Thoughts on Day 2 of Apple’s Spring Product Launch, The iPad Air (M4), More on iPhone 17e and Low-End Smartphones
March 4th, 2026
By Neil Cybart
Thoughts on Day 2 of Apple’s Spring Product Launch
The iPad Air (M4)
More on iPhone 17e and Low-End Smartphones
Hello everyone. Apple’s busy week continues with the second day of new and updated products.
One quick programming note for those of you who are also subscribed to the AVALON weekly podcast: This week’s episode will come out on Wednesday instead of the usual Tuesday.
Let’s jump into today’s update.
Thoughts on Day 2 of Apple’s Spring Product Launch
Earlier today, Apple unveiled a slew of updated products:
MacBook Air (M5) for $1,099. The price floor has been increased by $100 to reflect Apple doubling the amount of starting storage. Said another way, pricing for the 512GB storage option went down by $100 as that option for the MacBook Air (M4) had been $1,199.
M5 Pro and M5 Max chips.
MacBook Pro (M5 Pro and M5 Max) with a price floor that is $200 higher than its predecessors reflecting Apple doubling the amount of starting storage. Unlike what was found with the MacBook Air (M5), pricing for the same amount of storage last year was unchanged.
An updated Studio Display ($1,599).
An all-new 27-inch Studio Display XDR ($3,299) which is positioned as the more premium option next to the Studio Display. The $4,999 (+$999 for the stand) 32-inch Pro Display XDR is being discontinued.
AI was the major theme connecting these Mac updates. Given an increasing number of AI workflows occurring on device,
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Apple Updates the iPad Air, Apple Updates the Entry-Level iPad, The iPad Strategy
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories:
Apple Updates the iPad Air
Apple Updates the Entry-Level iPad
The iPad Strategy
In yesterday’s update, we discussed how the iPhone 16e is aimed at existing iPhone owners who likely have gone at least five years without an upgrade. Evidence backing up that claim can be seen on Apple’s iPhone 16e minisite.
Consider the following comparison tool for the iPhone 16e:
The following iPhones are used as comparison options:
iPhone 11 (launched in Sept 2019)
iPhone 12 (launched in Oct 2020)
iPhone 12 mini (launched in Nov 2020)
iPhone SE 2nd and 3rd gen (launched in April 2020 and March 2022)
Similar comparison tools for the iPhone 16 use more recent iPhone models (iPhone 12 to iPhone 15 Plus). The iPhone 16 Pro comparison tool goes from iPhone 12 Pro to iPhone 15 Pro Max.
For today’s update, we will focus on Apple’s iPad news. The update concludes with my broader thoughts on Apple’s iPad strategy.
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Become an Above Avalon member and receive the following privileges and benefits:
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