All iPads iPad Air 4 256GB or iPad Pro 11" 128GB?

[Christopher Kim]

Agree with others that the Pro feels more in-line with your use case than the Air 4. Also agree that given rumors of an updated 2021 Pro coming soon (and even more so that the 2020 Pro has essentially a 2yr old chip that's a bit long in the tooth), I'd wait a few months - now's one of least optimal times to buy the 2020 Pro, and once the new one comes out, the 2020's can likely be found (even brand-new-in-box) at a discount.

This is what I did - I got my 2018 Pro (which I love) in 2020, BNIB, a few months after the 2020 Pro was released, and got it at a substantial discount.

 

[MisterMillz]

I’m going to go against the grain and vote for the iPad Air 4. The only thing I really noticed from the 11” Pro I used to have is the 120Hz ProMotion. Scrolling is noticeably more jagged, but not to the point that it ruins the experience or makes me regret my decision. I use ProCreate once in a blue moon, but I use GarageBand regularly. No problems. Given double the storage, I think that’s the way to go. 4GB vs 6GB of RAM hasnt been noticeable to me. I don’t require dozens of webpages or apps in memory. Others may say differently. I also use less than 50 tracks on most of my music creations. I’ve been moving away from their “Pro“ stuff and have found no issues with their “regular” products. I just wish they’d offer 512GB storage options on their non pro items. Much prefer the $$ saved though.

 

[bluespark]

I tested both and ultimately went with the Pro, but it was a very close call. Both had gorgeous screens with no light bleeding (yes, I ran tests) or other visible issues. The viewing angle and richness of colors on the Pro's screen very slightly edged out those on the Air's screen, but I did not notice that other than in a direct side-to-side comparison. The Air has a very slightly smaller screen, but I preferred that -- the tradeoff was slight bigger bezels that made the Air easier and more pleasant to hold.

I agree with others here that RAM generally trumps processor speed for most purposes and for future-proofing. The big reason is that the Pro already had an outstanding Apple-designed processor.

Other items to consider are the 120 Hz (a big deal for some people and a nothingburger for others -- I think this depends on how your brain processes motion) and the FaceID vs. Touch ID. I miss Touch ID on my phone, but I greatly prefer Face ID on the iPad. YMMV.

Despite all of that, I liked the Air's Sky Blue color so much that I seriously considered trading actual features for the better color. And I'm not even sure that would have been a mistake -- they are both excellent devices.

If you can, wait for the new ones. My reasoning is that the Air is so good that Apple must be planning something special for the Pro. I could be wrong, but it's not like Apple to have such similar devices available simultaneously for long.

 

[Anteater23]

really? because now I am nervous on this "backlight issue"... i am about to buy an Air 4 but after reading this am nervous!

Did you buy the iPad Air?

 

[kp98077]

Did you buy the iPad Air?

yeah bought two!

 

[BlackJacques]

For those worried about Air 4 backlight problems, infer what you want from my story which is exactly a data point of one. On Monday I did a store pickup of an Air 4. I noticed the backlight bleed, but it wasn't too bad at a reasonable brightness setting. However, there were touchscreen issues where it was rejecting 5% of my touches. So I exchanged it for another one. The second one has virtually no bleed. Now on the first one, after setup I was prompted for an upgrade to iPadOS 14.4 and it came out of the box with 10% battery. However, my second one already had 14.4 installed and came with 67% battery. So I can conclude that my second one was a later manufacture date. Maybe they improved QC from earlier batches, dunno. Infer what you will or nothing at all.

 

[limesmoothie]

I returned an iPad Air 4 bought at launch due to touchscreen issues - the screen seemed to 'shimmer' when touched even lightly with the pencil. I've had a 12.9 Pro and knew the screen was off. Apple replaced it, and the replacement had the same issue.

Returned and bought an 11 inch Pro, which is perfect. If your budget allows (I think your use case does), the 11 inch Pro is excellent.

 

[Anteater23]

yeah bought two!

How is it? Is there any backlight bleed at all? I nearly bought one but people mentioning this issue stopped me.

 

[jahutch2]

I was on the fence about this very question, but decided to go ahead and order the iPad Air 4. Amazon has the 256GB on sale for $679 right now, with that additional discount, the price gap between the Air 4 and the 128 Pro is fairly significant. At regular pricing, it would have been a more challenging decision.

 

[Anteater23]

I was on the fence about this very question, but decided to go ahead and order the iPad Air 4. Amazon has the 256GB on sale for $679 right now, with that additional discount, the price gap between the Air 4 and the 128 Pro is fairly significant. At regular pricing, it would have been a more challenging decision.

Is there backlight bleed?

 

[Ticket Eagle]

Is there backlight bleed?

Not on mine. Screen looks great to me.

I purchased a 256gb air 4 about two or three weeks ago when the price had dropped to $699. I had been debating for about a month whether to get the 128 gb pro, the 256 gb air, or wait to see if the pros updated, which I assumed they would and looks like will happen on March 23. In any event, I also knew that the air was more than sufficient for my needs and after factoring in the price drop, the $100 off the magic keyboard promotion that amazon was running at the time (and the uncertainty of whether the keyboard would be updated, with the old one no longer compatible with a possibly updated pro) and the difference in the price of apple care, it no longer made sense for me to bypass the air. Coming from an original air, the difference is night and day. I have no doubt I would have loved the pro, but really wanted the peace of mind of getting as many years of updates as possible, which the newest chip gives me. I also took a guess that given the upgrades to the air last fall, any updated pro would wind up being a greater than $50 difference from the 256gb air. I guess time will tell.

 

[BigMcGuire]

OK so I had the opportunity to compare an iPad Air 4 and an iPad Pro 11' for a few hours last night .... as someone who has used a Pro 11' for the last few years my opinion:

The Air 4 is ALMOST as good. The scrolling is a little more choppy and I notice that when changing directions while it is scrolling doesn't always get picked up. The resolution is slightly less on the Air 4 meaning the text is a little bigger and doesn't appear as sharp - just barely (could be me). Also the Air has less brightness than the Pro 11.

Didn't notice any light bleed or screen twitching when pressing on parts of the screen. The brightness doesn't seem as "clear" as the Pro - slightly more cloudy?

I spent 20 mins comparing the Air 4 to the Pro 11 on dark / light text and the Pro appears just slightly sharper but that could be the resolution difference. I had someone else compare the two screens and they really couldn't tell the difference so it could just be me.

Thought I'd really notice the 120hz and ... I really don't. Maybe a little more jagged scrolling? But that doesn't bother me. Pencil writing is slightly more laggy but when I speed write I don't care.

As someone who has read many books on a Pro 11, the Air 4 is very acceptable. I like the Touch ID a lot... but I use my tablets as tablets so Face ID doesn't benefit me as much as it would someone who uses it like a laptop. Also just swiping up to unlock was nice on the Pro, vs swiping up, then Touch ID (a habit I'd have to break).

As a HEAVY reader - I like the idea of the iPad Air 4. The cheaper apple care, the slightly larger bezels for reading, - it's basically a Pro for a little bit less. If you're not utilizing the 6GB of ram in the Pro, why not go with the Air? It's $150 cheaper than the comparable size Pro (256GB).

 

[rui no onna]

As someone who has read many books on a Pro 11, the Air 4 is very acceptable. I like the Touch ID a lot... but I use my tablets as tablets so Face ID doesn't benefit me as much as it would someone who uses it like a laptop. Also just swiping up to unlock was nice on the Pro, vs swiping up, then Touch ID (a habit I'd have to break).

Agreed, although the placement of the TouchID button makes it less onerous now depending on one's accessories. Bad placement if using Magic Keyboard or similar.

I've got a bluetooth Logitech K780 so I can invert the iPad. Reaching TouchID in that setup is just as easy as reaching TouchID on a MacBook Air keyboard.

My primary devices are still TouchID-based so I don't have muscle memory for swipe to unlock. It's always just press TouchID button and wait for a split second to go directly to home screen. No swiping required (which is the way I prefer it).

 

[jahutch2]

Is there backlight bleed?

Mine came yesterday, no bleed as far as i can tell after testing in a darkish room.