The iPad Air M4 is the tablet most people should buy. Brandon Butch called the M3 Air "the most well-rounded iPad of the bunch," and the M4 improves on it in every measurable way: the M4 chip is 30% faster, RAM jumps from 8GB to 12GB, and Wi-Fi 7 future-proofs your wireless connectivity. Apple kept the price at $599.
The M4 chip is the same silicon powering MacBooks. Gadget Evolution demonstrated how the previous M3 Air ran Lightroom, split-view multitasking, and heavy app loads without stuttering. The M4 widens that performance gap. For students editing video projects, photographers culling in Lightroom, or anyone running multiple apps side by side, this chip has headroom to spare.
Apple's accessory ecosystem gives the Air an edge no Android tablet can match. The Apple Pencil Pro supports barrel roll, haptic feedback, and hover detection. The Magic Keyboard turns the Air into a laptop replacement that weighs 464g. The Tech Chap pointed out that the Air models have become the "best allrounders" because the Pro tier has priced itself beyond what most people can justify.
And then there's longevity. Gadget Evolution and The Tech Chap both estimated 5-7 years of iPadOS updates. Your $599 buys you half a decade of software support. No Android tablet comes close to that timeline.
What It Won't Do
The 60Hz display is the iPad Air's most glaring weakness. At $599, you're getting a refresh rate that $300 Android tablets beat by 84Hz. The Lenovo IdeaTab Pro runs at 144Hz for half the price. It's genuinely hard to defend Apple's choice here, and every reviewer we analyzed flagged it. Brandon Butch, Gadget Evolution, and The Tech Chap all called it the Air's biggest limitation. If you're coming from a phone with a 120Hz screen, you'll feel the difference immediately in scrolling and animations. The IPS LCD also can't deliver the deep blacks of OLED panels on the iPad Pro or Samsung's Galaxy Tab line. Apple still won't include Face ID either, leaving you with Touch ID on the power button.
The Lenovo IdeaTab Pro costs $280-350 and comes with everything in the box. That includes the Tab Pen Plus stylus, a fast charger, and a 12.7-inch 144Hz 3K display that's physically bigger and smoother than the iPad Air's screen. Android Digest called it "one of the best values I've seen around 300 bucks." Audioviser labeled it "a steal."
Four JBL-tuned speakers with Dolby Atmos fill a room with surprisingly full sound. Foremost Picks compared the speaker output favorably against tablets costing twice as much. For movie watching, music, and video calls, the Lenovo's audio setup punches well above its weight class.
The IdeaTab Pro also has a trick that even the iPad Air can't match: external monitor output via USB-C. Android Digest highlighted this as a productivity feature that transforms a $300 tablet into a desktop workstation. Plug in a hub, connect a monitor, and you have a split workspace with a 12.7-inch secondary screen. MicroSD expansion means you're not locked into whatever storage tier you bought.
What It Won't Do
Lenovo's software update policy is the IdeaTab Pro's fatal weakness. Audioviser called it "kind of a joke." Expect one major Android update to Android 16 and that's probably the end of the road. While the iPad Air M4 will be getting new features in 2031, this tablet's software will be frozen somewhere around 2027. The screen also maxes out at 400 nits, which Teoh on Tech, Android Digest, and Foremost Picks all confirmed makes outdoor use a squinting exercise. And if you're a digital artist hoping the included stylus replaces an Apple Pencil, Teoh on Tech found the tilt sensitivity frustrating: curved lines get an ugly "shoelace effect" where they taper abruptly instead of flowing smoothly.
Who Should Buy Which
Apple iPad Air M4 (11-inch)
The tablet most people should buy
- You want a tablet that handles serious creative work, video editing, photo processing, music production, without choking
- You're already in Apple's ecosystem and want continuity with your iPhone, Mac, or AirPods
- Software longevity matters: you expect 5+ years of OS updates and security patches
- You'll buy Apple Pencil Pro or Magic Keyboard and want the best accessory integration available
- Portability is a priority, at 464g and 6.1mm thin, you need something you can carry every day
Lenovo IdeaTab Pro
Everything in the box for under $350
- You're a student who needs a big screen for notes, textbooks, and video lectures without blowing your budget
- Media consumption is the primary use case: streaming, YouTube, casual browsing with great speakers
- You want everything in the box, stylus, charger, and a 12.7-inch 144Hz screen, for under $350
- External monitor support matters for your workflow, and you want expandable storage via microSD
- You use your tablet mainly indoors where the 400-nit brightness limit won't be an issue