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iPad New 10.2" iPad: Touch ID, Smart Connector, A10, 2160x1620 - $329 - ** 3 GB RAM CONFIRMED **

Richard8655 said:
I'd only add to this discussion that starting with IOS 12, Apple had been aware of previous IOS performance issues with their older devices. Apple claims to have made changes in IOS 12 to help accommodate these issues, and I have no reason to doubt that. So I don't think longevity is as bad as it used to be with their latest processors and recent IOS versions.

But for sure the record pain with a bogged down, practically unusable iPad running the latest supported IOS at the time was the legendary iPad 3.
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I think iOS 12 is designed for leaving some legacy devices in good foot. If anyone has any memory about how iPhone 4S ends or iPhone 5 with iOS 10, Apple is basically ending legacy devices with good iOS version that runs acceptable.

Apple could do the same with A10 devices as well. It doesn’t mean just because iPad 7 has A10 processor, it will somehow make A10 based devices more future proofing.

This 7th generation iPad is just lame update. I thought iPad Air 3 is pretty lame, but this iPad is step further.
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sracer said:
How does the iPad 2 and iPad Air 2 fit into that equation? Or the Mini 4?

The Air 2 (with A8X) was released in 2014 and it is getting iPad OS 5 years later.

This 10.2 iPad is easily going to get 3 years of support... and probably closer to 5.

But I understand that there are people who will simply dislike this device regardless, and so it goes.
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iPad Air 2 had new processor, this iPad does have 3 years old processor.

A10 based devices has already went through 3 software updates. It probably will get other 2 at most. Don’t even think iOS 18 will run on this iPad, even if it does, it will run very very poorly.

When iPad 3 released with A5X chip, it is already a two year old processor and this did not end well.

iPad mini 3 was basically iPad mini 2 with a Touch ID. When iPad Mini 3 was released, it used one year old processor. Support end will at exactly same time with all A7 processors.

I don’t know what you think, there is no way this iPad 7 will age well.
 
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sracer said:
The Air 2 (with A8X) was released in 2014 and it is getting iPad OS 5 years later.
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And it still runs better than the iPad 2 did on iOS 4. I think that's a key point. :D
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LovingTeddy said:
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iPad Air 2 had new processor, this iPad does have 3 years old processor.

A10 based devices has already went through 3 software updates. It probably will get other 2 at most. Don’t even think iOS 18 will run on this iPad, even if it does, it will run very very poorly.

When iPad 3 released with A5X chip, it is already a two year old processor and this did not end well.
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Technically, A5 was only 1 year old when A5X was released.

The thing is early chipsets were more akin to Pentium II and III while A10 is more like mobile Nehalem. The 3-year old A10 on iPadOS is faster than the iPad 1-4 even when those were on their release firmware (and yes, I still have an iPad 4 on iOS 6 to compare with).
 
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sracer said:
How do you know this? Apple is in complete control of how long this device is supported. I find a lot of fault with the current state of Apple, but longevity of support is the one thing that Apple still does far better than the competition.
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Because the processor dates this iPad to 2017, meaning it is already 2.5 years into its support cycle, reducing the number of iOS updates it will get.

Apple gives good support to devices released with current specs, but their devices released with already outdated specs, don't do as well.
 
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oldmacs said:
Because the processor dates this iPad to 2017, meaning it is already 2.5 years into its support cycle, reducing the number of iOS updates it will get.

Apple gives good support to devices released with current specs, but their devices released with already outdated specs, don't do as well.
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also, processor power and ram matter a lot for device longevity! The iPad Air 2 (A8X, much more powerful than the A8, 2GB RAM) got iPad OS 13, the iPhone 6 (A8, very similar to the A7, 1GB of RAM) did not...
it's actually easy to predict which devices will be supported for a long time and which will not.
 
The Man said:
Uh, remember the iPad 3? That was an iPad 2 with retina display. It was tremendously underpowered. Sure it had 1GB RAM instead of the paltry 512MB of the iPad 2, but it could barely handle the retina display. And yeah, the mini 3 was bad too. Does the 7th gen iPad fall in the same category? Perhaps. At least the prices are lower. Entry level used to start at $499.
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Yeah the iPad 3 didn't do too well - a year less of support than the iPad 2.

The 7th gen iPad was still only a year behind in technology, so I'm not sure.
 
oldmacs said:
Because the processor dates this iPad to 2017, meaning it is already 2.5 years into its support cycle, reducing the number of iOS updates it will get.
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Technically, 2016 (iPhone 7).

2015: A9
2016: A10
2017: A11
2018: A12
2019: A13

We already know how iPadOS performs. Even on A9, it's still pretty good (bar memory limitations). I expect we'll see at least 2-3 years from the 7th gen. At its price point, that ain't bad at all. Of course, the A10-based 6th gen just saw a longer stay of execution and can be found even cheaper making it a better value unless ASK and minor size bump is a must have. :D
 
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canesalato said:
also, processor power and ram matter a lot for device longevity! The iPad Air 2 (A8X, much more powerful than the A8, 2GB RAM) got iPad OS 13, the iPhone 6 (A8, very similar to the A7, 1GB of RAM) did not...
it's actually easy to predict which devices will be supported for a long time and which will not.
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A8 got ipad OS 13 with the mini 4. Why? Because of RAM.
People on this thread are giving too much importance to CPU speed, and forgetting about RAM.
Ipad mini 2 and mini 4 are not very far on CPU benchmarks, but the are night and day in usability. Why? RAM

Also there is too much projecting the past into the future on this thread. Apple has proven with IOS 12 and even more 13 that past performance is not indicative of future performance. So it might well be that A10 gets IOS 16/17 or even more, and still runs well if the OS does not take, by then, much more RAM than it does now.

IOS 9 took much more RAM the previous OSs, making 1GB devices unusable. IOS 12 and 13 take slightly less RAM then IOS 9 and 10. IOS 11 took even more RAM, but was still usable with 2GB RAM, but you had a lot of refreshes with 2GB. It's all in the hands of Apple when it comes to OS RAM. Having said that, multitasking is probably going to improve and this will need more RAM to work well. Also, developers may well take more advantage of RAM for pro apps. So RAM is indeed a big deal anyway for pro users, but 2GB may well be fine (and the device feel fast) for casual users in 5 years if Apple keeps OS RAM usage low enough until then.
 
If it does indeed have 2GB RAM, I think it’ll mean 1 year extra support for the iPad 6 than it would otherwise have got. If 3GB, then I think it stays around longer than the iPad 6, similar to how the A8(X) devices with 2GB rather than 1GB are still supported.

Glad I bought the Mini 5 at launch rather than waiting for this before deciding. That would have been a wasted 6 months.
 
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Don't forget that Apple is now looking to boost their profits selling services such as Apple TV+ and Arcade. It's in their interest to keep the 10.2 supported for a good number of years, otherwise they'll be shooting themselves in the foot. Users will start unsubscribing if they can't play all those games and/or watch movies.

I think that as long as Apple keep supporting the 10.2 for at least another 3 years this iPad will be fine for most people. With the heavy discounts it will make it a bargain like the 6th gen 9.7 was/is.

If you want an iPad with more power then by all means buy a Pro at 3-5 times the cost. And yes it will most likely last longer as well due to the higher CPU and RAM spec.
 
raymanster said:
Don't forget that Apple is now looking to boost their profits selling services such as Apple TV+ and Arcade. It's in their interest to keep the 10.2 supported for a good number of years, otherwise they'll be shooting themselves in the foot. Users will start unsubscribing if they can't play all those games and/or watch movies.

I think that as long as Apple keep supporting the 10.2 for at least another 3 years this iPad will be fine for most people. With the heavy discounts it will make it a bargain like the 6th gen 9.7 was/is.

If you want an iPad with more power then by all means buy a Pro at 3-5 times the cost. And yes it will most likely last longer as well due to the higher CPU and RAM spec.
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You don’t even need a pro, if you just want some extra horsepower you could grab an Air and get quite a lot for a little more. A10 for a device this cheap seems to make sense, as these processors don’t age as fast as they used to.
 
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Even though they don't age as fast as earlier iPads, I never felt comfortable sinking so much money into higher end models like the Pro, despite the added features. For me, always a bad investment. In my mind, in addition to processor and RAM aging with eventual loss of IOS support, battery life also impacts iPad longevity. The 5th, 6th, and now 7th generation at their relatively decent prices are the way to go for me.
 
LovingTeddy said:
Apple can in theory throw any iOS version, does not mean future iOS would run great on that particular hardware. I have my serious doubt on how well iOS 15 would run on A10 processor.

We all know that how iOS 9 pretty much ruin iPhone 4S and iOS 7 is struggle on iPhone 4. How iPad 3 was not aged well compare with iPad 4 which release half year later, we all know how iPad mini 3 was killed at same time with iPad mini 2.

It really doesn’t matter, A10 processor is 3 years old processor, it won’t last as long as you think.

I would say, Apple is doing planned obsolescence right now. Apple could end all A10 based devices, and forcing all A10 based devices users upgrade. And I seriously doubt this iPad will receive 3 iOS updates.
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Honestly at this point (post A9) optimisation trumps raw power in terms of device fluidity. The chips going back to the A9 have more than enough CPU and GPU power to run the OS, but even the A12X would stutter if the iOS version wasn't properly optimised for it. We saw this with iOS 11 having hitches and stutters even on the A11 based iPhone 8/X, while iOS 12 runs much smoother on the 6s.

RAM is a slightly different story, though again, I don't think any 2GB device will ever feel quite as RAM starved as the 1GB iPhone 6+ or the iPad Air.
 
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I'm upgrading my iPad Air 2013 model for iPad 6th generation. The third party lighting connector damage ipad air charge deport it will not charge or stay charge.
 
EugW said:
$299 32 GB at Amazon.

Is this the first time an iPad has been almost 10% off at launch?
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I’m not seeing that $299 price. Costco would be a much better place to purchase from if you’re a member just because of their return policy and extra warranty.
 
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With both Amazon, Costco and now Best Buy now selling Apple hardware for cheaper than Apple’s traditional MSRP it’s almost wise to be patient and wait a little after release date now.

That’s what I’m going to do because it seems like Apple is charging a higher price than what most consumers will pay but quietly allow other retailers to have “sales.”

The 2018 iPad Pros have definitely dropped in price at Best Buy plenty of times. Is it due to Bend Gate? Even the new MacBook Air and Touch Bar Pros are on “sale” at Best Buy and Costco at significant discounts.

The iPad 10.2 7th Gen and 9.7 6th Gen will both be featured in Black Friday sales for sure.
 
I was waiting for this ipad for a few months. My main usage will be web surfing and playing games via Bluetooth controller.
However, Apple really messed up for the new model. There is no way I’m gonna get it. Now, I can get the 2018 model but don’t know how those console level games (NBA, Grid Autosport etc.) will play on this garbage. Any advice?
 
ondert said:
I was waiting for this ipad for a few months. My main usage will be web surfing and playing games via Bluetooth controller.
However, Apple really messed up for the new model. There is no way I’m gonna get it. Now, I can get the 2018 model but don’t know how those console level games (NBA, Grid Autosport etc.) will play on this garbage. Any advice?
Click to expand...
Look for discounted iPad air 3
 
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I have an Air 2 and have been wanting to upgrade just for light web browsing but this seems like a horrible "update" I mean at least update the process. Guess I will wait for the next air because the Pros are so damn expensive.
 
WinterWolf90 said:
I have an Air 2 and have been wanting to upgrade just for light web browsing but this seems like a horrible "update" I mean at least update the process. Guess I will wait for the next air because the Pros are so damn expensive.
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I did upgrade from Air 2 to Air 3. The battery life and speed is impressive. Why to you think it's a horrible update?
 
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