After a week on pre-order, Apple's refreshed iPad Air with M3 processors is now available to buy immediately and the first pre-ordered ones are arriving in users' hands.

Apple announced the new M3 11-inch iPad Air and 13-inch iPad Air on March 4, 2025. Unusually, Apple did not do its usual taking down of the online store or even having any delay, as instead pre-orders were being taken immediately.

Then just as with the iPhone 16e, there has also not been the familiar situation of the most popular configurations being immediately placed on back-order. Throughout the pre-order period, at least most colors and configurations of both the 11-inch and 13-inch models remained available for shipping to arrive on launch day.

Now with launch day here, online orders have moved back to one business day, but Apple Stores have the two models in stock. It's practically guaranteed that all Apple Stores will have the base new models in stock, and also have them in all four colors — Space Grey, Blue, Purple, and Starlight.

Apple Stores are unlikely, however, to have all configurations available for immediate purchase. As well as the two sizes and the four colors, the iPad Air can be ordered with 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB of storage.

At time of writing, all configurations are available online for next-day delivery. However, Apple Stores will typically stock only the base or most popular configurations.

Online or in-store, the 11-inch iPad Air starts at $599 for the base 128GB Wi-Fi-only model. Choosing the cellular model adds $150 to the purchase price, plus your carrier's monthly fee.

Source: Appleinsider