Apple unveils new iPad Air and iPad mini

Typically Apple creates fanfare around the arrival of new hardware. But this year it wants the focus of its upcoming spring press event to be all about its rumored streaming service. That's why the company let the world know about its new iPads in a press release.

The iPad Air comes with a bigger 10.5-inch display (starting at $499), and the iPad mini has the same 7.9-inch screen (starting at $399). The devices support the Apple Pencil and a processor that's three times faster than the previous models.

The iPad mini will mostly serve as an entertainment device, likely to attract students and teenagers, while the lightweight iPad Air replaces the 10.5-inch iPad Pro in Apple's online store.

Apple was widely expected to tease the iPads ahead of its spring event on March 25. But the press release was a surprise.

"Apple wants to get the iPad out of the way so it can hold its first event truly focused on streaming," Lauren Guenveur, senior research analyst at IDC told CNN Business. "If Apple announced new Pads, it would turn into a hardware event, and that's not what it wants."

Tablet shipments have declined in the past few years, especially among devices that don't come with a keyboard. "Perhaps what's the point for having an event for a declining category?" Guenveur added.

Guenveur believes the new 10.5-inch iPad Air could struggle to find a place in the market considering the 11-inch iPad Pro is still a more powerful option that also supports the pencil. The iPad Mini, however, could push a decent amount of people to upgrade.

"There is certainly a market for the iPad Mini, especially among students and teens, but I don't know for how long the upgrade cycle for it will be,' Guenveur said. "I suspect it will do very well for one large upgrade cycle for the rest of the year and then slowly drop off."

Correction: An earlier version of this story detailed incorrectly what ships with the new iPads

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