maybe not.

Because here’s the thing: It’s not just a thought experiment, it’s reality. For 99% of iPad buyers, there may as well be both options.

For most people who ask me for advice, the “right” choice is the basic iPad, because it is more than enough to meet their needs and (after a timely price cut) it offers excellent value for money . Very few iPad owners need a blazing-fast processor, a high-end display, or a terabyte of storage. And for the small market of creative professionals who TO DO If you need these things, the Pro makes a lot more sense than the Air because it’s more expandable, has better color reproduction, has Thunderbolt, and more. If the iPad is your work computer, you don’t skimp on premium features. In most Apple product categories, middlemen are a smart choice, combining functionality and value for money. But when it comes to iPads, because of the binary way people use them, you have to decide whether features or value are the priority for you, and then dedicate yourself fully to it.

Give these people some air

If that’s the case – if the iPad Air isn’t relevant to most customers – then it begs the question of why Apple bothers having an Air. And here at igamesnews, we have a theory.

I said earlier that an Airless iPad line feels like two unrelated products – okay, three, but honestly the iPad mini isn’t worth considering until that it receives an update – which have so little in common that no customer would bother to compare. them. But what the Air does is bridge the gap between the standard iPad and the iPad Pro and bring a sense of consistency to the lineup. In fact it brings the range into existence like a rangerather than stand-alone products.

Peter Ahrnstedt

Peter Ahrnstedt

Peter Ahrnstedt

With the Air nestled in the middle, it becomes much more tempting to load up Apple’s iPad comparison page and start sparring over tech specs. And then the intrusive thoughts begin. Anti-reflective coating looks good. I like the look of this new Magic Keyboard, maybe I should get an iPad that supports it. What is Wi-Fi 6E? Do I need 16 GB of RAM? How many CPU cores are worth buying?

In other words, the existence of the iPad Air introduces a lot of indecision that can actually help Apple, because it encourages customers to spend more on things they want but may not have need. And for sensible, stay-in-their-lane customers, it helps reinforce the standard iPad’s value for money at the low end and the iPad Pro’s capabilities at the high end.

For those considering a vanilla iPad, the iPad Air acts as a price anchor, quietly establishing in the customer’s mind the idea that $599 is the kind of price a person could reasonably pay for a new tablet. Compared to that$349 seems like a good deal, especially for the same size screen and very similar design. And compared to the Air’s M2 processor, 6.1mm chassis, and laminated LED display (which we all know is excellent, because this isn’t the budget iPad we’re talking about), the Pro’s M4 , its 5.3mm chassis and tandem OLED screen truly seems unrivaled in the world. Which, let’s be clear, is the case… but it’s good to make sure customers like what they’re getting for their money.

I have no doubt that Apple sells a lot of iPad Airs, but the product’s value to Apple is about more than how many units it moves. It all depends on how customers feel about the product. other iPad. And that feeling of confusion you get when looking at the iPad lineup may not be an accident after all.