News

Apple upgrades iPad Air with new M1 chip

Still the king of tablets

Published

March 9, 2022

Rodneil Quiteles

Apple flexes its dominance in the tablets space by introducing the new and improved iPad Air. It’s now powered by the M1 chip for a massive leap in performance.

Also coming to this upgraded iPad Air are the new Ultra Wide front camera with Center Stage, a USB-C port with up to 2x faster transfer speeds, and blazing-fast 5G on cellular models. Makes you wonder why Apple still refuses to go from lightning to USB-C on iPhones. Moving on though…

M(1)assive performance leap

Apple is bringing their tried and tested M1 chip to the iPad air. What does this mean for those eyeing this tablet? Up to 60 percent faster performance and up to 2x faster graphics performance compared to the previous iPad Air.

We’re sure that still feels a little too abstract. So, some of the things it’ll now let you do are edit multiple streams of 4K video, play graphics-intensive games (we can hear PC gamers LOL-ing), redesign a room in 3D, and deliver more realistic augmented reality (AR). Nice, right? It doesn’t stop there.

Centerstage

Video calling has been extra essential over the past two years of the pandemic. To address this, Apple introduced Centerstage. It automatically pans to keep users in view as they move around. When others join in, the camera detects them too, and smoothly zooms out to include them in the conversation. This feature is present on the iPad Air and its 12MP front-facing camera.

The 12MP Wide camera on the back of iPad Air lets users capture sharp photos and 4K video, scan documents, and enjoy amazing AR experiences. It’s an end-to-end solution for photo and video capture, editing, and sharing.

5G and advanced connectivity

The iPad Air will come in 5G models. With 5G, iPad Air can reach peak speeds of up to 3.5Gbps in ideal conditions. With eSIM and Wi-Fi 6 support, you get flexible ways of getting connected.

The USB-C port is now up to 2x faster than the previous generation, with data transfers up to 10Gbps, so importing large photos and videos is even quicker. The port connects iPad Air to a vast ecosystem of USB-C accessories, including cameras, external storage, and displays with up to 6K resolution.

Retina display and accessories

Any tablet won’t be enjoyable without a good display. That’s why Apple put a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display on the iPad Air. Expect an immersive visual experience, with 3.8 million pixels and advanced technologies, including 500 nits of brightness, full lamination, a P3 wide color gamut, True Tone, and an anti-reflective screen coating.

The tablet is mightier with a pen. Or in this case, an Apple Pencil (2nd generation). It turns iPad Air into a digital journal and sketchbook users can take anywhere. It’s also compatible with the Magic Keyboard.

Price and availability

The new iPad Air is available to order beginning Friday, March 11, from apple.com/store, apple.com/sg/store and in the Apple Store app in 29 countries and regions, including the US, with availability beginning Friday, March 18.

In Singapore, the Wi-Fi models of iPad Air are available with a starting price of SG$ 879 and Wi-Fi + Cellular models start at SG$ 1,099. In the Philippines, a non-cellular model with a 64GB storage starts at ₱35,990 and ₱44,990 for the 256GB variant. The maxed out 5G + Wi-Fi model sells for ₱53,990.

Meanwhile in the US, the Wi-Fi models start at US$ 599 and the Cellular models start at US$ 749.

The new iPad Air, in 64GB and 256GB configurations, comes in space grey, starlight, pink, purple, and blue finishes.

News

Budget smartphone realme C100 Series launches

Long battery life, ruggedness, more

Published

June 18, 2026

GadgetMatch

The realme C100 Series, the brand’s latest rugged essential smartphone in the budget segment, has officially launched in the Philippines.

The series introduces up to an 8,000mAh Titan Battery on the realme C100 model, as well as IP69 Pro certification.

This means the handset has IP66, IP68, IP69, and IP69K dust and water resistance ratings to handle high-pressure water exposure and submersion for up to six meters and 30 minutes.

The C100 also supports 45W SUPERVOOC charging for quick battery top-ups. It even has a 10W reverse charging support to power other small devices.

On the other hand, the realme C100i comes with a 7,000mAh Titan Battery to likewise power all-day use. This model supports a steady 15W charging and 6W reverse charging. It is also rated IP64 for dust and water resistance.

In addition, both models support Rain Touch Mode, making the 6.8-inch 120Hz display optimized for touches even when it is wet. This panel also comes with ArmorShell Glass protection.

Powering the C100 is the MediaTek Helio G92 Max processor while the C100i has as Unisoc T7250 processor. The devices run on realme UI 7.0 (Android 16).

Price, availability

In the Philippines, the realme C100 Series comes in various storage configurations:

C100i (4GB+64GB): PhP 6,313 (SRP: PhP 8,999)
C100i (4GB+128GB): PhP 7,379 (SRP: PhP 11,999)
C100i (4GB+256GB): PhP 8,199 (SRP: PhP 13,999)
C100 (4GB+256GB): PhP 11,195 (SRP: PhP 16,999)
C100 (8GB+256GB): PhP 14,000 (SRP: PhP 19,999)

Limited-time launch offers are available through Lazada, Shopee, and TikTok from June 18 to June 30.

The phones are also available at realme concept stores, kiosks, and partner retailers nationwide. Potential freebies include a TechLife Smart band, extended warranty and screen damage protection, privilege card, or additional cash discount.

News

Did Tim Cook just confirm that iPhone prices are going up?

Once again, it might be because of the RAM crisis.

Published

June 18, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

If there’s one thing you can count on in the smartphone world, it’s the high price of an iPhone. Unfortunately, with the ongoing RAM shortages, things might get worse. Apple’s Tim Cook has essentially confirmed that the brand is about to raise its prices.

Via an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Cook said, “Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable.” As with other companies, the outgoing CEO is talking about the RAM crisis. With a lot of chips going to AI, consumer-ready silicon is getting scarcer and scarcer. Thankfully, some brands are shielding its users from the increases, but it’s reaching levels that aren’t sustainable for business.

“We’re doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we’ve been trying to shield our customers from the increases, but the situation has become unsustainable,” he said.

Cook did not explain how much prices will go up or when. However, with the iPhone 18 series (and a potential iPhone Fold) just on the horizon, it seems nigh.

Apple isn’t the first brand to react to the shortages (nor will it be the last). Now, regardless of whether or not Apple has the capabilities to tank the crisis, the biggest culprit is still AI. Companies today are more than willing to use AI as a scapegoat, real or otherwise, for shady cost-cutting or profit-enhancing practices.

News

Apple might launch an iPhone Air 2 next year

This is despite the iPhone Air’s reportedly low demand.

Published

June 18, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Is this the most varied that an iPhone lineup has ever been? With an iPhone Fold supposedly coming out later this year, the current lineup includes a base model, two Pro models, an ultra-thin Air model, and the affordable 17e. There’s now an iPhone for everyone. According to a new report, next year won’t be any different. Apple is reportedly launching the iPhone Air 2 early next year.

Among all the current models in the lineup, the iPhone Air does seem like the oddest of the bunch. Whereas the other models already have established niches, the Air is positioned simply as a thinner iPhone, riding on the short-lived ultra-thin phone trend. In fact, recent reports suggest that the Air isn’t as popular as its contemporaries.

Apparently, Apple doesn’t see it that way. According to Bloomberg, the brand is still surging forward with an iPhone Air 2. The upcoming version might even add a second camera and an improved processor.

Despite reports that it isn’t that popular, Apple might still believe in the model’s future. At this point, they should; Apple has always had a problem with the base model’s partner. Years of flip-flopping around what it should be, Apple wants to stay a little bit longer on the Air.