Developer Apple Inc. Product family iPad Generation 6th | Manufacturer Foxconn Type Tablet computer Release date October 22, 2014 | |
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The iPad Air 2 is the sixth-generation iPad tablet computer designed, developed, and marketed by Apple Inc. It was announced on October 16, 2014 alongside the iPad Mini 3, both of which were released on October 22, 2014. The iPad Air 2 is thinner and faster than its predecessor, the iPad Air, and features Touch ID and the design, height and screen size are the same as the iPad Air.
Contents
History
The iPad Air 2 was announced during a keynote on October 16, 2014 and the theme of the keynote was "it's been way too long". The Air 2 began arriving in retail stores on October 22, 2014. The slogan for the device was Change Is in the Air. With the release of the new iPad Pro the slogan for the device was changed to Light. Heavyweight.
Software
The iPad Air 2 ships with the iOS 10 (formerly iOS 8, later iOS 9) operating system pre-installed and includes a version of Apple Pay with the in-store NFC functionality removed. The included Touch ID sensor allows the user to pay for items online without needing to enter the user's card details.
iOS 10 comes with several built-in applications, which are Camera, Photos, Messages, FaceTime, Mail, Music, Safari, Maps, Siri, Calendar, iTunes Store, App Store, Notes, Contacts, iBooks, Home, Reminders, Clock, Videos, News, Photo Booth and Podcasts. The Apple App Store, a digital application distribution platform for iOS, allows users to browse and download applications made by various developers from the iTunes Store. Additional apps made by Apple itself are available for free download, which are iMovie, GarageBand, iTunes U, Find My iPhone, Find My Friends, Apple Store, Trailers, Remote, and the iWork apps (Pages, Keynote, and Numbers). Like all iOS devices, the iPad Air 2 can also sync content and other data with a Mac or PC using iTunes. Although the tablet is not designed to make phone calls over a cellular network, it can place and receive phone calls through an iPhone's cellular connection, using Apple's Continuity feature (supported on iOS 8 and later versions of iOS, and OS X Yosemite and later versions of macOS), or using a VoIP application, such as Skype.
On June 8, 2015, it was announced at the WWDC that the iPad Air 2 would support all of iOS 9's new features when it is released in Q3 2015. Air 2 users with iOS 9 will be able to use Slide Over, Picture in Picture and Split View. Slide Over allows a user to "slide" a second app in from the side of the screen in a smaller window, and have it display information alongside the initial app. Picture in Picture allows a user to watch video in a small, resizable, moveable window while remaining in another app. Split View allows a user to run two apps simultaneously in a 50/50 view.
The iPad Air 2 inherits hardware that is similar to that which is in both the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. One major change is its processor, the Apple A8X which is the high-end 3-core variant of the Apple A8. The iPad Air 2 has 2 GB RAM (making the iPad Air 2 the first iOS device to have more than 1 GB RAM) and the PowerVR GPU has 8-cores. It also uses the Apple M8 motion co-processor which has a barometer and is the first generation of the iPad to inherit the fingerprint Touch ID sensor from the iPhone. In addition, compared to the iPad Air, it includes an improved 8-megapixel (3264×2448) rear-facing camera with 10 fps burst mode and slow motion video at 120 fps, similar to the iPhone 5S camera capabilities. The front-facing FaceTime HD camera has also been improved with a larger ƒ/2.2 aperture, which allows 81% more light in the image.
Unlike its predecessors, the mute/orientation lock switch has been removed to accommodate the reduced depth. Instead, the user must use the Control Center to access these functions.
It has a slightly smaller battery compared to the iPad Air but Apple claims the same 10-hour battery life as before. The iPad Air 2 is available in 32 or 128 GB storage options with no storage expansion options. Apple has released a "camera connection kit" with an SD card reader, but it can only be used to transfer photos and videos to an iPad.
Apple added a Gold option to the existing Silver and Space Gray color choices for the iPad Air 2, the previous existing colors were used on the preceding iPad Air.
Reception
The Verge called the Air 2 "the best tablet ever made," giving it a score of 9.3 out of 10 while noting that it offered only "iterative improvement" and that there were "missed opportunities" in its design.