Ipad Air 2 Review
Specifications
The new tablet features a 64-bit Apple A8X processor, which is 40% cooler and more powerful than the A7 chip used in the previous generation iPad Air. The company decided to surprise the IT world a little and made this processor a tri-core (an analogy about a car on three wheels suggests itself), it runs at a clock frequency of 1.4 GHz. In principle, Apple has never really soared over numbers, but primarily engaged in optimization. I can safely say that paired with 2GB of RAM, the device allows you to open more tabs in Safari and keep more applications in the background.
For the first time, an additional coprocessor M8 appeared in Apple tablets, which constantly monitors and collects data from all sensors (and there are not so few of them in the iPad Air 2): a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a compass and a barometer. According to all Steve Jobs’ notes of the old tradition, there are two versions of the iPad: Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi LTE (Apple SIM). As for the wireless data transmission technology, it has been slightly improved, Wi-Fi ac can transfer data at speeds up to 866 Mbps. If you chose the LTE version in Major, then you will have as many as 20 LTE bands at your disposal. Well, and about such little things as Bluetooth and GPS, I won’t even remember them.
The situation with the built-in memory is the same as in the iPhone 6, they decided to abandon the 32 GB version. Now customers are available in 16 GB, 64 GB and 128 GB versions. They will cost 499, 599 and 699, respectively. Battery in iPad Air 2 with a capacity of 7340 mA·h, Apple promises that this should be enough for 10 hours of work in high load mode, that is, in practice, the tablet can freely live for several days without recharging.
Full specifications look like this:
- Dimensions: 240 x 169.5 x 6.1mm.
- Weight: 437g.
- Operating system: iOS 8.1.
- Processor: Apple A8X triple-core, 1.4 GHz.
- Display: 9.7-inch, 1536 x 2048 (Retina), 264 PPI.
- Memory: 16 GB, 64 GB, 128 GB.
- RAM: 2 GB.
- Cameras: main 8 MP, front 1.2 MP.
- Wireless technologies: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0.
- Interface connectors: 3.5mm headphone jack, Lightning jack.
- Battery: 7340 mA·h.
Ipad air 2 review
We all remember praising the iPad Air last year for being thinner and lighter than its predecessors. Who would have thought then that the same words could be applied to the next generation? And now, two weeks after the announcement, a new Apple tablet arrived at our office. Meet! Ipad Air 2 is one of the thinnest tablets in the world.
Camera
The days when people who took pictures with a tablet were looked at as mentally ill are long gone. Apple is well aware of this and is actively improving this moment in their devices. Thus, the second generation iPad Air received not only a cool front-facing FaceTime camera that can record in Full HD, but also an improved module on the back of the iSight (8 MP and f / 2.4). I can’t say that the quality of the pictures is comparable to that of the iPhone 6 or at least the iPhone 5s, but the results are really good. The maximum resolution of panoramas is 43 MP! Filmed in 1080p at 30 fps, it is also possible to record in slow motion (Slo-mo, 120 fps) and bursts (Time Lapse).
Screen
Despite the fact that the screen remained with a diagonal of 9.7-inches and a resolution of 1536 x 2048 (Retina, 264 PPI), it still suffered some changes. At the presentation, we were told that the air gap between the IPS matrix and the protected glass was removed. This, of course, is very cool, but the problem is that during the announcement of the iPad Air of the previous generation, we were also told that. It is possible that before showing a new product, the layer is returned back to be removed later (there should be a Genius meme here).
In addition, the anti-reflective coating has been improved, which now protects the screen from sunlight by 56% (but it’s not entirely clear to me how the developers determined this percentage). But if you go outside and compare the iPad Air of the first and second generation, the difference will not be particularly noticeable, the displays fade, and in very difficult situations it can even be stressful to read the text. But the oleophobic coating is in place.
This tablet could be forgiven for everything, but not the only flaw on the screen remains stains. Yes, you got it right. On the screen. Remain. Divorces. And you don’t need to make any effort to do this. You take the tablet in your hands (in the most usual way) and traces appear on the screen from the fingers that support the tablet by the back. I once had a Chinese Ainol tablet, and even there there were no such problems.
Appearance
Yes, you can say that when creating the iPad Air 2, they forgot to show it to the designer, and in general, it seems that the tablet was pushed into the body from the previous version. But one has only to take the device in hand (carefully, there will be a lot of applesauce) and you understand that there was no particular point in changing the appearance, and the small changes that the developers made to the case design made it even better.
At the time of the presentation, the iPad Air 2 proudly bore the title of the thinnest tablet in the world, its thickness, for you to understand, is 6.1 mm, which is even less than in the iPhone 6 (there must be a joke that it bends). At the same time, the width and height of the case have not changed, which is quite logical, because the diagonal has remained 9.7 inches. Compared to the previous generation, the weight has also decreased, now the device is 32 grams lighter than 437 grams.
As I wrote above, there are not so many changes in the tablet, but Apple nevertheless decided on a very important step by removing the lever from the right end, which was responsible for switching to silent mode. There is nothing critical in this, because many owners of Android tablets did not even know that there are such and lived peacefully without it. Apparently this control element turned out to be the weakest link that had to be sacrificed for the sake of SUCH thickness. At the same time, we slightly changed the appearance of the volume keys.
Fans of the mechanical Home key will now have a difficult time, because the iPad Air 2 has replaced it with Touch ID. Is this technology needed in a tablet? Certainly. This not only increases the level of security of the device, but also speeds up the process of completing certain tasks (for example, it is possible to quickly make purchases). By the way, now you can brag to your rogue friends that you have a sapphire Home button on your tablet. This practically does not affect anything during use, but it raises the owner’s self-esteem and all that.
As for the bottom end, manufacturers of various accessories (especially docking stations) are simply obliged to thank Apple for not changing the familiar Lightning connector to something more innovative. But because of the decrease in thickness, you can forget about the compatibility of iPad Air cases. By the way, the speaker grilles have changed a little, as for me, they have become even more beautiful.
We don’t even have to say about the build quality, everything is done at the highest level. The case, as always, is metal, but now the Cupertinians decided to diversify the color range a little, and they added an option for gold (Gold) to gray (Space Gray) and silver (Silver).
Eventually
Design
Now let’s look at the design. As already noted, the appearance of the iPad mini 3 does not differ from its predecessor, with the exception of the appearance of the golden color option. And since the iPad Air 2 is thinner than the iPad Air, and the iPad mini has everything the same, the iPad Air 2 is noticeably thinner than the iPad mini 3.
As for the color (the iPad Air 2 also has a golden color), it looks noble, elegant. This is not deliberately golden, but a soft, beautiful shade, which, depending on external lighting, looks either light gray or bronze.
Alas, on the 4G versions of both tablets, the plastic white insert, which is necessary for normal reception of the cellular signal, looks rather clumsy and alien. Well, everyone around you will see that you have a version with 4G, and not a cheaper one 🙂
In terms of placement of controls, the main difference between the iPad Air 2 and the first iPad Air is the lack of a lock lever (on the iPad Air, it was located above the volume keys). Well, the second distinctive point is the expansion of the functionality of the Home button, which is now equipped with a fingerprint scanner.
The button looks exactly like the iPhone 5s / 6/6 Plus. The fingerprint scanner works perfectly: you can take the iPad in any convenient way, the fingerprint will be recognized instantly. Subjectively, it is better than the iPhone 5s, where the percentage of unrecognized touches was still higher. True, we used the iPhone 5s for almost a year, and the iPad Air 2 for only a week. So, perhaps, statistics will be less positive for the year.
The size of the bezels around the screen, the width and height of the iPad Air 2 body remain unchanged. However, today this is one of the best indicators. And it is very interesting in which direction the iPad design will develop in the future, because now both the width of the side frames and the thickness are close to the threshold beyond which it will already start to cause inconvenience.
And the thickness of the connectors leaves almost no room for maneuvers: for example, only about 1 mm is left above the Lightning, which could have been saved without affecting the connector itself. And a 3.5 mm mini-jack will hardly fit into a thinner case. This, of course, only applies to the iPad Air 2. Because the iPad mini 3 still has a lot to reduce in size.
Everything else in the iPad Air 2 has remained unchanged compared to the previous version: from the main points (the shape of the case, the rounded edges) to the details (the shape of the tray for nanoSIM cards in the version with 4G).
In general, the changes, of course, cannot be called revolutionary. But is it really important if the iPad Air 2, like a year ago, its predecessor, you just do not want to let go? The first days I constantly want to take it, once again admire its thickness and low weight, twirl it in my hands. It would seem that Apple has not done anything radically new, and it is more and more difficult to surprise the user. Nevertheless, the products of the apple corporation have not lost their main property: the ability to please the user. It’s that simple. This is a thing that you hold in your hands with pleasure. And what could be more important than this?
Concluding our conversation about design, we note that Apple’s PR department gave us an iPad Air 2 with a branded Smart Cover. Many Apple tablet users are familiar with this accessory, and for them it will not be a discovery. But to the rest, we can say that the cover is really very nice and comfortable: the polyurethane coating on the top and the inner surface of microfiber (it touches the tablet screen when we close the cover) are extremely pleasant to the touch, and in general, the accessory does not make the tablet bulky or thick. But protects the screen well and helps to set it on the table at an angle.
In turn, the iPad mini 3 arrived for the test in a Smart Case. On the one hand, it has a big plus: it protects the tablet not only from the side of the screen, like Smart Cover, but entirely. In addition, the entire outer surface of the Smart Case is made of expensive aniline leather. But although knowing this warms the soul, from the point of view of everyday use this is a less practical solution: any small scratches on this skin are clearly visible (and such scratches will appear even with careful use). In addition, small folds are visible on the folds of the skin (while the Smart Cover remains like new even after a week of active use).
Specifications
Specifications Apple iPad Air 2:
- Apple A8X SoC 1.5 GHz 64 bits (3 cores, Cyclone architecture based on ARMv8)
- GPU PowerVR GX6650
- Apple M8 motion coprocessor including GPS, barometer, accelerometer, gyroscope and compass
- RAM 2 GB
- Flash memory 16/64/128 GB
- No memory card support
- Operating system iOS 8.1
- IPS touch display, 9.7″, 2048×1536 (264 ppi), capacitive, multitouch
- Cameras: front (1.2 megapixel, 720p by FaceTime) and rear (8 megapixel, 1080p shooting)
- Wi-Fi 802.11b / g / n / ac (2.4 and 5 GHz; MIMO support)
- Cellular (optional): UMTS / HSPA / HSPA / DC-HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz); GSM / EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz), LTE Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26
- Bluetooth 4.0
- Touch ID fingerprint reader, NFC chip
- 3.5mm stereo headset jack, Lightning dock
- Lithium polymer battery 7340 mA·h
- A-GPS (version with cellular module)
- Overall dimensions 240×170×6.1 mm
- Weight 437 g (manufacturer declared weight of the version without honeycomb) / 451 g (our measurement of the version with honeycomb)
We will not list the technical characteristics of the iPad mini 3 in a separate list, but we will include them in the comparison table with competitors. First, though, let’s see how the iPad Air 2’s specs compare to its predecessor and main competitors.
| Ipad Air 2 | iPad Air | Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5 | Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet | |
| Screen | IPS, 9.7″, 2048×1536 (264 ppi) | IPS, 9.7″, 2048×1536 (264 ppi) | SuperAMOLED, 10.5″, 2560×1600 (287 ppi) | IPS, 10.1″, 1920×1200 (218 ppi) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SoC (processor) | Apple A8 1.5 GHz 64-bit (3 cores, Cyclone architecture based on ARMv8) M8 coprocessor | Apple A7 1.4 GHz 64 bit (2 cores, Cyclone architecture based on ARMv8) M7 coprocessor | Samsung Exynos 5 Octa (Quad Core @ 1.9ghz Quad Core @ 1.3ghz) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 @ 2.3 GHz (4 core Krait 400) |
| GPU | PowerVR GX6650 | PowerVR G6430 | Mali-T628 MP6 | Adreno 330 |
| Flash memory | 16/64/128 GB | 16/32/64/128 GB | 16 GB | from 16 to 32 GB |
| Connectors | Lightning dock connector, 3.5mm headphone jack | Lightning dock connector, 3.5mm headphone jack | Micro-USB (with OTG and MHL support), 3.5mm headphone jack | Micro-USB (with OTG and MHL support), 3.5mm headphone jack |
| Memory card support | not | not | microSD (up to 128GB) | microSD (up to 128GB) |
| RAM | 2 GB | 1 GB | 3 GB | 3 GB |
| Cameras | front (1.2 megapixel, 720p by FaceTime) and rear (8 megapixel, 1080p shooting) | front (1.2 megapixel, 720p by FaceTime) and rear (5 megapixel, 1080p shooting) | front (2.1 megapixel, 1080p transmission) and rear (8 megapixel; 1080p shooting) | front (2.2 megapixel, 1080p transfer) and rear (8.1 megapixel; 1080p shooting) |
| the Internet | Wi-Fi (optional 3G as well as 4G LTE) | Wi-Fi (optional 3G as well as 4G LTE) | Wi-Fi 802.11a / b / g / n / ac MIMO (optional 3G and LTE) | Wi-Fi 802.11a / b / g / n / ac MIMO (optional 3G and LTE) |
| Battery capacity (mA·h) | 7340 | 8820 | 7900 | 6000 |
| operating system | Apple iOS 8.1 | Apple iOS 7.0 (update to iOS 8.1 available) | Google Android 4.4 | Google Android 4.4 |
| Dimensions (mm) | 240×170×6.1 | 240×170×7.5 | 247×177×6.6 | 266×172×6.4 |
| Weight (g) | 451 | 478 | 467 | 439 |
| average price | T-11153497 | T-10548616 | T-10890859 | T-10728784 |
| IPad Air 2 offers | L-11153497-10 | |||
On formal grounds (the number of CPU cores, the amount of RAM) Apple products have been inferior to the top competitors from the Android camp for several years. However, we even had a separate article about the senselessness of any conclusions about this. The only figures that are objective in this case and are available for comparison without reservations are weight and dimensions. And according to them, the iPad Air 2 really looks very good: it is distinguished by a record low thickness, coupled with weight (only the Sony Xperia Z2 Tablet surpasses the new product in the last parameter).
On the other hand, it is impossible to say that the iPad Air 2 is radically thinner and lighter than its competitors. The maximum difference is a few percent. Keep in mind, though, that unlike its rival plastic products, the iPad Air and iPad Air 2 are made from a single piece of aluminum.
Now let’s take a look at the iPad mini 3’s specs versus the competition.
| Ipad mini 3 | Sony Xperia Z3 Tablet Compact | Nvidia Shield Tablet | Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4 | |
| Screen | IPS, 7.9″, 2048×1536 (326 ppi) | IPS, 8″, 1920×1200 (283 ppi) | IPS, 8″, 1920×1200 (283 ppi) | SuperAMOLED, 8.4″, 2560×1600 (359 ppi) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SoC (processor) | Apple A7 @ 1.3 GHz (2 Cyclone cores, 64 bit) | Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (4-core Krait 400 @ 2.5 GHz) | Nvidia Tegra K1 (4x Cortex-A15 @ 2.2ghz and auxiliary companion core) | Exynos 5 Octa 5420 (4x Cortex-A15 @ 1.9ghz 4x Cortex-A7 @ 1.3ghz) |
| GPU | PowerVR G6430 | Adreno 330 | Nvidia GK20A @ 950 MHz | Mali-T628 MP6 |
| Flash memory | from 16 to 128 GB | 16 GB | 16/32 GB | 16 GB |
| Connectors | Lightning, 3.5mm headphone jack | Micro-USB, 3.5mm headphone jack, Mini-HDMI | Micro-USB, 3.5mm headphone jack, Mini-HDMI | Micro-USB, 3.5mm headphone jack |
| Memory card support | not | microSD (up to 128GB) | microSD (up to 128GB) | microSD (up to 128GB) |
| RAM | 1 GB | 2 GB | 2 GB | 3 GB |
| Cameras | front (1.2 Mp) and rear (5 Mp; 1080p) | front (2.2 megapixel, 1080p) and rear (8.1 megapixel; 1080p) | front (5 Mp, 720p) and rear (5 Mp; 1080p) | front (2.1 megapixel, 1080p) and rear (8 megapixel; 1080p) |
| the Internet | Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n MIMO (2.4 GHz 5 GHz) (optional 3G and LTE) | Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n MIMO (2.4 GHz 5 GHz) (optional 3G and LTE) | Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n MIMO (2.4 GHz 5 GHz) (in the version with 32 GB of 3G and LTE memory) | Wi-Fi 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac MIMO (2.4 GHz 5 GHz) (optional 3G and LTE) |
| operating system | Apple iOS 7 | Google Android 4.4.2 | Google Android 4.4.2 | Google Android 4.4.2 |
| Battery capacity (mA·h) | 6471 | 4500 | 5338 (presumably) | 4900 |
| Dimensions (mm) | 200×134×7.5 | 213×124×6.4 | 221×126×9.2 | 213×125×6.6 |
| Weight (g) | 339 | 270 | 390 | 297 |
| average price | T-11153500 | T-11154285 | T-10983937 | T-10890863 |
| IPad mini 3 offers | L-11153500-10 | |||
Over the year (and iPad mini 3 is, in fact, the same last year’s iPad mini Retina), very serious competitors have appeared in the camp of compact tablets: in particular, Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4 with a Super AMOLED display and Nvidia Shield Tablet with record performance (greatly exceeding the performance Apple A7 installed in iPad mini 3). In general, the position of the iPad mini 3 in the top segment is far from being as cloudless as its predecessor had when it first appeared. Today, almost any parameter (screen, performance, camera, weight, thickness) can be used to find a stronger solution.
However, in terms of the totality of its properties, it still remains a very successful model, and the decrease in the price of the iPad mini 2 by 100 (alas, eaten by the change in the dollar exchange rate) makes it an even more attractive mid-budget solution.
But let’s take a closer look at the new Apple products.
Packaging and equipment
The packaging of the iPad Air 2 is almost identical to the packaging of the previous generation tablet. Only the picture here is even more minimalistic, emphasizing the thickness of the updated device.
As for the package bundle, everything here is also similar to the iPad Air: leaflets, a charger (10 W, 2.1 A, 5.1 V), a Lightning cable, stickers and a key for removing the SIM card cradle.
Box design and package bundle of iPad mini 3 is similar to iPad Air 2.
Screen
The declared parameters of the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 screens do not differ from those of their predecessors: in all cases we have an IPS-matrix with a resolution of 2048×1536, and the screen diagonal is, respectively, 9.7″ and 7.9″. However, the fact that the key parameters are identical does not mean at all that the screens are exactly the same in all their properties. In the end, even screens from different batches may differ slightly. In addition, it was curious to compare the screens of iPad mini 2 and iPad Air 2. As shown by testing performed according to his own methodology by Alexey Kudryavtsev, editor of the Monitors and Projectors and TV sections, they differ by far not only in diagonal! Below is his conclusion.
The screen of the Air 2 is significantly darker in the photo 65 versus 106 for the Nexus 7. The tripling of reflected objects in the Air 2 screen is very weak, this indicates that there is no air gap between the outer glass (aka touch sensor) and the matrix surface (screen type OGS One Glass Solution). Due to the smaller number of boundaries with strongly differing refractive indices (glass-to-air type), such screens look better in conditions of strong ambient light, but their repair in case of cracked outer glass is much more expensive, since the entire screen has to be changed.
On the contrary, the screen of the iPad mini 3 is slightly lighter in brightness according to photo 117. The reflection in the screen is tripled, which suggests the presence of an air gap between the matrix surface and the outer glass. From the point of view of image perception, this is a minus, but a screen with a split outer glass (aka a touch panel) is easier and cheaper to repair.
In the case of both tested tablets, there is clearly a special antiglare coating on the outer surface of the screens (a slightly purple tone of the reflection indirectly testifies to this), and the surface of the LCD matrix itself is slightly matte, the reflection is slightly unclear.
On the outer surface of the screens there is a special oleophobic (grease-repellent) coating, so fingerprints are removed more easily and appear at a slower rate than in the case of ordinary glass. At the same time, the effectiveness of this coating is noticeably higher for the iPad mini 3, but in both cases it is significantly lower than that of the Nexus 7.
The iPad Air 2 with manual brightness control, its maximum value was about 410 cd / m2², and the minimum is 4.5 cd / m2². For iPad mini 3, the values are 445 and 8 cd / m2². The maximum values are quite high, and given the good anti-glare properties, in bright daylight, the image on both screens should be clearly visible. In complete darkness, the brightness can be lowered to a comfortable level. Automatic brightness control works by light sensor (s). The iPad Air 2 sensors, as we know two, are located under the front panel in the upper right and left parts. They work according to the priority of maximum brightness, so an accidentally covered corner will not suddenly lower the brightness of the screen during the day on the street. In automatic mode, when the ambient light conditions change, the screen brightness both increases and (well, wow!) Decreases. If you do not touch the brightness slider, then in complete darkness, the auto brightness function reduces the brightness to 4.5 cd / m2² (very dim, but at night during a sleep break, the time is normal to spy on), in an office illuminated with artificial light (about 400 lux) sets to 100-120 cd / m2² (suitable), in a very bright environment (corresponds to bright daylight outdoors, but no direct sunlight 20,000 lux or slightly more) increases to maximum, i.E. Up to 410 cd / m2² (as it should be). In general, this function works adequately. There are legends that by setting the brightness slider by hand to the desired level with automatic brightness control enabled, tablets and smartphones (as well as monoblocks and monitors) from Apple can be trained to set the desired brightness level, but we did not manage to comprehend the logic of learning, since after our intervention we got strange and poorly reproducible results. Automatic brightness control for iPad mini 3 does not fundamentally differ from this function of its predecessor. In this mode, the brightness can only increase with a decrease in the level of ambient light, the corresponding decrease in the brightness of the screen, we did not wait. However, if you put the tablet into sleep mode and turn it on again, then the brightness will be set in accordance with the external conditions. In total darkness 8 cd / m2² (dull), in the office 90-130 cd / m2² (suitable), bright light 445 cd / m2² (logical). Both the Air 2 and the mini 3 have practically no backlight modulation at any brightness level, so there is no screen flicker.
The tablets use an IPS matrix. The micrographs show the typical IPS subpixel structure. Ipad Air 2:
For comparison, you can see the gallery of photomicrographs of screens used in mobile technology.
The screens have excellent viewing angles without inverting tints and without significant color shift, even with large gaze deviations from the perpendicular to the screen. For comparison, here are the photos in which the same images are displayed on the Nexus 7 and the tested tablets, while the brightness of the screens is set to about 200 cd / m2², and the color balance on the camera was forcibly switched to 6500 K. Perpendicular to the screens, a test picture, iPad Air 2:
The color rendition is good for all screens, the color balance differs slightly, but if you look closely, in the case of the mini 3 you can see a slight decrease in the saturation of bright colors close to the primary ones. And white box, iPad Air 2:
Note the good uniformity of brightness and color tone. Now at an angle of approximately 45 degrees to the plane and to the side of the screen, iPad Air 2:
It can be seen that the colors and brightness balance have not changed much for both tablets. Then the white box, iPad Air 2:
The brightness at an angle on the tablets decreased noticeably (at least 5 times, based on the difference in exposure), but in the case of both iPads, the screen brightness at this angle is still slightly higher. When deviated diagonally, the black field is lightened weakly, and acquires a violet or red-violet tint. The photo from the Nexus 7 for comparison shows this (the brightness of the white areas in the perpendicular direction for both tablets is about the same!), IPad Air 2:
And from a different angle:
And from a different angle:
When viewed from a perpendicular perspective, the black uniformity of the iPad Air 2 is imperfect, as there are areas around the edge with slightly increased black brightness:
In contrast, the iPad mini 3 is doing well with black uniformity:
But the contrast is below 600: 1 versus the very good 930: 1 of the iPad Air 2. The latter has a 23ms black-white-black transition (13ms on 10ms off). The transition between gray tones of 25% and 75% (based on the numerical value of the color) and back takes 36 ms in total. For mini 3, the values are 22 ms (13 ms on, 9 ms off) and 33 ms, respectively. The gamma curve, plotted using 32 points at equal intervals in terms of the numerical value of the shade of gray, did not reveal any blockage in either the highlights or the shadows. The exponent of the approximating power function is 2.21 and 2.25 (iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3), which is close to the standard value of 2.2, while the real gamma curve practically coincides with the power dependence:
Of course, there is no dynamic adjustment of the backlight brightness in accordance with the nature of the displayed image.
The iPad Air 2 has a nearly sRGB color gamut:
The iPad mini 3 has a narrower coverage:
Accordingly, the spectra show that, in the second case, the matrix filters noticeably mix the components together. Ipad Air 2:
This technique allows you to increase the brightness of the screen with the same energy consumption for the backlight. As a result, the colors of images of drawings, photographs and films oriented to the sRGB space (and there are the overwhelming majority of them) on the iPad mini 3 have a slightly reduced saturation.
The balance of shades on the gray scale is good, since the color temperature is slightly higher than the standard 6500 K and the deviation from the black body spectrum (ΔE) less than 10, which is considered acceptable for a consumer device. In this case, the variation in color temperature and ΔE is small, which has a positive effect on the visual perception of color balance. (The dark areas of the gray scale can be ignored, since the color balance there does not really matter, and the error in measuring color characteristics at low brightness is large.)
Let’s summarize. Ipad Air 2’s display has a high enough maximum brightness and excellent anti-glare properties, so it can be used outdoors without problems, even on a sunny summer day. The screen of the iPad mini 3 is slightly worse in this regard, the anti-glare properties are not so outstanding, but even its screen will not fade in the sun. In complete darkness, the brightness of both screens can be dimmed to a comfortable value. It is also acceptable to use the mode with automatic brightness adjustment, which works more or less adequately (plus some possibility of manual correction of this function, and the iPad Air 2 can even lower the brightness itself!). The advantages of the iPad Air 2 include: the absence of an air gap in the layers of the screen, high contrast and sRGB color gamut, both screens do not flicker, are distinguished by high stability of black to deviation of the gaze from the perpendicular to the screen surface and are characterized by good color balance. The significant disadvantages in the case of the older model include a weak oleophobic coating, and in the case of the iPad mini 3, the narrowed color gamut. Nevertheless, taking into account the importance of properties for this class of devices, the screen quality of both iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 should be recognized as high. We can’t resist and once again celebrate the outstanding anti-glare properties of iPad Air 2, resulting from the combination of OGS technology and a special anti-reflective coating. This is not the case with any screen of a mobile device that we have tested.
To the above, we can add that the grease-repellent coating of the iPad Air 2 really leaves much to be desired, the screen plops up quickly enough. Otherwise, the display is excellent. Feels like one of the best we’ve seen. Which, in general, is confirmed by detailed tests.
