The new M2 iPad Air has just hit shelves this week, but direct from the desk of Captain Obvious comes a new report about the next model. Brace yourself, because the next iPad Air, which will likely arrive at some point in 2025, will reportedly have an M3 processor.
The shocking report, posted on X by a private account with “a proven track record of sharing accurate information about Apple’s plans,” according to Macrumors, didn’t offer any other details about the update, but we hear it’ll also have an 11-inch and 13-inch display, a single rear camera, and run iPadOS.
We kid, of course, because Apple has clearly established its processor cadence for the iPad Air. With the latest round of updates, Apple put even more distance between the iPad Air and iPad Pro lines, bumping the iPad Pro to a brand-new M4 chip while the iPad Air jumped from the M1 to the M2. So it stands to reason that the next iPad Pro will have an M5 chip while the iPad Air gets the M3, keeping the same two-generation gap.
Apple could have put an M3 in the latest Air, which would have still left the iPad Pro with a faster chip. Instead it gave it an older M2, which speaks to where the Air fits in the lineup. Going forward, we don’t need rumors to tell us that the Air and Pro will get the next respective M-series processor and stay two generations apart, while the iPad and iPad mini will likely stick with A-series chips that are a generation apart.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor, Macworld
Michael Simon has been covering Apple for more than 20 years. He started covering rumors with Spymac when the iPod was the iWalk, and has owned nearly every iPhone Apple has ever made. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, son, and far too many gadgets.