iFixit calls the 10.9-inch iPad an iPad Air, but worse

The iFixit teardown of the 10.9-inch iPad shows that the tablet is mostly a recycled iPad Air 4 with odd shortcomings.

Apple announced the 10.9-inch iPad via a press release in October, and the product has drawn a lot of criticism since. It has improvements like a USB-C port and landscape selfie camera, but lacks Apple Pencil 2 support and Magic Keyboard compatibility.

iFixit did a routine teardown of the 10.9-inch iPad to see what differed about the product and exactly why the second-generation Apple Pencil wouldn't work. Rather than find a redesigned 9th-generation 10.2-inch iPad, they found what was essentially an iPad Air 4.

The speakers, Touch ID, and battery are the same between the 10.9-inch iPad and the iPad Air 4. The landscape selfie camera is obviously in the way of where the Apple Pencil magnetic attachment would be located, and space appears limited.

iFixit calls the 10.9-inch iPad baffling, interesting, and disappointing all in one. They recommend customers just buy an older iPad Air 4 and avoid the oddities.

7 Comments

mike1 3437 comments · 10 Years

About 2 years ago

Apple should hire these guys while they still know everything. Just like teenagers.

tht 5654 comments · 23 Years

iFixit calls the 10.9-inch iPad baffling, interesting, and disappointing all in one. They recommend customers just buy an older iPad Air 4 and avoid the oddities.Heh. Remember, never listen to iFixit regarding your product choices. They really don'y have a good perspective on product design.

Well, the video guy reading the script at least comes off as more snark than actual product review. Ie, they aren't making a serious recommendation.

elijahg 2842 comments · 18 Years

tht said:

iFixit calls the 10.9-inch iPad baffling, interesting, and disappointing all in one. They recommend customers just buy an older iPad Air 4 and avoid the oddities.
Heh. Remember, never listen to iFixit regarding your product choices. They really don'y have a good perspective on product design.

Well, the video guy reading the script at least comes off as more snark than actual product review. Ie, they aren't making a serious recommendation.

AI has said pretty much the same thing themselves. It's a bodge of bits. For example you can only use a first gen Apple Pencil with it, and need a stupid dongle to convert the USB-C port to a lightning socket.

elijahg said:

tht said:

iFixit calls the 10.9-inch iPad baffling, interesting, and disappointing all in one. They recommend customers just buy an older iPad Air 4 and avoid the oddities.
Heh. Remember, never listen to iFixit regarding your product choices. They really don'y have a good perspective on product design.

Well, the video guy reading the script at least comes off as more snark than actual product review. Ie, they aren't making a serious recommendation.

AI has said pretty much the same thing themselves. It's a bodge of bits. For example you can only use a first gen Apple Pencil with it, and need a stupid dongle to convert the USB-C port to a lightning socket.

Oh, I definitely disagree with them then, though I think they caveated everything. If someone is actually choosing between the two, I'd recommend the iPad 10 over the iPad 9. I think anyone who recommends the 9 over the 10 is doing a disservice for that buyer.

The 10 has 4 GB RAM while the 9 has 3 GB. That makes a huge difference for the longevity of the device. Then the 10.9" versus the 10.2" is also a big difference for the usability of the device.

clexman 218 comments · 15 Years

iPad 10 is a product of inflation. Apple needed to make something seem different enough for them to raise the price of the lowest tier iPad. Since it’s a mediocre improvement, but still an upgrade, from the iPad 9, they get to charge more for it.

When the next Apple product launch happens (any product), the iPad 9 will disappear and >$400 will be the new low for an iPad.

Time will tell if my guess is right or not.