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iPad iPad Air owners: wish you had gone for the Pro?

Sensamic

Sensamic

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Mar 26, 2010
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Just bought a 64GB iPad Air but still haven’t opened it. Debating whether to return it and buy the 11 Pro mainly for 120Hz and FaceID, also for 128GB, but it would be 256€ more.

I think the Air should be enough. I don’t need the best of the best, but after trying both several times at the store it feels like 60Hz is getting really old by todays standards.

But on the other hand 120Hz while scrolling in Safari feels very weird. Yeah it’s smooth, but you really can’t read anything clearly while scrolling.

Do Air owners wish they had gone for the Pro for the added benefits?
 
I thought you already bought the Pro 11?

Personally, if not for the mask mandate, the iPad Pro 11 would be an easy choice over the iPad Air 4 for me (for RAM, storage, flashlight and 5G). I don't really care about ProMotion nor quad speakers though.

Amortizing the ~$250 difference between Air 4 and Pro 11 over the useful life of the product (36 months minimum, likely much longer), that's just $6.94 more per month.
 
I tried out the Air 4 and Pro 11" at the store and the Air 4 had so much more screen pressure distortion than the Pro. I don't know how it's generally, but just something like that would make me choose the Pro(which I did, wonderful 120Hz).
 
Personally, I would say no. I use the iPad Air as a glorified media streaming device so the 120Hz or extra cameras makes no difference. If you’re using the Pencil however, that might change your mind.
 
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I somewhat wish I’d waited for the Mini 6, but otherwise I’m happy.

I’ll likely upgrade to next year’s Pro for the supposed miniLED display on the 11” model and any other bells and whistles Apple decides to throw into it.

The quad speakers are definitely better on the Pro compared to the Air 4’s landscape stereo speakers. Plus the screen is better quality, but that should be even more significant next year.
 
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My son has the air and I have the pro, not the M1 version. Once I use the 120 mhz screen I can’t go back. So smooth. I like the 4 speakers too. Speed is no issue on either.
 
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The base Air 4 is perfect for my needs, which has most of the features of the Pro model (Newer design, USB C, Pencil 2 and Magic Keyboard support), apart from the Pro-motion screen/quad speakers of course. It is also priced reasonably, for how much I am prepared to spend on a tablet (got mine for £430).

The M1 Ipad Pro's are really nice though, the best tablets on the market bar none, but I just cant justify spending £750 on a tablet, that's just me personally though.
 
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snipr125 said:
The base Air 4 is perfect for my needs, which has most of the features of the Pro model (Newer design, USB C, Pencil 2 and Magic Keyboard support), apart from the Pro-motion screen/quad speakers of course. It is also priced reasonably, for how much I am prepared to spend on a tablet (got mine for £430).

The M1 Ipad Pro's are really nice though, the best tablets on the market bar none, but I just cant justify spending £750 on a tablet, that's just me personally though.
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Where did you get it at such a good price?
 
One thing I don’t like about the Pro is the power button. It’s so small and hard to press.

On the Air the button is so big and has more surface. It’s better for easy and quick access.
 
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Sensamic said:
One thing I don’t like about the Pro is the power button. It’s so small and hard to press.

On the Air the button is so big and has more surface. It’s better for easy and quick access.
Click to expand...
But you no need to touch the power button very much at all on a pro as it uses face id where you need to use the power button all the time on the air due to it having the touch id on it
 
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I owned the 2018 iPad Pro and after eight months or so, I downgraded to the Air 3. I since sold the Air 3 and currently have the Air 4. For me, the Pro's are nice, but I use my iPad to primarily stream, message, check social media, and web browse. Nothing I can really justify needing the Pro for.

Long story short, I do not regret ultimately going to the Air. It suits my needs perfectly.
 
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Chaparral02 said:
But you no need to touch the power button very much at all on a pro as it uses face id where you need to use the power button all the time on the air due to it having the touch id on it
Click to expand...

You need to use it to turn off the screen constantly.
 
Sensamic said:
You need to use it to turn off the screen constantly.
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Are you planning to use it naked? Almost any case works with the sleep/wake feature. I almost never touch my power button. Between opening to wake, touch to wake and raise to wake, I have plenty of ways to turn on the screen much more naturally. And if I’m done and turning off the screen, I flip close my cover.

It sounds more to me that you’re set on keeping your air, it’s a great device so enjoy it. Kind of nit picking at this point to justify it over the pro. The pro is better, that’s why it’s more expensive, but it’s definitely not the device for most people. It’s way overkill for me, but you only live once, I wanted the best out there
 
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JPack said:
Personally, I would say no. I use the iPad Air as a glorified media streaming device so the 120Hz or extra cameras makes no difference. If you’re using the Pencil however, that might change your mind.
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Does the Pro work better with the Pencil than the Air? I got a pencil hoping to replace my notebooks with digital note taking and the experience wasn't very good. I am back to using pen and paper for that purpose.
 
jzuena said:
Does the Pro work better with the Pencil than the Air? I got a pencil hoping to replace my notebooks with digital note taking and the experience wasn't very good. I am back to using pen and paper for that purpose.
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It’s a smoother and more fluid experience on the pros with the 120hz screen. Also using a paper like screen protector will definitely help it feel more natural
 
The-Real-Deal82 said:
Wish I’d gone for the Pro? Not a chance. The Air is far too over spec’d for what I need so a Pro would be completely pointless.

I only browse safari, Facebook, YouTube, Netflix and Tapatalk on my Air, no point having Pro features for that. I could have gone for the entry level iPad in hindsight.
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This ^. The Air 4 is pretty powerful, IMO and for someone who browses the web and uses it for content Consumption, it is a beast for that.
 
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