Apple used to offer only the best. Now it offers everything.

There was a time Steve Jobs wanted to get rid of buttons because he so valued simplicity. What happened to that company?

Tim Cook.
(Image credit: Illustrated | AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)

It happened almost under cover of night. This week, Apple launched new iPads without an event or any fanfare — just an updated website and a tweet from CEO Tim Cook.

While Apple occasionally updates products this way — usually products getting unremarkable spec bumps — the quiet approach here was odd. The new iPad Air and iPad Mini both have substantial new features: not just faster processors, but also support for the Apple Pencil, plus support for a smart keyboard and better speakers for the Air.

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Navneet Alang

Navneet Alang is a technology and culture writer based out of Toronto. His work has appeared in The Atlantic, New Republic, Globe and Mail, and Hazlitt.