Just got my 2nd gen 12.9"
The improvements over the first one are everywhere. The screen is better, it's faster, but you know all that.
After reading about ProMotion, I was almost let down a bit when I first started using it - it didn't seem that different. However, when I returned to the old one, I noticed that I was permanently spoiled. So, it's great.
However, the old iPad Pro is still very capable. In fact, it is the same in things that matter the most: screen size and Pencil input. If you have the 1st gen iPad Pro, you'll get a new iPad with iOS 11 - it will fly and feel like a new computer. If you got a 2nd gen - it will do the same, only more nicely.
I've read and heard a lot of things about ProMotion lately and some people went as far as to claim that you couldn't even sketch on the old one (in Procreate) due to lag, but now it's a miracle. I consider this to be completely false. First of all, the first one has less lag than any of the professional Wacom tools out there, so I don't see in what universe you can't sketch on it. It's perfect for sketching, illustration, writing, etc. Second - no, the new one doesn't make it feel like you're injecting ink into glass or any other weird metaphor. It's just smoother and nicer. No functional difference - but more comfortable.
For me, that was enough of a reason to upgrade (that, and getting 256Gb as opposed to 128Gb).
Some thoughts:
- True Tone is actually quite nice
- Screen is amazing
- Some people claimed the new surface is a bit more grippy compared to the old one. At first I thought it was, now - maaaaaybe. I don't know.
- Screen is still a smudge magnet.
- 120hz is great, but I don't see it as mind-blowing. Perhaps my expectations were too big after reading so much about it. It is really cool, though, and makes everything that much nicer. And makes the iPad feel a bit snappier. Also, Procreate panning and zooming makes the screen look like some weird hologram dancing on fluid. Hard to explain better - it's awesome.
- Wide color is great. I started loving all the red icons like Flipboard and YouTube, they just look so vibrant.
- Live Photos on an iPad, yay! My last one didn't have them. It's actually nice to take photos with such a large screen. I am really annoyed with this silly attitude that you're somehow an ******* if you take photos with your iPad. Every 2nd article about the iPad on the Verge and similar sites contained that "never take photos with your tablet". That's just ********. It's a great big screen with a great camera - why wouldn't you take photos with it? I didn't get this for the camera, but it's got a better one than my iPhone 6S, so damn right I'm going to take photos with it!
Finally about 12.9 vs 10.5 - it's really no contest. If you want a tablet to pull out of your bag in a coffee shop and sketch or read - the 10.5 is better. If you want a highly portable (and it IS highly portable) device to carry everywhere and then use it mostly on desks everywhere - the 10.5 doesn't come close to 12.9 screen size and usability. Want to do serious work? Get the 12.9. Want to use it wherever you feel like? Get the 10.5
But please don't call 12.9 heavy or hard to carry. With the resolution, Pencil precision and the fact you look at it at a close distance, it's screen usability matches a 15" laptop. It's a usable, productive mobile supercomputer. It's not heavy. Oh no.
