I said in the final part of my iPhone SE diary that perceptions of iDevices are very personal, in part because of the role the product plays within our own personal Apple ecosystem – and that’s equally true here.
For someone who likes to draw, or handwrite, Apple Pencil support makes the upgrade from an earlier iPad a no-brainer. You’re getting a huge amount of additional functionality for your money. You could say that you’re getting an iPad Air 2 plus a sophisticated electronic sketching device, all in one box.
But I can’t draw, and I haven’t handwritten anything for years. So for me, the upgrade from my iPad Air is a less dramatic one. The question is whether the relatively modest enhancements can justify the fairly stiff increase in price … ?
Apple products hold their value well, but let’s be honest here: any time you upgrade a year-old product for the latest model, you’re going to take a financial hit. The resale value of last year’s device will be decent, but you still need to throw in a non-trivial amount of cash to make up the difference.
But anyone upgrading from the iPad Air 2 to the same-size iPad Pro is taking a double-hit: the depreciation on the old model, plus the fairly significant price hike on the new one.
I talked last time about the differences between the two models, and my first impressions of each. This second diary piece is going to be relatively short by my standards because, in truth, I have little to add. The differences that impressed me last time continued to impress me, and – with one exception I’ll get to shortly – the things I considered irrelevant to me remained irrelevant.
Let’s start with a brief recap of the things that impressed me …
The first was the four-speaker sound system. I tried it as a table-top Netflix device and yes, the speakers are more than up to the job. For music, the quality of course remains lo-fi – this is a tablet, not a sound system – but no-one could have any complaints about the volume.
I remarked before on the non-symmetrical speaker grilles. When holding the iPad Pro in landscape mode with the Home button on the right, you have 24 holes on the left and 14 on the right. One reader wondered whether that would lead to unbalanced sound, and the answer is yes, slightly. My estimate of the mid-point of the sound is maybe 10% to the left of the centre of the screen. But that estimate was arrived at by sitting there listening for it. In everyday use, I didn’t notice it at all.
There’s one other nice touch with the speakers. The iPad always directs the higher frequencies to the top speakers, whether you’re holding it in landscape or portrait orientation. I can’t think of a reason I’d ever be listening to anything in portrait mode, but hey, it’s technology!
The reduced reflectivity made more of a difference than expected. I tried the two iPads side-by-side in a range of different environments, and for things like a window seat on a train, the lower reflective index of the iPad Pro was really noticeable.
The increased brightness, however, had less of an impact than I’d expected. I did think that it might enable me to use it on a lower brightness setting and thus boost battery-life, but in practice I ended up setting it only very slightly lower than my Air 2. Perhaps it’s one of those things where, once you’ve experienced the extra brightness, you don’t want to give it up.
Battery-life, then, was unchanged. I didn’t run it down completely, but my rule of thumb for iPads has been around 10% of battery usage per hour, and that’s what I continued to see on the Pro.
Apple claims that the latest screen has a wider color gamut. I’m honestly not seeing it. What I reported last week was more saturated colors, and that’s what I’ve continued to see.
I’m not a great fan of over-saturated colors, especially as I do use my iPad as a mobile photo-viewing device. I wondered whether or not I’d get used to it, and the answer is that yes, I did. I definitely wouldn’t want to do any photo-editing on the Pro, as I think you’d then end up with washed-out colors when viewed on most screens, but for viewing it proved fine. Cleverly, though, the iPad disables True Tone in photo-editing apps. I confirmed this works in Lightroom.
But the screen enhancement that impressed me most on first use was the one that continued to impress me most: the True Tone feature, where the iPad automatically adjusts the color temperature of the screen to match the ambient lighting. For convenience, I’ve inserted above the same photo I used to illustrate the difference last time. Under the yellow-ish halogen lighting, the Air 2 screen looks distinctly blue, while the Pro screen looks neutral. I found this applied in every lighting I experienced.
Steve Jobs famously said that people don’t know what they want until you show it to them, and True Tone is a fantastic example. If you’d asked me what improvements I’d want Apple to make to the Air 2, never in a million years would I have said ‘match the color temperature of the screen to the environment.’ But now that I’ve experienced it, I find it very slightly painful to go back.
Ok, here’s where we get to the embarrassing part. I said last time that the 12MP still camera and 4K video recording capability was completely irrelevant to me as I’ve never taken a photo with an iPad in my life. But I would, I said, try some in the cause of science. This was a mistake.
Zac already confessed to taking photos with his, but that was in the privacy of his own home. I, on the other hand, was doing it in public. Worse, a friend captured the evidence – albeit in the form of a rather grainy low-light photo from her iPhone 5s.
But, ashamed as I am to admit it, I actually found that the iPad makes rather a good camera. The large screen means it’s like looking through a picture frame, or the glass plate of an old-fashioned view camera.
While I do use my iPhone for everyday snaps, I still prefer to use a dedicated camera – a DSLR when quality trumps all, and my very capable Sony a6000 APS-C compact camera the rest of the time. That’s mostly for the selective focus and low-light capabilities, but also because I prefer a viewfinder to really see what I’m shooting.
The thing is, I quickly discovered, the iPad screen is as good as a viewfinder. It provides a great view of exactly what you’re framing. Sure, it’s a little awkward to handle, and it is highly embarrassing to be seen using it, but I actually became a bit of a fan.
So perhaps there is method in Apple’s madness in putting a 12MP camera into an iPad. The quality of the test shots I took was, as expected, identical to those from the iPhone 6s and iPhone SE.
Conclusions
My conclusions are largely the same as they were on day one. If you have an iPad older than the Air 2, the 9.7-inch iPad Pro is a great upgrade. If you have the Air 2 and like to draw or handwrite, it’s likewise clearly worth the money.
For an Air 2 owner uninterested in the Apple Pencil, it’s a much smaller upgrade. For most people, I’d say it’s probably not worth the extra cash.
For me, however, it is. Sure, the better sound, reduced reflectivity and that True Tone feature I never knew I wanted are all relatively small things. But the iPad plays a huge role in my personal Apple ecosystem. It’s my go-to mobile data device. It’s my ebook reader. It’s my personal Netflix viewer. And I do a surprising amount of writing on it.
So for me, I’m happy to lay out the cash to have the iPad model I like the most. I just need to buy a hat and dark glasses to ensure nobody recognizes me if I start using it as a camera …
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Good review!
The deal breaker for me is that it had just 2GB of ram while the bigger pro has 4GB. Yes the bigger one needs more ram to drive the pixels but I tested both Pro’s in store and it was extremely noticeable that the bigger one has more ram.
Still it’s a great tablet. But it’s over expensive. In the US, the price has gone up 100$ compared to the old price of the newest 9.7inch iPads. In Europe, the price has gone up 190€ = 217 USD.
Apple could’ve just as well called this iPad Air 3, only problem with that is that it would have been difficult to call it that and up the price by this much! Apple needed to call it a ‘pro’ to justify that price increaese.
Apple has always improved iPads every generation and the difference in performance between the Air 2 and 9.7 inch Pro is so small (ram is even the same) that it does not justify paying 250€ more for it.
But again, the iPad Pro is awesome. The pencil is awesome, the true tone display is awesome, etc. Just think the iPad Air 2 is a way better deal.
Yep, the iPad Air 2 will be the sweet-spot for many.
This issue with iOS device memory has been Apple’s intentional Tim Cook driven supply chain model of business for ages. Save money, make people hope next year’s fixes the fact that your browser tabs refresh, messing up your ability to read several pages one after the other, or login to your bank account app and then copy some info from a web page or other app over to the account, and such forth. (Sort of things I do daily on my gadgets.)
I gave up with Apple and have a Note 4 that has oodles of RAM and so all my apps and pages remain there for reading or using later. (Any page refresh that does occur is often server side by the web page itself being it may be dynamic.)
Apple crippled the 13″ MacBook with a rubbish keyboard and single USB port, same with the 13″ MB Pro – and this is not obvious when you buy one, the latter lacks the graphics power of the 15″ model, so the assumption I made at purchase of 13″ that it was imply a shrunk 15″ was wrong, so I had a year of sluggish performance. Got fedup and bought a Surface Pro 4, which is exceptionally fast.
Apple is a business, run by a supply chain whiz. And don’t you forget that! :(
I agree Apple is more greedy than other companies are. They’re more money-hungry.
But Apple did not cripple the Macbook Air. The Macbook has not replaced the Macbook Air. The Macbook Air can still be purchased.
I totally understand what Apple did with Macbook. Portability is the future and USB ports are becoming less and less used, just like optical drives in the past. Those USB ports also take up space.
I believe Macbook is an awesome devive, the only big problem with it today is its price.
And the Surface is a tablet that is trying to be a laptop and a laptop trying to be a tablet. For me it’s not a good product, over expensive too.
IOS really doesn’t need more than 2GB of memory as the OS still cannot run the majority of it’s apps in the background. The most part, iOS is a linear OS as in one task at a time. Even with iOS 9’s dual app view, which by the way, less than 1% out of the million + apps available in the App Store actually support, isn’t really multitasking as your still just using one app at a time, switching back and forth. Also the difference in resolution between the two isn’t very large, 2732 X 2014 vs. 2058 X 1536. My Pixel C is connected to a 4K touch monitor, with the desktop extended allowing both displays to be utilized and that’s with only 3GB of RAM with zero lag, so the 2GB 9.7″ iPad Pro could easily handle both resolutions.
iPad Air 2 128GB: $699, iPad Pro 9.7-inch 128GB: $749
I don’t think $50 (7% increase) is “fairly significant price hike on the new one” considering the Apple Pencil support, Smart Connector, and True Tone display.
That’s the price for the WiFi-only model: the LTE version is $879.
It is when you go from a mid tier LTE Air 2 to mid tier Pro. $729 vs $879. I know its double the 64, but it only costs Apple $12 more for the 128 GB drive.For me 32 GB is not enough and 128 is to much storage for my needs. Maybe with the camera I will use up that space with photos and videos, but i doubt it.
iPad Air 2 128GB was discontinued.
And even if you can still find a 128GB iPad Air 2, you need to look at the prices all over the world, not just in the US. Here in Europe the remaining 128GB iPad Air 2’s cost for 699€ for the wi-fi only model, while the 9.7 inch iPad Pro 128GB costs 870€… Nuff said.
You’re right. Also, every 32gb iPad (base model) released has been $599 in the US.
to clarify, I mean that the 32gb is the base model on this lineup, not that base model iPads have been that price.
The IPad Air 2 128GB wi-fi & Cellular refurbished is $599.00 currently(April 29) from the online Apple store in silver or space gray only.
The iPad Air 2 is also an out of date model, and you’re looking at refurbished as opposed to new…
Waiting for my Pro to show up this morning. I decided to pay off my 3 remaining months on my AT&T Next plan and get the Pro while I can still get $399 for my Air 2 via Amazon trade in.
I have never felt goofy or silly using my Air 2 for shooting video or photos. It is nice that the camera takes pretty much the same quality as the 6s. I can’t remember where I saw a comparison gallery of the iPad Pro, Air 2 and 6s.
I think if I didn’t use LTE model and have the Next plan I would have skipped updating. The sound, screen and camera forced my hand along with the $399 from Amazon.
I didn’t know Amazon did trade in?
http://amzn.to/1oITrlx
At the time I did my trade in, I got $50 more for just having the Air 2’s box. Amazon by far offers the most money for iPad’s, the only drawback is they give you an Amzon gift card.At the time it was $200 more then gazelle was offering. I heard stories of people not getting the credit promised do to Amazon saying it was damaged. I’ll let you know how getting the full quoted price goes.
For iPhones I have traded them in using RadioShack in store, Apple recycle and gazelle. Apple offered the most money and box they sent was similar to what Gazelle offers. If you are ok with Apple gift cards I say Apple recycle program is probably the best option to go for iPhones.
So far enjoying the extra sound volume and True Tone display. Right now the readability and brightness outside is the greatest improvement from the Air 2 to the Pro.Its a crime the iPhones haven’t gotten this type of readability outside so far.
It takes very good photos and videos compared to my iPhone 6 plus. Have not used it for FaceTime or Skype yet, but using the camera app videos using the FaceTime camera is much clearer.
I’m like Ben and don’t really plan on using the Pencil or smart connector for a keyboard. I would recommend anyone with a first gen Air or older iPad to upgrade. For an Air 2 i would say upgrade if you want to use the Pencil or a Smart Keyboard. If you have a LTE Air on installment plan I would also say trade it in and update. If have a wifi only model i say wait until Apple improves the dpi on the screen or switches to OLED .Based on individual usage it will vary if the use the iPad outside much, sound is important or the color and saturation means a lot to you.Power and speed there isn’t much noticeable difference in most task between the Air 2 and Pro.
No credibility lost here Ben; the article is good, well founded and it all makes sense.
Me, I also prefer the viewfinder, but will try out the camera….when I’m abroad(!)
Ben – thanks for the (short) journal and the comparison to the iPad Air 2. Your review has pretty much cemented my desire to buy this as a gift for my wife who is still using a first generation iPad Air.
I think she will really appreciate the screen improvements (as far as color matching and glare reduction) and I know she will like the better sound when streaming movies.
Your credibility is still pretty solid in my mind.
Ben, love the double reviews for the SE and Pro. You should just test every new Apple device, even if you never intend on keeping it. You know, for science.
I’ve been thinking since you started your latest round of testing, if money weren’t an issue, I would love to be able to have the iPhone SE, iPad Pro 9.7, Apple TV, and Macbook Air. They would all get used, although some would get used less than others.
But of course, money is always an issue.
The main tasks I used my iPad for during it’s first two years were:
games
web browsing
Facebook
videos
Well, now that I have the new Apple TV, I don’t watch videos on my iPad anymore. I do it on the TV, because my iPad rarely leaves the couch anyway. Facebook’s news feed algorithm has junked things up to the point where I don’t even check it anymore. I just get notifications when close friends post something, and I check those on my phone when it happens. I don’t spend a lot of time on there just catching up at the end of the day.
So, I use it for web browsing and games, and my new favorite game is NOVA 3 from 2012, and AfterPulse, which is also available on the Apple TV.
And so that got me thinking. When it comes time in a year or two to upgrade the iPad, do I even need it? Or could I get away with an iPhone Plus and using my Macbook Air a bit more?
The Plus size isn’t ideal for portability and one handed use, but if it could mean saving money on an iPad upgrade (the $100 up charge to the Plus size is significantly less than the net cost of an iPad upgrade), and it works reasonably well, maybe it would be worth it.
If I could ditch my laptop for a tablet, the iPad would be justified, and cheaper, but as much as Phil wants people to replace their laptops with iPads, unless you’re over 65, that isn’t going to happen.
Since I have to have the laptop, maybe I could split my iPad duties between the Apple TV, Macbook Air, and iPhone Plus, save some money, and put that toward an Apple Watch 3, if that becomes interesting by then.
I’m just rambling out loud.
My least-justified iDevice is my MacBook Air, which is pretty much exclusively used for mobile writing. Once the iOS version of Scrivener is finally here (it’s in beta at the moment), I could just use my iPad for that – but the MBA is also a backup device for my MBP, and given that I can’t work without a laptop …
My MBA is my personal laptop, and it too is my least used device. In general, my heavy duty stuff is done on a desktop at work, or a Hadoop cluster if I’m in to some mad calculations. But I can’t do without a personal laptop.
Right now the only cost of keeping my iPad Air is the depreciation between now and when I eventually get rid of it, and the opportunity cost of whatever I would be doing with the money I would get from selling it right now. The way I look at it, it doesn’t cost very much to keep it, so I only really need to decide when I’m forced to make a decision. And in iPad upgrade cycles, based on the iPad 2, the iPad Air has 3-5 years of iOS updates left.
In two years when I’m do for another iPhone upgrade, the situation may be different.
I’ve also considered that the MBA I just bought may be my last personal laptop ever. The MBA2 from late 2008 is still receiving OSX updates and working for many people. So, in 7 or 8 years when they drop the 2015 MBA, we may be in a world where tablets have taken over, and I can do without a laptop.
Yeah, the annual cost of ownership is a very sensible way to look at it. I guess I can look at my MBA as business insurance against failure of my MBP – and it’s already paid out once: http://9to5mac.com/2015/11/11/opinion-humble-macbook-air-secret-workhorse/
Exceptional review, and, by far, the best I have read on the Internet. Well done! For me, it all came down to having 256 GB. I can buy more music, movies, and apps. I can store more family pictures and videos. (I do not like the iCloud alternative) And I can lug around my old PST files using PST Mail and the files I need via GoodReader. Ultimately, I am doing much more work away from my office, which is what tech is all about.
Thanks, Liam. Unusually for me, I resisted the 256GB model!
I see 128 GB to be sufficient for awhile unless Apple comes out with padOS and makes changes to the file system.
I do wish Apple would go to unlimited photo storage like Google.
I doubt Ansel Adams cared what people thought of him taking photos with his box camera. Why should anyone care what others think about the cameras one uses? My wife took some photos the other day with her iPad Pro, because it was the best camera she had on her at the time. Nothing like having a 12.9″ viewfinder!
They do say that the best camera you have is the one you have on you,and it’s true!
Ansel Adams didn’t have to contend with the fact that when you’re taking photos with an ipad you’re 1.looking like a complete dork, and that is a valid criticism when you’re out and about and trying to get people to take you seriously 2.when you’re at an event and taking a photo with the monstrosity there is no way to do it discreetly, you end up blocking the view of the person behind you.
As funny as this sounds I’m going to replace my iPhone 6S and get the iPhone 7 plus pro (or whatever it’s called) and use that to replace my iPad Air 2. My recently purchased Samsung S7 would be my daily driver while the larger iPhone is used at home. I would consider a iPad mini but Apple keeps gimping them compared to the larger iPads.
I have learned that being a Android or iOS fanboy is poisonous to my soul. So I embrace both.
I might be unheard on an Apple related website, but i am also leaning towards eliminating my rMini 2 this year. Even this new “pro” doesn’t bring any compelling features for me. Not interested in the pen functionality and the upgraded camera (which i have already on my iPhone?!). The better display and the speakers are nice, but imo not worth the price for an occasionally used device. And imo iOS is still missing multi user functionality and a better file/cloud handling, Maybe Apple will open it up this year (and hopefully kill Lightning for USB C), but i doubt it.
For me the usage gap between a macbook – phablet isn’t big enough anymore to justify such an expense. My 128GB 6S Plus and the ATV 4 have taken over a lot stuff, i used to do on an iPad (surfing, gaming, ebook reading). And since i don’t need a powerful desktop for my work anymore, i am tempted to get an upcoming 12” MB (with Skylake). Btw. i still think the price increase is ridiculous. I mean i can get a refurbished 12” MB for 1229€ (256/8), while a 9,7” iPP Wifi 256GB + Keyboard is 1218, thanks but no thanks Apple.
I bought the 9.7 pro, coming from an iPad 3. Personally, after the 3, I was prepared not to bother with iPads going forwards. In terms of finding a niche between laptop and phone, it just didn’t do much for my needs. Didn’t help that I was pretty disappointed with how the 3 performed as early as iOS 7.
The drawing capabilities were really what made the difference to me, though. I enjoy drawing, and that felt like the killer feature that I was looking for in the tablet form factor. I might not have been able to justify either a cintique or another iPad on their own, but as a combo I gave in. For drawing it’s been all that I could hope for, and it’s a nice tablet upgrade too, even if I’m still a little scared that the 2gb is going to hobble longevity in the same way the iPad 3 was ultimately ill equipped for OS upgrades.
It’s funny, even though I have the Pencil, I don’t use it, instead I prefer my Wacom FineLine II as I can use it throughout the system without restrictions. It still has palm rejection and pressure sensitivity and as I am not an artist, writing notes is identical to the Pencil, at least I cannot tell the difference. Since the IPad Pro doesn’t support a mouse, in which I’m counting the days till a proper Jailbreak is released just so I can install a simple mouse driver, I use my Sylus as the mouse, so the Pencils restrictions are just to many to use at the moment. I’m sure that to will be fixed easily which Jailbreak. As well as adding true multitasking to iOS, dual app view is fine for the few apps that support it but it isn’t multitasking, just faster app switching between two apps, no, I need the ability to run apps in the background, especially a terminal. Point is, WHERE IS MY JAILBREAK!
I had the 12.9″ iPad since its launch (11.11.15) and now decided to get the 9.7″ for a test drive. So far I love the more portable body size. But after 5months with the pro I gotta say, it’s not easy to let those 13 inches of beautifully streamlined iOS go!
The software keyboard is so much worse on the little brother as well, but I can overlook that because of the smart keyboard.
I didnt use split screen often, but when I did, I loved it – seems still doable on the mini-pro, but not really ideal.
The camera is great for scanning documents thanks to the flash – else I wouldnt need it (as a hobby photographer I’m shooting a Sony A7II and always have the iPhone with me for quick snaps).
The additional ram seems to help the big boy, but it’s not a big deal to only have 2gb on the 9.7.
Lightroom mobile gives a better experience on the 12.9″ Pro, but since its not a full feautered LR I won’t miss it much. Should we be able to work on raw files in LR on iPad one day (iOSX?), I might get the second iteration 12.9″ pro. So far tasks like that are done on my MacBook Pro.
Oh and I’m glad I can let the mini as an iBook-reader go and just concentrate on one iPad again – I couldn’t do that with the biggie (always had a mini 2 to read in bed).
Good review. Convinced me to put the purchase of an iPad on hold until it can reliably be used to edit photos. Seems like the perfect use for it doesn’t it?
I’ll never understand the stigma agaisn’t people taking photos with their tablets. What’s the big deal. Many people can’t afford to have the best phone or pocket camera, so they go with what works best. Plus the huge viewfinder is a bonus, so when you have an awesome camera like on the 9.7 inch Pro, why not use it?
Stop being so concerned with what other people think.
Because up until now people had better cameras on their phones vs the crappie cameras on tablets.
Now it’s only half as bad. The tablet is still to big to use as a camera.
I have an IPad AIr 1, debating going Pro. Good article, making me lean toward the Pro. Don’t think need the Pencil though. Thanks!
Thanks, Ben, for a well-balanced and hones review. As an iPad Air 1 owner, I have been tempted by the new 9,7 Pro, but even if I draw (to some degree) and do hand written notes (quite a lot) things like the pen feature do not win me over. I use several different styluses, and e.g. for hand writing in Good Notes, the more chubby and traditional fountain pen like Wacom Creative Stylus 2 is a gem. It is also a very good drawing tool in Adobe apps. Unfortunately, it does not work on Air 2 or Pro due to Apple’s change in screen sensor technology. Pencil By 53 is also a great tool for Air 1 (and later). I have never been intimidated by the processor speed or the low (1 GB) RAM, not even when handling large collections in Lightroom Mobile. I don’t care about speakers on a tablet; the laws of physics deter them from ever being great, or even acceptable for anything other than Face Time dialogue, and I hook up decent headphones or connect to a BT or AirPlay speaker when watching movies or TV on the iPad. So at the end of the day, we’re down to camera features and light/color screen features, and they hardly justify the $$$ retail price increase + value depreciation of my device. For me, that is. Just sharing, for any other Air 1 owners out there who are considering the Pro. Buy if you want it, but it does not do anything significant that your Air 1 can’t do. I think I’ll wait another year or so before upgrading. At some point iOS updates will no longer be supported on the Air 1, and that is around the time I hand out my credit card to my local Apple Store.
Bingo. It’s the software. When they introduce software that I can’t run, and when an app that I want won’t support the older device, then I have to decide whether to upgrade or not.
Glad to see you deciding to keep the 9.7″ pro as well! For me, the Apple Pencil is fantastic for taking notes and keeping all my notes from different conferences and seminars together, and I honestly think it’s worth it to upgrade from any iPad to this one just for the True Tone display. It’s impossible to go back to the blueish screens after experiencing the glory of True Tone, in a similar way that I wouldn’t be able to go back to turning off Night Shift on my iPhone. Seriously, the screen + the speakers + Apple Pencil + A9X horsepower… It’ll more than keep up to its (supposed) 2-3 years of lifespan.
Could you please inform me if there is the sound trembling problem? I mean about the fact that iPad Air 2 trembles (vibrates) when it plays any sound. Personally for me this is a huge issue when I listen to music, watching a video or playing a game. I know that other people don’t bother but for me it is a deal breaker.. Thanks in advance!
I’ve not experienced that with either model.
Well,
In today’s time I don’t think the iPad makes any sense anymore. Don’t get me wrong on this, this is a very personal opinion. I am an App Developer for Apple and my sole purpose to own another device other than my iPhone is to code. But even though Apple claims it to be a laptop replacement, I can’t replace my MacBook Pro with an iPad Pro and the only reason is that you cannot code on an iPad. Plus after adding up the cost of the iPad, the Apple Pencil and the Smart Keyboard the cost sums up to be nearly as much as a MacBook Air which is a full fledged notebook. And if you take the portability of a MacBook Air, it’s pretty damn awesome.
Secondly, if you have an iPhone 6 Plus/6S Plus you don’t need an iPad with it. Every thing you want to do on an iPad can be done on your iPhone and that’s the reason the iPad sales are falling. After all, if you have a phablet why do you need a tablet?!
Let me know if what I think is wrong or is there a better use of the iPad?
Thank you.
I’ve had my iPad pro 9.7″ for about a week now. Before I had a 1st generation Air. The cost was somewhat prohibitive but getting 0% financing for a year helps ease the pain a bit.
I really like the display. I saw the increased color gamut right away and picked a favorite photo for my wall paper because of it. I have a Canon EOS M3 that has a remote control/viewfinder app. I look forward to using it with the iPad, something I likely wouldn’t have done in the past. I don’t use nightshift, but I have true tone on. The first few days I didn’t have a cover, but I figured I could reuse the old Otterbox case I had for the Air with some modifications. The mods didn’t include drilling out a hole for the true tone light sensor, and I quickly noticed the difference (and drilled another hole). The sound is greatly improved, but I’m still going to get out headphones or fire up the stereo if I want to hear good quality sound.
The pencil is pretty good, but I don’t know that apps are really putting writing and drawing to good use yet. Need to try a few of the apps in the 9to5 post from the other day and see if I like them any better. Saw that MS One Note has updated with “improved pencil support” so we’ll see what that means.
I don’t know if it’s iOS 9.3 or the hardware, but Airdrop seems to work much better than than it did before, especially with my MacBook.
No shame to be had. I’ve actively taken photos and video since iPad 4. The flash is overdue.
for the handwriting – does it do handwriting to text? (like on the surface)
I’m going to upgrade to the iPad Pro 9.7 because of two things: the screen and the pencil. The screen because it’s actually acceptable in indirect outdoor light, and I like to read outside, and the pencil because I like to take notes with a pencil because I often want to sketch out what something is going to look like, then email it to people.
Future software updates could certainly make this a potential laptop replacement for many people, but right now, it’s a much worse experience if you’re creating many types of content. In particular, selecting/copying/pasting text is quite painful if you’re doing it a a lot, and bring in images and graphics from multiple sources is tedious. It is getting better, though, so I’m hoping that this iPad will last me quite a while.
Sorry for the hi-jack, but can the ipad air 2 be used with the new smart keyboard? The Apple store doesn’t list this accessory as one for the ipad 2, but the dimensions of the 9.7 inch pro and the ipad 2 are identical so i am hoping they would be compatible…..
No, the Air 2 doesn’t have the connector.
People in the US are far too concerned with what others think. I have seen a lot of people in Asia (China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore) using tablets for photos, especially outdoors at “touristy” spots. If it works for you, who cares what others think. Better camera and Flash on the iPad pro, good by me.
BTW, the number of people using 7″ tablets as phones here would probably shock you as well, but those brandishing them are genuinely nonplused.
Hi all,
I am not an Apple addict or brainwashed. I actually have debated about Apple for years until I surrendered and admitted that Apple products just simply work. Which is nice. (especially compared to Samsung devices which are full of useless applications).
I have decided to purchase a tablet and ended up choosing iPad. I have read many reviews and comparisons but most of them are based on iPad user considering whether is worth to upgrade or not.
I have a simple question for you: for a new ipad-less user what to buy
iPad Air 2 64Gb Wi-Fi + LTE OR iPad Pro 9.7 in 32Gb Wi-Fi + LTE
?????
– Is the difference worth the money?
– Is 32Gb enough for a normal user? (browsing, reading, email, social media, maybe some movies, etc.)
I am mainly afraid of buying the Air2 and it getting obsolete rather soon
thank you!
64GB is more comfortable, especially if you want to store movies. But your existing tablet will be your best guide – switching platforms won’t have much impact on your storage needs.
I do not own a tablet yet so I do not have any reference
I used 32GB for a while and quickly switch to 64Gb. You’ll find if the device ‘clicks’ with you that you start using it for everything, instead of only using it occasionally. At least that was my experience. When your use of the device increases, so will your requirements. I’m right on the edge of needed a 128GB device after about 5 months of usages.
For me , the game change was getting a good case for the ipad air 2. I didn’t like typing on the screen keyboard, so the ipad air 2 gathered dust unless I wasn’t to just consume. Once I got the belkin qode ultrathin keyboard case, I started using it for everything possible and my macbook started to gather dust.
Nice review. Totally agree on True Tone, brightness, audio and camera. Turns out it’s also a great viewfinder for shooting video and editing on the fly. I got the 256GB LTE version and love it. It’s a media monster. I got the Logitech Create keyboard case with the pencil holder and it’s my main media device. I also use it with an iRig Pro Duo for playing and recording music anywhere. I still use my desktop occasionally for some things, but man… It’s pretty cool to be able to travel with a pretty high quality recording studio, video shooting/editing studio, blogging, web surfing, music listening, book reading, facetiming, emailing, painting and drawing… and more, superstation in a small backpack. I know that the Air 2 get’s close, but this little Pro get’s me all the way there.