Apple iPad Air 11-inch (M4) vs Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max
The short answer
- Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max is the cheaper of the two at the price its maker announced: INR 67,530 against INR 89,900.
Compared only on figures both makers publish. Everything else is in the table below.
2 phones side by side.
| Specification |
 Apple iPad Air 11-inch (M4)
₹89,900launch price
|
 Xiaomi Pad 9 Pro Max
₹67,530launch price
|
|---|---|---|
| Placement | ||
| At its price | Bottom quarter ₹70k–1L | Not yet assessed |
| Spec index | 7.8 / 10 | — |
| Key Specs | ||
| RAM | 12GB | 8 GB / 12 GB / 16 GB |
| Processor | Apple M4 chip | Xiaomi XRING O3 |
| Rear Camera | 12MP Wide camera, f/1.8 aperture | 50 MP |
| Front Camera | Landscape 12MP Center Stage camera, f/2.0 aperture | 32 MP |
| Battery | Built-in 28.93-watt-hour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery | 12000 mAh |
| Display | 11-inch Liquid Retina display, 2360-by-1640 pixels at 264 ppi | 13.3 inches |
| General | ||
| Launch Date | 11 March 2026 | September 7, 2026 (Official) |
| Operating System | iPadOS | Android v17 |
| Custom UI | — | Xiaomi HyperOS 4.0 |
| Performance | ||
| Chipset | Apple M4 chip | Xiaomi XRING O3 (玄戒O3) AI flagship processor |
| CPU | 8-core CPU with 3 performance cores and 5 efficiency cores | Deca core, 10 all-big-core, up to 4.35 GHz |
| Graphics | 9-core GPU | 16-core G2-Ultra NX |
| RAM | 12GB | 8 GB / 12 GB / 16 GB |
| Fabrication | — | 3 nm |
| RAM Type | — | 8 GB LPDDR5X (8533 Mbps); 12 GB / 16 GB LPDDR5T (9600 Mbps); 16 GB LPDDR6 (10667 Mbps, 16 GB + 1 TB configuration only) |
| Display | ||
| Display Type | Liquid Retina display, LED-backlit Multi-Touch with IPS technology | LCD |
| Screen Size | 11 inches; 10.86 inches when measured diagonally as a rectangle | 13.3 inches |
| Resolution | 2360-by-1640-pixel resolution at 264 ppi | 3408x2272 px (3.4K) |
| Screen Protection | Fingerprint-resistant oleophobic coating, antireflective coating, fully laminated | — |
| Touch Screen | Apple Pencil Pro, Apple Pencil (USB-C), Apple Pencil hover | Yes, Capacitive Touchscreen, Multi-touch, wet-hand touch supported |
| Brightness | 500 nits | 1000 nits (global peak) |
| Aspect Ratio | — | 3:2 |
| Pixel Density | — | 308 ppi |
| Screen to Body Ratio (calculated) | — | 87.6% |
| HDR 10 / HDR+ support | — | Yes, HDR10, HDR Vivid, Dolby Vision |
| Refresh Rate | — | 144 Hz (max) |
| Design | ||
| Height | 9.74 inches (247.6 mm) | 296.2 mm |
| Width | 7.02 inches (178.5 mm) | 203.08 mm |
| Thickness | 0.24 inch (6.1 mm) | 5.67 mm (standard edition) |
| Weight | 1.02 pounds (464 grams) | 645 grams (standard edition); 653 grams (soft-light edition) |
| Colours | Blue, Purple, Starlight, Space Gray | Rich Wine Red, Black, Silver |
| Build Material | — | Unibody metal chassis Front: Glass Frame and back: Aluminium |
| Main Camera | ||
| Camera Setup | 12MP Wide camera, f/1.8 aperture | Single |
| Autofocus | Autofocus with Focus Pixels | Yes, PDAF |
| OIS | No | — |
| Flash | No rear flash | Yes, LED Flash |
| Settings | Photos captured as HEIF and JPEG; video captured as HEVC and H.264 | — |
| Camera Features | Digital zoom up to 5x; Smart HDR 4; Up to 63MP | HDR Beauty Filters Video filters Video beauty Teleprompter Motion photo Watermark Countdown timer Voice shutter Touch shutter Flash |
| Video Recording | 4K at 24, 25, 30 or 60 fps; 1080p HD at 25, 30 or 60 fps; 720p HD at 30 fps | 3840x2160 @ 60 fps 3840x2160 @ 30 fps 1920x1080 @ 60 fps 1920x1080 @ 30 fps 1280x720 @ 30 fps |
| Video Recording Features | 1080p at 120 fps or 240 fps | — |
| Resolution | — | 50 MP ultra-clear main camera, f/1.8 |
| Sensor | — | 1/2.76-inch sensor size, 0.64 um pixel size, with colour spectrum sensor |
| Shooting Modes | — | Photo Video Portrait Document Pro Front + rear dual view 50 MP ultra-clear Portrait bokeh Portrait ultra-clear |
| Front Camera | ||
| Camera Setup | Landscape 12MP Center Stage camera, f/2.0 aperture | Single |
| Flash | Retina Flash with True Tone | No, screen fill light |
| Camera Features | Smart HDR 4; Center Stage; wide colour capture for photos and Live Photos; lens correction; burst mode | Photo Video Portrait Teleprompter Beauty Filters Video filters Video beauty Motion photo HDR Countdown timer Voice shutter Touch shutter Gesture shutter Portrait bokeh Portrait ultra-clear Fill light Watermark |
| Video Recording | 1080p HD at 25, 30 or 60 fps | 1920x1080 @ 30 fps 1280x720 @ 30 fps |
| Resolution | — | 32 MP ultra-wide, f/2.2 (19 mm, 1/3.6-inch, 0.61 um) |
| Battery | ||
| Capacity | Built-in 28.93-watt-hour rechargeable lithium-polymer battery | 12000 mAh (typ) / 11740 mAh (min) |
| Talktime | Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi-Fi or watching video | — |
| Standby Time | Up to 9 hours of surfing the web using a cellular data network | — |
| Wireless Charging | No | No |
| Quick Charging | Via power adapter or USB-C to computer system | Yes, 120W wired fast charging; 27W reverse wired charging; 45W POGO reverse (car) charging; QC2.0 / PD3.0 / PD2.0 supported |
| Type | — | Built-in dual-cell high energy density battery |
| Removable | — | No |
| USB Type-C | — | No |
| Storage | ||
| Internal Memory | 128GB, 256GB, 512GB or 1TB; 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, 1TB | 256 GB / 512 GB / 1 TB |
| Expandable Memory | No card slot | No |
| USB OTG | — | Yes |
| Storage Type | — | UFS 4.1 with FBO storage refresh |
| Network & Connectivity | ||
| SIM Slot(s) | eSIM only; not compatible with physical SIM cards | No, Wi-Fi only model |
| Network Support | 5G (sub-6 GHz) with 4x4 MIMO; Gigabit LTE with 4x4 MIMO | No cellular connectivity |
| VoLTE | No | — |
| Wi-Fi | Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) with 2x2 MIMO, simultaneous dual band | Yes, Wi-Fi 7, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, dual band (2.4 GHz + 5 GHz) |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 6 | Yes, v6.0, Dual-Bluetooth, AAC / LDAC / LHDC 5.0 / LC3 |
| GPS | Digital compass, Wi-Fi and iBeacon microlocation on all models; GPS/GNSS and cellular on Wi-Fi + Cellular models | No |
| USB Connectivity | USB-C port with charging, DisplayPort and USB 3 up to 10Gb/s | USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2, up to 10 Gbps theoretical (USB3 cable sold separately; the in-box cable does not support USB3 transfer) |
| Wi-Fi Features | — | MLO, 2x2 MIMO, Wi-Fi Direct, Miracast, 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz dual concurrency |
| NFC | — | No |
| Infrared Sensor | — | Yes, IR remote control |
| Multimedia | ||
| Loudspeaker | No | Yes |
| FM Radio | — | No |
| Stereo Speaker | — | No |
| Audio Jack | — | No |
| Audio Features | — | Dolby Atmos Hi-Res Audio and Hi-Res Wireless Audio certified 6 microphones WeChat / QQ call recording Multi-scene pickup Speaker and headphone noise reduction Voiceprint noise reduction |
| Sensors | ||
| Other Sensors | Touch ID: Yes, in the top button; Gyroscope: Three-axis gyro; Accelerometer: Yes; Barometer: Yes; Ambient light: Ambient light sensor; Face ID: Not supported | Accelerometer Gyroscope Front ambient light (colour temperature) sensor Rear ambient light (colour temperature) sensor Flicker sensor Hall sensor Geomagnetic sensor Proximity sensor Status indicator light IR remote control |
| Fingerprint Sensor | — | Yes |
| Fingerprint Sensor Position | — | Side-mounted (power button) |
| Heart Rate Monitor | — | No |