iPad Pro Used my iPad Pro for the first time in ages: Forgot how good it is …

[BB1970]

I had the first iPad Pro (older design) but it developed the bright spot, above the Home Button, so I got my money back.

I’m thinking of buying the new iPad Pro, in 12.9”, but I don’t know if it’s worth it? This one runs perfectly, and does all I need or want. Maybe I’d like the bigger screen, though?

Having owned both the the 11 and 12.9 as well as the 10.5 (screen issues as well).. I’ve come to the conclusion that if the iPad is the primary device you use, then get tne 12.9. If it’s secondary to a home unit, then the 11 is more practical. I loved the 12.9 screen, but in all real world scenarios, the 11 was just easier to handle. Hopefully the 12.9 display comes to the 11 someday. My 11 is my primary, only because I got a killer deal on a 2TB version when Costco blew them out.

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

Having owned both the the 11 and 12.9 as well as the 10.5 (screen issues as well).. I’ve come to the conclusion that if the iPad is the primary device you use, then get tne 12.9. If it’s secondary to a home unit, then the 11 is more practical. I loved the 12.9 screen, but in all real world scenarios, the 11 was just easier to handle. Hopefully the 12.9 display comes to the 11 someday. My 11 is my primary, only because I got a killer deal on a 2TB version when Costco blew them out.

I do find the 11” very “manageable.”

Laying down, with it balanced on your chest, for example.

I’ve always thought of the 12.9” as being for creatives, like artists etc.

However, me “upgrading” my current 11” to another 11” would be pretty pointless, as my current iPad works perfectly.

 

[Night Spring]

I had the first iPad Pro (older design) but it developed the bright spot, above the Home Button, so I got my money back.

I’m thinking of buying the new iPad Pro, in 12.9”, but I don’t know if it’s worth it? This one runs perfectly, and does all I need or want. Maybe I’d like the bigger screen, though?

I love the big screen on the 12.9. I also have an iPad Air 2, which I believe is about the same screen size as the 11 inch Pro. The Air 2 is the device I use the least, and not because it's old. When relaxing at home, I use the 12.9, and when I go out, I use my iPhone. To me, the medium size is the least useful. Yes, the 12.9 is bigger than 11, but it's basically the same size as a magazine or A4 notebook. I used to carry those around to take notes when I was in school. Handling the 12.9 is abut the same thing.

 

[TechnoMonk]

My 2018 ipad Pro with the Magic Keyboard case is lighter than my 2018 MBA.

And iPad Pro 12.9 beats 13 MBA in portability.

 

[spiderman0616]

It’s now 1:04am and I’ve been surfing, reading articles, watching YouTube videos & all kinds of stuff, for hours.

Completely lost track of time!

And I still believe that the iPad has the best battery life of all Apple products.

Anyway, just thought I’d share.

I love it, OP. Nice to see a positive post here from time to time.

This is that intangible thing about iPad that gives it staying power for a lot of people, me included. No matter if you use it full time or just here and there, it's just an impressive device to hold and interact with in a way that phones and laptops aren't. I've had a couple of different periods in my life since 2010 where I thought I'd be fine going without an iPad in my setup. It fills in so well for so many other things in my workflow, I always miss it pretty much immediately.

 

[akash.nu]

i have tested this myself (i own both) and the PM runs circles around it in terms of battery life.

same with my M2 MBP. maybe not a fair comparison, I just staunchly prefer it to my iPP. glad OP is enjoying theirs regardless.

I have both as well but couldn’t be bothered with such tests as long as both lasts long enough for my daily usage.

 

[Digitalguy]

Having owned both the the 11 and 12.9 as well as the 10.5 (screen issues as well).. I’ve come to the conclusion that if the iPad is the primary device you use, then get tne 12.9. If it’s secondary to a home unit, then the 11 is more practical. I loved the 12.9 screen, but in all real world scenarios, the 11 was just easier to handle. Hopefully the 12.9 display comes to the 11 someday. My 11 is my primary, only because I got a killer deal on a 2TB version when Costco blew them out.

Owining both I've come to the conclusion that I much prefer the 12.9" at home and the 11" on the go. So I have both...

 

[Marbles1]

my iPad Pro 3rd generation got me through my MBA. The Apple Pencil + Onenote plus the ease of dealing with PDFs and ebooks made annotating research papers, making notes in class, drawing diagrams etc. so easy.

Other folks got various brands of e-paper tablets and so on, but the iPad being close to a full computer meant I could take photos of something a lecturer had drawn, or quickly add a book to my amazon wishlist etc.

 

[floral]

I bought it at launch, so paid full price.

Forgot how much it was?

Oh. Well, for base model (128gb) it's $800, and it costs more to add storage and/or cellular. If you mean the latest one.

 

[stanza.richi]

It’s now 1:04am and I’ve been surfing, reading articles, watching YouTube videos & all kinds of stuff, for hours.

Completely lost track of time!

And I still believe that the iPad has the best battery life of all Apple products.

Anyway, just thought I’d share.

Welcome back!

 

[AppZ.Zero]

And still, you dont seem to use it.

Same for me, i got an iPad 6th with Pencil. Havent touched it in years. I dont need a device like that anymore. Would be a different case if the software wouldnt be so limited.

 

[geta]

Sure i can see why some ppl prefer the 12.9” over the smaller iPad Pro/Air, but for casual sofa surfing, reading, media consumption and basic daily usage, the Mini 6 is perfect size (for my needs…) .

 

[Zest28]

Any iPhone or MacBook has much better battery life than any iPad. Unless you really like touchscreens or iPad apps then a MBA is lighter than an iPad Pro w/keyboard. iPad Pros need to improve in battery life by enough to beat the MBA or folks with continue to hold onto their current iPads or buy refurb/used ones as the battery life has stayed the same since the 1st gen.

The MBA has a bad screen, bad speakers, bad camera, …… It is not even in the same league as the iPad Pro.

Only the 14” and 16” MBP offers something similar as the iPad Pro (120hz mini-LED display). And the camera’s on the iPad still wins.

 

[achappy]

I've been an iPad lover since the 10.5" Pro. It developed the white spot so I originally upgraded to the 11". I've always used it as a laptop replacement so I've always had a keyboard with it.

I currently have an M1 12.9" and actually tried a M1 Macbook Air and an M2 Air but it just coudn't replace the iPP+Magic Keyboard. The screen is incredible, I actually have more content when browswing Safari due to how Safari minimizes as you scroll down plus the flexibility to remove it from the keyboard and use it on my lap.

When I have it on the keyboard I'm always using Stage Manager. I've become really good at the keyboard shortcuts and switch windows/stages. When it's on my lap, I turn it off and use Slide Over. Macbooks just don't have this flexibility.

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

I've been an iPad lover since the 10.5" Pro. It developed the white spot so I originally upgraded to the 11". I've always used it as a laptop replacement so I've always had a keyboard with it.

I currently have an M1 12.9" and actually tried a M1 Macbook Air and an M2 Air but it just coudn't replace the iPP+Magic Keyboard. The screen is incredible, I actually have more content when browswing Safari due to how Safari minimizes as you scroll down plus the flexibility to remove it from the keyboard and use it on my lap.

When I have it on the keyboard I'm always using Stage Manager. I've become really good at the keyboard shortcuts and switch windows/stages. When it's on my lap, I turn it off and use Slide Over. Macbooks just don't have this flexibility.

I agree with your love of the iPad.

However, I love my M2 MBA.

 

[darngooddesign]

Unless you really like touchscreens or iPad apps then a MBA is lighter than an iPad Pro w/keyboard…

I mean… it’s a pretty fair assumption that people who buy iPads like touchscreens. It’s also impossible to use the MBA without a keyboard except as a paper weight or door stop.

 

[1BadManVan]

It’s now 1:04am and I’ve been surfing, reading articles, watching YouTube videos & all kinds of stuff, for hours.

Completely lost track of time!

And I still believe that the iPad has the best battery life of all Apple products.

Anyway, just thought I’d share.

I have a hard time picking up my iPad Pro for very long these days. I still gravitate towards my 14 pro max for the couch or my M2 MBA. I still love my 11" M1 Pro, it mainly gets used now in the kitchen to stream shows or when we go camping as it's a cellular model. Once im back to work, it will see a lot more use as well since where I go for my job, wifi is barely strong enough to check an email. But my home usage is very minimal these days

 

[FeliApple]

I had the first iPad Pro (older design) but it developed the bright spot, above the Home Button, so I got my money back.

I’m thinking of buying the new iPad Pro, in 12.9”, but I don’t know if it’s worth it? This one runs perfectly, and does all I need or want. Maybe I’d like the bigger screen, though?

Did you have the 9.7-inch iPad Pro or the 12.9-inch?

It’s a difficult question to answer without knowing a few things: what do you use it for? Have you tried a 12.9-inch? Are you keeping both? If so, would there be needless overlap? If you get the 12.9-inch and get rid of the 11-inch, would you miss the portability and comfort or is that irrelevant to you?

 

[Surfsalot]

My M1 11" get's used mostly around the house and in my home office where I also have a 24" iMac, only goes on holidays. Get's more use than my 14 pro at home. Have been down the max and 12.9" phone and iPad, prefer the smaller sizes.

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

Did you have the 9.7-inch iPad Pro or the 12.9-inch?

It’s a difficult question to answer without knowing a few things: what do you use it for? Have you tried a 12.9-inch? Are you keeping both? If so, would there be needless overlap? If you get the 12.9-inch and get rid of the 11-inch, would you miss the portability and comfort or is that irrelevant to you?

Just general consumption for me.

I think it would be ridiculous for me to upgrade to the latest 11", but the 12.9" would be an interesting change.

However, bigger is not always better. I have both the 16" M2 MBP, and M2 MBA ... I really like my MBP (using it to type this) but I love my MBA.

 

[NorrisKillsKids]

I feel the same any time I try using an iPad only. I think to myself why the F I need my MacBook. It really is just a few things away from replacing it entirely. Slightly bigger screen would be great (11.5 or 12 inches vs 11). Slightly better battery life. Better screen (miniLED or OLED). And a few iPad OS tweaks to make it a little easier to manage multiple things. That would cover the 10% of time I'm frustrated.

But that other 90% is sweeeeet.

 

[engbren]

The iPad Pro is a great device - I have the 11 inch 2018 model. Had it since close to launch. I picked up the Logitech Combo Touch case a couple of years ago when it was on sale. It ended up replacing an Apple Smart Keyboard. The Logitech provides an excellent protective case around the iPad plus the flexibility to easily detatch the keyboard/trackpad cover.

 

[FeliApple]

Just general consumption for me.

I think it would be ridiculous for me to upgrade to the latest 11", but the 12.9" would be an interesting change.

However, bigger is not always better. I have both the 16" M2 MBP, and M2 MBA ... I really like my MBP (using it to type this) but I love my MBA.

I can’t make a recommendation because I haven’t used a 12.9, so I don’t know enough to make a sensible, informed recommendation.

I can give an opinion on an upgrade at all: for general content consumption, any iPad from the Air 2 is good. I use the latest iPad Air 5 just like I use my 9.7-inch iPad Pro. Barring the screen (which favours the Air) and the Quad Speakers (which favour the Pro), both are equal. The former is on iPadOS 15; the latter, on iOS 12. There is no appreciable difference in performance; however, the 9.7-inch iPad Pro’s battery life is nowhere near the iPad Air 5. Given that I use it at home, it’s not a massive factor. With this I want to say: older iPads are wildly underrated as far as content consumption goes. If it were up to me, I definitely wouldn’t upgrade. It’s simply not necessary, especially considering that the difference in experience is likely to be negligible.
So, as a conclusion: you have to decide whether you want the 12.9, but solely as far as the form factor goes. I think the performance difference is irrelevant; so much so, that I’d call an upgrade based on that completely pointless. For content consumption? It’ll open an app 0.1 seconds faster. I don’t think it’s a difference worth upgrading for.
This is merely my opinion, of course.

 

[cwosigns]

I have a 12.9” M1 iPad Pro and a mini 6. To me, it’s the best of both worlds. I use the mini 6 for reading around the house, light content consumption and web browsing. I use the iPad Pro mostly with the Magic Keyboard. Occasionally I will use it on the couch, but if it’s off the MKB then I’m probably using it for sheet music at the piano. iPads are so great for musicians.

 

[Night Spring]

Just general consumption for me.

I think it would be ridiculous for me to upgrade to the latest 11", but the 12.9" would be an interesting change.

However, bigger is not always better. I have both the 16" M2 MBP, and M2 MBA ... I really like my MBP (using it to type this) but I love my MBA.

As I said before, for me, the bigger screen size makes a huge, positive difference. But everyone is different, and the only way to find out how it works for you is to try it. Actually, you could try holding your MBA with the screen closed to get a feel for how big the 12.9 is -- I believe they are pretty close in size.