iPad Pro iOS 16 vs 14 on 3rd gen iPad Pro

[Silly John Fatty]

I feel like I should do this update, but I'm scared my iPad will be slowed by a lot if I do it.

Has anyone jumped from iOS 14 to 16 on a 3rd generation iPad Pro?

If my iPad is slowed down I'd be really pissed. I need it for work and it would considerable disturb my workflow. But I can't afford a new iPad of that class right now.

 

[FeliApple]

I would never recommend anyone to update anything. I haven’t updated anything unless forced (my Air 5 runs iPadOS 15, and will continue to do so), but for everyone else, I always ask one question: what do you want iPadOS 16 for? Is there a specific, can’t-live-without reason for you to do it? If there is, are you willing to forgo both performance and battery life for this reason?

I don’t know the specific impact of iPadOS 16 on a 3rd-gen iPad Pro, but historically updates have never been good on anything. It’s its fourth major version, probably approaching dangerous territory, honestly.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

I would never recommend anyone to update anything. I haven’t updated anything unless forced (my Air 5 runs iPadOS 15, and will continue to do so), but for everyone else, I always ask one question: what do you want iPadOS 16 for? Is there a specific, can’t-live-without reason for you to do it? If there is, are you willing to forgo both performance and battery life for this reason?

I don’t know the specific impact of iPadOS 16 on a 3rd-gen iPad Pro, but historically updates have never been good on anything. It’s its fourth major version, probably approaching dangerous territory, honestly.

That's my thoughts as well. I've had bad experiences with that in the past.

But I do think there is some good reasons for updates sometimes.

The first reason is security. Old OSs just aren't safe anymore.

The other reason is that some apps require you to update your OS before you can install them. And if you need those apps or app updates, you need the OS update as well.

I've checked out this video and the guy says and it seems as if the 3rd gen iPad Pro was running well on iOS 16:

I have to say that my first gen iPhone SE also runs quite well on the latest iOS 15 update, so maybe the time of laggy updates on older devices is over, or at least, it might be not as extreme anymore. The first gen iPhone SE is 7 years old, that it runs so well on a new OS would have been unbelievable in the past. I remember my iPhone 4 that was completely useless after an update.

 

[ericwn]

My wife uses that iPad Pro generation and mainly for note taking and browsing and has not complained once over the years about the performance of this iPad.

 

[FeliApple]

That's my thoughts as well. I've had bad experiences with that in the past.

But I do think there is some good reasons for updates sometimes.

The first reason is security. Old OSs just aren't safe anymore.

The other reason is that some apps require you to update your OS before you can install them. And if you need those apps or app updates, you need the OS update as well.

I've checked out this video and the guy says and it seems as if the 3rd gen iPad Pro was running well on iOS 16:

I have to say that my first gen iPhone SE also runs quite well on iOS 16, so maybe the time of laggy updates on older devices is over, or at least, it might be not as extreme anymore. The first gen iPhone SE is 7 years old, that it runs so well on a new OS would have been unbelievable in the past. I remember my iPhone 4 that was completely useless after an update.

I find security irrelevant: I’m not about to tangibly and permanently degrade my device over a theoretical threat.

App compatibility is the largest driver of updates among those of us who try to stay behind. The question there is, do you really need the app? If you do, are you willing to permanently and irreversibly trade performance and battery life for it?

iOS updates are definitely a lot better than they used to be. However, I have an iPhone 6s on iOS 13 (with the same processor as the SE), and it is noticeably slow. I am used to fast devices (I use a 6s on iOS 10) and the difference is noticeable. Battery life on A9 devices on iOS 15 and iPadOS 16 is abhorrent. The gains in performance have been lost in battery life, if considering all of the devices that no longer receive updates. (On iPhones, the iPhone 7 and below. On iPads, if the rumour is true, 1st-gen iPad Pros, iPad 5th gen and below).

So, the improvement on performance means that they are usable, unlike the iPhone 4, but be prepared to be near a charger all day. Not good.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

I find security irrelevant: I’m not about to tangibly and permanently degrade my device over a theoretical threat.

App compatibility is the largest driver of updates among those of us who try to stay behind. The question there is, do you really need the app? If you do, are you willing to permanently and irreversibly trade performance and battery life for it?

iOS updates are definitely a lot better than they used to be. However, I have an iPhone 6s on iOS 13 (with the same processor as the SE), and it is noticeably slow. I am used to fast devices (I use a 6s on iOS 10) and the difference is noticeable. Battery life on A9 devices on iOS 15 and iPadOS 16 is abhorrent. The gains in performance have been lost in battery life, if considering all of the devices that no longer receive updates. (On iPhones, the iPhone 7 and below. On iPads, if the rumour is true, 1st-gen iPad Pros, iPad 5th gen and below).

So, the improvement on performance means that they are usable, unlike the iPhone 4, but be prepared to be near a charger all day. Not good.

I agree with everything, except the security thing.

I will still have to think about it I guess. The usage in the video I linked looks very fluid, but he isn't exactly using what I use, so it's not 100% comparable.

I think I'll end up updating tho.

 

[FeliApple]

I agree with everything, except the security thing.

I will still have to think about it I guess. The usage in the video I linked looks very fluid, but he isn't exactly using what I use, so it's not 100% comparable.

I think I'll end up updating tho.

It probably won’t be so bad as far as performance goes, the A12X is very solid, even after updating. Battery life remains to be seen. It won’t be a 1st-gen iPhone SE on iOS 15, but there will probably be an appreciable decrease.

For example, my 9.7-inch iPad Pro was forced by Apple from iOS 9 to iOS 12. Battery life was significantly worse, and performance was similar. However, there is a perceivable keyboard lag. Nothing too annoying, but that didn’t happen on iOS 9. It’s likely that you may notice those little things. Like I said: nothing too bad, just the little things, and probably a decent battery life impact, but again, probably nothing too unusable.

It all depends on what your tolerance is.

Let us know what you decide if you like!

 

[Silly John Fatty]

It probably won’t be so bad as far as performance goes, the A12X is very solid, even after updating. Battery life remains to be seen. It won’t be a 1st-gen iPhone SE on iOS 15, but there will probably be an appreciable decrease.

For example, my 9.7-inch iPad Pro was forced by Apple from iOS 9 to iOS 12. Battery life was significantly worse, and performance was similar. However, there is a perceivable keyboard lag. Nothing too annoying, but that didn’t happen on iOS 9. It’s likely that you may notice those little things. Like I said: nothing too bad, just the little things, and probably a decent battery life impact, but again, probably nothing too unusable.

It all depends on what your tolerance is.

Let us know what you decide if you like!

Yeah, I'm scared of these small lags, etc. I couldn't see any in the demo video above, but everyone uses their device differently and uses different apps and services.

I'll tell you guys how it went. But I'm not sure yet if I'll do the update, will have to sleep a few times over it. After all, I may be killing my iPad with this update, lol.

 

[Digitalguy]

You won't lose an performance at all. Zero. Battery life won't change much either.
What will increase is the number of reloads due to the OS using more RAM.
If you count reloads as slowdowns then yes, otherwise there will be no lag at all.

 

[supergt]

IOS and iPad OS updates are seemingly incremental at best the last few years. I don't think 16 offers anything substantial so if your app support is fine, I'd stay as long as possible.

 

[Digitalguy]

IOS and iPad OS updates are seemingly incremental at best the last few years. I don't think 16 offers anything substantial so if your app support is fine, I'd stay as long as possible.

The main feature of 16 is Stage Manager but I barely use it. And the main feature of 15 for me was universal control (if you have a Mac, for me it's a big deal). But the widgets kind of ruined the home page, I preferred as it was on 14.

 

[blkjedi954]

I feel like I should do this update, but I'm scared my iPad will be slowed by a lot if I do it.

Has anyone jumped from iOS 14 to 16 on a 3rd generation iPad Pro?

If my iPad is slowed down I'd be really pissed. I need it for work and it would considerable disturb my workflow. But I can't afford a new iPad of that class right now.

Which 3rd gen iPad Pro? They are segmented by size. 3rd gen 11in is same gen as 5th gen 12.9in.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

You won't lose an performance at all. Zero. Battery life won't change much either.
What will increase is the number of reloads due to the OS using more RAM.
If you count reloads as slowdowns then yes, otherwise there will be no lag at all.

What are reloads? And why will the OS use more RAM?

Which 3rd gen iPad Pro? They are segmented by size. 3rd gen 11in is same gen as 5th gen 12.9in.

Oops, well, I meant the 12,9" 3rd gen. I believe it's from 2018.

 

[FeliApple]

Which 3rd gen iPad Pro? They are segmented by size. 3rd gen 11in is same gen as 5th gen 12.9in.

Apple’s naming convention is abhorrent. This is the 2018, 3rd-gen iPad Pro. Apple calls the 3rd-gen 11-inch iPad Pro the M1, and Apple is wrong because that, like this shows, produces ambiguity.

1st-gen, 9.7-inch iPad Pro
2nd-gen, 10.5-inch iPad Pro
3rd-gen, 11-inch iPad Pro (A12X, 2018)
4th-gen, 11-inch iPad Pro (A12Z, 2020)
5th-gen, 11-inch iPad Pro (M1, 2021)
6th-gen, 11-inch iPad Pro (M2, 2022)
is the only correct naming convention, imo. No ambiguity.

That enables everyone to use the correct number for the 12.9-inch, 1st through 6th-gen.

 

[Digitalguy]

What are reloads? And why will the OS use more RAM?

If you don't notice reloads it means it's not an issue for you. It's when for instance you have a tab open in Safari, or even 5 o 6, then you use another app, then you come back to Safari and that tab is refreshed (for instance you were watching a video or filling a form, and the video restarts from 0 and the form is empty, as you lost your data).

The OS gets bigger and bigger with every iPadOS version and it leaves less RAM for the apps. If you don't use safari much or don't care about reloads it's not a big deal.

 

[Isamilis]

I feel like I should do this update, but I'm scared my iPad will be slowed by a lot if I do it.

Has anyone jumped from iOS 14 to 16 on a 3rd generation iPad Pro?

If my iPad is slowed down I'd be really pissed. I need it for work and it would considerable disturb my workflow. But I can't afford a new iPad of that class right now.

The Home Screen for 14 couldn’t be replicated on 16. If I were you, I will just stay with this one reason only.

Edit: share my experience, iPad Pro 2020 with 14, which is snappier than iPad Pro M1 with 16 (both are 11”).

 

[HDFan]

I agree with everything, except the security thing.

Why?

 

[Silly John Fatty]

If you don't notice reloads it means it's not an issue for you. It's when for instance you have a tab open in Safari, or even 5 o 6, then you use another app, then you come back to Safari and that tab is refreshed (for instance you were watching a video or filling a form, and the video restarts from 0 and the form is empty, as you lost your data).

The OS gets bigger and bigger with every iPadOS version and it leaves less RAM for the apps. If you don't use safari much or don't care about reloads it's not a big deal.

Oh that actually already happens to me all the time, it is very annoying … I have way too many tabs open. So I guess it's going to get even worse. Not super great … is there a way to fix this?

The Home Screen for 14 couldn’t be replicated on 16. If I were you, I will just stay with this one reason only.

Edit: share my experience, iPad Pro 2020 with 14, which is snappier than iPad Pro M1 with 16 (both are 11”).

What do you mean with the Home Screen?

Why?

Because security is a factor for me. There's tons of malware and trackers out there exploiting all possibilities and weaknesses there is. I don't want that, lol.

 

[Digitalguy]

Oh that actually already happens to me all the time, it is very annoying … I have way too many tabs open. So I guess it's going to get even worse. Not super great … is there a way to fix this?

No way of fixing this and it will get worse if you upgrade. The only fix is getting an iPad with more RAM, or like me having more than one iPad and splitting things among them.

What do you mean with the Home Screen?

Since iPadOS 15 you no longer have the Today View pinned to the Home Screen, and you need to replace it with widgets if you used it. But this will mean you have less icons available on you home screen, which can be annyoing.

Because security is a factor for me. There's tons of malware and trackers out there exploiting all possibilities and weaknesses there is. I don't want that, lol.

Security on mobile devices is a very sensitive topic, so I have learnt to avoid commenting on this subject... 😅

 

[Isamilis]

Security on mobile devices is a very sensitive topic, so I have learnt to avoid commenting on this subject... 😅

Yeah, security is personal preference thing. Some people argued to have the most secured system (with latest update) at any cost. While some other people just don’t really care and prioritize other factors like features, speed & system stability.

 

[FeliApple]

OP, did you update in the end?