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Which is the best iPad Pro ?


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MacMandy

macrumors 6502a
Nov 13, 2006
740
905
Manchester, UK
You might need multiple monitors more than you need a 12.9” iPad. Granted, this situation is temporary, so only you know what’s best for you.

I can say that I have triple 27” monitors and, if I needed more screen space, it wouldn’t fall on my iPad’s form factor to get me there. Work is work. I’ll spare no expense, but picking the right tools for the job is essential.

Unfortunately, I can only use what I already have which is a 2017 MacBook Pro and a 2018 12.9 iPad Pro. My office is closed.
 

subjonas

macrumors 603
Feb 10, 2014
6,257
6,737
Best iPad for nearsighted? 11 or 12.9?
Nearsightedness is one of a million factors. If that’s the one and only factor you care about, then bigger is better so I guess get the 12.9 and zoom everything in. But you could also zoom an 11” the same amount and just see less. Or zoom a 9.7“ and see even less if you want even more portability. It all just depends how much you want to see vs how much portability you need, which only you can determine.
 
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secretk

macrumors 65816
Oct 19, 2018
1,494
1,229
Mainly using at home. I don’t know if that changes anything?

Do you mind sharing how serious is your condition? I am asking because I am nearsighted as well. Just for reference I have medium malignant myopia (that continues to get worse and worse despite me being in the age where this should not happen) and on top of it high astigmatism (with this condition the distance or the screen size does not matter I see everything blurry all the time). So my idea was that I might be able to compare your situation with mine in a way and tell how I see things.

FYI I don't have issues with the 9.7 inch iPad I have as long as I mark the Text in Bold and increase the contrast. 11 inch would be better of course but at least for my case I would not say that 11 inch is not enough. So if you are similar case as mine the choice between 11 and 12.9 would be more about portability, price, comfort (if you want to use it in bed) than eye issues.
 

jaybar

macrumors 68020
Dec 11, 2008
2,074
640
Hi

I currently have an 11 Pro. At one point I had a 12.9. I liked the larger screen, but found it a bit unwieldy in bed. I have sight in one eye only, so I sometimes have to scan more or move my head more.The nearsightedness is stable.
 

secretk

macrumors 65816
Oct 19, 2018
1,494
1,229
Hi

I currently have an 11 Pro. At one point I had a 12.9. I liked the larger screen, but found it a bit unwieldy in bed. I have sight in one eye only, so I sometimes have to scan more or move my head more.The nearsightedness is stable.

I see. Yeah ultimately IMO it would come down to how much you want to use your iPad in the bed. If it is not a lot then 12.9 inch might be a better choice. If you plan to use it a lot enough then maybe keeping 11 inch would be the solution.
 

Jára Tyky

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2020
355
231
Best iPad for nearsighted? 11 or 12.9?

I have glasses for long distance and I see very good at close.
I have returned 12,9” for 11” because I was experiencing problems with reading. I had to hold the screen very close to my eyes and my eyes did not catch the whole screen. It was almost impossible to read comments on youtube. I had to mobile version to have bigger fonts. It was very painfull to watch screen in portrait mode.
I have Air 2 as well and I realized that watching smaller screen is much more comfortable. For example for my eyes 9.7 screen on Air 2 is best because the letters are small and I see it very good. 11” is the same and I have no difficulties reeding on it.
But I think that the eyes can get used to it after few days because after one week of having 12.9, I did not have any more difficulties.Maybe my eyes get used to it or maybe I found a way how to use it. On the other hand I remember that I was using my Iphone 11 Pro Max much more and 12.9“ was lying on the table..
 

BeatCrazy

macrumors 603
Jul 20, 2011
5,123
4,480
I’ve been using the 11” Pro w/ASK since launch day in 2018. A few days ago I got the 2020 12.9 - hopefully my AMK order from Amazon will arrive soon, cause I really miss a real keyboard to type on.

One difference that I don’t see mentioned much: the aspect ratios! I don’t think I was even aware of the aspect ratio difference until after I ordered the 12.9. I’m not sure which ratio I prefer at this point, but it is taking my brain a bit to get used to.
 

iLunar

macrumors 6502
Jul 23, 2006
357
2,097
I’ve been using the 11” for a few years now, and got 12.9” to setup for a relative. I’m hooked on 12.9 to the point where I bought one for myself.

I’ve been editing photos like crazy. I feel like the 12.9” really unlocks the iPads potential.

The form factor took me a day or two to get used to, but now feels second nature. I can’t imagine now giving up the screen real estate.
 

AVBeatMan

macrumors 603
Nov 10, 2010
5,968
3,849
Both 11" and 12.9 are amazing and fantastic iPads. For me, it's just how comfortable it is to hold. It is a tablet to be held in the hand. To me the 11" is perfect for me. The 12.9 for me (and I am a large man) is too heavy to be held in the hand for an extended time and is best placed on a table or stand. The 11" is what a tablet is meant to be and the 12.9 is too close to a laptop. That's just my view....
 

ericwn

macrumors G5
Apr 24, 2016
12,118
10,910
Both 11" and 12.9 are amazing and fantastic iPads. For me, it's just how comfortable it is to hold. It is a tablet to be held in the hand. To me the 11" is perfect for me. The 12.9 for me (and I am a large man) is too heavy to be held in the hand for an extended time and is best placed on a table or stand. The 11" is what a tablet is meant to be and the 12.9 is too close to a laptop. That's just my view....

Holding the device is something I rather do when consuming media while when creating content I want to use both hands - sort of the purpose of the iPad Pro. For simple playback of stuff the entry level iPad is sufficient.
 
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The Game 161

macrumors Nehalem
Dec 15, 2010
30,980
20,169
UK
Magic keyboard arriving tomorrow will pretty much complete my 12.9 pro as my laptop replacement. Think i will still find a use case for my magic trackpad 2 though for when using it on a desk i reckon.
 
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Jára Tyky

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2020
355
231
Magic Keyboard is reason why to buy 11”. I do not like the bulky size with 12.9”. It is bigger than Macbook.
With Ipad 11”, it looks impressive.
 

Adelphos33

macrumors 68000
Mar 13, 2012
1,715
2,273
Magic Keyboard is reason why to buy 11”. I do not like the bulky size with 12.9”. It is bigger than Macbook.
With Ipad 11”, it looks impressive.

The awesome thing with the iPad is that there are dozens of ideal setups and combinations. Magic Keyboard, Smart Keyboard Folio or regular case, external trackpad, external keyboard, external monitor, in a variety of sizes, etc. Everyone will have their own setup
[automerge]1587400398[/automerge]
Both 11" and 12.9 are amazing and fantastic iPads. For me, it's just how comfortable it is to hold. It is a tablet to be held in the hand. To me the 11" is perfect for me. The 12.9 for me (and I am a large man) is too heavy to be held in the hand for an extended time and is best placed on a table or stand. The 11" is what a tablet is meant to be and the 12.9 is too close to a laptop. That's just my view....

I think I am coming to the view of having a 12.9” iPad Pro and getting a iPad Air or regular iPad for casual consumption. Apple is going to continue to make and iterate non-pro iPad. The 12.9” iPad Pro to me is the clearest expression of how an iPad can work - multitasking, keyboard support, big screen for everything, and can be removed from it all to serve as a tablet
 

ofarlig

macrumors 6502a
Jun 23, 2015
931
1,148
Sweden
One thing to note is that IF the iPad gets proper external monitor support, it will actually tip in favor of the 11’’.
You get the portability of a tablet alongside all the screen real estate you want at home.

Why would it though? The 11” can’t run 2 full sized apps side by side and the other multitasking features are not as nice on the 11” so it would only work great while docked. I think all the things making it more like a real 2-in-1 favors the 12.9” since the screen real estate matters more when you use it heavier.
 
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rkuo

macrumors 65816
Sep 25, 2010
1,308
955
Why would it though? The 11” can’t run 2 full sized apps side by side and the other multitasking features are not as nice on the 11” so it would only work great while docked. I think all the things making it more like a real 2-in-1 favors the 12.9” since the screen real estate matters more when you use it heavier.
The implication is that the smaller and cheaper device will do the job equally as well with an external monitor. Yes, that doesn’t really change the fact that a lot of people value the 12.9‘s extra screen space on the go.
 

secretk

macrumors 65816
Oct 19, 2018
1,494
1,229
The implication is that the smaller and cheaper device will do the job equally as well with an external monitor. Yes, that doesn’t really change the fact that a lot of people value the 12.9‘s extra screen space on the go.

I am not sure if it is a lot of people or some people and what is the degree exactly. I mean we obviously cannot know for sure here is how I see things:

For people that bought the 12.9 inch iPad Pro because this is their only computing device and they want to use it to replace their laptop the proper external monitor support might mean that they would not longer rely on the iPad screen for the majority of the work as they can hook up big monitor. If this is the case they will then evaluate how much they need 12.9 screen real estate for the pure tablet work (like pencil work, media consumption in bed, portability etc) and they might decide that 11 inch kind of does the job too.

Now we don't know what is the percentage of people that considered the 12.9 inch screen because of the potential laptop/computer replacement and how much people want the screen real estate for tablet work. So there would be some division for sure. How much no idea.

On my side I could tell you that I am not able to use 12.9 inch size as a tablet. My hands are small, my wrists are weak, I would not find it comfortable at all. On the other hand if I did not have any other computer using 11 inch screen would not be healthy for my eyes. I would need at least 12.9 inch even 14 inch to be honest. So I assume this is the kind of group that would reconsider 12.9 inch iPP if there was proper monitor support.

ETA: Now that I think about it maybe this group was already filtered with the ability to duplicate the screen. So I take my words back. Sorry, going in circles. It is not easy to be me :p:D. Anyway what I want to say is that if you plan to duplicate the iPad screen for the most time and use the bigger monitor than the iPad size is relevant only for the tablet usage. If you plan to extend the screen then 12.9 actually makes more sense because I think that it would be weird for people to switch between 11 inch monitor and say 27 inch monitor you know. I don't think that our eyes would accommodate to that.
 

brentsg

macrumors 68040
Oct 15, 2008
3,579
936
I am not sure if it is a lot of people or some people and what is the degree exactly. I mean we obviously cannot know for sure here is how I see things:

For people that bought the 12.9 inch iPad Pro because this is their only computing device and they want to use it to replace their laptop the proper external monitor support might mean that they would not longer rely on the iPad screen for the majority of the work as they can hook up big monitor. If this is the case they will then evaluate how much they need 12.9 screen real estate for the pure tablet work (like pencil work, media consumption in bed, portability etc) and they might decide that 11 inch kind of does the job too.

Now we don't know what is the percentage of people that considered the 12.9 inch screen because of the potential laptop/computer replacement and how much people want the screen real estate for tablet work. So there would be some division for sure. How much no idea.

On my side I could tell you that I am not able to use 12.9 inch size as a tablet. My hands are small, my wrists are weak, I would not find it comfortable at all. On the other hand if I did not have any other computer using 11 inch screen would not be healthy for my eyes. I would need at least 12.9 inch even 14 inch to be honest. So I assume this is the kind of group that would reconsider 12.9 inch iPP if there was proper monitor support.

ETA: Now that I think about it maybe this group was already filtered with the ability to duplicate the screen. So I take my words back. Sorry, going in circles. It is not easy to be me :p:D. Anyway what I want to say is that if you plan to duplicate the iPad screen for the most time and use the bigger monitor than the iPad size is relevant only for the tablet usage. If you plan to extend the screen then 12.9 actually makes more sense because I think that it would be weird for people to switch between 11 inch monitor and say 27 inch monitor you know. I don't think that our eyes would accommodate to that.

I don't understand the need to answer a question that you cannot answer. You are trying to explain the behavior of people that have different preferences.

Not everyone has small hands and weak wrists. Not everyone has the same use cases.

I'm using my 3rd 12.9 right now and it's great. I'll never use an external monitor. I'll never use it as a monitor. I just want the extra screen real estate.
 
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secretk

macrumors 65816
Oct 19, 2018
1,494
1,229
I don't understand the need to answer a question that you cannot answer. You are trying to explain the behavior of people that have different preferences.

True that. Different people have different needs and we do not know how this quantifies in terms of people. So this is what I wanted to say. None of us can say whether a lot of people would need one or other size and what a lot of people means in the end.

Not everyone has small hands and weak wrists. Not everyone has the same use cases.

True this! And vice versa of course. Both are valid points. Not everyone has issues handling the bigger size nor everyone has no issues with the bigger size.

I'm using my 3rd 12.9 right now and it's great. I'll never use an external monitor. I'll never use it as a monitor. I just want the extra screen real estate.

Makes sense. And there are definitely others like you.
 

Jára Tyky

macrumors 6502
Apr 9, 2020
355
231
I do not understand how can you write that we do not know what are needs of people or how may people... especially when you have this topic with 94 pages and survey that can answer that quite well.
 
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