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iPad Pro Lame! New 10.5" iPP Only 264 PPI

Peter K.

Peter K.

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 6, 2012
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Philly / SoCal / Jersey Shore
Let me start by saying that I know I will be called a spec nerd, etc. and that's fine.

Now onward: instead of just using the same resolution as a 12.9 inch iPad Pro, Apple introduced yet another resolution in order to keep the new 10.5 inch iPad Pro at 264 PPI, instead of 325 PPI.

I probably was not getting a new iPad this year anyway, but this etches that in stone.

P.S. - no one knows about the RAM yet, either!
 
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They didn't mention RAM, which means they're sticking with 2 GB, which is honestly fine because 2GB is great on 9.7" Pro when supplemented by the awesome spec behind it. The 10.5" isn't nearly as cool as iOS 11 :p.
 
They said 3GB RAM right in the keynote. Which amazed me because when have they ever mentioned RAM in their iPad specs on stage?

Edit: Nope. I was wrong.
 
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PBG4 Dude said:
They said 3GB RAM right in the keynote. Which amazed me because when have they ever mentioned RAM in their iPad specs on stage?
Click to expand...

I think they upped it a gig since it has a few more cubic inches of screen space to cover.
 
Peter K. said:
Let me start by saying that I know I will be called a spec nerd, etc. and that's fine.

Now onward: instead of just using the same resolution as a 12.9 inch iPad Pro, Apple introduced yet another resolution in order to keep the new 10.5 inch iPad Pro at 264 PPI, instead of 325 PPI.

I probably was not getting a new iPad this year anyway, but this etches that in stone.

P.S. - no one knows about the RAM yet, either!
Click to expand...

They Never Mention RAM Period. We always wait for a iFixit Tear Down to see the actual Chips
If they stick with 2GB RAM, I am gonna laugh so hard. My guess is 3GB to match the IPhone 7 Plus and IPhone 8 but who knows.

I think iOS 11 in the 9.7" Pro and well understood and fully Supported Resolution is the ultimate sweet spot.
The new 10.5" Awkward resolution some Apps will look off and there will be inevitable issues.
 
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Peter K. said:
Let me start by saying that I know I will be called a spec nerd, etc. and that's fine.

Now onward: instead of just using the same resolution as a 12.9 inch iPad Pro, Apple introduced yet another resolution in order to keep the new 10.5 inch iPad Pro at 264 PPI, instead of 325 PPI.

I probably was not getting a new iPad this year anyway, but this etches that in stone.

P.S. - no one knows about the RAM yet, either!
Click to expand...

Why would it be the same resolution as the 12.9? It's a smaller screen. The PPI is the same.
 
The magic number is actually 326 ppi. Also, I haven't seen developers notice the new resolution of 2224-by-1668. Having a new resolution to support would seem like a pain in the butt to me but idk. I was almost certain that they would bump it to the 12.9 iPad's res and achieve the same PPI as the iPhone and iPad mini but unfortunately not. :/
 
For resolution, clearly this 2224x1668 resolution will be the new standard for mainstream iPad. 9.7 inch pro is dropped instead of a price cut. 9.7 inch $300 iPad is the same thing as iPhone SE, living on legacy resolution support. Sure a higher ppi screen would be awesome, but it would be more taxing on battery life and GPU. From Apple's website, 12.9 inch and 10.5 inch's A10X have the same speed for both CPU and GPU. I would prefer a lower resolution for better performance.

As for ram, I would assume it will be more than 2gb. Last year's iPhone 7 Plus was bumped to 3gb. Hard to imagine an iPad pro with less ram.
 
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I really thought it was going to share the same resolution with the 12.9. Though side by side apps in that situation would have dropped them into mini size touch targets.

I'm curious how they'll handle it - obviously they'll scale up to fill the new resolution, but will they encourage devs to build them at this resolution going forward? Or maybe just really keep pushing more dynamic sizes and less emphasis on fixed resolutions?
 
NoWayBehind said:
If they keep the 2GB Ram, I will cancel my order and if the info gets out after it has been sent to me, I will make use of the 14 days I have to sent it back
Click to expand...

The fact that you will cancel your order without a ram increase means maybe you should wait until you know the exact specifications. As soon as I knew that it didn't have the ppi increase, trackpad support, and a truly new design...I already knew not to order. Maybe next year will be the time for me to ever return to an Apple product but they can certainly not fulfill my wants currently......
 
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It's the same ppi as the 9.7 and 12.9 models. Don't see your point. They use the same display sheets, just cut to different sizes.
 
eatrains said:
Why would it be the same resolution as the 12.9? It's a smaller screen. The PPI is the same.
Click to expand...

adnbek said:
It's the same ppi as the 9.7 and 12.9 models. Don't see your point. They use the same display sheets, just cut to different sizes.
Click to expand...

The point is that the smaller the screen, the greater the PPI should be. This is because one tends to hold a smaller screened device closer to one's eye(s). "Retina" PPI is not an absolute value, but one proportional to the eye's distance from the screen.
 
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I'm totally ok with this. I hated the iPad mini when it first came out because all the touch targets were too small due to many apps (most) just shrinking down things compared to the 9.7" iPad (including first part apps like Safari). I suspect Apple was trying to avoid a similar scenario here.

I realize apps are supposed to scale intelligently, but based on my early experience with the 12.9" iPad Pro (and iPad Mini vs iPad Air) that doesn't prevent weird interface issues when new sizes are introduced.
 
Peter K. said:
The point is that the smaller the screen, the greater the PPI should be. This is because one tends to hold a smaller screened device closer to one's eye(s). "Retina" PPI is not an absolute value, but one proportional to the eye's distance from the screen.
Click to expand...

Precisely. And 264 is perfectly fine on a 9.7in screen. Going to bigger screen sizes means that that same 264 is gonna seem even better.
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rui no onna said:
Would've been nicer if they used the same sheets as the retina iPad mini (326 ppi).
Click to expand...

You hold the mini a lot closer to you. If 264 is good enough (and it is) on the 9.7, that same ppi on an even larger display is actually an improvement.
 
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adnbek said:
You hold the mini a lot closer to you. If 264 is good enough (and it is) on the 9.7, that same ppi on an even larger display is actually an improvement.
Click to expand...
Personally, I hold all my tablets at around the same distance regardless of size. While I find 264 ppi to be acceptable (and yes, I do notice very minor fuzziness around lines and text), the 326 ppi on the retina iPad mini is just more ideal.
 
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