Device hub · Tablets · Desk research
iPad Air (3rd generation)
Air (3rd generation) is the March 2019 $499 leftover 10.5-inch laminated Retina iPad: A12, Lightning, Home-button Touch ID, Pencil 1st gen, 30.2Wh.
Product images
Placeholder — OEM press not licensediPad Air (3rd generation)
Credit: GadgetShowdown labeled placeholder (not an Apple asset). View official product image
Studio still only. Manufacturer press JPEGs are not hosted here. See the official product page for the real product photo.
Placeholder — OEM press not licensediPad Air (3rd generation)
Credit: GadgetShowdown labeled placeholder (not an Apple asset). View official product image
Studio still only. Manufacturer press JPEGs are not hosted here. See the official product page for the real product photo.
In short
Air (3rd generation) is the March 2019 $499 leftover 10.5-inch laminated Retina iPad: A12, Lightning, Home-button Touch ID, Pencil 1st gen, 30.2Wh. Buy leftover if you want the last Home-button Air. Skip it if you want USB-C or 5G — that starts at Air 4 / Air 5.
Who it is for
- Leftover / refurb shoppers who want the last Home-button 10.5-inch Air with A12, laminated P3 Retina, Lightning, a 3.5 mm jack, and Pencil 1st gen.
- People comparing Air 3 vs Air 4 on chassis (Home button vs top-button Touch ID), display (10.5-inch laminated Retina vs 10.86-inch Liquid Retina), silicon (A12 vs A14), and ports (Lightning vs USB-C).
- Color-sensitive shoppers: Space Gray, Silver, Gold.
Who should skip it
- Anyone who wants the current Air. That is iPad Air (M4) at /tablets/ipad-air-m4/.
- Buyers who want USB-C, top-button Touch ID, or Pencil 2nd gen. That starts at Air (4th generation).
- People who want 5G or a published RAM row. 5G starts at Air 5; RAM is unpublished on Support 111939.
Key differentiators
- Last Home-button iPad Air. Next leftover is the all-screen 10.86-inch Air 4.
- 10.5-inch laminated Retina with P3, True Tone, antireflective coating, 1.8% reflectivity, 500 nits. Not Liquid Retina.
- A12 Bionic + Neural Engine + M12. RAM is not published — do not invent 3GB from a teardown.
- Lightning + 3.5 mm + Smart Connector. Cellular SKUs are Gigabit-class LTE, not 5G.
Caveats
- This is five Air generations behind the March 2026 M4 Air. Street and refurb prices change.
- Brightness (500 nits) and 10-hour battery lines are Apple claims from Support 111939 testing footnotes (February 2019).
- Do not invent USB-C, Pencil 2nd gen, 5G, or a RAM figure the Support sheet does not print.
- In-box USB Power Adapter wattage is not printed. Do not invent 12W from a later box.
- Apple product photography is not hosted here.
Tablet-category specs
Same rows on every tablet page (iPad Pro / Air / mini, Galaxy Tab S, Pixel Tablet).
| Attribute | Value | Source / note |
|---|---|---|
| Display size | 10.5-inch (diagonal) Retina; LED-backlit Multi-Touch | Apple Support 111939 |
| Display type | Retina; LED-backlit Multi-Touch (not Liquid Retina — that name starts on Air 4) | Apple Support 111939 |
| Display resolution | 2224 × 1668 at 264 ppi | Apple Support 111939 |
| Peak brightness (OEM) | 500 nits | Apple Support 111939 |
| Refresh rate | Not published | Apple Support 111939 |
| Display features | Wide color (P3); True Tone; oleophobic coating; fully laminated; antireflective coating; 1.8% reflectivity | Apple Support 111939 |
| Sold size(s) | One size: iPad Air (3rd generation), 10.5-inch. Two-size Air starts with M2. | Apple Newsroom, 2019-03-18 |
| Dimensions | 250.6 × 174.1 × 6.1 mm (9.8 × 6.8 × 0.24 in) for Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi + Cellular | Apple Support 111939 |
| Weight | Wi-Fi 456 g (1.0 lb); Wi-Fi + Cellular 464 g (1.02 lb) | Apple Support 111939 |
| Finishes | Space Gray; Silver; Gold | Apple Support 111939 |
| Chassis / enclosure | Not published | Apple Support 111939 |
| Chip / processor | A12 Bionic with 64-bit architecture, Neural Engine, and embedded M12 coprocessor. Support. | Apple Support 111939; Apple Newsroom 2019-03-18 |
| Memory (RAM) | Not published | Apple Support 111939 |
| On-device storage | 64GB or 256GB (no microSD). Do not copy Air 4’s 64/256GB story as if Air 3 were USB-C. | Apple Support 111939 |
| Operating system | Support 111939 names iPadOS on the OS row we pulled (no version number on that live sheet). Quote the live signed iPadOS on apple.com/ipados — do not freeze 2019 launch software as the only possible image. | Apple Support 111939 |
| Pencil / stylus | Supports Apple Pencil (1st generation). Not in the box. Newsroom: $99 (US) separately. Pencil (2nd generation) / USB-C / hover are not on Support 111939. | Apple Support 111939; Apple Newsroom 2019-03-18 |
| Keyboard / cover (OEM) | Smart Connector on the chassis. Newsroom: Smart Keyboard for the 10.5-inch iPad Air $159 (US), sold separately. Do not write Magic Keyboard or Smart Keyboard Folio onto this Home-button Air. | Apple Newsroom, 2019-03-18; Support 111939 buttons/connectors |
| Biometrics | Touch ID in the Home button | Apple Support 111939 |
| Speakers | Stereo speakers | Apple Support 111939 |
| Microphones | Dual microphones for calls, video recording, and audio recording | Apple Support 111939 |
| Cellular | Wi-Fi models: none. Wi-Fi + Cellular: Gigabit-class LTE (Support band list); nano-SIM (supports Apple SIM) + eSIM; data only. Not 5G — do not copy Air 5 NR onto this leftover. | Apple Support 111939 |
| Wireless (Wi-Fi / Bluetooth) | Wi-Fi 802.11a/b/g/n/ac; simultaneous dual band (2.4GHz and 5GHz); HT80 with MIMO; Bluetooth 5.0 | Apple Support 111939 |
| Ports / expansion | Lightning connector; 3.5 mm headphone jack; Smart Connector; nano-SIM tray on cellular SKUs | Apple Support 111939 |
| Rear camera | 8-megapixel camera, ƒ/2.4; 1080p HD video recording | Apple Support 111939 |
| Front camera | 7-megapixel FaceTime HD, ƒ/2.2; 1080p HD video at 30 fps. Center Stage is not on Support 111939 — that 12MP Ultra Wide row starts on Air 5. | Apple Support 111939 |
| Battery (OEM) | 30.2Wh. Up to 10 hours Wi-Fi web, video, or music; cellular models up to 9 hours web on cellular | Apple Support 111939 |
| Charging (OEM) | Lightning to USB Cable and USB Power Adapter in the box. Adapter wattage is not printed on Support 111939. Charging via power adapter or USB to computer. | Apple Support 111939 |
| Durability / ingress | Not published | Apple Support 111939 |
| Location / GNSS | All models: digital compass, Wi-Fi, iBeacon. Cellular models add GPS/GNSS | Apple Support 111939 |
| US MSRP (launch) | Wi-Fi $499; Wi-Fi + Cellular $629 (Newsroom 18 March 2019). 64GB and 256GB configurations. | Apple Newsroom, 2019-03-18 |
| Price band | Previous mid-flagship tablet ($499 US launch before Pencil/Keyboard) | Derived from Apple launch prices |
| Announced | 18 March 2019 | Apple Newsroom |
| Availability | Newsroom 18 March 2019: available to order starting that day; Apple Store and reseller availability beginning the following week. Current Air is M4. | Apple Newsroom, 2019-03-18 |
iPad Air (3rd generation) extras
Unique to this line or SKU. Other tablets keep the first table aligned and swap this extras list.
| Attribute | Value | Source / note |
|---|---|---|
| Last Home-button iPad Air | 10.5-inch laminated Retina, Lightning, Home-button Touch ID. Next leftover Air is the all-screen USB-C Air 4. | Apple Newsroom, 2019-03-18; Support 111939 |
| First Pencil-supporting iPad Air | Newsroom 18 March 2019: Apple Pencil (1st generation) support. Pencil 2nd gen starts on Air 4. | Apple Newsroom, 2019-03-18 |
| In the box | iPad Air; Lightning to USB Cable; USB Power Adapter | Apple Support 111939 |
| Later leftover sibling | Air (4th generation) is live at /tablets/ipad-air-4th-generation/ — A14, 10.86-inch Liquid Retina, USB-C, top-button Touch ID, Pencil 2nd gen, 28.6Wh. | Apple Support 111905 |
Overview
iPad Air (3rd generation) is the March 2019 Air — the last Home-button 10.5-inch Air, and the first Air with A12 and Pencil. Current Air sell-in is M4. This hub stays so leftover shoppers have a tablets-v1 record instead of mixing Lightning / Home-button rows with later USB-C Air 4 sheets.
We have not used this iPad. Newsroom “70 percent boost” / “twice the graphics” stays an Apple claim from 2019.
Display, chip, speakers
Laminated Retina, 2224 × 1668, 264 ppi, 500 nits, P3, True Tone, antireflective, 1.8% reflectivity. No ProMotion row.
Support 111939 chip row is A12 Bionic + Neural Engine + M12. RAM is not published. Storage is 64GB or 256GB only. Speakers are stereo.
Pencil and radios
Pencil 1st gen (not in the box). Smart Keyboard $159 separately. Wi-Fi ac / Bluetooth 5.0. Lightning + 3.5 mm. Cellular is LTE, not 5G. Front camera is 7MP FaceTime HD.
Battery
30.2Wh; up to 10 hours Wi-Fi; 9 hours cellular. In-box adapter wattage is unpublished.
How this page compares on a desk (not a vs-page)
| Desk fact (OEM) | Air (3rd gen) | Air (4th gen) | Air (M4) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chip / RAM | A12 / RAM not on 111939 | A14 / RAM not on 111905 | M4 / 12GB |
| Display | 10.5-inch laminated Retina | 10.86-inch Liquid Retina | 11- and 13-inch Liquid Retina |
| Ports | Lightning + 3.5 mm | USB-C | USB-C |
| Cellular | Gigabit LTE | Gigabit LTE | 5G |
| US Wi-Fi start | $499 (Mar 2019) | $599 (Sep 2020) | $599 / $799 (Mar 2026) |
Sources
- Apple Newsroom — All-new iPad Air and iPad mini deliver dramatic power and capability — accessed 2026-09-19
- Apple Support — iPad Air (3rd generation) tech specs — accessed 2026-09-19
Frequently asked questions
Is this still the current Air?
No. Current Air on 19 September 2026 is iPad Air (M4). This slug is the leftover last Home-button A12 Air.
Does Air 3 have USB-C or 5G?
No. Support 111939 lists Lightning and Gigabit-class LTE. USB-C starts at Air 4; 5G starts at Air 5.
How much RAM?
Support 111939 does not print a RAM figure. We do not invent 3GB from a teardown.
Official product page: iPad Air (3rd generation). Tech specs: iPad Air (3rd generation) specs.