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

[Sensamic]

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

To clarify, my Air is on shipping status. Haven’t opened it yet, thus I’m still debating whether to go Pro or keep the Air.

There are things I like and dislike about each. I really dislike the 60Hz on the Air. Don’t know why but it feels rubbish compared to my iPhone 12, which feels much more smooth in transitions and animations. That’s why I’m thinking of going Pro.

But on the Pro I also dislike the home button. It’s hard to press easily, whereas the big one in the Air is so easy to tap to turn on and off the screen. FaceID and tap to wake are excellent to turn on the screen easily, but I wasn’t planning on buying a case for any, so the home bottom quality is important. Still, I might look into those cases that turn on and off the screen, but I will be using the device naked.

 

[Username-already-in-use]

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.

Unless you’re planning to do art or calligraphy then the Pencil difference between the Air 4 and the Pro isn’t all that important.

 

[Dfds]

But on the Pro I also dislike the home button. It’s hard to press easily, whereas the big one in the Air is so easy to tap to turn on and off the screen. FaceID and tap to wake are excellent to turn on the screen easily, but I wasn’t planning on buying a case for any, so the home bottom quality is important. Still, I might look into those cases that turn on and off the screen, but I will be using the device naked.

you don’t need to press the power button at all as you can wake the screen by touchIng it. As for cases I have a very thin magnetic one which adds very little bulk to the iPad.

MoKo Magnetic Case Fit New iPad Pro 11 Inch 4th/3rd/2nd/1st Generation 2022/2021/2020/2018, [Support Apple Pencil Charging] Smart Folio Slim Shell Trifold Stand Cover, Auto Wake/Sleep, Black

Compatibility: Custom designed for your precious New iPad Pro 11 Inch 2021/iPad Pro 11 3rd Generation/iPad Pro 11 Inch 2020/2018 (Model number: A2377, A2459, A2301, A2460, A2228, A2068, A2230, A2231, A1980, A2013, A1934, A1979) , DO NOT compatible with other iPad models. This MoKo case features a...

www.amazon.co.uk

 

[snipr125]

Where did you get it at such a good price?

I got a £150 voucher as a key worker from my workplace, so put this towards my Air 4 day 1 purchase from Currys, so only had to pay £430 in total.

 

[Chaparral02]

you don’t need to press the power button at all as you can wake the screen by touchIng it. As for cases I have a very thin magnetic one which adds very little bulk to the iPad.

MoKo Magnetic Case Fit New iPad Pro 11 Inch 4th/3rd/2nd/1st Generation 2022/2021/2020/2018, [Support Apple Pencil Charging] Smart Folio Slim Shell Trifold Stand Cover, Auto Wake/Sleep, Black

Compatibility: Custom designed for your precious New iPad Pro 11 Inch 2021/iPad Pro 11 3rd Generation/iPad Pro 11 Inch 2020/2018 (Model number: A2377, A2459, A2301, A2460, A2228, A2068, A2230, A2231, A1980, A2013, A1934, A1979) , DO NOT compatible with other iPad models. This MoKo case features a...

www.amazon.co.uk

I use that same case but my one is branded Ztotop for my 12.9 when am not using the MK

ZtotopCases Case for New iPad Pro 12.9 2021/2020(5th 4th Generation), Ultra Slim Strong Magnetic Back, Trifold Stand Protective Cover Case for iPad Pro 12.9 inch, with Auto Wake/Sleep, Black

ZtotopCases Case for New iPad Pro 12.9 2021/2020(5th 4th Generation), Ultra Slim Strong Magnetic Back, Trifold Stand Protective Cover Case for iPad Pro 12.9 inch, with Auto Wake/Sleep, Black

www.amazon.co.uk

 

[Euroamerican]

I don't do any drawing, but would want a 120hz screen if I really did. I have to say that the Air I was gifted last Christmas is perfectly splendid for my web surfing, email and a bit of music. The speakers are leaps and bounds above my old original iPad 3. Now and then, I wish I had a slightly bigger screen, but I'm not using my iPad in a mobile fashion much of late and would be glad for its standard size still if I were.

 

[joeblow7777]

No. The Air 4 has all the features that I want/need. Nothing against the Pro models, but they just don't offer anything that would make any significant difference to me.

 

[actcyclist]

I bought an iPad Pro 11“ coming from an iPad 6. As with everything I buy from Apple, I wonder if I should exchange it for the Air, etc.

i probably won’t though because the Air has a less powerful chip and probably won’t last as long as the Pro . i like the sound quality too, it’s good enough to play music unlike my old one.

 

[rui no onna]

i probably won’t though because the Air has an older chip and probably won’t last as long as the Pro . i like the sound quality too, it’s good enough to play music unlike my old one.

Technically, the A14 (Air 4) and M1 (2021 Pro) are the same generation.

M1 just happens to be a super charged version of the A14 (faster clock, more CPU cores, double the GPU cores, higher memory bandwidth, etc). Plus you get 2-4x RAM on the Pro.

 

[SO8]

I have the air and a larger pro 2020 …. I prefer the speakers and Face ID of the pro but the size of the Air and lower cost is great. I got the Air first and once I bought the Pro for the larger screen it didn’t get used … but tbh I notice no difference in performance, it is just Face ID and sound I notice.

I’d buy a smaller Pro if I was starting again but have no interest in the M1 version as I just use the iPad for internet, etc.

 

[Chaparral02]

Technically, the A14 (Air 4) and M1 (2021 Pro) are the same generation.

M1 just happens to be a super charged version of the A14 (faster clock, more CPU cores, double the GPU cores, higher memory bandwidth, etc). Plus you get 2-4x RAM on the Pro.

I would of expected the newer A15 to be the same generation as the M1 pro as they both came out in 2021
where the A14 air was released in 2020

 

[yitwail]

I would of expected the newer A15 to be the same generation as the M1 pro as they both came out in 2021
where the A14 air was released in 2020

Nope. M1 Macs debuted in 2020, and M1 Pro and Max contain the same cores, but fewer efficiency cores and more performance cores. That’s why all 3 M1 chips have the exact same geekbench single core scores. A chip using A15 performance cores would have higher single core performance.

 

[rui no onna]

Nope. M1 Macs debuted in 2020, and M1 Pro and Max contain the same cores, but fewer efficiency cores and more performance cores. That’s why all 3 M1 chips have the exact same geekbench single core scores. A chip using A15 performance cores would have higher single core performance.

To be honest, clock for clock, core for core, A15 seems to have the same performance as A14. I think they just improved efficiency and GPU.

GB5 single-core CPU

A14 3.0 GHz: ~1600 or ~533 points per GHz
A15 3.2 GHz: ~1700 or ~531 points per GHz
M1 3.2 GHz: ~1700 or ~531 points per GHz

 

[YanniDepp]

The iPad Air is a perfectly fine device and the performance is more than enough.

I did the opposite - I chose the 11” Pro instead of the Air. The M1 is just a ridiculous thing to put into an iPad. It’s great that it exists and it’s technically very impressive but literally nothing I’ve ever done on the iPad makes use of that power. It’s just wasted in an iOS device.

 

[Bodhitree]

To be honest, clock for clock, core for core, A15 seems to have the same performance as A14. I think they just improved efficiency and GPU.

What I found really odd was the coverage from places like Anandtech saying it was ‘great’ and ‘fast’. Once the Geekbench scores were out, you could see CPU had as good as not moved from the previous generation. I think Apple’s chip design teams are somewhat feeling the strain, and they decided not to change the CPU setup.

What’s just as curious is that Geekbench’s iOS benchmarks still do not include a Metal score for the A15, although if you look you find various articles saying the GPU had improved by 55%, which is a pretty big jump.

 

[rui no onna]

What I found really odd was the coverage from places like Anandtech saying it was ‘great’ and ‘fast’. Once the Geekbench scores were out, you could see CPU had as good as not moved from the previous generation. I think Apple’s chip design teams are somewhat feeling the strain, and they decided not to change the CPU setup.

What’s just as curious is that Geekbench’s iOS benchmarks still do not include a Metal score for the A15, although if you look you find various articles saying the GPU had improved by 55%, which is a pretty big jump.

The A15 is great and fast albeit the A14 is equally so. I don't think Intel and AMD have anything that can compete with this level of performance while running completely fanless in such a thin chassis.

 

[Bodhitree]

The A15 is great and fast albeit the A14 is equally so. I don't think Intel and AMD have anything that can compete with this level of performance while running completely fanless in such a thin chassis.

Don’t get me wrong, I am very happy with an update focussed on power efficiency, and hence longer battery life. My iPhone 13 Pro has been a wonderful change from my iPhone 7 at declining levels of battery health.

And from an overall point of view I have no doubt Apple’s A series chips take the crown at performance per watt and also overall performance in smartphones and tablets. A 1700 score in Geekbench 5 Single Core is competitive with the best that Intel and AMD have in high-end desktops, and that in a phone!

My father bought a iPhone SE (2020) a little while ago, and I had great fun pointing out to him that his phone was now the fastest computing device that he owned. He has a HP desktop PC with a Ryzen 2400G in it which scores about 800 / 2700 in Geekbench 5 Single Core / Multi Core.

 

[EddieKeyton1]

I know this topics about the iPad but I got the iPhone 13. Was happy as all get out. About a week later and till this day I beat myself up for not getting the pro for the micro photography.

 

[Isengardtom]

I think the Air is a great iPad but I do find in 2021 that 64 GB of storage for a mid range tablet is on the low side.

Here in Belgium (Europe) the iPad Pro 11” is 899 eur (incl VAT) and the Air 4 is 669 eur. You do get double storage, double ram, a better chip, quad speakers and thunderbolt port so it’s worth examining if that’s worth it for you.

so if you plan to use the iPad for many years, I would invest in the pro as it’s more powerful and the m1 is likely to last a few years longer in terms of supporting powerful apps

 

[Chaparral02]

I think the Air is a great iPad but I do find in 2021 that 64 GB of storage for a mid range tablet is on the low side.

On my ipad pro which i only owned for about 7 weeks i downloaded some games and some netflix movies and it already up to 53GB used

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

My 64GB Air 4 is fine for my needs. After 11 months with it I’m using this:

I don’t really store anything in it and have iCloud anyway, so a larger storage tier is not as important for me.

 

[mrLucas]

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?

yes, do it. ipad air is a great deal, but you’ll feel the space not being enought quite soon
my next ipad is gonna be a pro, and I am waiting for apple to offer 256Gigs as a baseline pro, and when they do, I’m jumping to Pro. it will probably be with M2 to as well, and maybe even the miniXDR

 

[mrLucas]

 

[mrLucas]

Other than that the iPad Air is really perfect it’s a top-of-the-line device it’s amazing in every way and it’s just it’s just completely great but yeah you will probably want to have a little bit more space if you if you mean to use it more seriously

 

[yitwail]

Other than that the iPad Air is really perfect it’s a top-of-the-line device it’s amazing in every way and it’s just it’s just completely great but yeah you will probably want to have a little bit more space if you if you mean to use it more seriously

If I were on a budget, I'd have to seriously consider base IP with 256gb storage over 64gb IP Air.