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Buyer Beware: 11-inch iPad Pro has a new aspect ratio, and most apps have HUGE black bars

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Xeyad

macrumors 6502
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Nov 19, 2012
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Just want to put it out there, the new 11-inch iPad Pro doesn't only have a new resolution, but it also has a new aspect ratio, ditching iPad's infamous 4:3.

This means, almost every single iPad app will now need to be updated to the new aspect ratio, and we all know this will result in so many apps neglected and will result in massive black bars for so many apps.

The 12.9" iPad Pro is now the safe option if you want all apps to take advantage of the whole screen.

Check this video and look how terrible Rome: Total War (go to 12:10) and Affinity Photo (go to 13:05) look on the 11" iPad. This literally looks like the original iPad from 2010. Such a dumb move by Apple.

SO BUYER BEWARE.

 
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This is literally something that emerges with many new apple product launches, and developer catch up. Blaming Apple is fairly simplistic and silly ultimately, given 1) it hasn't shipped yet for developers to test their apps out with, 2) the screen resolution was not supported prior to the announcement of the new pros, and 3) xcode needs to also support these resolutions for developers to code and test layouts with. So a touch of patience is all you need.
 
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To be honest, this is making me reconsider the 11” model. I have a 12.9” gen 2 pro now and I preordered a 12.9” gen 3 pro, but I use my iPad for a lot of video consumption and I’ve never liked the 4:3 aspect ratio.

The 11” might not be 16:9, but it’s a step closer in that direction. The apps might not be there yet, but they’ll get there. Saving $200 and getting a better aspect ratio might be worth dealing with a slightly smaller screen for me.
 
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Nikhil72 said:
This is literally something that emerges with many new apple product launches, and developer catch up. Blaming Apple is fairly simplistic and silly ultimately, given 1) it hasn't shipped yet for developers to test their apps out with, 2) the screen resolution was not supported prior to the announcement of the new pros, and 3) xcode needs to also support these resolutions for developers to code and test layouts with. So a touch of patience is all you need.
Click to expand...

A touch of patience can take 2-3 years when you look at the history of the 6Plus. As an XS Max owner, there is still a surprisingly large number of apps, which haven't been updated to the newest resolution. Most of them won't see an update ever. Apple should push developers way harder to support all resolutions (maybe even with incentives). The whole laptop replacement narrative falls apart if you have unused black bars in your apps. The software is really holding this device back.
 
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Nikhil72 said:
This is literally something that emerges with many new apple product launches, and developer catch up. Blaming Apple is fairly simplistic and silly ultimately, given 1) it hasn't shipped yet for developers to test their apps out with, 2) the screen resolution was not supported prior to the announcement of the new pros, and 3) xcode needs to also support these resolutions for developers to code and test layouts with. So a touch of patience is all you need.
Click to expand...

But here it's a little different. With iPhone, Apple kept changing the size and resolution every few years, so developers knew they had to keep updating. Moreover, because iPhone has a much bigger user-base, developers are more interested in updating apps.

With iPad, this is the first time since 2010 that they've changed the aspect ratio. This will take much much longer for all developers to update their apps, because everyone since 2010 has been developing for only one aspect ratio. The iPad also has a much smaller user-base compared to iPhone, so you'll see many developers leaving this as it is, and it looks horrible.
 
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Xeyad said:
Dude it's a real issue. Imagine buying this $800 iPad Pro that has an 'edge-to-edge' display, only to discover that many apps make the tablet look like it came from 2010.

Yes there will be developer who of course will update their apps for sure, but that will take some time; and there will be developers, especially game developers, who'll just leave it as it is as long as it works.

Can't a guy just tell people to beware a product that has this kind of annoyance? :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I think its the fact that you said it was a dumb move by Apple. It is actually a great design decision as it keeps the form factor but with a bigger screen, and will just take a little bit for apps to update.

Things like Affinity and Netflix should be updated very quickly.
 
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Royksöpp said:
Eh... This is nothing new. Remember when all the Apps on the 10.5 were blown up and pixelated at launch? Just give it one to three weeks for the major Apps to get an update and maybe a month or two for the smaller guys.
Click to expand...

updating your app for a new resolution is way easier than updating it for a new aspect ratio.
[doublepost=1541429569][/doublepost]
whitedragon101 said:
I think its the fact that you said it was a dumb move by Apple. It is actually a great design decision as it keeps the form factor but with a bigger screen, and will just take a little bit for apps to update.

Things like Affinity and Netflix should be updated very quickly.
Click to expand...

I love Apple man, but it's a dumb move. With every iPad Apple introduced, they made sure all of them were 4:3 to keep Apps all looking the same. They did it with the Mini in 2012, they did that with the 12.9" Pro in 2015. And even with the 10.5" Pro, they kept the ratio to make it easier for developers to only update the resolution.

So if they wanted to change the ratio, they should've done it much earlier. This will take months if not years for most apps to be updated for the 11" Pro.
 
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haha I don't have to imagine for much longer, from Wednesday i will be experiencing the black bars myself. I will schedule an emergency therapy session just in case.

Seriously though, i also have an Android phone, and the number of apps that look horrendous on there, 80% of the apps on iOS will be updated, and the remainder, well tough really, we'll learn to live with it.
 
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Xeyad said:
Just want to put it out there, the new 11-inch iPad Pro doesn't only have a new resolution, but it also has a new aspect ratio, ditching iPad's infamous 4:3.

This means, almost every single iPad app will now need to be updated to the new aspect ratio, and we all know this will result in so many apps neglected and will result in massive black bars for so many apps.

The 12.9" iPad Pro is now the safe option if you want all apps to take advantage of the whole screen.

Check this video and look how terrible Rome: Total War (go to 12:10) and Affinity Photo (go to 13:05) look on the 11" iPad. This literally looks like the original iPad from 2010. Such a dumb move by Apple.

SO BUYER BEWARE.

Click to expand...

This is so, non news (fake news ;)), this has always been the case with new aspect ratio devices, iPhone or iPad,
it always takes a bit for developers to adjust, some get the new info before launch, others have to wait after launch, then adjust their app.

Even the bigger app makers take time to adjust, there are still many apps not adjusted for the iPhone-X screen, after 1 year.

Cool down and breath in......breath out.... :D
 
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Absrnd said:
This is so, non news (fake news ;)), this has always been the case with new aspect ratio devices, iPhone or iPad,
it always takes a bit for developers to adjust, some get the new info before launch, others have to wait after launch, then adjust their app.

Even the bigger app makers take time to adjust, there are still many apps not adjusted for the iPhone-X screen, after 1 year.

Cool down and breath in......breath out.... :D
Click to expand...
When was the last time that an aspect ratio changed on an iPad causing "black bars"?

This is a significant, long-standing deficiency in the design of iOS. That the operating system requires applications to include support for system-level functions (like screen resolution, splitview multitasking, Files.app, etc.) is an issue that will make it difficult to advance the OS beyond its smartphone roots.
 
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sracer said:
When was the last time that an aspect ratio changed on an iPad causing "black bars"?

This is a significant, long-standing deficiency in the design of iOS. That the operating system requires applications to include support for system-level functions (like screen resolution, splitview multitasking, Files.app, etc.) is an issue that will make it difficult to advance the OS beyond its smartphone roots.
Click to expand...

When the first iPad was released...or retina screens were introduced.
a lot of apps were just enlarged iPhone apps on the screen, and some apps still are :)

It is not an Apple problem, but the app makers, they sometimes take months/years to adjust their apps for resolution or screen format.
ans some really don't care, as long it gets sold, and only after ultimatums from apple, they adjust, or get erased from the store.
 
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sracer said:
When was the last time that an aspect ratio changed on an iPad causing "black bars"?

This is a significant, long-standing deficiency in the design of iOS. That the operating system requires applications to include support for system-level functions (like screen resolution, splitview multitasking, Files.app, etc.) is an issue that will make it difficult to advance the OS beyond its smartphone roots.
Click to expand...
Is that really true? This problem exists on every OS, except MacOS because nobody builds software for it.

Not all PC games support ultrawide for example.

Are we going to also complain that Space Quest 1 (VGA Edition) hasnt been updated to 4k?
 
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Nikhil72 said:
This is literally something that emerges with many new apple product launches, and developer catch up. Blaming Apple is fairly simplistic and silly ultimately, given 1) it hasn't shipped yet for developers to test their apps out with, 2) the screen resolution was not supported prior to the announcement of the new pros, and 3) xcode needs to also support these resolutions for developers to code and test layouts with. So a touch of patience is all you need.
Click to expand...
The problem is many developers take FOREVER to update their ipad apps. Facebook is a multi billion dollar company that still hasn't updated for the larger retina iPads from the last 2 years.

So yes, we can blame apple partly for not partnering with companies to update their software. The iPad is still not taken seriously by many developers (took adobe till 2018) while apple is trying to push this as a laptop replacement. Its comical.
[doublepost=1541433185][/doublepost]
Grolubao said:
It is a big issue, make no mistake. I'm considering skipping it all together, it will literally take half a year at least for some apps to be updated
Click to expand...
Or never....loads of apps are just blown up 9.7 in versions that look terrible on the 10.5 and 12.9 iPad Pro.
 
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jonnyb098 said:
The problem is many developers take FOREVER to update their ipad apps. Facebook is a multi billion dollar company that still hasn't updated for the larger retina iPads from the last 2 years.

So yes, we can blame apple partly for not partnering with companies to update their software. The iPad is still not taken seriously by many developers (took adobe till 2018) while apple is trying to push this as a laptop replacement. Its comical.
[doublepost=1541433185][/doublepost]
Or never....loads of apps are just blown up 9.7 in versions that look terrible on the 10.5 and 12.9 iPad Pro.
Click to expand...
I agree, it's a serious issue, and one that I did not think of. This puts me off from the 11" iPad pro.

The problem is that developers have to support the 9.7", 10.5", 12.9", and now the 11" with a different aspect ratio. The market for iPad apps is just so much smaller than the market for iPhone apps, so it might not make sense to put resources into development to optimize for so many different screens. And the waste majority of iPads in existence is probably 9.7", so that will be the priority.
 
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jonnyb098 said:
The problem is many developers take FOREVER to update their ipad apps. Facebook is a multi billion dollar company that still hasn't updated for the larger retina iPads from the last 2 years.

So yes, we can blame apple partly for not partnering with companies to update their software. The iPad is still not taken seriously by many developers (took adobe till 2018) while apple is trying to push this as a laptop replacement. Its comical.
[doublepost=1541433185][/doublepost]
Or never....loads of apps are just blown up 9.7 in versions that look terrible on the 10.5 and 12.9 iPad Pro.
Click to expand...

It's actually been nearly 3 years since the 12.9" launched. Facebook is odd too - they updated their Messenger app way back, including giving it split view, whereas with their main app they seem to not want to give it any attention.
 
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