Apple unveils new iPad Pro with trackpad support and powerful MacBook Air

Mar 19 2020, 2:12 am

Apple revealed the newest models of its iPad Pro and MacBook Air products today, and there was one particular addition that could change the entire game for the tech giant.

Without the use of a live announcement event, as is customary for the company, information was dropped online and Daily Hive got the news.

Since then, listings and pre-orders have launched through Apple’s website.

New MacBook Air with better keyboard, faster performance, and more storage

MacBook Air/Apple

First introduced on the 16-inch MacBook Pro in November 2019, Apple’s latest “Magic Keyboard” comes built-in on the MacBook Air. It features modern scissor mechanics to provide a stable and comforting feel in its minimal 1mm travel distance, making for a “more satisfying key feel” in the recycled-aluminum body frame.

The new notebook also got a huge speed boost, offering quad-core 10th-generation Intel processors – for the first time in a MacBook Air – which makes it up to two times faster than previous models.

Also doubled is the storage space, which starts at 256GB and can be configured up to a 2TB solid-state drive (SSD). That, plus the up-to-80% graphics boost, means you can engage in more intensive activities faster, like playing games or editing videos.

new apple MacBook air

MacBook Air/Apple

Shipping next week, the new MacBook Air starts at $1,299 – making it the cheapest Apple notebook in the MacBook lineup.

New iPad Pro with a magical keyboard cover and trackpad support

Celebrating 10 years of the iPad, Apple asserts it will sell its 500 millionth iPad this year, a huge milestone for the company that says it makes the number one selling tablet.

New iPad Pro camera with LiDAR Scanner/Apple

In recent years, the iPad Pro lineup has dominated the tablet market, and Apple isn’t keen on letting that slow down anytime soon.

Both the 11-inch and 12.9-inch new iPad Pro models look the same as their predecessors, but they have a mountain of complexities and new hardware added in.

The brain of the new 2020 iPad Pro is Apple’s breakthrough A12Z Bionic chip, which allows for crazy-fast editing (even in 4K) and a large boost in multi-tasking performance. Thanks to the eight-core GPU, the updated iPad Pro brings a brilliantly smooth visual fidelity that’s nearly unmatched in the mobile-computing market.

Apple has also brought the new iPhone cameras to the iPad Pro: the 12MP wide camera with 4K video and 10MP ultra wide camera, a definite game-changer for creative pros.

They’ve also brought five studio-quality microphones to the device (the same as the 16-inch MacBook Pro), making the iPad Pro a mini mobile studio.

DoubleTake by FiLMiC Pro being used on the iPad Pro/Apple

A “breakthrough” for Apple is the “LiDAR Scanner” to go along with the cameras for depth sensing and augmented reality (AR). In the most basic sense, the scanner measures the distance between objects and points based on the low-power laser it shoots out and reflections that come back.

Working with data from both cameras and motion sensors, the AR experience gets significantly better, working near instantly rather than scanning the environment before an app loads.

AR on the iPad Pro/Apple

A new take on the iPad OS (13.4) brings gesture improvements, and cursor support. Yes, cursor support. Why?

Because Apple has finally brought a trackpad into the mix.

The highlight of today’s unveiling was neither product on display. Rather, a highly functional laptop-like case and keyboard for the newest edition of the iPad Pro.

An iPad keyboard that turns one of the best tablets into a lap-able computer is a game-changer in a world where most peripherals are either detached or floppy. Prompting Apple’s new promotional campaign, “Your next computer is not a computer.”

The new Magic Keyboard is a product that previous iPad owners would have had to search online, with third-party accessory teams, in order to obtain.

Making the iPad Pro as powerful as a MacBook or better, then turning it into something that functions on your lap like a notebook, makes any argument against the iPad Pro as your “go-to” computer pretty much disappear.

The Magic Keyboard is complete with a full-size keyboard that, like the new MacBook Air, is the same as the 16-inch MacBook Pro – and is backlit.

Along with allowing users to sit anywhere and type, the “floating” iPad keyboard and mount, which angles from 90° to 130°, also features a USB-C charging passthrough, which means you can use the USB-C on the iPad Pro itself for any accessories. It also features a fully functional trackpad, which works in perfect tandem with the iPadOS cursor support.

Apple Inc.

Trackpad support will be available on any iPad running iPadOS 13.4 and works with Apple’s Magic Mouse 2 and Magic Trackpad 2, along with third-party mice connected via bluetooth or USB.

The new iPad Pro starts at $1,049 and ships next week.

The Magic Keyboard starts at $399 and ships in May.

Update: April 15 – The new Magic Keyboard is now available to order and begins shipping next week.

Daily Hive StaffDaily Hive Staff

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