Apple has renewed almost its entire iPad range this year. Firstly, in May, it presented the new iPad Pro with M4 chip and the 11- and 13-inch iPad Air. In addition, they announced last week the new seventh-generation iPad mini. As you can see, they have forgotten one of the company’s most famous tablets.
Tim Cook’s guys have not presented an update on the Basic iPadwhich has not received any improvement for more than two years. Although an announcement was expected, it has not arrived, leaving questions in the air about the future of one of the brand’s most popular products.
Apple forgets to renew the iPad
The basic iPad, which debuted in 2017, was designed as an accessible option for the general public, especially for the educational field. Throughout its different generations, it has been adding convenient features such as Apple Pencil holderlarger screens and better chips, while maintaining a competitive price. The last major renovation came in the tenth generation, with a redesign that included more striking colors and the change to USB-C, although it still had some shortcomings, such as incompatibility with the Apple Pencil 2.
The current basic iPad, with an A14 chip, has been on the market for more than two years, and although this period of time without renewal has raised doubts, the reason could be Apple’s commitment to artificial intelligence. The integration of Apple Intelligence, present in all its new products, seems to have conditioned this decision.
The lack of a new version of the iPad could be related to Apple Intelligence technology. If Apple had followed its usual pattern, the iPad 11 would have the A16 chip, which is not supported with this technology. This could have influenced the decision not to release a new version, as the company would not want to introduce a product without its star feature, although it is not yet available in Europe.
Another factor to consider is the price. With a current price of €399, it does not seem feasible that Apple could include a more advanced chip without increase the price of the device. In addition, the iPad Mini 7, which carries the A17 Pro, uses a limited version of this processor with five cores, suggesting that Apple is controlling the use of the latest generation chips so as not to overload its manufacturing process.
New iPad in 2025?
Initial rumors pointed to a refresh of the base iPad this fall. However, the latest information indicates that this will not happen until autumn 2025. According to analyst Ross Young, shipments of screens for the iPad 11 they have already startedwhich could translate into a spring release. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman is less optimistic, stating that the basic iPad will not be updated until late 2025, coinciding with the arrival of the iPhone 17.
The basic iPad has gone three years without renewal and its A14 chip will soon be five years old, raising questions about long-term support and updates. Meanwhile, Apple is steering users toward the iPad Air, with Apple Intelligence driving sales of more expensive models.