Apple officially unveils iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3

Apple has officially introduced its new iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 tablets. Touted as the slimmest and most powerful iPad ever, the new iPad Air 2 is just 6.1mm thin and weighs less than a pound. The new iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 3 tablets come with iOS 8.1, Touch ID sensor and Apple Pay support.

The iPad Air 2 has a 9.7-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit widescreen Multi-Touch display with IPS technology and resolution of 2048 x 1536-pixels at 264 ppi. The display features fingerprint-resistant oleophobic and anti-reflective coatings. The tablet is powered by a faster A8X chip with 64 bit architecture.

The iPad Air 2 sports an 8MP iSight camera with Autofocus, ƒ/2.4 aperture, five-element lens, panorama (up to 43MP), burst mode, tap to focus and photo geotagging. For videos capture, it supports 1080p HD recording (30 fps), Slo-mo (120 fps) and time-lapse videos. The tablet has 1.2MP front-facing camera.

For connectivity, the iPad Air 2 supports Wi-Fi (802.11a/b/g/n/ac); dual channel (2.4GHz and 5GHz); HT80 with MIMO, Bluetooth 4.0. The tablet has built-in 27.3-watt-hour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery. Check out full specifications of the iPad Air 2 here.

The iPad mini 3 also has a Retina Display – 7.9-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit Multi-Touch with IPS technology, 2048 x 1536 resolution at 326 pixels per inch (ppi) and Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating.

Contrary to previous rumours, the new iPad mini 3 is powered by a A7 chip with 64-bit architecture. The mini 3 has 5MP iSight camera and 1.2MP front-facing camera. Like the iPad Air 2, the iPad mini 3 supports fingerprint identity sensor and Apple Pay. Connectivity options include Wi Fi (802.11a/?b/?g/?n); dual channel (2.4GHz and 5GHz) and MIMO and Bluetooth 4.0.

Check out full specifications of the iPad mini 3 here.

Apple has also revealed the pricing details of the new iPads.

Pad Air 2 with Wi-Fi models will be available for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) for the 16GB model, $599 (US) for the 64GB model and $699 (US) for the 128GB model. iPad Air 2 with Wi-Fi + Cellular models will be available for a suggested retail price of $629 (US) for the 16GB model, $729 (US) for the 64GB model and $829 (US) for the 128GB model. iPad mini 3 with Wi-Fi models will be available for a suggested retail price of $399 (US) for the 16GB model, $499 (US) for the 64GB model and $599 (US) for the 128GB model. iPad mini 3 with Wi-Fi + Cellular models will be available for a suggested retail price of $529 (US) for the 16GB model, $629 (US) for the 64GB model and $729 (US) for the 128GB model.

India pricing:

According to reports, the iPad Air 2 with 16GB Wi-Fi model will be available for Rs. 35,900, the 64GB variant for Rs. 42,000 and 128 GB for 49,000. The 16GB and 64GB Wi-Fi + Cellular models will be available at Rs. 45,900 and Rs. 52,900 respectively, while the the 128GB model will cost Rs. Rs. 59,900.

The iPad mini 3 -  16, 64 and 128GB models -- are priced at Rs 28,900, Rs 35,900 and Rs 42,900 respectively. The iPad mini 3 with Wi-Fi + Cellular model will be available at Rs 38,900, Rs 45,900 and Rs 52,900, respectively.

There's no word on the availability of the new iPads in India. Apple says both iPads will be available starting later next week in the US, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, China (Wi-Fi models only), Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macau (Wi-Fi models only), Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK.