Wassup everyone, welcome back to the podcast.

In this episode, we will focus on one very specific question I’ve been seeing everywhere:

How many Hz is the iPad Air M4 display?

And more importantly… does it have 120Hz?

Let’s get straight to it.

The iPad Air M4 runs at 60Hz.

Yes. Standard 60Hz.

No ProMotion.

No 120Hz adaptive refresh rate.

And for some people, that’s immediately disappointing. Because in 2026, we’re used to seeing 120Hz on premium devices.

So why didn’t Apple bring it to the Air?

Simple answer: product separation.

Apple keeps ProMotion — the 120Hz adaptive display technology — exclusive to the iPad Pro lineup. It’s one of the key features that defines the Pro tier.

The Air sits right below that. Powerful, flexible, but intentionally not “fully Pro.”

Now here’s the more important question:

Does 60Hz actually feel slow on the iPad Air M4?

For most people — no.

Scrolling feels smooth.

Animations feel fluid.

Apple Pencil input is responsive.

And that’s largely because iPadOS is extremely optimized. The M4 chip is powerful enough that even at 60Hz, everything feels stable and consistent.

This isn’t a budget panel. It’s still a high-quality Liquid Retina display.

You’re getting:

Wide P3 color

True Tone

Anti-reflective coating

500 nits brightness on the 11-inch

600 nits on the 13-inch

That 600 nits on the larger model is especially useful outdoors or in bright environments.

So while the refresh rate didn’t increase, brightness and color performance remain strong for its category.

Now, let’s talk about who actually needs 120Hz.

If you’re a digital artist doing high-speed strokes with Apple Pencil.

If you’re editing video frame-by-frame.

If you’re extremely sensitive to motion smoothness.

That’s where ProMotion on the iPad Pro makes a difference. The adaptive 120Hz refresh rate makes scrolling, drawing, and animation feel more immediate and more natural.

But if you’re:

A student taking notes

A professional writing documents

Someone watching Netflix

Browsing, multitasking, light editing

60Hz is completely fine.

In fact, many users wouldn’t notice the difference unless they directly compared devices side by side.

And remember — higher refresh rates also consume more power. By staying at 60Hz, the iPad Air M4 maintains strong battery efficiency, especially paired with the M4 chip.

So the decision really comes down to this:

Do you prioritize AI performance, long-term memory headroom, and value?

Or do you prioritize maximum display fluidity above everything else?

If display smoothness is your number one concern, the iPad Pro is still the answer.

But if you’re asking whether the iPad Air M4 feels slow because it’s 60Hz — it doesn’t.

Apple chose to upgrade performance, RAM, and connectivity this year instead of the refresh rate.

And for most buyers in this price range, that was probably the smarter trade-off.

So to wrap it up:

iPad Air M4 = 60Hz

No 120Hz ProMotion

But still one of the best-balanced displays in its segment.

Sometimes it’s not about chasing bigger numbers.

It’s about where those upgrades actually matter.

Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.