Apple has just launched the iPad Pro 2018, a new MacBook Air, a Mac Mini 2018, and a whole lot more at its October event. Here’s everything that was unveiled during the company’s New York City presentation
Read on for key details, including specs, headline features and UK pricing and availability.
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iPad Pro 2018: Price, release date, specs
As expected, Apple has launched an all-new iPad Pro, and it looks exactly like the leaks claimed it would. There’s no home button, it’s been slimmed down, Apple has switched to USB-C, and there’s Face ID (without a notch).
There are two models to choose from: an 11-inch iPad Pro and a 12.9-inch iPad Pro.
- The 11-inch version features a 2388 x 1668 display with a pixel density of 264ppi, measures in at 247.6 x 178.5 x 5.9mm, and tips the scales at 468g.
- The 12.9-inch version, meanwhile, has a 2732 x 2048 display with a pixel density of 264ppi, measures in at 280.6 x 214.9 x 5.9mm, and weighs 633g.
Both models’ screens top out at 600 nits.
Read more: Best tablet
The iPad Pro 2018 features Face ID, which means you can unlock it just by looking at it, and the technology works in both portrait and landscape modes.
And to make up for the lack of a Home button, Apple is introducing a bunch of new swipe gestures, which could take a bit of getting used to…
Under the hood is a new 7nm, 8-core A12X Bionic CPU. Apple says the CPU has more than 10 billion transistors, and will offer 35% faster single-core speeds and 90% faster multi-core performance.
The CPU will have a 7-core Apple-designed GPU that the company says is 1000 times faster than the old iPad Pro. It claims these are “Xbox One S level” graphics. We’ll have to spend some time with the new models to put these claims to the test.
Read more: iPad Pro vs iPad
The 11-inch model has an entry price of £769 ($799 in the US), while the 12.9-inch version starts at £969 ($999 in the US). They’re up for pre-order right now from the Apple Store, and will start shipping on November 7.
You can read about the iPad Pro 2018 in full depth here.
There’s an Apple Pencil 2 too, which magnetically attaches to the iPad Pro 2018 and charges while it’s stuck there, and a Smart Keyboard folio built specifically for the new tablet.
But you might want to take a seat for this. The folio costs $179.99 for the 11-inch iPad Pro and $199.99 for the 12.9-inch model.
Read more: iPad Pro 2018 vs iPad Pro 2017
New MacBook Air: Price, release date, specs
The new MacBook Air may look rather familiar, but it’s been upgraded in almost every area (as it needed to be).
First and foremost, it comes with a 13.3-inch, 2560 x 1600 ‘Retina’ display with a pixel density of 227 ppi. Apple is also promising “48% more colour” than the previous gen Air’s screen.
The bezel around it, we’re pleased to report, has been slimmed-down significantly, resulting in a laptop that looks much more current. The new MacBook Air is claimed to be 17% smaller than its predecessor and weighs in at 1.25kg.
There’s Touch ID too, so all you need to do to unlock the new MacBook Air and authenticate purchases is scan your finger on a key in the bottom-left corner of the keyboard.
Unfortunately, that’s a butterfly-style keyboard, which we’ve heard loads of complaints about over the past couple of years. Has it been improved? We’ll have to wait and see. There’s also an always-on audio processor for constant Siri support and a Force Touch trackpad.
In terms of ports, you’ll get two USB-C ports supporting Thunderbolt 3, along with a 3.5mm headphone jack.
The top-end storage option is a 1.5TB SSD, while the maximum amount of memory you’ll be able to get in your new MacBook Air is 16GB of 2133MHz RAM.
A dual-core 8th gen Intel Core i5 CPU with a base clock speed of 1.6GHz and boost speed of 3.6GHz runs the show, but there’s no word on the exact model yet. As it’s dual-core and not quad-core, it’s a safe bet that it’s not a Whiskey Lake processor.
Apple says every new MacBook Air is also made “from 100% recycled aluminium”. You can find out more about that process here.
There are three colour options to choose from − Space Grey, Gold and Silver − and you can pre-order the new MacBook Air right now from the Apple Store. It will start shipping on November 7.
£1199 gets you 128GB of storage, which you can boost to 256GB for £1399. You can read about the new MacBook Air in full depth here.
Read more: Best MacBook
New Mac Mini 2018: Price, release date specs
There’s a new Mac Mini too. Aimed at professionals and creatives rather than your average computer user, the new Mac mini 2018 has had a hefty performance boost compared with the previous iteration.
It features a quad-core 8th Generation Intel CPU with the option to upgrade to six cores. Apple claims that this equates to speeds up to five times faster than the previous iteration of the Mac mini.
The memory has had a whopping upgrade, now with 2666MHz DDR4 SO-DIMM and support for up to 64GB of RAM. You also get up to 2TB of flash storage, which is a lot of space for even the most proactive of creatives. Apple claims the new Mac mini 2018’s SSDs are four times faster than what the previous generation offered.
In terms of ports, it has Ethernet (10GB available), HDMI, a headphone jack, two USB-A and four Thunderbolt ports.
The new Mac mini 2018 will cost £799 in the UK, with the six-core model coming in at £1099. You can pre-order the new Mac Mini right now, and it will also start shipping on November 7. You can read about the new Mac Mini 2018 in full depth here.
Are you tempted by any of Apple’s new products? Let us know on Twitter @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
