What size case for iPad 10.2 2021? It’s a complicated question. If you’ve splurged and bought yourself a brand new 10.2 inch iPad, you’ll want an iPad 10.2 case that fits it like a glove. Scroll through Amazon reviews on half a dozen cases on the market, and you find one common theme: they don’t fit or don’t fit well enough, or almost fit but just not quite.
iPad 10.2 Sizes: 2019, 2020, 2021
Here’s the bottom line: the size of the iPad 10.2 hasn’t changed between 2019 and 2021. If you’re reading about cases not fitting because they were designed in 2019 (or 2020)! there are just two possibilities. Either the case never fit an iPad 10.2, or it still fits, and the user/reviewer doesn’t know how to put it on right.
The dimensions of the 2021 iPad 10.2 are 9.8 inches high, 6.8 inches in width, and 0.29 inches deep. If you like metric, that is 250.6 × 174.1 × 7.5 millimeters.
Even the buttons are all in the same places: the volume buttons, the ports, the camera. The camera is the exact same size, as are all the other buttons.
So if you go ahead and buy any quality iPad 10.2 case. If it fits the 2019 model it will fit your new iPad just as well.
Note that there are other versions of the iPad with different dimensions, so don’t go buying a case for the iPad Air or iPad Pro for instance. The first through 6th iPad models were also different sizes. The only cases so that will work for you are those designed for 2019, 2020, or 2021 iPad 10.2. Like this military drop spec case from Zugu.
What is New in the iPad 10.2 2021
So if the dimensions of the 9th generation iPad 10.2, released in 2021, are the same as they have been the last three years, what exactly has changed?
The new LTE iPad is a little heavier than its predecessor, but only by a few grams. If you have the Wifi model, it’ll be 487 grams. If you have the cellular variant, the extra internal antenna will bring it up to 498 grams.
You also have more memory options: 64 GB and 256 GB are your two options with the 9th generation iPad. That’s twice the amount the 8th generation packed in 2020. The back camera is still 8MP, with f.2.4 aperture, while the front-facing camera has a 12 MP ultra-wide sensor. That wide camera is super-cool, actually; it uses machine learning to keep you right in the center of the frame at all times. There is still no flash, so if you want to take photos in low light, bring your own supplemental light source.
There’s no upgrade in battery: while the 2019 model boasted an 8827 mAh LiPo battery— 32.9 Wh— the newer 2021 9th generation actually brought that down to 8526 mAh. It’s not enough to be really noticeable, and both models advertised their ‘all-day; battery as a selling point. But it’s not an upgrade, unless, of course, you’re using a well-loved 7th or 8th generation iPad which no longer has the battery power it did when it came out of the factory.
The one big improvement in the new iPad is really its processor. The 9th generation device features an Apple A13 Bionic APLW85 7 nm system chip, and Apple claims this provides a 20% better performance than the A12 of the 8th generation.
How to Determine Your iPad Model
If you know what model iPad you’ve got, you should know now what case you need to buy. But maybe your iPad was a gift or a hand-me-down, and you have no idea which model it is. No worries! It’s actually super easy to find out what model iPad you have on the device itself. Here are two methods, one using the outside of your device, one the inside:
To determine the model of your iPad externally:
- Turn over your iPad, and take off any case or cover obscuring the back.
- Look toward the bottom, and you’ll see the word “iPad”. Near it, in smaller text, is the model number and serial number.
If you don’t want to take off your iPad’s cover, or you have a sticker obscuring your model number, you can still find which iPad number you’ve got through the settings. Here’s the procedure:
- Open Settings (that grey gear icon among your apps)
- Select General
- Select About
- Your iPad will bring up a list of specifications. Under the model, there’s a longer number ending with /A. That’s your iPad’s SKU number.
- Click on the model section. The short number beginning with A is your model number.
Translating Model Numbers into iPad Years/Generations
So you’ve got your model number— what does that mean? Yes, Apple doesn’t label the devices with ’iPad 10.2 9th generation’ or anything meaningful like that. Instead, you get these long serial numbers that all begin with A. The good news is, so that these model numbers can be translated into the generation/year data we use every day. Here’s how it works.
- The first iPad— iPad 1— has model number A1219 if it’s the WiFi version, and A1337 if it’s cellular
- The second iPad (iPad 2) has model number A1395 for the Wifi version, A1397 or A1396 for cellular.
- iPad third generation will have A1416 for the model number if it’s a WiFi version, and otherwise A1430 or A1403.
- iPad fourth generation was assigned model numbers A1458 (WiFi) and A1459 and A1460 (cellular). The fifth-generation, in 2017 was assigned A1822 (WiFi version) and A1823 (cellular).
- 6th generation is A1893 for the WiFi version, A1954 for the cellular. After the sixth generation, we have a size jump, like 7th, 8th, and 9th all boast the 10.2 screens.
- The 2019 seventh generation was assigned model numbers A2197 (WiFi) and A2200, A2198 (cellular). The model numbers of the 8th generation were A2270, A2428, A2429, and A2430, and for the 9th generation (2021), we’ve got model numbers A2602, A2604, A2603, A2605 (yes, there were a lot!)
If your number isn’t on this list, you may have an iPad Air, iPad Pro, or iPad mini.
That’s it! Now that you know how to find your model number— and which 10.2-inch models can share the same case— you should be able to select the ideal 10.2 iPad case to protect your new iPad 10.2
