Available from Friday, the new iPad is billed by Apple as "screamingly fast", "a ton of technology" and exhibiting "the power of lightness(?)".
But what do the tech critics have to say?
There is a question, of course, over why anyone should spend £399 on a tablet when Carphone Warehouse will sell you one for £49, and Tesco will sell you the perfectly decent Hudl for £119.But neither of these devices, nor for that matter Samsung’s more expensive versions, feel like the truly premium iPad. Air may yet be the oxygen for a new wave of uses for the iPad.
As strange as it may sound, the latest iPad is actually just a larger version of the 7.9-inch mini. If you thought you had a tough choice last year, the iPad Air faces even tougher competition in 2013 -- and it's likely to get yet more fierce over the coming year. Though the Air will continue to be a solid option thanks to its size, weight, performance and battery life, the Nexus 10 offers a great experience at a lower price (although its lack of cellular connectivity is a potential con). And if you want the absolute best components, you might be just as happy with other flagship tablets.
Reviews continue after the slideshow...
10 Best Tablets
It's hard to put into words how much Apple has improved the iPad, offering a stunning level of detail and power with a build quality that's unrivalled. But the reduction in thickness, and especially weight could well ensure that the iPad Air is the finest tablet on the market.
Apple made tablets cool and still leads the pack when it comes to design, performance and overall desirability with the iPad Air. Yes, it’s true, the iPad Air is essentially a larger iPad Mini Retina. For some, that’s a disappointment. For me, the new iPad Air is close to everything a consumer tablet should be: Light, fast, fun, beautiful and a little bit like the future.
We'd hoped for a better camera (more for the slo-mo video) and Touch ID tech, but the 64-bit processor improvements mean it'll cope with anything you throw at it for some time. The battery seems to have improved a touch, too. If you can justify a 4G contract, then plump for that.
Apple has done it again: the iPad Air is a tablet better than the last iPad. Simply put the iPad Air is the best iPad the company has ever made. It's light, it's thin, it's fast, it's amazing.
We can’t fault the performance or the connectivity, and the battery life defies superlatives. Yes, you pay a premium for the WiFi + Cellular version, but at least this time around there’s the reassurance of knowing that the same iPad will deliver LTE whether you jump from Verizon to AT&T or vice-versa. iOS 7 still divides opinion, but its simplicity and consistency looks great on the high-resolution Retina screen.