Apple opened the week of announcements: iPhone 17e and iPad Air with an M4 chip were revealed

The first launches for the big week: Apple opened its series of announcements with two key products for the mid-range market, the iPhone 17e and a new iPad Air with an M4 chip. While the design has hardly changed, the main innovation is under the hood, in the chips, memory and connectivity. The announcements come ahead of a physical event to be held on March 4 in New York, where additional products such as new MacBook computers are expected to be unveiled.

The 6.1-inch Super Retina screen received a Ceramic Shield 2 layer, which the company says provides 3 times higher resistance to scratches and reduced reflections compared to the previous generation. Despite this, the external design is almost the same as that of the iPhone 16e, and the photography setup also remains with the Fusion camera with a resolution of 48 megapixels.

Under the surface, an A19 chip has been integrated, the same as the one in the more expensive iPhone 17 models, which enables full support for Apple Intelligence’s artificial intelligence tools. The device runs on the iOS 26 operating system and is equipped with the new C1X cellular modem, which according to Apple is up to 2 times faster than the previous generation.

The working memory has increased from 8 gigabytes in the previous generation to 12 gigabytes, a noticeable upgrade at a time when memory prices in the world are rising. Despite this, the price remains the same, $599 for the 11-inch model and $799 for the 13-inch model, both with 128 GB of basic storage. There is a $50 discount for educational purchases.

The device runs on iPadOS 26 and combines N1 and C1X connectivity chips. This is the first iPad Air that supports WiFi 7, and in addition there is an option for fifth generation cellular connectivity. The exterior design has hardly changed, with the same LCD screen as in the last two generations, the same rear camera and the same dual speaker array.