You can still buy the last-gen iPad with a headphone jack for $249

Apple may have killed the 2021 iPad, but Amazon and other retailers are still selling it in various configurations.

by Sheena Vasani

May 9, 2024, 3:22 PM UTC

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Apple’s ninth-gen iPad on a wooden table, viewed from the top down

The last-gen iPad is still worth buying even after Apple killed it and cut the price of its successor.

Photo by Dan Seifert / The Verge

Sheena Vasani writes about tech news, reviews gadgets, and helps readers save money by highlighting deals and product recommendations for The Verge.

Apple may have stopped selling iPads with headphone jacks, but that doesn’t mean you can‘t buy one. Despite the fact Apple dropped the ninth-gen iPad from its official lineup this week, you can still purchase the tablet from multiple third-party retailers for the time being. Until they run out of stock, Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, and Target are still selling the last-gen iPad starting at $249 ($80 off) with 64GB of storage and Wi-Fi.

A 9th gen iPad on a wood table viewed from the top down

2021 iPad (64GB, Wi-Fi)

$249$32924% off

$249

Apple’s entry-level iPad from 2021 has a 10.2-inch screen, an A13 Bionic chip, and a 12MP front camera that supports Apple’s Center Stage feature. It’s also compatible with the first-gen Apple Pencil and the Smart Keyboard and is the only iPad that still has a 3.5mm headphone jack.

$249 at Amazon $249 at Walmart $250 at Target

If you’re looking for a budget-friendly tablet for entertainment purposes, the 10.2-inch ninth-gen iPad still offers excellent value for your money. It’s $100 cheaper than its larger, 10.9-inch successor with an older A13 Bionic processor, yet it runs the same software and can do a lot of the same things. It’s still plenty fast for basic tasks like streaming, playing games, and making video calls.

Granted, we wouldn’t recommend buying it if you need a tablet for daily work, but the last-gen iPad is also fine for some light productivity. It supports the same apps, after all, while you can even take notes with the first-gen Apple Pencil — though you’ll also have to buy that from a third-party retailer like Amazon. And while it lacks the 10th-gen iPad’s USB-C connector, again, it’s the last iPad with a 3.5mm headphone jack, which might make up for that if you aren’t ready to let go of your old wired headphones.