All iPads Have we hit a point where we don't need to upgrade anymore?

[ThunderSkunk]

I use a mini as my mobile & internet device, while my workstations operate on an intranet with no access to the outside world. I gave the first couple big iPad Pros a shot, but ultimately had to admit the iPad wasn't as useful as a mobile device as my mini, wasn't as useful at running full featured apps as my MBP, which was already underpowered compared to my desktop. The iPad didn't do anything that the mini didn't already do, and what it did do it did clumsily and poorly. For all the crap we gave Microsoft for treating all tablets as PC's in 2003, Apple's approach of treating all tablets as mobile devices is just as ill-fitting.

Small tablets = Mobile Devices
Big tablets = Work Surfaces

A mini as a cellphone replacement + a Wacom Cintiq connected to a MBP or Mac Pro is the winning combo.
Mobile devices are barely powerful enough to run their bloated OS's as it is, and will need to be updated to keep up with all the new bloat they dump on us. You can avoid that on workstations if you so desire.

 

[iPadified]

Then again, Octane X is now on iPad Mx. 3D render engines cannot be too fast in my in opinion. Have you ever played Civ VI on iPad? Sluggish to load. Large maps are sluggish. Yes, there are still room for improvements but only for edge cases, just like the Mac.

 

[floral]

There is a lot of comments about the 'limitations' of iPadOS but remember that the iPad represents Apple's $400 and $600 computing line. Someone buying a $400 computer doesn't really need Disk Utility, iTunes or indeed Final Cut Pro.

That's not to say that iPadOS is perfect. The Dashboard and Lockscreen are wasted space, Stage Manager is terrible and I'd love a dedicated settings panel for managing external displays.

On topic, its difficult to see what hardware Apple could add to the iPad without it becoming something else. I used to use LiDAR all the time but since buying a Logitech Keyboard Case I rarely remove it.

I did make a thread related to the limits of iPadOS but this is moreso about iPad hardware being able to withstand a lot more time before being considered obsolete, and asking if we reached a point where the current iPads for sale can last an entire human life. However, I forgot to factor in the software and what Apple can artificially implement to shorten their "lifespan".

 

[Ethosik]

It’s at the point now where we don’t need to upgrade every release. I don’t think it’s at computer levels yet (still running a business with my 2010 Mac Pro and it does video/photo editing just fine).

 

[Allen_Wentz]

Because the iPad, like the iPhone, is married to the cloud and not to a computer or external devices. This is by design. Sincerely, when was Apple content management system good on any device. I mean iTunes and iBooks, what a mess.

This: "iTunes and iBooks, what a mess."

Apple should have replaced the folks managing the databasing of books and music years ago. Almost anyone could build a better user interface. That the world's largest most profitable tech entity continues to do such a terribly bad job is inexcusable.

 

[targa88]

I suppose that ultimately it is a choice based on usage. I am still using an original iPad Pro 9.7 which is 7 years old. It continues to be supported through the OS ecosystem.
That being said iPad OS does not really compare to Mac OS.
Dollars invested would be for best use. For the vast majority of tasks Mac beats iPad outright.
From a hardware standpoint I think that iPad advantage is size and weight = portability. Especially if it is mainly used a viewer/reader.
The "sidecar" feature although somewhat quirky as been an added bonus linking the two.
When I upgraded from a MacBook Pro after seven years in 2021 to a MBA M1 - I could not say that I saw a major difference.
Chasing the latest/ greatest is not a real thing that motivates me to change. Rather expiry of components or support...

 

[melodibit]

I think if you're just thinking about what a tablet is used for today, you're basically right. When they update the iPad and it's got slightly faster processing, then no. There is probably no point in upgrading.

What's going to change is when tablets (and really every other computing device) integrates with VR, projects holograms, implements gesture based interfaces in real space (think minority report), and integrates more directly with our bodies. Paradigm shifting technologies are coming that will change the way we think about all of these devices, and they're coming sooner than you think. At that point, a handheld tablet may not be something to upgrade. It may just be obsolete, like a separate iPod.

 

[Allen_Wentz]

I'm suddenly reminded of how Bill Gates supposedly claimed that "640 KB of RAM ought to be enough for anybody" back in the early 1980s.

Gates was a born-socialite dealmaker, not tech prescient in any way. Many folks here similarly fail to grasp that tech will evolve and RAM needs will increase.

 

[Isengardtom]

All Macs run the same software regardless of if they are “Pro” devices, and Apple doesn’t software limit features there (except high power mode). I would expect that to continue to be the same on iPad.

Apple Pencil Hover? Doubt that’s a hardware limitation


I still see some hardware improvement potential in the iPad Pro. Positioning of the camera to the centre, Screen and audio improvements, I think both the apple pencil as well as the Magic Keyboard still have a lot of potential improvements. Maybe even some way to completely eliminate the bezels without adding palm interference,…

If anything the iPad has more improvement potential than the Mac at the moment for me, excluding just raw performance.

But I agree that software has the biggest untapped potential. Gaming potential is huge on the iPad (only limited by the 30% app store fees in many ways and as others have stated in the GPU performance of the M Chips

 

[Allen_Wentz]

I suppose that ultimately it is a choice based on usage. I am still using an original iPad Pro 9.7 which is 7 years old. It continues to be supported through the OS ecosystem.
That being said iPad OS does not really compare to Mac OS.
Dollars invested would be for best use. For the vast majority of tasks Mac beats iPad outright.
From a hardware standpoint I think that iPad advantage is size and weight = portability. Especially if it is mainly used a viewer/reader.
The "sidecar" feature although somewhat quirky as been an added bonus linking the two.
When I upgraded from a MacBook Pro after seven years in 2021 to a MBA M1 - I could not say that I saw a major difference.
Chasing the latest/ greatest is not a real thing that motivates me to change. Rather expiry of components or support...

Of course going "from a <high end 2014> MacBook Pro after seven years in 2021 to a <low end> MBA M1 - I could not say that I saw a major difference." If you had compared that 2014 MBP to an M2 MBP I suspect that you would have noticed the difference in display, audio, ports and performance.

 

[Daimos0]

It is now a valid question. Consider the content-aware Google photo where you can use it on your Iphone. It sends the picture to Google, edits it in the cloud, then sends it back.

 

[darngooddesign]

Gates was a born-socialite dealmaker, not tech prescient in any way. Many folks here similarly fail to grasp that tech will evolve and RAM needs will increase.

I think it’s obvious he meant “now” instead of “forever”.

 

[Lounge vibes 05]

I did make a thread related to the limits of iPadOS but this is moreso about iPad hardware being able to withstand a lot more time before being considered obsolete, and asking if we reached a point where the current iPads for sale can last an entire human life. However, I forgot to factor in the software and what Apple can artificially implement to shorten their "lifespan".

Obviously depends on how long the human life is.
If someone buys an iPad today when their 20 years old, no, it’s probably not gonna be working for them when they’re 87.
The thing is, even if it were the most powerful computer that existed and never needed to be upgraded, things still degrade.
Batteries degrade, performance degrades, individual pixels or even entire displays can die, any other component of the iPad can fail, and the longer and longer you use it the more high the chance of something failing.
On top of this, apps are not becoming less demanding.
Sure, today they run just fine on the 4, 6, 8 or 16 GB of Ram you can get in a modern iPad… but the MacBook Pro used to max out at 8 GB of RAM, and now it goes all the way to 96 and even *that* isn’t enough for everyone.
So the simple answer, no an iPad cannot last someone’s entire human life.
What it can do is easily last anywhere from 5 to 10 years.
The iPad Air2 is 9 1/2 years old and still has at least two years of security updates.
The first generation iPad Air and iPad mini are both stuck on iOS 12… Which still gets security updates today. And those iPads are over 10 years old.

 

[hanser]

I see no need to replace my 10.5 pro from 2017 anytime soon. I expect it going nicely for at least 2 or 3 more years. So, I think it is getting close, depending on the model. If I bought a M processor iPad now, I would expect to use it for 10 years or so. Of course I hope to live a little bit longer than that…

 

[pacmania1982]

I've got to the point where product launches don't excite me any more. The new iPhones each year only seem marginally better. I had the original iPhone and went to an iPhone 4. That was a HUGE jump. The 4 died, so I got a 4S which I had until the 6 Plus. Then - meh. I got an iPhone X but hated it because it felt like a baby (sized) phone, so replaced it with an 8 Plus and only got rid of that when I broke the power button whilst trying to replace the battery. I'm on an 11 Pro max and I have an issue with the ear piece speaker not working - so I have to use speaker phone all the time.

I'll be getting an iPhone 15 (Pro max or whatever) because I want USB-C but the rest of the stuff I don't care about. I don't care about MagSafe. I don't care about a smaller notch or pill or dynamic island (although who ever thought of making that a feature was pretty smart).

I guess you do get to a point where each new generation is pretty much of a muchness these days.

 

[Analog Kid]

With every generation of the iPad I figure— that's it, there's nothing more I need for this little slab to do— yet it continues to be my most frequently updated device. More than my Mac, phone, watch...

Maybe it's because I use it in so many different ways. The things that motivate me to upgrade (and I certainly don't upgrade every cycle) tend to be subtle improvements rather than mind blowing features.

 

[brucewayne]

A friend of mine, who has a 2022 iPad Pro and a Mac Studio/Studio display, bought his first windows machine EVER (Microsoft Surface) because he needs a drawing pad that runs full versions of adobe creative suite.

The iPad Pro hardware is virtually identical to a Macbook Air with a touch screen - there is no reason why it shouldn't run a full version of MacOS. Until they do, I can't see why anyone would upgrade a recent iPad because even 2 year old iPad hardware exceeds the software.

 

[Howard2k]

I'm suddenly reminded of how Bill Gates supposedly claimed that "640 KB of RAM ought to be enough for anybody" back in the early 1980s.

He didn't say it, but all the same, I came here to post the same statement

 

[Digitalguy]

There is a lot of comments about the 'limitations' of iPadOS but remember that the iPad represents Apple's $400 and $600 computing line. Someone buying a $400 computer doesn't really need Disk Utility, iTunes or indeed Final Cut Pro.

That's not to say that iPadOS is perfect. The Dashboard and Lockscreen are wasted space, Stage Manager is terrible and I'd love a dedicated settings panel for managing external displays.

On topic, its difficult to see what hardware Apple could add to the iPad without it becoming something else. I used to use LiDAR all the time but since buying a Logitech Keyboard Case I rarely remove it.

I disagree that it is a matter of price. $400 ok. But the $600 of the iPad air easily buy ou a laptop with 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD in the Windows world. Or a M2 Mac Mini...
Having said that, people pointing out iPadOS limitations will often also point out the price of the 12.9" iPad pro, which is the closest to a regular laptop. That device does not need hardware improvements, but needs more software. Apple could improve the OS, but that wouldn't be enough for many people. So there is only so much Apple can do. Only third party software could really bridge the gap with desktop OS libraries. Davinci Resolve is a great example of what could be possible. A lot more could be ported to the iPad, but the incentives for developers are pretty weak.... (especially the 30% cut on the App store).

 

[ZircoBen]

Still using a 2018 iPad Pro, and outside of the crappy battery life (in spite of it having only about 150 cycles), it's one heck of a tablet and I see zero reason to pick up a newer iPad Pro.

 

[Ctrlos]

I did make a thread related to the limits of iPadOS but this is moreso about iPad hardware being able to withstand a lot more time before being considered obsolete, and asking if we reached a point where the current iPads for sale can last an entire human life. However, I forgot to factor in the software and what Apple can artificially implement to shorten their "lifespan".

I think any computer can last a lifetime; it just depends on what you want to do with it!

 

[Digitalguy]

Still using a 2018 iPad Pro, and outside of the crappy battery life (in spite of it having only about 150 cycles), it's one heck of a tablet and I see zero reason to pick up a newer iPad Pro.

cycles are not the main factor for battery health, contrary to popular belief... long periods with the iPads completely discharged or plugged in, which have zero impact on cycles, are much more damaging to the battery health than cycling it daily, let alone good cycling (that is avoiding low or high values, like below 20% or above 90%)

 

[spiderman0616]

I think any computer can last a lifetime; it just depends on what you want to do with it and how old you already are!

Fixed this for you. 😝

 

[unchecked]

I'm going to cop out and say yes and no.

I am still using the base iPad 6 from 2018 and I have been tempted to switch for multiple times. I have twice replaced the iPad6 because of the dying backlight and done it during it's AppleCare period for no extra charge. But over time the backlight will still start to die and since it's no longer has AppleCare, I'm not sending it in for a repair. Lately the battery is not holding it's charge either.

So there are a few reasons for me to upgrade and I am ready to get a new iPad, but the new iPad isn't enough to make me want to get it. I am still waiting for the base iPad to get Pencil 2 support and finally ditch Pencil 1. So there is still a reason for me to not get a new iPad. So until that day comes, I will make do with my current 5-year-old iPad6.

 

[currocj]

I recently acquired an ipad pro as cheap as the entry level ipad 10th, for $550 (it took me a long time to find this used deal). But since its M1, and has a decent amount of storage (256GB), I feel like I should last me for the better part of a decade. Now I know apple will stopping supporting it around year 5-7 which is a crying shame because I'm sure it will be good enough to run PadOS 22.x-25.x