I never thought about it that way but I see your logic is impecible.
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All iPads Dilemma on iPad(s)
- Thread starter wabisabizo
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I'm currently having a tough time deciding whether to buy the iPad Pro M4 or the MacBook Air M3. I know they're both great choices, but I'm just not sure which one is right for me. I'm looking for a computer that I can use for my daily tasks. I mostly do media consumption like watching videos and browsing the internet, but I also need something powerful enough for emails and other work tasks. I'm also considering the price, of course. I'm not sure how much I'm willing to spend on a device right now. Any advice is appreciated.
Any iPad (even the base model 10th gen) is more than powerful enough to do what you listed, however you’ll have to think about what specific things you consider to be “work tasks“. Are there any specialty programs you use for work? You’ll have to see whether they are available on the iPad if so. I’d guess if your use is pretty basic, which it sounds like it is, you‘ll enjoy the iPad more.
We’ll see. The M4 is certainly more powerful than the M2. And having more ram is better than having less ram. But will the on-device features of Apple Intelligence be so demanding that the M2 iPad Air (that was just released a 15 or ago weeks ago) isn’t powerful enough? If so, then my Mac Mini M1 (which is listed as a supported device) isn’t going to stand a chance. lol
I agree, they will probably enjoy the iPad more, but i suspect they'd get their work done much quicker on a Macbook Air. An iPad plus keyboard and mouse (or magic keyboard is great), but imo it isn't close to using Mac OS and a proper mouse. If they don't have a Mac already, i'd go for the MBA every day of the week.
Benefits of ram are 100% speculation.
iPads don’t use ram the same way PCs do.
M4 will be better for AI though because there’s greater neural, GPU and cpu processing power, and more fine tuning.
Less of a learning curve for sure, especially for work, as you’re getting the traditional desktop OS!
If you’re using it for a lot of media consumption then OLED all the way. Much better viewing experience I think. Plus the M4 will have AV1 decoding in it, which I believe is a future coming standard the likes of You Tube and others will use.
The M4 iPad sounds like it may work for you, depending on other programs you need to use.
Test both devices at home during the return period. Only you can ultimately decide if a tablet cuts it or if you need another computer. Nothing beats making your own experience.
I think the potential is there for local inference demands to increase rapidly. Apple has every incentive to add as many local inference use cases as possible because 1) it adds to their privacy branding, and more importantly 2) drive hardware upgrades. I'd guess that the M4 iPad Pro would usably last 1-2 more upgrade cycles than the M2 iPad Air.
Though one could argue getting the Air now and save that $400 to put toward upgrading earlier if/when AI features you want are available.
iPads use the same shared memory architecture as Macs. More RAM allows you to run larger AI models. Also, the M4 Pro RAM has a bandwidth 120 GB/s. M2 RAM bandwidth is 100 GB/s, but Apple doesn't list the bandwidth for the M2 iPad Air, so I suspect it's slower than that. Faster memory bandwidth increases inference speed.
Here's a similar question.. I recently gave my old iPad gen 6 to my daughter so I'm looking at a replacement. Although money is not really and issue I have an aversion to spending $1000 on a iPad Pro. It just rubs me the wrong way AND is grossly overkill for my needs. My old iPad 128 GB SSD and that was perfectly sized for me. The iPad gen 10 with only 64 GB disc would need a $100 "upgrade" to 256GB. This makes it only $100 less than the iPad Air M2 base unit which does have 128 GB SSD. I'm thinking the better chip might be useful in the future. I'm leaning towards the iPad Air.
From ipadOS18 we can take that M-chips will get more smart ai-features. If that is something you think you will use in the future, then the ipad Air is a better choice today than the iPad 10.
Can you give an example of an AI model that can’t be run on the 8gb but can run on the 16gb?
Never heard a complaint (about those things)? Is this your first time on the MacRumors forums then? 😂
(I kid. I kid. But
There are definitely people complaining about the iPad Pro with the M4. Or specifically complaining about the M4 being constrained by iPadOS.
“Why even sell an iPad with an M4? You can’t do anything with iPadOS. The M4 is wasted potential in an iPad!!!”
(That’s not a direct quote. I’m just giving an example of the general kind of feeling some people have.)
I find iPadOS to be fine. I’ve used an iPad as my primary computing device for years. I have some complaints, but I’m mostly happy with the experience.
But I too wonder if the M4 is a bit of overkill. I don’t know what I could do with an M4 iPad Pro that I couldn’t do with an M2 iPad Air. I’m sure some people can make use of the extra performance. But for most… the M2 is likely more than enough.
Do forum posters count as people? /s 😂
Absolutely unbelievable! Spending $1k on an iPad Pro just for watching Baby Shark? That's beyond ridiculous—what were you thinking? It's like setting your money on fire while screaming, "I have no concept of value!" If your goal was to throw cash into the void and get nothing worthwhile in return, congrats, you've nailed it. Have some self-respect! Instead of settling for mediocrity, aim for the ultimate experience with Apple Vision Pro.
I have enjoyed using my 13” M4. In less than 3 weeks, I have already used 25GB with my iPad cell plan.
Where are you using it? Coffee shop, transportation, hotels?
You don't find it too big to take out at such places? What kind of bag do you carry it in?
I have a Tomtoc Sling. The size is certainly noticeable when carrying and setting up with the MKB versus my mini 6 but, it isn’t something that isn’t doable.
tomtoc Compact EDC Sling Bag for 13-inch iPad Pro M4/ iPad Air M2 2024, Minimalist Chest Shoulder Crossbody Bag for 13" MacBook Air M3 2024/MacBook Pro, Small Daypack for Daily Use, Work- S Size
tomtoc Compact EDC Sling Bag for 13-inch iPad Pro M4/ iPad Air M2 2024, Minimalist Chest Shoulder Crossbody Bag for 13" MacBook Air M3 2024/MacBook Pro, Small Daypack for Daily Use, Work- S Size
www.amazon.com
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