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bleumax

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 25, 2009
27
1
I am choosing between a 2020 12.9" iPad Pro 2/ 256 GB, a 2021 11" iPad Pro 128 GB and a 2021 12.9" iPad Pro 128 GB. The 2020 12.9" and the 2021 11" are both $750. The 2021 12.9" is $1,000.

The main concern that I have is obsolescence as Apple updates software. My experience is that my iPads get laggy after a few years - albeit none of them were Pros. We are an Apple household and tend to keep our Apple products for awhile. It's my understanding that while the M1 is snappier, there aren't many applications that take advantage of the M1 - at least for my purposes. I can see the benefit of the mini-LED screen - pun intended.

At $250, the price differential seems wide between the 2020 and 2021 12.9 iPads, especially since the 2020 version has double the storage. Is obsolescence a legitimate concern given the difference in 2020 and 2021 processors?
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,919
13,261
Obsolescence is inevitable. It's just a question of how long of a useful life you get out of the product before it becomes obsolete.

For what it's worth, we're replacing a 2016 iPad Pro 9.7 A9X/2GB (~6 years useful life) and a 2018 iPad 6th gen A10/2GB (~4 years useful life).

I'm expecting the 2018/2020 Pro will be longer lived than the Pro 9.7. However, it really all depends on how quickly Apple develops iPadOS going forward.

One thing going for the A12X/Z, improvements in chipset performance has slowed down. No longer are we getting 50-100% YOY increases so that should make A12 viable for longer.
 

darngooddesign

macrumors P6
Jul 4, 2007
18,366
10,128
Atlanta, GA
The iPad isn't obsolete if it stops receiving OS updates, its obsolete when it no longer runs the apps you want well. Assuming my iPP 9.7, with its tiny 2GB RAM, doesn't get iOS16, I've had 6 years of OS updates and I expect another couple of years before apps generally stop being supported due to it having an old OS. In fact, no new OS versions means you don't have to worry about it getting laggier due to a bigger and more demanding OS.

TLDR - You will want to upgrade any of the current iPads before they are actually obsolete.
 

darngooddesign

macrumors P6
Jul 4, 2007
18,366
10,128
Atlanta, GA
So true. Couldn't stand 2GB RAM iPads on iOS 15. Even 3-4GB can be annoying at times.
I happily upgraded to 15 despite any potential lagginess due to it fixing 14's annoying split-screen issue. Reloads don't bother me much because I don't expect lightning fast operation on a six year old iPad. If I were regularly and rapidly swapping between apps it would bother me far more than it does.
 

tbobmccoy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 24, 2007
969
219
Austin, TX
FWIW, I just upgraded my iPP 9.7" (2016) to the 2021 iPP (M1, 2021). I'm sure it'll suffer slightly since the new iPads are likely coming out in the new few months, but considering I got 6 years out of the old beast, I don't mind.
 

ericwn

macrumors G5
Apr 24, 2016
12,118
10,910
I’d pick my preferred screen size and then the model with more RAM personally.
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,919
13,261
The 12” model has more ram- does the 11” if you get enough memory? 128GB honestly is enough for me.

It's storage, not display size where RAM varies on 2018 and 2021 iPad Pros.

2018 Pro 11" & 12.9": 64-512GB - A12X/4GB, 1TB - A12X/6GB

2020 Pro 11" & 12.9": A12Z/6GB across the board

2021 Pro 11" & 12.9": 128-512GB - M1/8GB, 1-2TB - M1/16GB
 

bniu

macrumors 65816
Mar 21, 2010
1,125
306
2021 11" vs 2020 12.9", screens are the same, M1 is faster than A12Z, but A12Z is still pretty beefy. For these two, I'd only consider which screen size you want, 11" or 12.9". 11" is much easier to carry around, but its Magic Keyboard is somewhat cramped. 12.9" offers a full size magic keyboard accessory.

For the 12.9" size, the question is basically mini-LED vs not. I like the mini-LED screen, so that's worth a premium for me. M1 is nice, but I'd be just as happy with A12Z.

A12Z is also 6GB instead of the 4GB in the A12X, so it's got plenty of RAM. M1 has 8GB RAM unless you get the terabyte models, then it shoots up to 16GB RAM.
 
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tbobmccoy

macrumors 6502a
Jul 24, 2007
969
219
Austin, TX
It's storage, not display size where RAM varies on 2018 and 2021 iPad Pros.

2018 Pro 11" & 12.9": 64-512GB - A12X/4GB, 1TB - A12X/6GB

2020 Pro 11" & 12.9": A12Z/6GB across the board

2021 Pro 11" & 12.9": 128-512GB - M1/8GB, 1-2TB - M1/16GB
So odd. I hope it won’t matter practically. I need no more than 128 GB.
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,919
13,261
So odd. I hope it won’t matter practically. I need no more than 128 GB.

I think by the time it matters, you would’ve bought a different iPad already.

Besides, it’s $700 to go from 128GB to 1TB on the 2021 Pros. If you invest the difference in AAPL, you’d probably have enough to buy a couple of new iPads after 3-4 years.
 
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