New iPad with optional Pencil: Everything Apple just announced
Apple's newest iPad keeps the same $329 price but boosts its specs and adds the Pencil as a $99 option. Here's everything we know so far.
Apple's "field trip" event at a Chicago's Lane Tech High School just wrapped up, and we've all learned an important lesson: the new iPad costs the same as the old one.
The company's least expensive tablet is now official, and the price is still $329 (£319 in the UK, and AU$469 in Australia).
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But it's now compatible with the Pencil -- Apple's stylus device that was formerly reserved for the iPad Pro. Apple touts the $99 (£89, AU$145) Pencil as a boon to educators and students alike, and crucially it's something that cheaper Chromebooks, which are more popular in schools than iPads, don't have. Unlike iPads, however, Chromebooks have physical keyboards.
9.7 inch iPad: Compared to the 2017 model, the new iPad's biggest improvement aside from Pencil support is speed. It uses Apple's A10 Fusion chip, making it more powerful than most laptops including Chromebook, albeit less powerful than the iPad Pro. The new iPad is also said to be optimized for augmented reality (AR). Apple claims a 10-hour battery life and faster (300 Mbps) LTE. The cameras, memory options and 9.7-inch Retina screen appear identical to the 2017 version.
The new iPad is available now in silver, gold or space gray.
- Apple's new iPad 9.7 vs. the old iPad 9.7: Full specs comparison
Apple iPad prices (2018)
32GB Wi-Fi | 128GB Wi-Fi | 32GB LTE | 128GB LTE | |
US | $329 | $429 | $459 | $559 |
UK | £319 | £409 | £449 | £539 |
Australia | $469 | $599 | $669 | $799 |
Logitech Crayon: Apple opened up the Pencil to third-party alternatives, and a half-price ($49) "crayon" by accessories maker Logitech is first on deck.
More Apple announcements
In addition to new hardware, Apple also highlighted a bunch of software additions and enhancements aimed at education.
- 200GB iCloud option for schools
- Froggipedia, an AR app that lets you dissect frogs using the Pencil
- Swift Playgrounds programming app gets support for AR
- More classroom tools, including Apple School Manager, Classroom app, Schoolwork app and Apple Teacher
- The Schoolwork app is also focused on protecting students' privacy.
- Apple says there are nearly 200,000 apps made for education
More reactions and analysis from CNET
Apple's new $329 iPad with Pencil support takes on Chromebooks
Apple's iPad is still $329, but will iPhone X see a price cut?
Cheapskate: Amazon's Fire HD 10 is still half the price of the new iPad