Apple launched a new artificial intelligence-driven iPad Pro and a bigger iPad Air on Tuesday, as the company aims to bolster its struggling tablet division and wrestles with rivals such Samsung and OnePlus to boost its global tablet market share.
The Cupertino-based company also launched its in-house M4 chips to add to its AI and machine-learning capabilities. The new products were launched at an online event called Let Loose on Tuesday.
The latest iPads Pro is the first redesigned version of the Pro series since 2018.
Comparatively thinner and lighter, it comes in two different sizes – 13-inch and 11-inch displays. Apple said it has added one of the most advanced displays – ultra retina XDR display – in iPad Pro, powered with the latest M4 chip.
M4 chips enable the introduction of a new display engine to allow better precision, colour quality and brightness of the screen.
The 13-inch iPad Pro is 5.1mm thin, which the company claimed makes it its leanest Apple product ever.
This is the “biggest update ever” to iPad Pro, said John Ternus, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware engineering.
“With the breakthrough ultra retina XDR display, the next-level performance of M4, incredible AI capabilities and support for the all-new Apple Pencil Pro and magic keyboard, there is no device like the new iPad Pro,” he added.
Apple also announced the redesigned 11-inch and all-new 13-inch iPad Air with M2 chip.
Ending the longest drought
Apple's latest launch marks the conclusion of its lengthiest hiatus in launching new iPads since the device was initially introduced by co-founder Steve Jobs in 2010.
The last update was in October 2022, with Apple introducing a faster chip to the iPad Pro and releasing a redesigned low-end model.
"Historically, the iPad has been a testing ground for Apple products, a less scrutinised line that allows the company to experiment without the risks associated with doing the same with the iPhone or the Mac,” Thomas Monteiro, senior analyst at Investing.com, told The National.
"Apple can do two things with the iPad launch, which may be just as important as direct sales right now … test the functionality of the new M4 chips at a less risky part of the operation and create tremendous expectations for future iPhone and Mac products.”
Share price goes up
Following the new products announcement, Apple’s stock jumped 0.3 per cent to trade at $181.76 a share, giving the company a market value of $2.79 trillion at 8.15pm UAE time (12.15pm New York time).
Share price has dropped more than 2 per cent since the start of the year.
Analysts said the new launches could very well drive investor sentiment back into the stock, supporting the company at a “rather volatile moment in its recent history”.
“If [chief executive] Tim Cook manages to show that the new chip line is finally the ground-breaking innovation for Apple products we have been waiting on for years, this could mark the start of Apple's new growth cycle,” said Mr Monterio.
“However, real-world testing will be required and that's what the iPads are mainly here for."
Where iPads stand in revenue
Sales in the last quarter dropped nearly 16.6 per cent annually to $5.6 billion as the company experienced a dwindling interest in its tablets.
However, industry experts do not expect the new iPad line-up to add significantly to the company’s revenue. In fact, they consider it as “groundwork needed for better, more innovative products in the months ahead”, Mr Monterio said.
M4 chip: all set to harness AI to the fullest
The new iPad Pro with M4 chip is capable of 38 trillion operations per second, 60 times faster than Apple’s first neural engine in the A11 bionic chip.
With the new iPad Pro, users can perform AI-enabled tasks “even faster”, Apple said.
The latest operating system will let developers to tap into the neural engine to deliver “phenomenal AI features”, including running powerful diffusion and generative AI models.
The M4 chip will also allow iPad Pro to support cloud-based solutions, enabling users to run productivity and creative apps that tap into the power of AI, such as Copilot for Microsoft 365 and Adobe Firefly.
Prices and availability
Customers can order the new iPad Pro and iPad Air online from today, with availability in stores beginning on May 15.
The 11-inch iPad Pro starts at Dh4,199 ($1,143) for the Wi-Fi model, and Dh4,999 for the Wi-Fi plus cellular model. While the 13-inch iPad Pro starts at Dh5,499 for the Wi-Fi model, and Dh6,299 for the Wi-Fi and cellular model.
The new 11-inch iPad Air will start at Dh2,499 and the 13-inch iPad Air will start at Dh3,299.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
Dubai Bling season three
Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed
Rating: 1/5
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
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Company%20Profile
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Points to remember
- Debate the issue, don't attack the person
- Build the relationship and dialogue by seeking to find common ground
- Express passion for the issue but be aware of when you're losing control or when there's anger. If there is, pause and take some time out.
- Listen actively without interrupting
- Avoid assumptions, seek understanding, ask questions
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Expert input
If you had all the money in the world, what’s the one sneaker you would buy or create?
“There are a few shoes that have ‘grail’ status for me. But the one I have always wanted is the Nike x Patta x Parra Air Max 1 - Cherrywood. To get a pair in my size brand new is would cost me between Dh8,000 and Dh 10,000.” Jack Brett
“If I had all the money, I would approach Nike and ask them to do my own Air Force 1, that’s one of my dreams.” Yaseen Benchouche
“There’s nothing out there yet that I’d pay an insane amount for, but I’d love to create my own shoe with Tinker Hatfield and Jordan.” Joshua Cox
“I think I’d buy a defunct footwear brand; I’d like the challenge of reinterpreting a brand’s history and changing options.” Kris Balerite
“I’d stir up a creative collaboration with designers Martin Margiela of the mixed patchwork sneakers, and Yohji Yamamoto.” Hussain Moloobhoy
“If I had all the money in the world, I’d live somewhere where I’d never have to wear shoes again.” Raj Malhotra
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Singapore
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Australia
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South Korea
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The Two Popes
Director: Fernando Meirelles
Stars: Anthony Hopkins, Jonathan Pryce
Four out of five stars
How the UAE gratuity payment is calculated now
Employees leaving an organisation are entitled to an end-of-service gratuity after completing at least one year of service.
The tenure is calculated on the number of days worked and does not include lengthy leave periods, such as a sabbatical. If you have worked for a company between one and five years, you are paid 21 days of pay based on your final basic salary. After five years, however, you are entitled to 30 days of pay. The total lump sum you receive is based on the duration of your employment.
1. For those who have worked between one and five years, on a basic salary of Dh10,000 (calculation based on 30 days):
a. Dh10,000 ÷ 30 = Dh333.33. Your daily wage is Dh333.33
b. Dh333.33 x 21 = Dh7,000. So 21 days salary equates to Dh7,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service. Multiply this figure for every year of service up to five years.
2. For those who have worked more than five years
c. 333.33 x 30 = Dh10,000. So 30 days’ salary is Dh10,000 in gratuity entitlement for each year of service.
Note: The maximum figure cannot exceed two years total salary figure.
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
The years Ramadan fell in May
The Sky Is Pink
Director: Shonali Bose
Cast: Priyanka Chopra Jonas, Farhan Akhtar, Zaira Wasim, Rohit Saraf
Three stars
THE BIO
Born: Mukalla, Yemen, 1979
Education: UAE University, Al Ain
Family: Married with two daughters: Asayel, 7, and Sara, 6
Favourite piece of music: Horse Dance by Naseer Shamma
Favourite book: Science and geology
Favourite place to travel to: Washington DC
Best advice you’ve ever been given: If you have a dream, you have to believe it, then you will see it.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
