For years, the iPad has been a no-brainer purchase for a lot of people. Apple pretty much created the consumer tablet market, and the $329 iPad gives you everything you need from a midrange tablet: low-key productivity, web browsing, casual games, media, and the Pencil stylus for creativity.
Apple's 2019 iPad tries to push the tablet a little more toward creativity by making it compatible with the iPad Air's very nice keyboard case, and supporting three windowed apps running at once. But generally, it's a subtle upgrade. It could win some lower-intensity users away from Windows 2-in-1s and Chromebooks, but it isn't going to force existing iPad owners to rush out and upgrade. Here's a closer look.
7th-Generation iPad
This is the seventh-generation iPad, coming in at a sweet $329, just like the previous model. The new iPad has a 10.2-inch LCD screen, which is bigger than its predecessor's 9.7-inch screen but not quite as big as the 10.5-inch screen on the iPad Air. The new iPad is physically the same size as the Air, it just has bigger bezels.
iPad Back
The cameras on this iPad are the same as on the previous model. It has an 8-megapixel camera on the back, and a 1.2MP camera on the front.
A10 Processor
This iPad runs an A10 processor, which is one step up from the A9 in the previous iPad, but not as fast as the A12 in the iPad Air.
iPad Multi-Window
The A10 processor lets you run three apps in different panes at once without sending one of them to sleep. Now, it still isn't a Mac, but it's a little more capable than the last iPad was.
iPad Frogger
Apple wanted to show us its new Arcade subscription app, which costs $4.99 a month and gives you access to a library of exclusive games. They're all family-friendly games that use the iPad's graphic processor pretty heavily, like this reinvented version of Frogger.
iPad Arcade Screen
Here's part of the Apple Arcade menu. All the games come with the subscription, and new games will be delivered every month. But you should know that these aren't "hardcore gamer" games, although those will certainly still be available through the App Store.
iPad Keyboard
Along with gaming, Apple really wants you to use productivity apps on the iPad. The new iPad has a physical keyboard connector to work with the iPad Air's keyboard, which is really comfortable to use.
iPad Headphone Jack
Apple did away with the headphone jack on iPhones several generations ago, but it remains on the iPad. It isn't about "courage," it's about there being enough space on the device.
Apple Pencil
Like the last iPad, this works with the first-generation Pencil stylus, which is very, very accurate. It feels responsive until you use an iPad Pro with its 120Hz display, but that kind of tablet is a lot more expensive.
iPad Lightning Port
Otherwise, the iPad's body hasn't been updated much. It comes in silver, dark gray, and gold, and it still has a headphone jack and Lightning charging port. We've always recommended the base model iPad as a great value for what you get, and this generation will satisfy a lot of people. We will have a full review soon on PCMag.com.