Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

iPad 12.9” iPad Pro Owners: What Storage Option Did You Go With and Why?

1

16bitplus

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 22, 2018
47
52
I just got a 256GB 12.9” iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard to pair with my 16” MBP and I LOVE IT. Like, way more than I thought I would as I am coming from the 10.5” iPad Pro. I was worried it would feel way bigger/heavier, but it is the perfect size for work/entertainment.

Anyways, I got the 256GB version as it was on sale at B&H for $849 (2018 Wi-Fi/4G version) and now that I love it so much, I am considering going into this purchase more with a 512GB ($1049) version or even the 1TB version with the 6GB of ram ($1199). Mostly I will use this for email, editing word/excel from Dropbox, watching video and listening to music after work and maybe some video editing. For work I do a good amount of video editing in Premiere and Final Cut on my MBP 16, but it might be nice to do some in LumaFusion?

So my question is, what storage option did you settle on? Also keep in mind I will be sticking with the 2018 version as they are on sale right now. Thanks!
 
  • Like
Reactions: DiamondarBoss
If you bought a 256gb 2020 iPad pro, it already has 6GB RAM.
I went for that same model, and I think 256 will be plenty. Remember, cloud is beneficial for backups too, so make use of it :)

Edit: Just saw you mentioned 2018, so yes, you are right, the 1TB 2018 is the only one with 6GB RAM.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DiamondarBoss
I initially went with a 256GB and returned it for the 512GB. Although I do use iCloud, I'm also a photographer (and also do some video work) and found that the extra storage is helpful for those reasons.

Ah, and I also use my iPad Pro to DJ from time to time - so the extra storage was helpful here. I thought about 1TB but it wasn't necessary for my needs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: AutomaticApple, DiamondarBoss and AxiomaticRubric
Went with the base storage of 128 GB on my 2020 model. My previous 11" 2018 model had the base 64 and I never quite filled that up, so I figured 128 would be ok too. I will say though that I proactively offload large project files on to iCloud Drive and my external SSD for backup, so that does keep a lot of space freed up.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DiamondarBoss
Mine is a 2018 64GB 12.9 ($699 Apple refurb). I use iCloud and have an 2 1TB external drives. Next one will be a base storage config as well.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DiamondarBoss
IPP 11” 2020 with 6gb RAM and 256gb storage. Because it is under my budget limit.
The 512gb is way more expensive.
I relocate my left over budget to buy an almost new 5tb external HDD. Already have 1tb slim external HDD for on the go.
But if I don’t consider budget limit, I’d go 1tb storage without a doubt as I use my IPP as MBP replacement, including for video editing.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 708692
macdogpro said:
IPP 11” 2020 with 6gb RAM and 256gb storage. Because it is under my budget limit.
The 512gb is way more expensive.
I relocate my left over budget to buy an almost new 5tb external HDD. Already have 1tb slim external HDD for on the go.
But if I don’t consider budget limit, I’d go 1tb storage without a doubt as I use my IPP as MBP replacement, including for video editing.
Click to expand...

I really respect you for sticking to your budget :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: macdogpro
macdogpro said:
IPP 11” 2020 with 6gb RAM and 256gb storage. Because it is under my budget limit.
The 512gb is way more expensive.
I relocate my left over budget to buy an almost new 5tb external HDD. Already have 1tb slim external HDD for on the go.
But if I don’t consider budget limit, I’d go 1tb storage without a doubt as I use my IPP as MBP replacement, including for video editing.
Click to expand...
Agree--if budget was not a consideration at all, I'd always go top storage with cellular. I did that with the original iPad Air though and both ended up being kind of a waste of money. I didn't use the cellular connection enough to justify the monthly bill, and only ever filled up a small fraction of the total storage.
 
  • Like
Reactions: macdogpro
I have the 256 - it's plenty of space. I didn't get the cellular because I always have my iPhone with me and can use its hotspot feature.
 
I went with 1TB since at one point I filled my old 256 with video, music, pics and apps. It might be overkill but now I don’t even give a thought to space management. If you’re gonna do video editing you might wanna consider more storage.
 
  • Like
Reactions: alecgold
I have the 2018 12.9” 1TB Cellular model.
I wanted the extra RAM so I went with the 1TB model and found it at a good price. I purchased it before the release of the new models which all have 6GB of RAM.

I’ve used cellular ipads for a long time now and adding a data sim card to my plan adds no extra cost and all of my devices share data from the same pool.
I previously had the 2nd gen. 12.9” 512GB Cellular iPP, but constant touch issues made me sell it and switch over to this one.

1TB is a bit of overkill, but it’s nice not worrying about storage. 512GB would’ve probably been enough, but the upgrade to 1TB also got me the extra RAM, which was a nice incentive at the time. 2020 models all have 6GB, so just buy what you need in that case.
 
  • Like
Reactions: alecgold
whatever the base model 2020 12.9” iPad Pro - I use iCloud for most of my storage
 
sirgib said:
I really respect you for sticking to your budget :)
Click to expand...
My original plan was getting the base iPad at under $400 and the first gen Apple Pencil and I ended up getting the 2020iPP 12.9 128GB at $899 with the student discount plus the Apple Pencil 2nd gen lol
I’m the worst at budgeting....I rarely do 4K editing so I don’t need more space. The majority might be taken up by comics based on my iPad Air with the same space lol
 
64GB because pricing, and previously with everything in the cloud. I didn’t need more than that. However, just this month I realized I only have 1GB free (mostly because a OneDrive issue where it takes up 10GB of space with cache). Next one I will opt for the next size up to not even worry about it anymore. Hopefully it’s with that rumored iPad Pro Mini
 
I’m on a 2nd gen 12.9” iPad Pro with cellular and 512GB of storage.

If I get another iPad, I’d probably go with the 11” Pro with 128GB WiFi only.

i find my 12.9” iPad Pro to be too heavy and bulky now and the 512GB of space is not as needed nowadays. I also no longer need the cellular capabilities as I had massively cut down on my life of travel (even before COVID hit). I find my iPad is mostly used for reading books, and storage read are minimal on that front. I’m still going with the 11” pro because I want usb-c so I can ditch my lightning cables and use a common cable with my MBP.
 
iPad Pro 12.9“ 2018, 64gb, WiFi. Buy this one for budget. And I was not sure about inches. If I can come back after 8 months of owning it or for the future, I will pick 256/512 gb with lte
 
256gb 3rd gen iPad Pro. Plan on keeping it for a few years. Didn’t want to worry about space, which is crazy considering i have iCloud. 😂Next iPad I will opt for the cellular version.
 
1TB - decided to max it out as I hope to keep it running for a good few years and hope not to have to deal with storage issues. I think 512GB would’ve been fine though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back