I bought an iPad pro 9.7

[alecgold]

I've been using the 9.7 with ASK and pencil for about a year when I got a change to update to the 10.5 (Father's iPad was getting unworkable, so I gave him mine and as a result had a good excuse to buy the 10.5).

Anyway, I know the 9.7 well, and at first sight the upgrade to the 10.5 is minimal.
Bigger screen? Just a little bit, not even an inch.
Faster processor? Never had any slouches with the 9.7
More RAM? Never noticed a difference between my 12.9 and 9.7

And yet. The overall experience is much better on the 10.5
ProMotion is a big winner. You hardly see it but it does work very well for me to reduce eye strain.
RAM and processor will improve long term support/workability.
The bigger screen means I have just that bit more real-estate that I need at the end of my line when writing with the pencil (which I do a lot).
But biggest improvement is the keyboard. It's about 97% of the 12.9 but my fingers don't notice the difference. So I can blind type at full speed with 10 fingers without getting them in a twist.

All in all it might be an incremental improvement, but it is also where Apple shines so often: making the sum of the incremental improvements much bigger then the individual parts.

 

[SigEp265]

256GB, right? Glad you like it.

How does a book in iBooks or Kindle look? How are the fonts compared to your 9.7 iPad Pro, if you still have it? Thanks.

Oops yeah 256. As for the increased size I really can't tell much of a difference. I haven't used iBooks on it or Kindle yet as I usually just read on my Kindle ... BUT I will check and let you know.

I will say I find myself only using this tablet in landscape more ... I guess using a Samsung tablet before has rubbed off on me.

 

[Broadus]

Oops yeah 256. As for the increased size I really can't tell much of a difference. I haven't used iBooks on it or Kindle yet as I usually just read on my Kindle ... BUT I will check and let you know.

I will say I find myself only using this tablet in landscape more ... I guess using a Samsung tablet before has rubbed off on me.

Thanks.

 

[SassyCassyxox]

$779 for last year's model seems expensive -- that's almost what it sold for when first released. I've seen the 9.7's in the U.S. being blown out for hundreds less. At a blowout price the 9.7 is a bargain. At $779 I'd go with the current model.

I live in Canada though! haha
[doublepost=1502477434][/doublepost]In case anyone is wondering, I returned the iPP 9.7 for the 10.5 and there is no going back. I also got free beats with it because I purchased it at the apple store.

 

[spiderman0616]

I live in Canada though! haha
[doublepost=1502477434][/doublepost]In case anyone is wondering, I returned the iPP 9.7 for the 10.5 and there is no going back. I also got free beats with it because I purchased it at the apple store.

I'm guessing you're not going to regret your decision. It's a fantastic device. I was absolutely IN LOVE with my 9.7" Pro, but sold the iPad, Smart Keyboard, and Silicone Case on Swappa to get the 10.5" and I'm so glad I did. They're both fantastic iPads, but this 10.5" model is worlds beyond what I thought it would be, and I'm saying that without even having iOS 11 installed on it yet.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

I live in Canada though! haha

Yes, that is why I quoted the U.S. price. CA$779 is still expensive for the 9.7 so glad you figured it out and bought a 10.5 and got the beats. Better deal.

 

[JMountainDew]

sorry to hear that, I upgraded from the 9.7 Pro to a 10.5 Pro and there really is a big difference. 2 to 4GB RAM, Promotion makes a big difference, 10.5 screen isn't a big difference between the 9.7 but the larger screen is nice since the bezels are slim now

Good news. As promised in a later post, I went back to Best Buy and picked up another 10.5 Pro. (There have been one or two others in these threads who experienced the same eyestrain that I had and mentioned returning and repurchasing their 10.5's... and no longer having eye/headache issues.. Bad screens, perhaps? I don't know.) Anyway, two days with the new 10.5 and all is good. This one may be a keeper and the 9.7 Pro may wind up becoming a great deal for someone on eBay.

 

[BigDO]

I just got the 9.7 pro, bought used and got an insanely good deal including the Smart Keyboard and silicone case. Even with iOS 10, using the iPad with the keyboard is a much better experience, so can just imagine how good it will be with iOS 11.

I may upgrade to the 10.5 at a later stage, for now I'm really enjoying this.

 

[bensisko]

I have both (personal and work) and really don't see a difference between the two. Nothing jumps out at me as to difference.

As for the beefier specs... unless you're planning to keep your iPad as a day-to-day device for 5 or more years, I seriously wouldn't worry about it. iOS 11 certainly isn't going to tax the 9.7 and I doubt 12 will either (unless there's a MAJOR change...).

 

[sdz]

9,7 is perfect device for mobile work life.

 

[Broadus]

I have both (personal and work) and really don't see a difference between the two. Nothing jumps out at me as to difference.

As for the beefier specs... unless you're planning to keep your iPad as a day-to-day device for 5 or more years, I seriously wouldn't worry about it. iOS 11 certainly isn't going to tax the 9.7 and I doubt 12 will either (unless there's a MAJOR change...).

9,7 is perfect device for mobile work life.

I've been comparing a 9.7 Pro and a 10.5 Pro for the past couple of days and am coming to a similar conclusion. The 10.5 isn't quite large enough to do what the 9.7 doesn't do so well for me, such as display full-page PDFs and sheet music as large as I need.

The 10.5 is a Best Buy open box, and it may have been returned for the darkish band need the bottom of the display in portrait, above the home button. The screen of the 9.7, purchased during the one-day Best Buy "clear out the 9.7 Pros" sale, is better. I'm leaning towards keeping the 9.7 Pro and returning the 10.5 and may very well add a 2017 12.9 Pro.

I may move to the next iteration of the 10.5. Surely all apps will be optimized for it by then.

 

[bensisko]

I've been comparing a 9.7 Pro and a 10.5 Pro for the past couple of days and am coming to a similar conclusion. The 10.5 isn't quite large enough to do what the 9.7 doesn't do so well for me, such as display full-page PDFs and sheet music as large as I need.

The 10.5 is a Best Buy open box, and it may have been returned for the darkish band need the bottom of the display in portrait, above the home button. The screen of the 9.7, purchased during the one-day Best Buy "clear out the 9.7 Pros" sale, is better. I'm leaning towards keeping the 9.7 Pro and returning the 10.5 and may very well add a 2017 12.9 Pro.

I may move to the next iteration of the 10.5. Surely all apps will be optimized for it by then.

Especially if the next 10.5 is bezel-less!!!

 

[ShaunAFC3]

I may move to the next iteration of the 10.5. Surely all apps will be optimized for it by then.

I think the iPad Pro 10.5 is definitely a fantastic tablet and the best iPad available today especially the very very ridiculously powerful A10X chip and that 120Hz ProMotion technology in the screen/display and more and judging by the reviews and users it is is a beast of a tablet and IOS 11 will definitely make the iPad Pro 10.5 even better.

But since I have a iPad Air 2 which I owned for nearly 2 years now and still in very good condition and runs very well and the battery life is still fantastic and the things that I use it for are really pretty casual like web browsing, video watching and playing games, and set it and the iPad Air 2 is still very powerful and fast enough and still great for those type of things that I use my iPad Air 2 for.

I would love to upgrade to the new iPad Pro 10.5 but at the moment and I am definitely very happy with using my iPad Air 2 for another year or 2 before upgrading to a way newer and much more better iPad Pro 10.5 model in the future.

 

[Broadus]

I think the iPad Pro 10.5 is definitely a fantastic tablet and the best iPad available today especially the very very ridiculously powerful A10X chip and that 120Hz ProMotion technology in the screen/display and more and judging by the reviews and users it is is a beast of a tablet and IOS 11 will definitely make the iPad Pro 10.5 even better.

But since I have a iPad Air 2 which I owned for nearly 2 years now and still in very good condition and runs very well and the battery life is still fantastic and the things that I use it for are really pretty casual like web browsing, video watching and playing games, and set it and the iPad Air 2 is still very powerful and fast enough and still great for those type of things that I use my iPad Air 2 for.

I would love to upgrade to the new iPad Pro 10.5 but at the moment and I am definitely very happy with using my iPad Air 2 for another year or 2 before upgrading to a way newer and much more better iPad Pro 10.5 model in the future.

That makes sense. From everything I've seen, the Air 2 was and is a very competent tablet.

To clear up what I wrote above, the open box 10.5 had the gray "shadow" bar across the bottom of the screen in portrait above the home button. I returned it and the 9.7 Pro and bought a 12.9, but it was size-overkill for my needs. I returned it and bought a new 10.5, which seems about perfect. My concern about app optimization did not materialize, so I'm done with tablet research and purchasing for a few years.

Continue to enjoy your Air 2. There will always be something better to move up to, and you'll know when it's time to do so.