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Apple rolled out a new iPad Air with a faster processor, enhancing a device that helped lift holiday sales despite an iPhone slump.

The tablets come in 11-inch and 13-inch size options, priced at US$599 (HK$4,672.2) and US$799, Apple said in an announcement on its website. They feature a new M3 chip, replacing the M2 processor that was put into the device last May. The new iPad Air runs nearly two times faster than one with an M1 chip, Apple said.

The new models are built for Apple Intelligence and as much as 60% faster for AI-based workloads, the company said.

The iPad Air update represents a faster turnaround than usual, coming only 10 months after the last version. The company is looking to keep up momentum for the line, which helped send iPad sales up 15 percent over the holidays. Apple uses its chips to differentiate its hardware and has shown a willingness to upgrade its devices more rapidly in recent years.

The M3 chip in the iPad Air features features a 9-core GPU. Bloomberg News earlier reported that the new iPad Air was imminent.

The company is also working on a new low-end iPad, as well as an upgraded iPad Pro. The latter model will have to wait until the M5 chip and may not arrive until the end of this year or early 2026.

Bloomberg

Apple launches upgraded iPad Air in bid to sustain tablet growth