Apple Announces A New 9.7-Inch iPad With Apple Pencil Support

• New 9.7-inch iPad announced during Apple's Education Event. 
• The device boasts better hardware than earlier iPad generation that guarantees smoother handling of demanding graphics extensive apps.
• The standard price of the device is at $329, but students can get their hands on it for $299.

Apple has announced an upgraded version of their popular 9.7-inch iPad with better performance and Apple Pencil support. The tablet comes in three price plans. The standard Wifi-only model costs $329, and if you intended to add cellular compatibility, then that will take the price to $459. Do note that both models boast 32GB of memory. And lastly, there is the $299 model, but only students can take advantage of that discount. 

As mentioned, the new iPad will also come with Apple Pencil support, but the hardware (product) will not be provided in the box. Interested users will have to make a separate purchase of $99 for the Apple Pencil. However, students will be able to get their hands on it for $89.

Image Courtesy of Ars Technica

The device is ultra light and extra durable thanks to its aluminum unibody construction. The screen, as we said, is a 9.7-inch Retina ready display which can reproduce gorgeous details and vivid colors. Under the hood, it packs the A10 Fusion chip with a 64-bit desktop-class architecture. This guarantees a 40% faster CPU and 50% faster GPU performance, helping you run multiple graphics-intensive apps with ease. It also has a front and rear facing camera which can help take marvelous low light photos and supports HD video recording.

Also, to complement the Apple Pencil, the device has built-in advanced sensors to measures both the pressure and tilt to deliver pixel-perfect accuracy along with low latency. The inclusion of the palm rejection technology means you won’t have to scribble on your iPad in an unnatural manner. The device also packs in a gyroscope and accelerometer, which when combined with the above-mentioned specs, guarantees an unparalleled experience with next-generation AR apps.

Finally coming to the software front, iOS 11 introduces powerful multitasking features and integrated support for the Apple Pencil, helping users to flush out the true potential of their Apple iPad.