New iPad Pro and iPad Air Will Have Day-One Software Update With These Release Notes

by

The new iPad Pro and iPad Air will begin arriving to customers over the next 24 hours. It appears that the initial batch of the devices will have a special build of iPadOS 17.4 preinstalled, but an iPadOS 17.5 software update will be available in the Settings app right away, according to MacRumors contributor Aaron Perris.

M4 iPad Pro and Air Feature
iPadOS 17.5 has a special build number of 21F84 on the new iPads, and modified release notes that mention improved document scanning:

Apple News+
• Offline mode in Apple News+ gives you access to the Today feed and News+ tab, even when you don't have an internet connection
• Quartiles is a new and original daily word game that is now available in Apple News+
• Scoreboard in News+ Puzzles gives you access to new player data for Crossword, Mini Crossword and Quartiles, including stats and streaks

Tracking Notifications
• Cross-Platform Tracking Detection delivers notifications to users if a compatible Bluetooth tracker they do not own is moving with them, regardless of what operating system the device is paired with

Document Scanning
• Document scanning is improved on the new iPad Air and iPad Pro

The new iPad Pro models with the M4 chip are equipped with "adaptive True Tone flash" for improved document scanning. It is unclear if the feature requires iPadOS 17.5, or if the update simply further optimizes the functionality.

iPad Pro Improved Document Scanning
With adaptive True Tone flash and AI, the new iPad Pro can eliminate shadows on scanned documents, as Apple explained in a press release:

It also now features a new adaptive True Tone flash that makes document scanning on the new iPad Pro better than ever. Using AI, the new iPad Pro automatically identifies documents right in the Camera app, and if a shadow is in the way, it instantly takes multiple photos with the new adaptive flash, stitching the scan together for a dramatically better scan.

Improved document scanning will be available in the Camera, Files, and Notes apps, and third-party apps will be able to offer the feature too.

The new iPad Air does not have adaptive True Tone flash, so it is unclear how document scanning is improved on those models, as Apple indicates.

iPadOS 17.5 was already released on Monday for all other iPads, with a build number of 21F79 and no mention of improved document scanning.

Related Forums: iOS 17, iPadOS 17

Popular Stories

iphone 17 pro asherdipps

iPhone 17 Pro Max Rumors Allegedly Refer to 'iPhone 17 Ultra' Model

Friday March 14, 2025 7:56 am PDT by
If you've been following iPhone rumors over the last few years, you may remember reading reports that Apple flirted with the idea of introducing a super high-end "Ultra" model that would either replace its Pro Max device or sit above it in Apple's smartphone hirearchy. These reports appeared in the pre-launch iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 rumor cycles, but ultimately came to nothing. Now though, the...
Read Full Article • 143 comments
ios 18 4 carplay

Apple Upgrades CarPlay in Two Ways

Wednesday March 12, 2025 6:05 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone includes a smaller but meaningful improvement for Apple's in-car iPhone mirroring system CarPlay. Specifically, CarPlay now shows a third row of icons, up from two rows previously. However, this change is only visible in vehicles with a larger center display. For example, a MacRumors Forums member noticed the change in a Toyota Tundra with a...
Read Full Article • 55 comments
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Launch Now Just Months Away: Here's What We Know

Tuesday March 11, 2025 3:26 am PDT by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
Read Full Article • 48 comments
apple surveyor app

Apple Launches 'Surveyor' App for Apple Maps Data Collection

Friday March 14, 2025 10:38 am PDT by
Apple today launched a new app called Surveyor, which is designed to allow users to collect data like images of street signs and roadside details to improve Apple Maps. The app is not public facing and appears to be for use with companies that Apple partners with to assign mapping tasks. Downloading the app and opening it up directs users to "Open Partner App" to choose a task. Tapping on...
Read Full Article • 71 comments
iPhone 17 Air Size Feature

Ultra-Thin 'iPhone 17 Air' Rumored to Include These 12 Features

Saturday March 15, 2025 10:50 am PDT by
While the so-called "iPhone 17 Air" is not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the ultra-thin device. Overall, the "iPhone 17 Air" sounds like a mixed bag. While the device is expected to have an impressively thin and light design, rumors indicate it will have some compromises compared to iPhone 17 Pro models, including only a single rear camera, a...
Read Full Article • 118 comments
Apple Intelligence Comes Under Fire Feature

Apple Reassures Siri Team Members Feeling Disappointed and Embarrassed by Apple Intelligence Delay

Friday March 14, 2025 11:45 am PDT by
Apple is reassuring employees on the Siri team who may be feeling demotivated by the recent Siri delays and the bad press surrounding the company's decisions, reports Bloomberg. In a Siri team meeting, Apple senior director Robby Walker acknowledged that employees might be feeling "angry, disappointed, burned out and embarrassed" following the Siri delay, but he praised the hard work of...
Read Full Article • 473 comments
Sad Siri Feature

Kuo: Cook Should Personally Address Siri Apple Intelligence Failure

Thursday March 13, 2025 4:02 pm PDT by
Apple made a major misstep with the way that it handled the delay of Apple Intelligence features for Siri, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said today. Announcing the delay through a press statement was a bad decision, and Apple should instead have gone through official channels. Kuo referenced the well-known "Antennagate" PR crisis when the iPhone 4 launched in 2010, and the way that then Apple...
Read Full Article • 431 comments
iOS 18

12 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.4

Monday March 10, 2025 9:28 am PDT by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.4 in early April, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a neat new capability to iPhone 15 Pro devices, new emoji, and more. While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.4 still introduces enhancements that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've listed 12 new...
Read Full Article • 33 comments
Apple Maps vs Google Maps Feature

iOS 18.4 Adds a Highly-Requested Setting to iPhones — But Not in U.S.

Wednesday March 12, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
iPhones are finally getting a much-requested setting, but availability is limited. The upcoming iOS 18.4 update introduces an option to set a default navigation app, other than Apple Maps, but unfortunately this new setting is limited to users in the EU. There, you can now set an app like Google Maps or Waze as your default navigation app on the iPhone by opening the Settings app and tapping ...
Read Full Article • 120 comments

Top Rated Comments

julesme Avatar
julesme
11 months ago
Document scanning in Notes is one of the best & most under-appreciated iOS features. I still come across people who don’t use it and /or have never heard of it. Happy to see Apple continue to improve it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Cirillo Gherardo Avatar
Cirillo Gherardo
11 months ago

Document scanning in Notes is one of the best & most under-appreciated iOS features.
Eh. Document Scanning itself is great. Document Scanning in Notes is the clunkiest most confusing thing on the entire OS. Most people are just trying to get a JPG or a PDF to send somewhere. But its part of a note, and really unclear how to share just the document, and then scanning itself is really unclear when it comes to multi page document vs multiple documents. It's a real mess that needs to be simplified. I wish the camera app had scanning built in and AI document detection, because no one ever opens Notes to do this. I always see people just open the camera and start taking a picture of a document ...perfect moment for AI to step in handle it like a scan instead of a photo.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TechnoMonk Avatar
TechnoMonk
11 months ago
Hope the true tone flash comes to future iPhones, i find it uncomfortable to scan with my m1 iPad Pro.May be the lighter M4 iPad Pro is better.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ps3zocker Avatar
ps3zocker
11 months ago

Hope the true tone flash comes to future iPhones, i find it uncomfortable to scan with my m1 iPad Pro.May be the lighter M4 iPad Pro is better.
True Tone flash has been on the iPhone for years. Is it adaptive though, I don't know? What's the "AIs" job in this?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TechnoMonk Avatar
TechnoMonk
11 months ago

True Tone flash has been on the iPhone for years. Is it adaptive though, I don't know? What's the "AIs" job in this?
It takes multiple scans and stitches together to remove the shadows. I have problems occasionally with scans from my 13 PM, needs some maneuvering to eliminate shadows.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
reubs Avatar
reubs
11 months ago

The Files app does the same thing but the functionality is kind of hidden. But using the Files app you can select where to save the document directly which makes sharing easier, and it defaults to multi document mode.

I agree that it’s clunky to scan a pdf into a note. Maybe it makes sense for Apple executives who only ever talk to people who also extensively use Apple Notes.
I had no idea you could scan in the Files app!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Read All Comments