Apple iPad 9.7-inch vs Apple iPad Air (2020) Specs Comparison

Compare mobile phone specifications of up to three devices at once. Our specs comparison tool helps you find and compare the perfect phone for your needs.

	9.0
Apple iPad 9.7-inch	Apple iPad Air (2020)
Released · Mar 24, 2017	Released · Oct 16, 2020
9.7-inch · 2048x1536px	10.9-inch · 2360x1640px
Single camera	Single camera
2GB	4GB · 64GB
8827 mAh
	Check prices

Availability

Officially announced
Mar 21, 2017	Sep 15, 2020
Prices (MSRP)
$559	$729

Design

Dimensions
9.45 x 6.67 x 0.30 inches 240 x 169.5 x 7.5 mm	9.75 x 7.03 x 0.24 inches 247.6 x 178.5 x 6.1 mm
Weight
16.86 oz / 478.0 g	16.23 oz / 460.0 g
Materials
Back: Aluminum	Back: Aluminum
Biometrics
Fingerprint (touch)	Fingerprint (touch)
Keys
Right: Volume control	Right: Volume control, Lock/Unlock key
Colors
Gold, Gray, Silver	Rose gold, Space gray, Silver, Green, Sky blue

Display

Size
9.7-inch, 71.65% screen-to-body	10.9-inch, 81.23% screen-to-body
Type
IPS LCD	IPS LCD, 60Hz, 500 nits
Resolution
2048x1536px, 4:3 ratio, 264 PPI	2360x1640px, 264 PPI
Colors
16 777 216
Features
Oleophobic coating, Ambient light sensor	Oleophobic coating, Ambient light sensor

PhoneArena Display Test

Bright Max (20% APL)
Untested	Untested
Bright Min
Untested	1.9 (Good)

Learn more on our PhoneArena Display Test Results page.

Hardware

System chip
Apple A9 APL0898 (16 nm)	Apple A14 Bionic (5 nm)
Processor
Dual-core 1850 MHz Twiste	Hexa-core Firestorm and Icestorm
GPU
PowerVR GT7600	Apple 4-core GPU
Memory
2GB (LPDDR4) 2GB/32GB 2GB/128GB	4GB/64GB 4GB/256GB
Storage expansion
	not expandable
OS
iOS (13.x, 12.x, 11.x, 10.x)	iPadOS (14.x)

Battery

Type
8827 mAh, Li - Polymer	Li - Ion

Camera

Rear
Single camera	Single camera
Main camera
8 MP (Autofocus, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F2.4 Pixel size: 1.1 μm	12 MP (PDAF, BSI sensor) Aperture size: F1.8
Video recording
1080p (30 fps) Time-lapse video, EIS, Video calling, Video sharing	4K UHD (60 fps), 1080p (240 fps) Time-lapse video, Continuous autofocus, Picture-taking during video recording, EIS
Front
1.2 MP (HDR) Video capture: 720p	7 MP (EIS, HDR) Video capture: 1080p

Connectivity & Features

Bluetooth
4.2	5.0
WLAN
a,b,g,n,ac,dual-band MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac	a,b,g,n,ac,Wi-Fi 6,dual-band MIMO 802.11 a, b, g, n, ac, ax
USB
Lightning	Type-C
Sensors
Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer, Ambient light sensor	Accelerometer, Gyroscope, Compass, Barometer, Ambient light sensor
Location
GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning	GPS, A-GPS, Glonass, Cell ID, Wi-Fi positioning
Other
UMA (Wi-Fi Calling), Tethering, Computer sync, OTA sync, AirDrop	UMA (Wi-Fi Calling)

Discover more

Full Specs
Apple iPad 9.7-inch Specs

Full Specs
Apple iPad Air (2020) Specs
PA Review
Apple iPad Air (2020) Review

Multimedia

Headphones
3.5mm jack	No 3.5mm jack
Speakers
Multiple speakers	Multiple speakers
Features
Album art cover, Background playback
Screen mirroring
Wireless screen share

Cellular

4G (FDD) Bands
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 25, 26, 29, 30, 66, 71
4G (TDD) Bands
38, 39, 40, 41	34, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 48
3G Bands
5, 8, 4, 2, 1	1, 2, 4, 5, 8
Data Speed
LTE Cat 4 (150/50 Mbit/s)	LTE-A, HSDPA+ (4G) 42.2 Mbit/s, HSUPA 5.76 Mbit/s, UMTS
Dual SIM
	Yes
SIM type
Nano SIM	Nano SIM, eSIM

Phone Features

Other features
Voice commands, Voice recording

Alternative variants


Memory	32GB
Prices (MSRP)	$459

with 256GB storage


Memory	256GB
Prices (MSRP)	$879


Memory	32GB
Weight	16.54 oz / 469.0 g
Prices (MSRP)	$329

Wi-Fi only


Weight	16.16 oz / 458.0 g
Prices (MSRP)	$599


Memory	128GB
Weight	16.54 oz / 469.0 g
Prices (MSRP)	$429

Wi-Fi only with 256GB storage


Memory	256GB
Weight	16.16 oz / 458.0 g
Prices (MSRP)	$749