Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
I returned my iPad Pro
- Thread starter Scarpad
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
This is an interesting thread, with good points being made. I have been tempted by the Pro as well. However, my base model 2017 iPad really does everything I need/want from a tablet, and iOS 11 has made the user experience even better and more productive. If I bought a Pro, I would feel compelled to purchase the pencil and keyboard to take full advantage of its features, which would add over $250 to the price. I just don’t think I would use these accessories enough to justify the added expense.
What is amazing to me is that you can buy a new 2017 iPad for $250 on sale. You can also purchase an iPhone SE for as little as $100 (locked to a carrier), which is fine for many people who don’t change carriers often. So, for $350 you can have two awfully nice new devices and complete access to the Apple mobile ecosystem, which is arguably the best in the world. After all, the ecosystem is a large part of Apple’s value proposition. Add an inexpensive Logitech BT Keyboard (recently bought the K380 for $25).....and you are set.
I honestly believe that for personal computing purposes most people would be just fine with this setup plus maybe a shared family Mac desktop for the occasional heavy lifting.
As for Work, most folks use an employer provided computer, which is provided by their friendly IT department based upon a corporate standard.
What is amazing to me is that you can buy a new 2017 iPad for $250 on sale. You can also purchase an iPhone SE for as little as $100 (locked to a carrier), which is fine for many people who don’t change carriers often. So, for $350 you can have two awfully nice new devices and complete access to the Apple mobile ecosystem, which is arguably the best in the world. After all, the ecosystem is a large part of Apple’s value proposition. Add an inexpensive Logitech BT Keyboard (recently bought the K380 for $25).....and you are set.
I honestly believe that for personal computing purposes most people would be just fine with this setup plus maybe a shared family Mac desktop for the occasional heavy lifting.
As for Work, most folks use an employer provided computer, which is provided by their friendly IT department based upon a corporate standard.
Last edited:
4gb is not enough for your needs?
What exactly are you looking for? iOS is efficient in terms of memory management. And with Apple A-chips, they are powerhouses. Not sure how more RAM would help out your needs.
I just picked up iPad 2017 $329 (Apple), $99 stand (charges too), a carrying case. Liking iOS 11.2 with it. Means I don't need s large expensive phone which though ice is always cramped. I use the iPad for reading news feeds and digital paper apps, light use really.
For phone, wanted small and light - phone only really. And didn't want 6-7 ounce $800-1000 device.
Will be interested - and curious - iPad 2018 with biometrics and A10 but or me the A9 chip seems perfect on performance and battery life.
For phone, wanted small and light - phone only really. And didn't want 6-7 ounce $800-1000 device.
Will be interested - and curious - iPad 2018 with biometrics and A10 but or me the A9 chip seems perfect on performance and battery life.
Totally.
The iPad and the Pro had me in a pickle. On one hand the iPad has an old processor while the Pro has a newer processor but cost a lot more.
In the end, I decided on the 10.5 Pro two months ago because the extra muscle will add another few years of longevity. I worry that multitasking and PIP will get slower on the iPad with time.
The powerful speakers were a huge bonus and HDR content, even if there is little of it, adds a visceral dimension that my other non-HDR screens don't have. The Pro is being used like second laptop for casual browsing and for watching videos in the kitchen while tidying up after my messy 18 month old toddler.
if I had the choice again would I buy the Pro over the iPad? Yupp. Given that I have saved hundreds of pounds on not drinking alcohol this year and have decided not to upgrade my phone at the end of it's contract, it was easy to justify spending more money to buy a Pro.
Last edited:
How can one define how much RAM one needs anyway? Especially when there is no way to see RAM usage at all
Thinking of all the apps on iOS, I don't know how a 16 GB RAM would make the iOS experience any better on iPad when every app including the iOS itself is optimized already.
I disagree with "every app including iOS itself are optimized already". As you said, there is no way to see RAM usage at all so one cannot tell. Even if you COULD tell how much RAM is used by an application you don't know if it is using more than it needs to.
Given my experience in software development and systems engineering and my experiences with iOS, I don't see iOS as being particularly optimized. It runs well enough, but in part, because processors are updated every year, and sales of iOS continue to grow every year, there is really no incentive for Apple to spend the resources to optimize iOS beyond what is needed to allow it to run adequately.
Don’t know what the fuss is about... I just buy the latest and the best
And if you are happy with that decision, rock on!
For some of us, we like to be a bit wise in our purchasing decisions... looking to spend only what is needed for what we need/want. That requires some thought and consideration. It's helpful to have others share what their priorities are and what their needs are... not because they're "right" or "wrong", but because often people bring a different perspective, a different way of thinking, that some of us find helpful.
Valid point, however what I meant is that no iOS app can be compiled to utilize say 8 GB RAM. If the max RAM is 4 GB now and the app is not optimized, it will either crash or freeze. So maximum RAM all apps out there can utilize is what iPads come with. Noone can claim that RAM that iPads come with is "not enough for his needs". If an app is not crashing or freezing, it is optimized.
I don't think that is true either. Properly coded software doesn't have hard-coded limits for resources like RAM (except for physical limitations of address space, like 32-bit apps being limited to 4GB RAM per process). Unless such a limitation is embedded in the API's themselves, an iOS app won't need to be modified or recompiled to use additional RAM if it is running on an iOS device with more RAM.
So when using properly coded iOS image manipulation apps, the more RAM the better. As iOS increases in functionality, and more processes are marked as unswappable, more RAM will be needed over time.
I'm telling you the full story. I was extremely careful with it. Those Ipad buttons have been a problem for years now. Google it. And they are most definitely not easy to repair. The whole thing needs to be disassembled and it's glued together. There are youtube vids on it. It only took two months for mine to malfunction. One more month and i would have had to return it to Apple for repair. If that did happen and they did fix it for me i think i would have switched to the workaround where you can adjust the volume on the screen. Come to think of it, maybe my Android Samsungs have that feature too. The Samsung volume buttons don't break, but they are a little hard to get at when it is in its case.
I'd still like to upgrade my two Samsung Tab S2's when something better comes along. Main thing i miss about the Ipad Pro is the great audio. Apple also worked better with my banking program and the fingerprint detector was much better than my Samsungs. Main thing i miss least is the Ipad's onscreen keyboard and trying to edit with it, not that Adroid's is that much better.
Last edited:
So you bought the wrong device, big deal. This isn't Apple's fault that they release quality products across multiple price points. This is your fault for being a consumer that doesn't do their research and choose a product that fits your needs. Obviously the two you mentioned have particular features that the lesser cannot do. If those features made no difference to you, why did you buy them? Look at yourself, not Apple.
So the snobs are condemning the apple buyer claiming all the downsides & differences are available thru "research".
I have not seen anything about the ipad being referred to as a glorified remote terminal to the icloud. I have not seen anything that says the free 5 gig in the iloud is not enough & one must pay monthly fees to apple for more storage; even $0.99 for 50 gig a month isn't enough but must go to $9.99 min for more storage if one wants to do "productive" work. After 2 1/2 weeks of ownership, I get an email that I have only less than 25% of my free icloud storage available & I believe that it is just the backup.
I have not seen any references that a real file manager is not needed on the ipad because the user is not allowed to save items of their choice on the ipad & management must use the icloud for storage. I have tried to save some files on the ipad but the "Files" only see the icloud as a place to save them. I bought 3rd party file explorer that saw my nas & so was able to copy the folder & file but it is only available using the file explorer. The epub readers cannot directly see/access the books. Epub files are "unknown" file types to ios but the epub files in the subfolder are opened by ireader.
Quality product? Not from what I can see; it is just all apple brainwashing.
The reviewers keep claiming the ipad is the best tablet available; must have been smoking pot when writing. In fact, the reviewers don't seem to do much with the ipad before writing the review.
The ipad is just another money maker for apple because of the monthly payments for more cloud storage & access.
So, where are the details hidden & can be seen & available by "research"?
I have not seen anything about the ipad being referred to as a glorified remote terminal to the icloud. I have not seen anything that says the free 5 gig in the iloud is not enough & one must pay monthly fees to apple for more storage; even $0.99 for 50 gig a month isn't enough but must go to $9.99 min for more storage if one wants to do "productive" work. After 2 1/2 weeks of ownership, I get an email that I have only less than 25% of my free icloud storage available & I believe that it is just the backup.
I have not seen any references that a real file manager is not needed on the ipad because the user is not allowed to save items of their choice on the ipad & management must use the icloud for storage. I have tried to save some files on the ipad but the "Files" only see the icloud as a place to save them. I bought 3rd party file explorer that saw my nas & so was able to copy the folder & file but it is only available using the file explorer. The epub readers cannot directly see/access the books. Epub files are "unknown" file types to ios but the epub files in the subfolder are opened by ireader.
Quality product? Not from what I can see; it is just all apple brainwashing.
The reviewers keep claiming the ipad is the best tablet available; must have been smoking pot when writing. In fact, the reviewers don't seem to do much with the ipad before writing the review.
The ipad is just another money maker for apple because of the monthly payments for more cloud storage & access.
So, where are the details hidden & can be seen & available by "research"?
Lot of sales on iPad 2017 (A9) 32gb for $250 Best Buy and walmart (got Amex $25 credit for spending $250 at Best Buy (elite Plus earth access) but same deal is online Thursday November 23 at Walmart and Best Buy.
Also got iPad Pro A10x 10.5 inch 64gb for $500 sams club deal.
What ever u get. Just never pay full price for an iPad! I have owned every generation iPad 2010-current. Including iPad Pro 9.7 also.
Last iPad iPad paid full price for was iPad 3 ($64gb/lte) $829. Never again!
Also got iPad Pro A10x 10.5 inch 64gb for $500 sams club deal.
What ever u get. Just never pay full price for an iPad! I have owned every generation iPad 2010-current. Including iPad Pro 9.7 also.
Last iPad iPad paid full price for was iPad 3 ($64gb/lte) $829. Never again!
While plenty of deals are available for wifi models particularly at lower capacities, unfortunately, there may not be an option if one wants a specific configuration (e.g. 512GB LTE). I've yet to see the LTE models go on sale without some catch.
The Galaxy Tab S3 has too many hiccups...if you don't notice the stutters or lag at times then good for you but when I owned one it was a mess at times and smooth at other times. That snapdragon 820 processor totally weakens the tab s3 while pushing all those pixels and HDR video capabilities. In the long run, that tablet will be no good even with the gorgeous AMOLED screen yet weak battery life.
My Lenovo yoga book Android version which is running nougat 7.1 is actually much smoother and is better for multitasking than my previous tab S3 and the battery lasts all day and then some. You probably should have kept the ipad pro.
Last edited:
No lag or stutter yet, and still love the functionality of the S3. No way am I going back to the iPad. The iPad might be pretty to look at and have a faster processor, but the functionality is no where near as good as the S3. My wife just bailed on her iPad mini for the 8" S2 and is in love with that one.