iPad Air Reportedly Moving To M4 Chip In 2026, Alongside A Faster Base iPad

Apple isn’t done refreshing its iPad lineup. After the new iPad Pro arrived earlier this year, a new report hints at what the company is preparing for 2026. The short version is simple. The next entry-level iPad and the next iPad Air may not look dramatically different, but both could get meaningful bumps in speed and connectivity.

The details come from Macworld, which cites internal Apple documentation tied to early iOS 26 builds.

A Faster Entry-Level iPad With Apple’s A19 Chip

The base iPad has largely stayed in the safe zone over the last few generations, but things might change next year. According to the report, Apple is testing two variants under the codenames J581 and J582. Both are linked to the A19 processor, the same chip that powers the iPhone 17.

If you’re keeping track, the current base iPad uses Apple’s A16 chip. That one doesn’t support Apple Intelligence features, which pushed a lot of buyers toward pricier models this year. The A19 jump should help with that gap. Apple says the A19 is around 50 percent faster than the A16. It also brings 8GB of RAM instead of the usual 6GB.

This puts the entry-level iPad in a much better place for the next cycle of software updates. On paper, it sounds like the kind of upgrade that sets it up for a longer life without changing how the device looks or feels.

Apple’s New N1 Networking Chip Might Come To Cheaper iPads

One of the quiet changes Apple made this year was introducing its own wireless networking chip. The N1 processor showed up first on the iPhone 17 and iPhone Air. It handles Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 6 and thread connectivity.

Now it may be coming to the base iPad too. That’s a shift away from the Broadcom hardware Apple relied on for years. Bringing N1 to lower priced models would also give Apple more control over radio performance and future features tied to Apple Intelligence.

Other parts of the hardware, like the display and the camera, seem likely to carry over from the current version. So this looks more like a performance refresh rather than a complete overhaul.

iPad Air May Get A Chip Upgrade, Nothing More

The iPad Air also appears to be getting a spec bump. Multiple codenames are floating around, including J707, J708, J737 and J738. The upgrade here centers on the M4 processor.

If Apple stays consistent with previous generations, the jump to M4 should give a moderate boost to app performance and creative workloads without changing much else. Like the entry-level model, the Air is also rumored to adopt the N1 networking chip.

The rest of the package, including the display and cameras, will likely stay the same as the current Air. Apple sometimes goes multiple cycles before changing its industrial design, and this might be one of those in-between years.

What These Upgrades Suggest For 2026

If all of this goes ahead, Apple’s cheaper iPads could feel less “budget” and more like solid mid-range options. Faster chips and the shift to N1 networking would also help align these models with Apple Intelligence features across the ecosystem.

You probably shouldn’t expect sweeping redesigns next year, though. This sounds like an internal refresh that focuses on long-term support rather than new form factors.

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