iPad Pro M1/M2 MBA vs 12.9 M1 iPad Pro - battery life

[UBS28]

For those that both own a M1 / M2 MBA and a M1 iPad Pro, how much better is the battery life of the M1 / M2 MBA over the 12.9 M1 iPad Pro in real world usage?

With non optimized ARM software on Mac, I guess you will get a big hit on battery life on the M1 / M2 MBA, while all software on the iPad Pro is optimized for ARM.

 

[dsusanj]

I can easily get 15-17 hrs of battery life on my M1 13” MBP bought at launch regardless of the software used whereas the M1 12.9” iPad Pro in full productivity mode with LCT attached will last less than 10 hrs.

Long story short: Macs win here by a large margin ever since they transitioned to Apple Silicon.

 

[Dealmans]

no contest

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

iPad hardware no longer has any real benefits over MacBook hardware other than portability and even then that’s questionable with all the accessories

 

[Ludatyk]

You get a bigger battery on those MBA compared to an iPP... quite obvious the MBA will win, not sure what's the reason for this question. And to add to that, quick search through Apple website it tells you battery life is better on those MBA than an iPP.

 

[VaruLV]

8-12h on my M1 iPP with light load - browsing, youtube, medium to low brightness for the most part.
Low power mode for the most part.
Start doing something more demanding and it drops to about 6h depending on workload.
Turn up brightness to full and it will be probably not more than 4-6h depending on load, maybe a bit more.

 

[darngooddesign]

iPad hardware no longer has any real benefits over MacBook hardware other than portability and even then that’s questionable with all the accessories

Except for the touchscreen... which is kind of the point of it. MacBooks are awful tablets while iPads are decent laptops.

While you can make the 13" iPad weigh as much as the MBA, you can't make the MBA weigh less than the iPad. Removing the iPad's keyboard is a cinch, doing the same with a MacBook voids it warranty.

 

[Abazigal]

I can easily get 15-17 hrs of battery life on my M1 13” MBP bought at launch regardless of the software used whereas the M1 12.9” iPad Pro in full productivity mode with LCT attached will last less than 10 hrs.

Long story short: Macs win here by a large margin ever since they transitioned to Apple Silicon.

It was clear right from the start that the main problem holding Macs back were Intel processors.

I have always preferred iPads since I got my first one in 2012 due to their longer battery life, thinner and lighter form factor and (with the subsequent A-processors), superior performance. Moving to M1 processors means that Macs would naturally catch up in the aforementioned areas, leaving bundled cellular connectivity and preference for iOS / iPadOS over macOS as the main advantages of the iPad.

 

[Isengardtom]

iPad hardware no longer has any real benefits over MacBook hardware other than portability and even then that’s questionable with all the accessories

touchscreen, pen input, better speakers, mini LED screen, rear camera's, 120hz promotion

It still has some things that are better than the MacBook Air or 13" MacBook Pro

 

[xraydoc]

I can easily get 15-17 hrs of battery life on my M1 13” MBP bought at launch regardless of the software used whereas the M1 12.9” iPad Pro in full productivity mode with LCT attached will last less than 10 hrs.

Long story short: Macs win here by a large margin ever since they transitioned to Apple Silicon.

Except compared with an MBA — the 12.9” iPad Pro has a smaller battery and a 120Hz mini-LCD screen, none of which do any favors insofar as battery life on the iPad.

I’ve got both an M1 MBA and a 12.9” M1 iPad Pro myself, and battery life on the MBA is better. But the display on the iPad is so much nicer!

 

[iPadified]

Another thread to speak ill of the iPad. Really?

A much more interesting question is if M2 fits the next gen iPP or if Apple should stick with the M1 and focus on camera, size and other hardware features instead (the M1 is fast enough).

 

[Isengardtom]

Except compared with an MBA — the 12.9” iPad Pro has a smaller battery and a 120Hz mini-LCD screen, none of which do any favors insofar as battery life on the iPad.

I’ve got both an M1 MBA and a 12.9” M1 iPad Pro myself, and battery life on the MBA is better. But the display on the iPad is so much nicer!

Not to mention that on the iPad you need to have highly responsive touch input, which is no doubt adding strain on the battery.

 

[Isengardtom]

Another thread to speak ill of the iPad. Really?

A much more interesting question is if M2 fits the next gen iPP or if Apple should stick with the M1 and focus on camera, size and other hardware features instead (the M1 is fast enough).

for now there is no real software that stresses M1 to its fullest on iPad so you could say no. On the other hand, if you don't move the hardware forward, the software won't follow anyway.

It's a bit the chicken and the egg

I think if Apple manages to push gaming development on Mac / iPad with their Metal 3, the iPad Pro would benefit from the M2 because of the higher GPU count resulting in better Graphics performance.

I play Civ 6 on the iPad quite often, and this is one of the few apps where I can see a difference between my current 12.9" M1 iPad Pro and my previous A12Z 11". the game definitely runs a lot smoother and the chip doesn't get as hot

 

[iPadified]

for now there is no real software that stresses M1 to its fullest on iPad so you could say no. On the other hand, if you don't move the hardware forward, the software won't follow anyway.

It's a bit the chicken and the egg

I think if Apple manages to push gaming development on Mac / iPad with their Metal 3, the iPad Pro would benefit from the M2 because of the higher GPU count resulting in better Graphics performance.

I play Civ 6 on the iPad quite often, and this is one of the few apps where I can see a difference between my current 12.9" M1 iPad Pro and my previous A12Z 11". the game definitely runs a lot smoother and the chip doesn't get as hot

I am also playing Civ IV but on 2017 iPP! Slow... I agree it is the hen and the egg problem so we likely see a M2 but it is not an obvious choice.

 

[darngooddesign]

I doubt the M2 will have any noticeable effect on the iPad heat-wise. No one is running those kinds of hardcore desktop apps and Cinebench stress tests on an iPad.

 

[A_Flying_Panda]

The ‘computer’ inside both are pretty much identical for both the MacBook Air and the ipad pro. The only difference is that the MacBook Air has a 5% larger battery (49.9 watt-hour vs 40.88 watt-hour), and it uses only 60hz regular LED display. The 120hz mini-led display is much brighter (500 nits in SDR and 1600 nits on HDR vs 400 nits on m1 MacBook Air) which draws a LOT of power.
just to get a feeling, the ipad pro draws ~1-2w when idle and screen at dimmest, it can increase to >12w by just upping the brightness to max (under SDR). For regular office tasks, the screen itself can use up to 50% of the total power draw.

 

[Darth Tulhu]

Battery life is the LEAST thing to be considered when choosing BETWEEN an iPad and a MacBook.

They are very, VERY different devices suited for different missions, even if there is some overlap.

I've never paid attention to my iPad's battery life, partly because just like my iPhone, I never use it at full brightness; it's just too much for something that I mostly use WAY closer to my face than a Mac.

I'm also never away from a plug for that long; my Magic Keyboard is mainly stationary and plugged in.

 

[rui no onna]

The ‘computer’ inside both are pretty much identical for both the MacBook Air and the ipad pro. The only difference is that the MacBook Air has a 5% larger battery (49.9 watt-hour vs 40.88 watt-hour), and it uses only 60hz regular LED display. The 120hz mini-led display is much brighter (500 nits in SDR and 1600 nits on HDR vs 400 nits on m1 MacBook Air) which draws a LOT of power.
just to get a feeling, the ipad pro draws ~1-2w when idle and screen at dimmest, it can increase to >12w by just upping the brightness to max (under SDR). For regular office tasks, the screen itself can use up to 50% of the total power draw.

That's more like 20+% larger battery, not just 5%.

 

[Love-hate 🍏 relationship]

You get a bigger battery on those MBA compared to an iPP... quite obvious the MBA will win, not sure what's the reason for this question. And to add to that, quick search through Apple website it tells you battery life is better on those MBA than an iPP.

one would think macOS is a bigger drainer than IOS

 

[rui no onna]

You get a bigger battery on those MBA compared to an iPP... quite obvious the MBA will win, not sure what's the reason for this question. And to add to that, quick search through Apple website it tells you battery life is better on those MBA than an iPP.

I only get around 10-12 hours on the M1 MBA for web browsing which is pretty much the same as what I get on the iPad.

Now the 13” MBP has around 50% bigger battery than the 12.9” iPad so it’s expected to have longer battery life.

 

[cis4life]

the MBA will get way better battery life. The iPad Pro's no longer have ANY advantage over the MBA in terms of portablility or battery life. Portability wise, with the keyboard, the iPad is now more heavy than the m2 mba. and in terms of battery life, the MBA easily win.

 

[spiderman0616]

I am also playing Civ IV but on 2017 iPP! Slow... I agree it is the hen and the egg problem so we likely see a M2 but it is not an obvious choice.

I remember on the 10.5" iPad Pro once, I was really close to a Science Victory, but I was on like turn 475 and also fighting off an attacking nation while trying to get that shuttle launched. I'm sure you can imagine how slow and hot the iPad got during that game! I did end up getting the Science Victory, but every time I tapped next turn, it was taking almost a half minute to finish.