iPad Pro No, the iPad Pro is not more expensive than a MacBook

[prospervic]

People complaining that the 13” iPad Pro is more expensive than the MacBook Air are not making a true comparison. First of all, a more accurate compare would be the base model M3 MacBook Pro which starts at $1599 as these two devices have in common advanced technology displays (miniLED for the Mac and OLED for the iPad), 120hz ProMotion and multi-speaker stereo. The iPad Pro’s base price is $300 less than the MacBook Pro, and even if you pay an additional $200 to bring the iPad’s storage up to an equivalent 512gb it’s still $100 less than the Mac.

It’s only when you add Apples exorbitantly priced Magic Keyboard ($349) that you blow past the price of the MacBook. But despite Apple’s marketing and people’s belief to the contrary, the Magic Keyboard is not required to use the iPad Pro. So many treat the iPad as a MacBook that had its keyboard torn off, but that just isn’t so. A tablet computer by definition has a built-in onscreen keyboard, and the one in a 13” iPad (Pro or Air) is large enough to type comfortably on, and includes a number row above the alphabet keys.

True, it’s not so easy to jump and start typing away as a physical keyboard, but with daily practice you can get pretty proficient at it within a few weeks. There are people who are typing 80, 90 and even 100 wpm (tech blogger Jason Snell) just on the iPad screen. From Apple’s perspective, they’ve already provided everything you need in this flat, lightweight slate to do your computing, but if you desire to turn your iPad into a “laptop“ by using a physical keyboard and mouse instead of what’s already there, then Apple is happy to provide that for you as well. But it will cost you a pretty penny for this convenience. “Magic” Keyboard, indeed!

 

[eltoslightfoot]

What does it matter, honestly? Either a person can justify this or they can't. My daughter is attending a University Art program next fall, and for her graduation present, her family is banding together and getting her one of these with a new pencil (and to your point probably not the keyboard). It is worth it for her.

Me? I use my Macbook Pro for everything except note-taking. I use an old 2018 iPad Pro 12.9" for that. I will definitely not be getting a new one for me. In fact, I will downgrade when the time comes and put my money in a new Mac.

The point is that the Pro line is priced according to what Apple thinks it should be--which as you also admit is in the range of Macbook Airs and Macbook Pros. Let me put it this way. I don't think that basically anyone should be buying the Apple Watch Ultra--yet people do. So those that do are happy paying for the benefits they gain. Me? I just get an Apple Watch from a couple of generations ago on Swappa.

 

[turbineseaplane]

What the OP comparison actually points out is what a ripoff the MBAs are

Under specced for the prices Apple charges

 

[prospervic]

What does it matter, honestly? Either a person can justify this or they can't. My daughter is attending a University Art program next fall, and for her graduation present, her family is banding together and getting her one of these with a new pencil (and to your point probably not the keyboard). It is worth it for her.

Me? I use my Macbook Pro for everything except note-taking. I use an old 2018 iPad Pro 12.9" for that. I will definitely not be getting a new one for me. In fact, I will downgrade when the time comes and put my money in a new Mac.

The point is that the Pro line is priced according to what Apple thinks it should be--which as you also admit is in the range of Macbook Airs and Macbook Pros. Let me put it this way. I don't think that basically anyone should be buying the Apple Watch Ultra--yet people do. So those that do are happy paying for the benefits they gain. Me? I just get an Apple Watch from a couple of generations ago on Swappa.

Yes, it’s true that people can buy whatever they want or feel they need. It seems we’ve gone far a field from the original concept and intent of iPad, and are spending so more money than we used to for this product. I’ve been endeavoring to return to using my iPad Pro mainly in tablet mode in an attempt to recapture the joy I felt when I got my first-ever iPad back in 2011.

 

[eltoslightfoot]

Yes, it’s true that people can buy whatever they want or feel they need. It seems we’ve gone far a field from the original concept and intent of iPad, and are spending so more money than we used to for this product. I’ve been endeavoring to return to using my iPad Pro mainly in tablet mode in an attempt to recapture the joy I felt when I first got one back in 2011.

Honestly I am in the same boat. For a time I was trying to justify buying one of the new M4 iPad Pro 12.9" models by using it as my main device. But I am too much of a fiddler. I like being able to use Alfred to create custom keyboard shortcuts to switch networks by name. I like being able to make my Mac do what I want--and it does.

Now that I have gone back to just using my iPad Pro as a note-taking device and for media consumption, and my Macbook for everything else, it's just easier. That said, to me that means I am not an iPad Pro user. I can get by with an older model 11 inch if my current iPad Pro gives out. Otherwise I am just going to use my 2018 iPad Pro until the "wheels" fall off.

 

[turbineseaplane]

@eltoslightfoot

You just encapsulated the conundrum Apple has with trying to get more people to buy an iPad Pro

They are bumping up against peoples desire to do more than iPadOS allows.

If people can’t do those things then the value proposition for the expensive iPad pros just isn’t there for most people.

They can literally stop adding better hardware specs for awhile
That simply is not the issue

I don’t know who inside Apple thinks that is why people aren’t buying iPad pros more (hardware)
It’s so odd

 

[Crow_Servo]

I actually found it awkward trying to navigate the iPad while it is docked on the Magic Keyboard when I tried it in the store the other day. I’d much prefer just touching the screen directly. Also, if you use the Magic Keyboard as a protective case, it makes the new lighter, thinner iPad Pro into something super heavy IMO.

 

[prospervic]

Honestly I am in the same boat. For a time I was trying to justify buying one of the new M4 iPad Pro 12.9" models by using it as my main device. But I am too much of a fiddler. I like being able to use Alfred to create custom keyboard shortcuts to switch networks by name. I like being able to make my Mac do what I want--and it does.

Now that I have gone back to just using my iPad Pro as a note-taking device and for media consumption, and my Macbook for everything else, it's just easier. That said, to me that means I am not an iPad Pro user. I can get by with an older model 11 inch if my current iPad Pro gives out. Otherwise I am just going to use my 2018 iPad Pro until the "wheels" fall off.

I use my 2021 M1 12.9 as a substitute for my 16 inch MacBook Pro while traveling. Being well aware of iPad‘s limitations, I only work on tasks that lie within those and save the rest for when I return Home to the Mac.

 

[prospervic]

I actually found it awkward trying to navigate the iPad while it is docked on the Magic Keyboard when I tried it in the store the other day. I’d much prefer just touching the screen directly. Also, if you use the Magic Keyboard as a protective case, it makes the new lighter, thinner iPad Pro into something super heavy IMO.

Also, the Magic Keyboard trackpad doesn’t work in all cases. Ever tried using it on the YouTube app? Several icons just do not respond to clicking, and I wind up having to tap with my fingers anyway.

 

[aurora_sect]

No matter how powerful they make iPad Pros and no matter how much they improve the OS, the iPad will never be what my Logic workflow centers around. The iPad is fundamentally just a different form factor that for me is better suited than a Mac for several things, but they all tend to be pretty lite applications. That's why the iPad is almost an accessory of convenience for me and the new Airs are more than enough for that purpose. Not that I run Logic on a MBA, either, but if it was between that and an iPad I'd go with the former for sure. If I were a visual artist I might feel very differently.

 

[blairh]

People complaining that the 13” iPad Pro is more expensive than the MacBook Air are not making a true comparison. First of all, a more accurate compare would be the base model M3 MacBook Pro which starts at $1599 as these two devices have in common advanced technology displays (miniLED for the Mac and OLED for the iPad), 120hz ProMotion and multi-speaker stereo. The iPad Pro’s base price is $300 less than the MacBook Pro, and even if you pay an additional $200 to bring the iPad’s storage up to an equivalent 512gb it’s still $100 less than the Mac.

It’s only when you add Apples exorbitantly priced Magic Keyboard ($349) that you blow past the price of the MacBook. But despite Apple’s marketing and people’s belief to the contrary, the Magic Keyboard is not required to use the iPad Pro. So many treat the iPad as a MacBook that had its keyboard torn off, but that just isn’t so. A tablet computer by definition has a built-in onscreen keyboard, and the one in a 13” iPad (Pro or Air) is large enough to type comfortably on, and includes a number row above the alphabet keys.

True, it’s not so easy to jump and start typing away as a physical keyboard, but with daily practice you can get pretty proficient at it within a few weeks. There are people who are typing 80, 90 and even 100 wpm (tech blogger Jason Snell) just on the iPad screen. From Apple’s perspective, they’ve already provided everything you need in this flat, lightweight slate to do your computing, but if you desire to turn your iPad into a “laptop“ by using a physical keyboard and mouse instead of what’s already there, then Apple is happy to provide that for you as well. But it will cost you a pretty penny for this convenience. “Magic” Keyboard, indeed!

I completely disagree. It's absolutely fair to compare a MacBook Air and iPad Pro 13". Consumers will be debating between the most popular Apple laptop versus the iPad Pro.

I also think most consumers do not want to type on the 13" iPad Pro screen for anything beyond a Google search or quick message reply.

At retail you can get a base model M2 MacBook air for $1,000. (And less on most major retailer sites.) A base model 13" iPad Pro plus a Magic Keyboard is $1,650. You could even get the M1 MacBook Air new at Walmart for $700. (In fairness the M1 has a noticeably dimmer screen than the M2, but it's still a great option.)

I could purchase a base model M2 MacBook Air from Amazon today at $850 plus a base model 11" iPad Air also from Amazon at $570. Combined that is $230 less than the combo of a base model M4 13" iPad Pro plus Magic Keyboard.

 

[prospervic]

More accurate comparison would be with the new 13 inch iPad Air as the screen sizes are similar. In this discussion I was only including the latest models rather than prior ones. So, the M2 iPad Air, and the M3 MacBook Air are equivalent in that sense (even though they don’t have the same generation processor). Now you’re talking 799 for the iPad and 1099 for the MacBook. Add the magic keyboard things both devices up to the same price.

 

[blairh]

More accurate comparison would be with the new 13 inch iPad Air as the screen sizes are similar. This is discussion. I was only including the latest models rather than prior ones. So, the M2 iPad Air, and the M3 MacBook Air are equivalent in that sense (even though they don’t have the same generation processor). Now you’re talking 799 for the iPad and 1099 for the MacBook. Add the magic keyboard things both devices up to the same price.

My point being you can get a 13” MacBook Air and an 11” iPad Air for cheaper. I think that’s a better combination versus a 13” iPad Pro. This way you get a 13” laptop and an 11” tablet that is much easier to use in-hand.

The M2 is an apt comparison as that is powerful enough for most consumers.

 

[prospervic]

My point being you can get a 13” MacBook Air and an 11” iPad Air for cheaper. I think that’s a better combination versus a 13” iPad Pro. This way you get a 13” laptop and an 11” tablet that is much easier to use in-hand.

The M2 is an apt comparison as that is powerful enough for most consumers.

Agreed. I’ve stated numerous times on these forums that there’s no need to buy the Pro versions if you want to be able to afford both devices.

 

[rui no onna]

I use my 2021 M1 12.9 as a substitute for my 16 inch MacBook Pro while traveling. Being well aware of iPad‘s limitations, I only work on tasks that lie within those and save the rest for when I return Home to the Mac.

For me, I choose what devices to bring based on the tasks I expect to do. I won’t go out of my way to accommodate iPadOS. If the task requires a laptop (e.g. remote work with Excel and Access), then I’ll bring a laptop.

With that said, I’ve realized I no longer need to carry a laptop with me on vacations. A lot of the tasks I used to need the laptop for can now be accomplished on the iPad.

Safari on the iPad has improved a lot from the early days. Also, the web has changed and most site designers have better support for mobile devices (albeit there are still some outliers).

Minor edits to Word/Excel documents, filling out PDF forms and copying files to a USB flash drive so I can bring them to an internet cafe (or my aunt’s) for printing? All doable on the iPad now. Heck, those are doable on the iPhone, too, just a lot more painful given the tiny display.

 

[emembee]

I use the older apple mac magic keyboard, absolutely no issue at all, but understand it is no good if you want an all in one clamshell to open up and just start typing. For guys that don't need to travel so much though, it is a great compromise assuming you have one, else under 100 to purchase.

 

[Jimmdean]

If you compare it to the latest generation, sure. But you should be comparing it to the M1 Macbook Air, what I would call the minimum recommended point of entry to Apple laptops at this point. To each his own, but I do not think any iPad compares favorably against that model for the price it can be had for.

 

[Yebubbleman]

People complaining that the 13” iPad Pro is more expensive than the MacBook Air are not making a true comparison.

Sure they are. One device costs $999+ and claims to be a computer while another costs $999+ and actually is a computer. I can only do complex file/folder manipulations on one of them. I can only format external drives on one of them. I can only SSH to another computer using one of them. I can only have multiple users outside of an Apple Business Manager/Apple School Manager + MDM scenario on one of them.

First of all, a more accurate compare would be the base model M3 MacBook Pro which starts at $1599 as these two devices have in common advanced technology displays (miniLED for the Mac and OLED for the iPad), 120hz ProMotion and multi-speaker stereo.

If superficial hardware details that don't ultimately have any bearing on software are where you're splitting hairs over here, then sure. That would seem to be a rather weird comparison to be making, seeing as most people buying either are doing so to meet certain needs rather than to amass a bells and whistles collection.

The iPad Pro’s base price is $300 less than the MacBook Pro, and even if you pay an additional $200 to bring the iPad’s storage up to an equivalent 512gb it’s still $100 less than the Mac.

Again, why are you comparing MacBook Pro to iPad Pro? No one is making a case for replacing the former with the latter. Apple regularly makes the case for an iPad Pro to replace a MacBook Air. That's the comparison that makes sense to make.

It’s only when you add Apples exorbitantly priced Magic Keyboard ($349) that you blow past the price of the MacBook. But despite Apple’s marketing and people’s belief to the contrary, the Magic Keyboard is not required to use the iPad Pro. So many treat the iPad as a MacBook that had its keyboard torn off, but that just isn’t so. A tablet computer by definition has a built-in onscreen keyboard, and the one in a 13” iPad (Pro or Air) is large enough to type comfortably on, and includes a number row above the alphabet keys.

True, it’s not so easy to jump and start typing away as a physical keyboard, but with daily practice you can get pretty proficient at it within a few weeks. There are people who are typing 80, 90 and even 100 wpm (tech blogger Jason Snell) just on the iPad screen. From Apple’s perspective, they’ve already provided everything you need in this flat, lightweight slate to do your computing, but if you desire to turn your iPad into a “laptop“ by using a physical keyboard and mouse instead of what’s already there, then Apple is happy to provide that for you as well. But it will cost you a pretty penny for this convenience. “Magic” Keyboard, indeed!

I think the "if you don't factor the Magic Keyboard, the price is cheaper" argument doesn't hold much weight because, again, comparing iPad Pro to MacBook Pro isn't the comparison to make. Nor is it the comparison anyone other than you in this thread is making when it comes to the iPad Pro being so expensive.

 

[stiligFox]

I feel the iPad Pro would benefit a great deal from having one or two taptic engines in it to simulate keyboard clicks. I'm a bit surprised it doesn't at this point - all though the force of the taptic engine does understandably get dispersed by larger areas so it would need either two or more to be effective across the entire device. But that would help so much with the touch screen keyboard, I feel. I have it enabled on my iPhone and it makes a world of difference over the audio clicks.

 

[prospervic]

Safari on the iPad has improved a lot from the early days. Also, the web has changed and most site designers have better support for mobile devices (albeit there are still some outliers).

This is mostly true, except when it comes to editing/building websites on Wix.com. Wix has stated that such activity is not supported on mobile Safari, so you can’t really blame Apple for this. Still, I wish like the European Union, Apple would allow alternate browser engines on iPadOS, so we could avoid this problem.

 

[prospervic]

I think the "if you don't factor the Magic Keyboard, the price is cheaper" argument doesn't hold much weight because, again, comparing iPad Pro to MacBook Pro isn't the comparison to make. Nor is it the comparison anyone other than you in this thread is making when it comes to the iPad Pro being so expensive.

On the contrary, many people across this and other forums, and countless
bloggers make this comparison all the time.

 

[FrozenDarkness]

taking out the magic keyboard makes this comparison inept. i'm sorry, wake me up when macbook pro also stops coming with a keyboard.

 

[prospervic]

Sure they are. One device costs $999+ and claims to be a computer while another costs $999+ and actually is a computer.

They are both “computers”. Just different types. Not being able to SSH doesn’t make the iPad any less of a computer. Just as the lack of ability to write or draw on the display with a stylus make the Mac any less a computer.

 

[Isengardtom]

For me, I choose what devices to bring based on the tasks I expect to do. I won’t go out of my way to accommodate iPadOS. If the task requires a laptop (e.g. remote work with Excel and Access), then I’ll bring a laptop.

With that said, I’ve realized I no longer need to carry a laptop with me on vacations. A lot of the tasks I used to need the laptop for can now be accomplished on the iPad.

Safari on the iPad has improved a lot from the early days. Also, the web has changed and most site designers have better support for mobile devices (albeit there are still some outliers).

Minor edits to Word/Excel documents, filling out PDF forms and copying files to a USB flash drive so I can bring them to an internet cafe (or my aunt’s) for printing? All doable on the iPad now. Heck, those are doable on the iPhone, too, just a lot more painful given the tiny display.

Same here, but to be able to do my job fully, I need a windows device as Excel on Mac is inferior to its Windows counterpart + some add-ins are only available on Windows. So my work laptop (a Surface laptop - not a great device in my personal opinion) is doing that job.

But I was just on a weekend trip to France and only brought the new iPad Pro.
I had a long call on teams from the car (not me driving), made some adjustments in our consolidation software (webapp) and it’s all perfectly doable with the iPad pro with the keyboard. In many ways even more enjoyable than on a laptop

 

[Isengardtom]

taking out the magic keyboard makes this comparison inept. i'm sorry, wake me up when macbook pro also stops coming with a keyboard.

What I like about the iPad is the versatility. It can be a simple tablet for media consumption when lying on the couch or in bed. It can be a note taking device with the pencil and it can be a capable laptop with the keyboard

The Macbook Pro can run more powerful software yes, but it’s a lot less fun to use.