Apple’s Next iPad Air To Jump To TSMC’s 3nm Chip, As Company Creates An Even Wider Gap With The ‘Pro’ Models

Apple’s iPad Air lineup sits pretty well between the entry-level models and the OLED iPad Pro models, giving users the best from both categories. Compared to its price point, the performance of the M2 iPad Air is top-notch, and it appears that the company is taking another major step forward. According to a new rumor originating from a private account on X, the next iPad Air upgrade will embark on Apple’s 3nm architecture, featuring the M3 chip developed by TSMC.

iPad Air is already rumored to come with an M3 chip, as Apple widens the gap with ‘Pro’ models

Apple announced the new M3 series of chips less than a year ago, but the company saw fit to unveil the M4 chip with the launch of the new OLED iPad Pro models. It is quite interesting, as the company skipped the M3 chip, which should have been the devised upgrade for the ‘Pro’ iPad. However, considering how Apple is taking giant leaps forward in the development of its generative AI technology, a faster processor with increased Neural Engine cores makes a lot of sense.

According to the tipster (via MacRumors), Apple’s next iPad Air upgrade will come with an M3 chip, possibly the same chip that powers the base MacBook Air and Pro models. The jump from the M1 or M2 to the new M3 chip would be huge as it would transition the iPad Air lineup from 5nm to 3nm architecture. This will not only allow improved performance in the Air but also boast better power efficiency.

Since Apple announced the M2 iPad Air a mere week ago, we presume that the upgrade will not happen until next year. This also means that the company will keep the iPad Air a step behind the ‘Pro’ models. However, the technology giant seems to have created a wider gap in terms of performance as the iPad Pro would likely jump to the M5 chip. Since these are mere speculations, note that Apple could head in a different direction altogether. This is because the company could skip a year again for the ‘Pro’ upgrade as it did last year.

As for the newly released M2 iPad Air, it is available in 11-inch and 13-inch screen sizes, similar to the ‘Pro’ models. The performance is 50 percent faster on the M2 iPad Air compared to the M1 models, which is a major jump for users upgrading from the iPad 10 or older iPad models. The iPad Air is available at a starting price of $599 for the 11-inch model and $799 for the 13-inch model.