Apple iPad Air review: The fastest iPad this year

The 2020 version of Apple’s iPad Air has a weird market position. While there’s still almost no competition from Android tablets, with the iPad Pro out there and Apple’s new M1 chipset-driven Macbooks, the iPad itself is becoming a tough sell. At its core, this year's iPad Air is a toned-down version of the iPad Pro, which itself is a mobile alternative to Apple's laptops. Wouldn’t a laptop running the Apple M1 processor and with a detachable screen just make much more sense?

But that’s not the only reason why the iPad Air is difficult to review. While the Air is meant to be a “toned down" version of the iPad Pro, this year’s Air is actually faster than the Pro. It uses the new A14 Bionic chipset, which is faster than the A12Z running on the iPad Pro, though it’s a difference you’ll notice only if you’re running benchmark tests.