This week, Apple introduced the iPad Air (2025). However, less attention was given to a new version of the regular iPad, which was also announced. If you missed this additional news, that’s understandable. This latest version wasn’t so much announced as it simply appeared on the Apple online store.

The 11th-generation iPad wasn’t even worthy of a press release, which says a lot. Even the latest iPad mini, another tablet Apple hasn’t shown much love in recent years, received a press release when it was announced in October.

Why is there so much missing love for the regular iPad? Why should would-be buyers care?

Before getting started, let’s briefly look at the iPad (2025) and see how it differs from the previous model, which was released in 2022.

The most significant improvement from one version to the next is the introduction of an A16 chip on the new model. This is a jump from the previous version’s A14 Bionic chip, but, and this is key, it is not as big of a leap as you might expect.

The A16 chip is a version of the A16 Bionic chip found in the iPhone Pro 14 series and the regular iPhone 15 models. It features a 5-core CPU and a 4-core GPU, one fewer core than the A16 Bionic.

On the positive side, the newer iPad features a slightly larger display and increased storage options. Notably, the entry-level version now offers 128GB of storage instead of 64GB, all for the same price of $349. This is particularly impressive considering the original iPad, released in 2010, was priced at $499 for just 16GB of storage, which would be nearly when adjusted for inflation in 2025.