Here’s When You’ll Be Able To Buy Apple’s New, Updated iPad

In the always cutting-edge and exciting world of tech comes another bout of awesome news: We have a new iPad on our hands, people! Well, it should be in our hands soon, anyway. On Mar. 27, Apple unveiled their new 9.7 inch iPad that will feature Apple Pencil capabilities at the Apple Education Event in Chicago, IL. The company revealed that the model was designed with education in mind, and thus it would be offered at $329 to consumers, and $299 to schools purchasing them for classroom use. Considering the new features (and the awesome message behind them), I know I'm not the only one wondering when I can buy the new iPad.

Thankfully this announcement is not like a movie trailer. We aren't being teased with something that looks ~awesome~ and then have to wait until Christmas 2018 to experience it. According to Apple's newsroom, "iPad is available to order today and starts delivering to customers and arriving in stores later this week in more than 25 countries and regions." The complete list of countries and regions includes, "Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UAE, the UK and the US."

You won't have to wait long at all to start playing around with and exploring one of the many upgrades featured in this version of the iPad.

We tote around iPads like they're journals. This in particular tablets has nestled into our work-life flow as a necessary tool. We use it as a way to e-mail, take FaceTime calls, and then cuddle up to it to watch all of a Stranger Things. This latest iPad out of Apple engages users even more. Vice president of Product Marketing at Apple, Greg Joswiak says about the new 9.7-inch iPad, "iPad now includes support for Apple Pencil, bringing the advanced capabilities of one of our most creative tools to even more users." With a separate purchase of the Apple Pencil, $99 to consumers or $89 to schools, students and users are able to mark up their pictures and even their homework assignments.

This latest device will be filled with educational and VR apps (more on that in a minute) but it won't weigh you down like a book bag full of text books can. The entire thing will weigh only 1 pound. And it's packing a lot in there. The iPad will feature, according to the Apple newsroom, "A10 Fusion chip with 64‑bit desktop-class architecture, delivering 40 percent faster CPU and 50 percent faster graphics performance for seamless multitasking and graphics-intensive apps." Both cameras will perform well in low light and there will be HD video for FaceTime. Because who doesn't want to feel like the person they're calling is actually in the same room?

The Retina display on the iPad will showcase extraordinary detail that makes AR apps more of an ~experience~. That can certainly help when it comes to explaining and understanding the anatomy of a frog. The AR apps combine creativity and education for the ultimate learning experiences. And it's not like these new iPad abilities don't apply to the office! Presentations can be boosted thanks to the support of these apps and Apple Pencil.

The iPad, as per usual, comes in silver, space gray and now gold. It goes without saying that Apple has gone above and beyond to service education in a more gripping way for the smart and savvy students of today. I'm not a teacher, but if I were, I would totally give this advancement an A+. Thank goodness we can start ordering ours today.