Major Chip Generational Leap, Stagnant Display: What's the Real Value of the 2999 12th Gen iPad?

Based on the messaging cadence, Apple's 12th-generation entry-level iPad will most likely go on sale quietly in the week before the March 4 special event — it won't be the star of any keynote.

The logic behind this upgrade is straightforward: max out the chip and AI capabilities, keep the design and display as-is. The A19 chip uses a 3-nanometer process — the same one found in the iPhone 17 — delivering significant improvements in both performance and power efficiency over the previous A16, along with newly added hardware-accelerated ray tracing support. RAM increases from 6GB to 8GB, a direct requirement for Apple Intelligence features to function.

Objectively speaking, the generational leap from A16 to A19 is genuinely substantial at the silicon level. Other reports suggest the new device may also feature Apple's in-house N1 wireless chip alongside a C1/C1X modem, as well as new color options.

What stays the same is equally worth noting. The design carries over the 11-inch full-screen layout with a side-mounted Touch ID, and the 7mm body thickness remains unchanged. The display is still LCD — ProMotion high refresh rate, P3 wide color gamut, and full lamination are all still absent. The rear and front cameras, USB-C port, and Apple Pencil accessory compatibility also see no changes.

From a design standpoint, this is a textbook "new internals, same shell" strategy. If the starting price holds at ¥2,999, the combination of an A19 chip and 8GB of RAM is genuinely competitive in the mid-range tablet market — but the LCD display remains an asterisk that will follow this device throughout 2026.