On paper it all looks rather dry. The Air is 20 per cent slimmer than last year’s iPad 4 – down from 9.4mm to 7.5mm – while the weight of the 16GB Wi-Fi only model reviewed here drops by almost a third, from 652g to 469g. The 4G/LTE version weighs in at 478g. And while the 9.7-inch display with its 2048 x 1536 resolution remains essentially unchanged, the bezels on either side of the screen have been trimmed, reducing the width of the unit from 186mm to 169.5mm.
The numbers aren’t terribly exciting, but when you get your hands on the iPad Air, its more compact, lightweight design does impress. I’m the happy owner of a third-generation iPad. It hasn’t replaced my laptop for work, but when I’m at home the darn thing is pretty much grafted onto the end of my arm.
But I didn’t feel any great need to upgrade to the iPad 4 last year, as that was essentially just a speed bump and added a new connector, Lightning. The iPad Air, however, does have the lust factor that sets my credit card a-quivering in my pocket.
The best Apple products have always had a tactile quality that makes you want to pick them up and admire the elegance of the design, and the iPad Air has got it in spades. You can feel the cleanness and precision of the aluminium casing, and the metal buttons that lie almost but not quite flush with the surrounding panel. There are cheaper Android tablets by the score, but few that match the build quality and classy elegance of the iPad Air.
Source : The Register
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