News
Apple upgrades iPad Air with new M1 chip
Still the king of tablets
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.
Lifestyle
Nike’s Alphafly 4 is built for the part of the marathon ~that actually hurts~
Made to protect your stride when fatigue sets in.
Every marathoner knows the exact moment the race truly begins.
It’s not at the starting line amidst the early morning excitement, but around the 32-kilometer mark, when your legs begin to feel heavy and your form starts to fall apart.
Nike designed its latest marathon racer specifically for that critical window. The Alphafly 4 shifts the focus away from chasing sheer top-end speed, targeting instead the physical breakdown that happens late in a long run.
By studying how fatigue alters a runner’s mechanics over time, Nike rebuilt its flagship distance shoe to help athletes maintain their stride when energy starts to dip.
Holding the line when fatigue sets in
On the road, the shoe operates as a complete, unified system designed to protect your stride.
A redesigned Atomknit upper wraps the foot with breathable support, using targeted midfoot cables and an integrated heel unit to keep your fit secure without adding unnecessary weight or friction over long distances.
Underfoot, the new ZoomX LT foam layer works alongside Nike’s contoured carbon-fiber Flyplate. The lighter foam returns maximum energy with every footfall, while the plate smooths out your rolling motion.
Together with dual forefoot Air Zoom units and a durable Fast Shot outsole, the setup keeps your cadence consistent and your legs feeling fresh well into the back half of the race.
As Emily Farina from the Nike Sport Research Lab notes, their goal was to help runners stay confident, balanced, and capable from the start line all the way to the finish.
Built on the miles that came before
That focus on real-world endurance stems directly from athlete testing.
Nike developed the shoe using feedback from its Project Dreamweaver initiative and extensive trials with women distance runners, prioritizing stability and comfort alongside high performance.
The lineage carries significant weight. The Alphafly family has grounded some of distance running’s greatest moments, from historic sub-two-hour efforts to major course records.
With the Alphafly 4, that legacy translates directly into everyday marathon training, helping athletes hold their target pace just a little bit longer. Marathoners won’t have to wait long to feel the difference on race day.
The Nike Alphafly 4 drops in an early, limited release on September 17 at nike.com, followed by a wider global release on October 29 online and at select retail stores.
Entertainment
SEGA, Netflix announce Crazy Taxi film adaptation
1st in planned slate of film adaptations, including Sonic and STRANGER THAN HEAVEN
SEGA and Netflix have announced a new Crazy Taxi film adaptation. This will usher in a new collaboration era with the parties also developing adaptations for Sonic and STRANGER THAN HEAVEN.
Such a slate of future adaptations reflects the range of SEGA’s library as it draws on Netflix’s experience bringing beloved game worlds to new audiences.
The first project features Crazy Taxi, which will be written by Dan Gregor and Doug Mand. The beloved writing duo was behind the 2025 reboot of The Naked Gun.
Also on board to help helm the production are the same visionaries behind the Sonic franchise: Neal H. Moritz, Toby Ascher, and Toru Nakahara.
Crazy Taxi has been an arcade hit since 1999, putting players behind the wheel of a fearless cabbie racing the clock through chaotic city streets.
There’s flying off ramps, dodging traffic, and chasing tips with punk-rock energy that has become the series’ signature.
The latest title in the franchise, Crazy Taxi: World Tour, is set for a 2027 release. You can watch its trailer below:
Finance
HONOR, Fidesmo partner for contactless payments across Europe, Middle East
Enabling contactless payments on the HONOR Watch 6
HONOR and Fidesmo have partnered to launch contactless payments across Europe and the Middle East on the HONOR Watch 6.
Powered by Fidesmo Pay, the integration enables users to connect an existing Mastercard or Visa card to their watch and complete contactless transactions directly from the wearable device.
This brings Fidesmo’s network of over 900 banks and financial institutions to HONOR’s customers. Users can connect an existing card to the HONOR Watch 6 instantly through the HONOR Health App, which installs a unique token directly onto the watch.
Acting as a secure reference to the payment method, this token allows customers to pay without storing their actual payment details on the device. Once installed, users can tap the watch at any
contactless terminal to pay, just as they would with a card or phone.
HONOR joins a group of device partners that already includes Swatch, Polar, and Mondaine as Fidesmo continues to build momentum across categories.
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