Buy iPad Pro 10.5 or wait for 3D Touch?

[theBostonian]

i currently own an iPad Air and I'm leery of buying a first gen tablet again because the last time they released more RAM and an anti-reflective coating a few months after I'd bought it.

I've been browsing threads here and I've also tried a IPP in an Apple Store so I'm pretty much sold on one but what're the odds next year's model will have something like 3D Touch or some other feature?

The 1GB RAM air I'm currently using is killing me, I think it's time to sell it and move on but I could probably wait for a next gen. if it's only going to be a processor bump tho then there'd be no point

 

[maflynn]

If you need one now buy one, there's no guarantees that we'll see 3d Touch in the next revision

 

[zhenya]

I am a little bit skeptical that we will see 3D Touch on the iPad even next year. And if we do, I can’t say it’d be a game changer. Even on the iPhone it has seen very slow adoption by developers, and even Apple continues to change how it operates. It’s a good feature, but it will be a long time after release before it begins to make a meaningful difference to the experience.

I think now is a good time to upgrade. You’ve gotten great life out of what was a fantastic model in your Air 1 but it’s beginning to show its age. The new Pro has a host of new features that will change the experience in a significant way for you, and with 4GB of RAM it will be supported for an extended period of time.

 

[pika2000]

Do you really want to have 3D touch on a large tablet? 3D touch on a large tablet makes no sense. Just imagine how would you activate it while it's being propped on your lap/table. It's usability nightmare. A phone is different since you have your whole palm to support the device. Not with a tablet. In addition, having a taptic engine to vibrate the whole tablet? Nope.

 

[DNichter]

Buy now if you want a tablet. I don't see 3D touch coming to iPad anytime soon. Not sure how valuable it would be anyway. Personally, I don't use it.

 

[Ghost31]

Dude, I don't know if I see 3D Touch ever coming to iPad. It seems like such an obvious thing to add to you or me but maybe apples vision is for it to be on iPhone but that it isn't meant for iPad. In which case, there's no reason to put off a purchase just because of a feature you don't know will ever come

 

[The Game 161]

Oled is likely coming more than 3D Touch is next year

 

[CatherineVeraGat]

Buy one now, unless am OLED display is really important to you.

 

[Booji]

I have 3D Touch on my iPhone 7 and I can't say that I have made use of it

 

[Shanghaichica]

It's debatable if iPads will have a yearly upgrade cycle going forward as the 12.9 inch pro went almost 2 years before being upgraded and the it was 2.5 years before the non pro iPad was updated. So I think it will be along wait for 3D Touch if it is coming to the iPad.

Additionally, it seems as though long press works in the control centre in ios 11. Apple may feel using long press negates the need for 3D Touch on the iPad.

 

[Donka]

I doubt 3D Touch is coming to iPad purely because a long press in iOS 11 mimics 3D Touch on the iPad and presents context menus. No sense in them adding this feature if 3D Touch was on the road map for iPads.

 

[theBostonian]

Do you really want to have 3D touch on a large tablet? 3D touch on a large tablet makes no sense. Just imagine how would you activate it while it's being propped on your lap/table. It's usability nightmare. A phone is different since you have your whole palm to support the device. Not with a tablet. In addition, having a taptic engine to vibrate the whole tablet? Nope.

I use force Touch and 3D Touch quite a lot on my mac and iPhone, I also find the haptic feedback quite useful.

Buy one now, unless am OLED display is really important to you.

I don't really care about OLED and I certainly wouldn't be an early adopter for that; when apple moved to in-cell display technology it had a slew of problems until they managed to iron them out for the iPhone 6. I imagine OLED would also have a few of its own

I doubt 3D Touch is coming to iPad purely because a long press in iOS 11 mimics 3D Touch on the iPad and presents context menus. No sense in them adding this feature if 3D Touch was on the road map for iPads.

Oh really? I didn't know that... it's one of the few things I liked about Android and it always perplexed me how Apple didn't implement it more widely.

 

[pika2000]

I use force Touch and 3D Touch quite a lot on my mac and iPhone, I also find the haptic feedback quite useful.

Force Touch on a Mac is feasible because the trackpad has solid support on a horizontal plane.
On iPhone, like I said, 3D touch is feasible because your hand/palm is supporting the phone.
Try propping up a thin tablet like the iPad on its case, and imagine activating a 3D touch. Not feasible. Imagine trying to activate 3D touch by holding the tablet all the time. It's intuitive.

Haptic feedback != 3D touch by the way.

 

[theBostonian]

Haptic feedback != 3D touch by the way.

Yes, hence the "also" in my post, indicating a separate idea. You mentioned the Taptic Engine so I submitted it's another feature I would like and find useful.

 

[blwade]

Force Touch on a Mac is feasible because the trackpad has solid support on a horizontal plane.
On iPhone, like I said, 3D touch is feasible because your hand/palm is supporting the phone.
Try propping up a thin tablet like the iPad on its case, and imagine activating a 3D touch. Not feasible. Imagine trying to activate 3D touch by holding the tablet all the time. It's intuitive.

Haptic feedback != 3D touch by the way.

I've never really give this consideration.. but it's a very valid point.

I wish 3D Touch was more valuable... I really like the idea, but as you said, it's not implemented much. I often use it to open a new tab in safari from the home screen or to open a link/image in a new tab in safari.. but that's really it. I find the feature quite annoying, however, when I'm trying to move/delete apps...

 

[Chupa Chupa]

The 1GB RAM air I'm currently using is killing me, I think it's time to sell it and move on but I could probably wait for a next gen. if it's only going to be a processor bump tho then there'd be no point

If MBA is "killing" then why would you wait? Usually when something is "killing" someone they trying to find the best cure possible ASAP, not wait around in hopes that some other better cure might come around in a year. Why suffer that misery based on a hope that may never be realized?

Yes, I guarantee 100% that the next gen iPad will be improved. To what degree who knows. The one after that will be even better. Will you want to wait for that one come next year when the 2018 version isn't much of an update? See where I'm going. 3D Touch is nice but it doesn't seem like a deal killer to me. Actually it wasn't a deal killer -- my 12.9 will be in tomorrow. A year is a long time with a slow beach-bally computer.

So if you are getting crushed by your current set up then extract yourself from that situation. If it's tolerable then you aren't really interested in switching up.

 

[JohnnyGo]

I agree with most posts that imply that 3D Touch is not coming for the iPad. IMO feasibility is not there yet for such a large screen.

In the medium term, anything is possible. Which goes to the other point mentioned: usability. I would like to see 3D touch on the iPad but some posters do make a valid point that it may be a difficult feature in terms of usability.

If you have a 1st gen iPad air there’s no reason to wait any longer. The iPad Pro 10.5 is a beast with a killer display. Take the plunge, you won’t regret it.

 

[aakshey]

I went from an Air to 10.5. I wanted 3D Touch as well. Am glad I went with 10.5. Night and day.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

i currently own an iPad Air and I'm leery of buying a first gen tablet again because the last time they released more RAM and an anti-reflective coating a few months after I'd bought it.

I've been browsing threads here and I've also tried a IPP in an Apple Store so I'm pretty much sold on one but what're the odds next year's model will have something like 3D Touch or some other feature?

The 1GB RAM air I'm currently using is killing me, I think it's time to sell it and move on but I could probably wait for a next gen. if it's only going to be a processor bump tho then there'd be no point

If you are a frequent iPad user, then 100% upgrade now. I think it's unlikely iPad will be getting 3D touch soon. It seems like a huge engineering hurdle for a screen that size, plus Apple really seems to be allowing a lot more 3D touch options to be long presses. Yes the iPad will get improvements in the next gen that you want. But now is the perfect time to buy.

 

[FriendlyMackle]

i currently own an iPad Air and I'm leery of buying a first gen tablet again because the last time they released more RAM and an anti-reflective coating a few months after I'd bought it.

I've been browsing threads here and I've also tried a IPP in an Apple Store so I'm pretty much sold on one but what're the odds next year's model will have something like 3D Touch or some other feature?

The 1GB RAM air I'm currently using is killing me, I think it's time to sell it and move on but I could probably wait for a next gen. if it's only going to be a processor bump tho then there'd be no point

I have the old iPad Air (1) and the 1GB of RAM is a nightmare...when browsing the web. I hardly use it anymore. Now mostly use my 12.9 Pro (v1) which has 4GB -- much, much better!

I also wish they would bring 3D Touch to the iPad. But it sounds like something difficult to implement on a large screen, so even the 10.5" might be out of the question.
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It's debatable if iPads will have a yearly upgrade cycle going forward as the 12.9 inch pro went almost 2 years before being upgraded and the it was 2.5 years before the non pro iPad was updated. So I think it will be along wait for 3D Touch if it is coming to the iPad.

Additionally, it seems as though long press works in the control centre in ios 11. Apple may feel using long press negates the need for 3D Touch on the iPad.

That's interesting. One thing I really like about 3D Touch on the iPhone is using it to quickly access the real/detailed menu settings (cell, bluetooth, battery, wi-fi). That is what I miss on the ipad.

In particular, the bluetooth 3D touch access from my home screen allows me to connect right to the bluetooth menu where I can select different headphones. I don't use the Airpods, so it often takes a manual selection to connect my BlueBuds or Momentum Wireless.

 

[Eric5273]

I don't know if 3D Touch will be coming to iPad. On a phone, it's easy to apply more pressure to the screen as you are holding the phone in your hand. But much use of iPads are while they are in stands, often times those case stands with the folding Smart Cover, and they are not nearly as sturdy. So having to press the screen hard enough to trigger 3D Touch would often times cause these case stands to collapse. It's a good feature on a small handheld device like a phone or watch, not so good on a larger screen.

 

[Darkashnet]

I don't see it coming to the iPad at all anymore. Just wouldn't be elegant, and as others have pointed out the direction iOS 11 seems to be taking is incorporating long press functions. I wouldn't wait or upgrade based on 3D Touch.

 

[HylianKnight]

i currently own an iPad Air and I'm leery of buying a first gen tablet again because the last time they released more RAM and an anti-reflective coating a few months after I'd bought it.

I've been browsing threads here and I've also tried a IPP in an Apple Store so I'm pretty much sold on one but what're the odds next year's model will have something like 3D Touch or some other feature?

The 1GB RAM air I'm currently using is killing me, I think it's time to sell it and move on but I could probably wait for a next gen. if it's only going to be a processor bump tho then there'd be no point

Implementing 3D Touch on such a large display presents a unique set of challenges. Not saying it would be impossible but I wager that it is unlikely we'll see 3D Touch on an iPad any time soon, if ever. I say get the 10.5" or 2nd gen 12.9" if that size appeals to you. Coming from an iPad Air will be like night and day.

 

[44267547]

Implementing 3D Touch on such a large display presents a unique set of challenges. Not saying it would be impossible but I wager that it is unlikely will see 3D Touch on an iPad any time soon, if ever. I say get the 10.5" or 2nd gen 12.9" if that size appeals to you. Coming from an iPad Air will be like night and day.

I believe the difficulty with 3D Touch is highly likely with the iPad. Tim Cook commented on how difficult it was with the iPhone 6s to incorporate 3D Touch, so I can only imagine the difficulty with a 10.5/12.9 display with 3D Touch. I personally like using 3D Touch frequently on my iPhone 7, but I don't foresee it occurring on the iPad in the future.