Apple iPad Air 2

There’s no question that Apple iPad Air 2 a fantastic tablet, but it doesn’t quite equal the score of its predecessor. That is down to the fact that Apple has slimmed down the device and in doing so reduced the size of the battery resulting in shorter battery life. Nevertheless, it still has an excellent screen, fast processor and a brand new fingerprint reader for quick and secure access to your device.

If Apple iPad Air 2 isn’t your cup of tea, have a look at our current top-scoring Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5, instead. And if you’d like to save a bit of cash and want an iPad with better battery life, then consider the original iPad Air. It’s the second generation Apple iPad Air. It has a 9.7-inch Retina display, fast processor and it runs the latest operating system – iOS 8. It represents an incremental upgrade, with the only noticeable differences to the predecessor being the slimmer dimensions, newly added fingerprint reader and slightly improved cameras.

Apple iPad Air 2

At just under 440g, it’s light and comfortable to hold in one hand. It’s also the smallest iPad to date, measuring 6.3mm in depth (down from 7.7mm). The design is sleek and elegant – we think it’s the best-looking tablet on the market. The new A8X 1.5GHz processor chip makes for an incredibly fast tablet that’s quicker than the original. Overall it’s safe to say the chip provides enough speed for whatever app or task you throw at it, and there will be no lag or delay between touching or swiping the screen and the tablet reacting.

Fingerprint

The most noteworthy new feature is the fingerprint reader. Located on the home button, it allows you to quickly unlock your tablet without the hassle of having to tap in code. Touch ID can also be used to authorize payment of apps, music, and films from the Apple store. That has been a well-received feature on the latest iPhones, so it’s good to see it make an appearance on the iPad too. It’s worth looking out that this is not a new feature for tablets – some Samsung models have been equipped with a fingerprint reader for a while now, so this is Apple playing catch-up to ensure it stays in line with the tough competition.

It has the same excellent display as the original Apple iPad Air – 2. The Retina display makes for vivid and clear images that look sharp even when in bright daylight. Apple has added an anti-reflective layer, but sadly this doesn’t banish reflections as much as we had hoped. The 1.2Mp front-facing camera is good for taking selfies or making video calls to far-flung friends and family. And the 8 Mp rear-facing camera (up from 5Mp on the predecessor) takes snaps that are bright, clear with decent color. It’s a case of design over substance with the Air 2 as the battery life suffers for the sake of a slimmer, more waif-like design.

Apple iPad Air 2

You get eight hours and 45 minutes of video playback or just over eight hours of wifi web browsing. Although this means it will just about survive the full working day on just one charge, we were still disappointed to find that it doesn’t match up to the original iPad Air, which provides just under 13 hours of video playback or just under 11 hours of wi-fi web browsing.

As ever with Apple products, there’s no micro SD card slot, which means that you can’t easily expand the on board storage. The Apple operating system doesn’t let you create multiple user accounts – so you can’t separate your apps and content from the rest of the family who may also use the device. Unlike on the Samsung Galaxy models, you can’t split the screen up and have multiple apps running side-by-side. That is disappointing, especially seeing as this is such a handy feature for those who like to work on their tablet.

Apple iPad Air 2

At the time of the launch, Apple made a fuss over Apple Pay – which lets you authorize payments at shops, cafes, and banks via the secure fingerprint reader. That certainly sounds like an interesting new feature, but there’s no set a date for it to launch in the UK as yet.

Yes – this is a fantastic tablet that won’t disappoint. The punchy screen is ideal for watching films and browsing the web. The processor is incredibly fast so it’ll easily cope with any task you throw at it and the fingerprint reader adds a layer of extra security as well as ensuring that you can access your tablet speedily.