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cpatrick08

macrumors 6502a
Sep 18, 2016
513
459
I am not talking about the iPADs not deserving to be called PROs. That's another topic.

It's about Apple insisting in labeling every new iPAD as "Pro". That makes it very hard to find an exact model you are looking for.

I mean, look how they named the iPhones over the years:

iPhone (1st generation)
iPhone 3G
iPhone 3GS
iPhone 4
iPhone 4S
iPhone 5
iPhone 5C
iPhone 5S
iPhone 6
iPhone 6 Plus
iPhone 6S
iPhone 6S Plus
iPhone SE (1st generation)
iPhone 7
iPhone 7 Plus
iPhone 8
iPhone 8 Plus
iPhone X
iPhone XS
iPhone XS Max
iPhone XR
iPhone 11
iPhone 11 Pro
iPhone 11 Pro Max
iPhone SE (2nd generation)
iPhone 12
iPhone 12 Pro
iPhone 12 Mini
iPhone 12 Pro Max

If I do a search on any of these keywords I'll find a specific iPhone which I happen to own... easily. Whether I am looking for a Youtube video, or in some online store, or any thread.

Now I can't say the same about the iPADs AT ALL...

iPad (1st generation)
iPad 2
iPad (3rd generation)
iPad Mini
iPad (4th generation)
iPad Air
iPad Mini 2
iPad Mini 3
iPad Air 2
iPad Mini 4

iPad Pro (1st, 12.9'')
iPad Pro (1st, 9.7'')
iPad (5th generation)
iPad Pro (2nd, 10.5''/12.9'')
iPad (6th generation)
iPad Pro (3rd, 11"/12.9")
iPad Air (3rd generation)
iPad Mini (5th generation)
iPad (7th generation)
iPad Pro (4th, 11"/12.9")
iPad (8th generation)
iPad Air (4th generation)
iPad Pro (5th, 11"/12.9")

If I tell you that I have the iPAD Pro you are imediatelly going to ask me: which one?

It could be the the 9.7 ", released in 2016.

It could be the 10.5 " released in 2017. So you need to say: iPAD Pro 10.5.

If it's the 10.5 or 9.7 that is going to be easy, because Apple only released one with these sizes.

It's a lot more confusing if we are talking about the iPAD Pro 11" and 12.9".

We have an iPAD Pro 11" released in 2020.

Then another iPAD Pro 11" from 2021.

So you have to add: iPAD Pro 11" 2020 or iPAD Pro 11" 2021.

You always have to make a distinction based on the year, and screen size.

Just saying you own the iPAD Pro 12.9" is not enough:

iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2015
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2017
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2021

Now, you may be asking: why is this in any way important?

Because you can't find easily a video or even said iPADs in search engines, for reviews or buying, them or specific accessories.

Imagine if it was the other way around, and Apple decided to drop the "PRO" and did something like this, regardless of year or screen size:

iPAD Max
iPAD Dragon
iPAD Prodigy
iPAD Brave
iPAD Excelsior
iPAD Nebula
iPAD Saber
iPAD Enterprise
iPAD Defiant
iPAD Indus
iPAD Rigel

Whatever name you can think of. Be creative. A catchy one. So when we talk about a new iPAD Pro we don't have to always specify the screen size, year it was released and generation.

I realize some people think it's cool to differentiate between the iPAD Mini, Air, regular and Pros.

I am not against that idea. In fact I am all for it. All I am saying is that I am tired of dozens of different iPADs all with the same "PRO" attached to them and you always have to specify which one you are talking about.

Let's assume for a second the iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018 was actually called "iPAD Castor".

Well, back in 2018 Apple released two devices: the iPAD Pros 11 and 12.9.

If you happen to own the 11" model then you need to inform this here:

iPAD Pro 11" from 2018, 3rd generation
or
iPAD Pro 12.9" from 2018, 3rd generation

Now what if all 2018 releases (which are PRO) were named iPAD Castor...

Then I would easily find iPAD CASTOR everywhere I searched for, and wouldn't have to be more specific.

When we talk about the iPhone 8 we aren't talking about the iPhone XR.

When it comes to "iPAD Pros" I can't say the same.
The 11" Pro is only on the 3rd generation. The 12" is on the 5th generation.
 
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subjonas

macrumors 603
Feb 10, 2014
6,265
6,742
Yeah iPad Pro naming convention is pretty consistent with other Apple product lines. It’s the iPhone that is unique in still using the counting number system alone. Other products use it sometimes or otherwise go by “Nth generation” or “year released”. That’s more where there seems to be inconsistency. Some products go by one, some the other, and for some Apple isn’t totally clear how they number them (eg. they’ll just say “new iPad Air”), so people choose whatever naming convention. I think after 4 generations, all products across the board should go by year released, like Macs.
 

Branaghan

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 3, 2019
195
61
Good lord... the stuff people will write multi paragraph diatribe complaints about
Explaining a few arguments from this thread with memes...

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*****
Ivs0Cjv.jpg


TELAFINAL.jpg
 
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cupcakes2000

macrumors 601
Apr 13, 2010
4,037
5,429
But that's exactly the issue here.

We aren't calling each new iPAD Pro by numbers anymore.

We are doing this for iPAD Air. Each number meaning a different generation.

iPad Air
iPad Air 2
iPad Air (3rd generation)
iPad Air (4th generation)

If I tell you that I own the iPAD Air 3 (or 3rd gen) then there's no way you would confuse this specific model with the 4th released a year later.

The same can be said about all the MINI line.

iPad Mini
iPad Mini 2
iPad Mini 3
iPad Mini 4
iPad Mini (5th generation)

1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. Apple does the same with iPhones. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, SE, etc. The only confusion here is knowing you are talking about iPhone SE 1st gen or 2nd gen, because no one in this forum would label iPhone SE 2.0 or 2. Most likely you would name it iPhone SE 2016 or iPhone SE 2020.

The problem with the iPAD Pros is that not only you have to specify which size you are talking about (or color) to find a specific review, you also have to know the release date.

You could argue there are multiple Windows versions for every one of them.

  • Windows 10 Home
  • Windows 10 Pro
  • Windows 10 Pro for Workstations
  • Windows 10 Pro Education
  • Windows 10 Enterprise
  • Windows 10 Enterprise LTSC (formerly LTSB)
  • Windows 10 Education
  • Windows 10 IoT Core
  • Windows 10 IoT Enterprise
Or 32, 64 bit. Yet if I tell you that I am using the Firefox browser you immediately know it's Firefox and not Chrome browser. If I talk about Windows 95 then it doesn't matter if it's Windows 95 SP1 or Windows 98 SE.

Well, it does matter, of course, if you are not looking for a review from Win98 SE.

My point is that not having a fancy name for a new iPAD that is the best of the best automatically makes all Pros look the same.

Let's say I own the iPAD Pro 10.5 (which is unique, so it doesn't fit my complaint, so if I tell you IPP 10.5 then this can only mean it was released in 2017).

If I wanted to find out if the iPAD Pro 12.9 would be a good idea then look what Youtube would return me in the search results:

(Remember we have 5 iPAD Pros with the same size, the only difference is the release date in the keywords):

iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2015
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2017
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2021

X1.png


X2.png

Wait, wait, wait... one of those videos is talking about iPAD Pro 11 vs. 12.9. Which one? There are multiple IPPs with 11 or 12.9". Are all of them the same? No!

Then another is talking about iPAD Pro 12.9 from 2020.

If Apple releases every year (or every 2 years) the same stuff with the same name, what if the difference between the:

iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020

Is insignificant... then I wouldn't buy.

Yet if iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020 represents a major release with 5G, 4K screen, OLED, 2 TB, 16 GB of RAM, etc. etc.

How is Apple going to warn us by replicating the same tired name for that line?

I could easily tell you that iPAD Mini 1 is bad. So was/is iPAD 1 (or 1st gen). When you tell a number people associate with the device being old. Of course iPhone users know which number (model) they got.

I always remember my father bought the old iPhone 5. And my mother one iPAD 4 with 16 GB. What I can't remember is if

iPad Pro 11'' from 2018

was way worse than:

iPad Pro 11'' from 2020

or if the 2020 model is in any way different than

iPad Pro 11'' from 2021

We tend to not associate differences based on the year these devices were released. Windows XP, despite having a 2001 release date, was used for over a decade, even though we had newer Windows versions.

What we always remember are:

- Numbers
- Odd names

So if I told you:

iPad Pro 11'' from 2020 was actually iPAD Nightingale...

And iPad Pro 11'' from 2021 was actually iPAD M1 (and not iPAD Pro 2021 78th generation using the M1 chip)...

You would immediately associate iPAD M1 as something revolutionary Apple has just released, so would just type iPAD M1 and get proper results in Youtube and any other website.

I am not implying it gets tiring to type iPAD Pro 2020 or iPAD Pro 11 2018.

I am explaining this is a bad strategy unless all you plan to do is to not differentiate enough (so users are more prone to ditch their old devices).

Trust me when I say eBay-like websites and search engines don't like very much when you just type iPAD Pro 2018.

You may end up seeing a 2018 review date, not that specific model released in 2018. That's why I am in favor of dropping the years, and instead using numbers or something else besides "Pro".
it doesn’t matter how many paragraphs you write about it, it doesn’t get any simpler than this. Imagine I wanted an large iPad Pro and looked on eBay

iPad Pro 12.9 2015
iPad Pro 12.9 2017
iPad Pro 12.9 2018
iPad Pro 12.9 2020
iPad Pro 12.9 2021

Everything is completely obvious and completely clear.
 

Xak444

macrumors regular
Feb 9, 2021
138
151
the real problem for the iPad is that it should just go by the year and if it’s an air, regular, or a pro. But Apple didn’t really think it through and called one the iPad 2 and so now it’s gotten a little confusing. It should just be the 2022 iPad Pro or whatever. I don’t think a random name would help tho. That would just add confusion. Especially now.
 
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Branaghan

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 3, 2019
195
61
it doesn’t matter how many paragraphs you write about it, it doesn’t get any simpler than this. Imagine I wanted an large iPad Pro and looked on eBay

iPad Pro 12.9 2015
iPad Pro 12.9 2017
iPad Pro 12.9 2018
iPad Pro 12.9 2020
iPad Pro 12.9 2021

Everything is completely obvious and completely clear.
It's obvious for intelligent folks like us that have been using Apple products for many years, and perhaps even buying every new release. It's not always clear when you are looking for a specific device and the search engines confuse the year it was built or the year the review was published or the reviewer forgets to specify the year and generation.

Frankly I am tired of seeing this confusion everywhere I go.

And even if there was no confusion at all in 100% of the internet I would be unable to tell anything particular about some iPAD model based on the year it was released for the public.

Ask me any question about the iPhones 4, 5, 6, or the iPAD 2. I'll be able to tell you. Not about the "Pro" line which every year has a few changes (some significant), but can't impart that to new customers because they all look the same.

I can tell you what changed between Windows 95 and Windows 10. Can you tell me what really did between:

iPad Pro 12.9 2015

and

iPad Pro 12.9 2018? You can't.

At least change the name for every major release. Like it is for iOS:

iOS 13.1, 13.2, 13.3, etc.

Then a major one: iOS 14. There's a logic behind this. Why not apply the same for tablets?

Anyway, my point is that naming 300 devices as "Pros" for most people means:

- They are all from the best line! Which is a valid point. The Pros are not to be confused with the Air or Mini.

But at the same time you can't immediately tell that release meant something.

Based on that logic I also prefer digital clocks over analog ones.

I know how to read this clock:

XXA1.png


LOL. We all do ever since we were a few years old. That's not the point.

Instead, think about it: the digital one we can at a glance tell the time in 0.1 second, while with analog clocks take a little extra time to read and process.

This is a digital clock:

XX1.png


They are both telling me what time is, yet one is no doubt better than the other if you want to quickly verify that.

So let's say you are selling me clocks with different designs and names, one looks like an hourglass, the other is in the shape of a pyramid...

Why does that matter if they are all analog?

Selling all iPAD Pros and only making a distinction based on generation (instead of plain and simple numbers) and release date is confusing in the end.

This is also a bad idea because some specific accessories can't work in a few of them. So the smart cover for the iPAD Pro 2018 will not fit in the 2020 one.

The fact the iPAD Pro 11" was released in 2019, 2020 and then 2021 doesn't mean the newer devices are better. In another post I mentioned about Windows XP. It was released in 2001 and over the years M$ released new and apparently better versions which didn't had the same appeal, the fact people continued using XP meant the new stuff wasn't so great when compared.

How are you going to compare:

iPAD Pro
vs.
iPAD Pro

The more specific you have to be, the less patience you'll have to do a search. And chances are you are not going to quickly find what you are looking for, or even if you find a review from the:

iPad Pro 12.9 2018

It isn't going to tell you how it compares against the 2019 or 2020 models. If Apple had used any other name instead of PRO we would all know about it, instantly.

The same way I do know the iPAD 4 is radically different from the iPAD Pro 10.5.
 
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cupcakes2000

macrumors 601
Apr 13, 2010
4,037
5,429
It's obvious for intelligent folks like us that have been using Apple products for many years, and perhaps even buying every new release. It's not always clear when you are looking for a specific device and the search engines confuse the year it was built or the year the review was published or the reviewer forgets to specify the year and generation.

Frankly I am tired of seeing this confusion everywhere I go.

And even if there was no confusion at all in 100% of the internet I would be unable to tell anything particular about some iPAD model based on the year it was released for the public.

Ask me any question about the iPhones 4, 5, 6, or the iPAD 2. I'll be able to tell you. Not about the "Pro" line which every year has a few changes (some significant), but can't impart that to new customers because they all look the same.

I can tell you what changed between Windows 95 and Windows 10. Can you tell me what really did between:

iPad Pro 12.9 2015

and

iPad Pro 12.9 2018? You can't.

At least change the name for every major release. Like it is for iOS:

iOS 13.1, 13.2, 13.3, etc.

Then a major one: iOS 14. There's a logic behind this. Why not apply the same for tablets?

Anyway, my point is that naming 300 devices as "Pros" for most people means:

- They are all from the best line! Which is a valid point. The Pros are not to be confused with the Air or Mini.

But at the same time you can't immediately tell that release meant something.

Based on that logic I also prefer digital clocks over analog ones.

I know how to read this clock:

XXA1.png


LOL. We all do ever since we were a few years old. That's not the point.

Instead, think about it: the digital one we can at a glance tell the time in 0.1 second, while with analog clocks take a little extra time to read and process.

This is a digital clock:

XX1.png


They are both telling me what time is, yet one is no doubt better than the other if you want to quickly verify that.

So let's say you are selling me clocks with different designs and names, one looks like an hourglass, the other is in the shape of a pyramid...

Why does that matter if they are all analog?

Selling all iPAD Pros and only making a distinction based on generation (instead of plain and simple numbers) and release date is confusing in the end.

This is also a bad idea because some specific accessories can't work in a few of them. So the smart cover for the iPAD Pro 2018 will not fit in the 2020 one.

The fact the iPAD Pro 11" was released in 2019, 2020 and then 2021 doesn't mean the newer devices are better. In another post I mentioned about Windows XP. It was released in 2001 and over the years M$ released new and apparently better versions which didn't had the same appeal, the fact people continued using XP meant the new stuff wasn't so great when compared.

How are you going to compare:

iPAD Pro
vs.
iPAD Pro

The more specific you have to be, the less patience you'll have to do a search. And chances are you are not going to quickly find what you are looking for, or even if you find a review from the:

iPad Pro 12.9 2018

It isn't going to tell you how it compares against the 2019 or 2020 models. If Apple had used any other name instead of PRO we would all know about it, instantly.

The same way I do know the iPAD 4 is radically different from the iPAD Pro 10.5.
Dunno what on earth you’re waffling on about now. Night mate.
 

Luposian

macrumors 6502
Apr 10, 2005
389
258
Simple solution... simply buy the latest "Pro" model of the current year. Don't look for older models of previous years. Want a new iPad Pro? Get the 2021 model (or 2022, '23, etc.). End of story. That's how I roll. I only research older models and different specs, when I'm trying to sell my older stuff, to make sure I describe it accurately.
 

Branaghan

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 3, 2019
195
61
I dunno, what's being suggested by OP seems worse to me.

If I was in the market for a used iPad pro I would have no idea what year an iPad Max, Dragon, Prodigy, Brave, Excelsior, Nebula, Saber, Enterprise, Defiant, Indus, or Rigel was made. I'd have to memorize all of that or repeatedly look it up just to have a better idea of a device's age and remaining service life. In the end the inclusion of production year designation in descriptions of products would be necessary I would think, at which point what's the point of having creative model names?
Apple could add all those names into the Pro line.

They already do this with the iPhone:

iPhone 12
iPhone 12 Pro
iPhone 12 Mini
iPhone 12 Pro Max

So why not:

iPAD Pro [insert some star name here]

Instead of all this crap about

iPAD Pro 11" 2094 159th generation

Nobody cares about the year and generation.

What customers care about is knowing if the iPhone 6 is way worse than the iPhone 7.

To make matters worse Apple (after the iPAD 4) decided to release 3 lines:

- Pro
- Basic (not called that - they just name it "iPAD")
- Air

What all of this means? I bet 9 of 10 Apple customers can't tell the difference between the cheaper/regular iPAD and Air.

So drop the #2 and just leave Air and Pro.

Then next time you release a new iPAD you put some good name and we will all remember that.

I am going to call the new iPAD Pro 2021 "iPAD M1".

It's iPAD M1 to me, I refuse to mention the year or generation.

No one here knows anything about all these generations. If you can't tell the difference between all these models:

iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2015
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2017
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2021

Then Apple is clearly failing in their marketing strategy. Why not call this one "iPAD M1", then the next one iPAD Enterprise, and so on?

I am sorry but my patience is very limited when I have to do some research and end up reading a review that may have been published in 2021 (and that also includes Youtube) doesn't tell me it's from a recent Pro.

Even though I explicitly asked for a iPad Pro 12.9'' 2018 review Youtube suggests a 2018 review from the iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2017.

All of this could be avoided if Apple decided to repeat what they do for the iPhones:

iPad 12
iPad 12 Pro
iPad 12 Mini
iPad 12 Pro Max
 

usagora

macrumors 601
Nov 17, 2017
4,869
4,456
exactly. Cars have been differentiated by model year since the beginning and it works. If I need brake pads for my Tacoma I basically need to know the model, year.

So, why isn't that good enough for iPhone? Why do they get a number as part of their name whereas everything else in Apple's product lineup doesn't?
 

kmoreau48

macrumors regular
Nov 3, 2012
130
65
They already do this with the iPhone:

iPhone 12
iPhone 12 Pro
iPhone 12 Mini
iPhone 12 Pro Max
You do realize that for the iPad the only difference is that the 12 is actually 2020 and the size is actually written instead of being hidden behind a word like "Pro", "Mini" or "Pro Max"

Lets compare the names
iPhone SE = iPad
iPhone 12 = iPad Air
iPhone 12 Pro = iPad Pro 11 2020
iPhone 12 mini = iPad mini
iPhone 12 Pro Max = iPad Pro 12.9 2020

So the 12 in the iPhone is the same as the 2020 in the iPad, it's a way to know if you have the latest or where you stand in the evolution of the device.

Then for the iPhone you have no idea how big the phone is, for all it's worth the pro max might be 3 inches? 5 inches? 10.7 inches? how do I know? I have to look it up. While with the iPad I know it by looking at the name.

In the end I believe the iPad Pro is the one that give the most information without the user having to look it up.
Pro = powerful
11 or 12.9 = size
2020 = when it was release

Do you know what year the iPhone 7 was released on the top of your head? most people would have to look it up while with the iPad you don't need to.

The problem is not with how apple is naming their iPad Pro line up, nut with all the reviewers / youtubers / sellers not being accurate in their descriptions. It's like when people were calling the Apple watch the "iWatch"

Blame the right people who make it confusing for everyone else. The way Apple is doing it is completely fine.
 

ouimetnick

macrumors 68040
Aug 28, 2008
3,552
6,345
Beverly, Massachusetts
Back before 2009, when Apple used the word Pro, it meant Professional. Professional products were more
Powerful and capable than their consumer counterparts. For example MacBook Pro shipped with a batter display, faster processor options, DISCRETE graphics, larger storage options, etc. Then in June 2009 Phill Schiller redefined Apples definition of Pro. It basically meant any laptop with an aluminum enclosure, SD card slot, and backlit keyboard. Now Pro just means expensive. Their is nothing professional about AirPods Pro for example or iPad “Pro”

Back in the day of Macintosh before Phil changed Apple’s definition, Pro machines would run professional software better than consumer products, and were actually used by professionals.

Besides a better screen and 2 extra speakers and FaceID (who cares) what does an $2400 iPad Pro do that a $329 iPad can not do? The TOTL iPad Pro is $2070 more expensive but runs the exact same OS and has the same limitations. Why can’t a $2400 iPad “Pro” export an iMovie project in the background but a $899 MacBook Air can???

Why does a MacBook Air do more?
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,921
13,271
Do you know what year the iPhone 7 was released on the top of your head? most people would have to look it up while with the iPad you don't need to.

The problem is not with how apple is naming their iPad Pro line up, nut with all the reviewers / youtubers / sellers not being accurate in their descriptions. It's like when people were calling the Apple watch the "iWatch"

Blame the right people who make it confusing for everyone else. The way Apple is doing it is completely fine.

2016. ;) I absolutely suck at remembering people's names and faces but I've pretty much got iPhone and iPad models and release years memorized. :p

Technically though, Apple uses iPad Pro 12.9-inch (5th generation) and iPad Pro 11-inch (3rd generation) for the 2021 iPad Pros. I actually think referring to them by year like with Macs and cars is less confusing.
 

LogicalApex

macrumors 65816
Nov 13, 2015
1,472
2,330
PA, USA
Back before 2009, when Apple used the word Pro, it meant Professional. Professional products were more
Powerful and capable than their consumer counterparts. For example MacBook Pro shipped with a batter display, faster processor options, DISCRETE graphics, larger storage options, etc. Then in June 2009 Phill Schiller redefined Apples definition of Pro. It basically meant any laptop with an aluminum enclosure, SD card slot, and backlit keyboard. Now Pro just means expensive. Their is nothing professional about AirPods Pro for example or iPad “Pro”

Back in the day of Macintosh before Phil changed Apple’s definition, Pro machines would run professional software better than consumer products, and were actually used by professionals.

Besides a better screen and 2 extra speakers and FaceID (who cares) what does an $2400 iPad Pro do that a $329 iPad can not do? The TOTL iPad Pro is $2070 more expensive but runs the exact same OS and has the same limitations. Why can’t a $2400 iPad “Pro” export an iMovie project in the background but a $899 MacBook Air can???

Why does a MacBook Air do more?
I'd also wager that a lot of the complexity now is the massive shift in the computing market overall. Back before 2009 it was very easy to define what a "professional" product meant. It meant two basic things... Expensive and high spec'ed as that's what a professional needs. Similar to buying a "commercial" drill or a "consumer" one. One is spec'd and priced higher to endure the additional wear.

Apple's Pro line still does produce professional products, but we have a much much more varied workflow and what makes a professional in the modern era of computing. A professional YouTuber like MKB can, and probably does, shoot his videos on an iPhone or an iPad. A serious professional digital painter or photographer may very well create and edit on an iPad Pro and absolutely need the extra performance it offers over the iPad Air. The same is also true in computing where a MacBook Pro might be used by a professional musician to record and produce music, but the performance of that machine wouldn't even begin to count as Pro for the professional 3D artist working on the next Pixar film whose needs are met by the Mac Pro. All of these devices can also be used by basic consumers who buy far more than they need to as well. Just like anything else.

I think it is important to stop reading too much into the label a company attaches to the tool and evaluate the tool on its own merit for the job you need done. The Pro devices are still Pro level even if the "professional" any one is intended for isn't the "professional" you think should be catered to.
 

barry.pearson

macrumors member
Jan 26, 2016
86
29
England
I think having a unique name after the iPad is much more confusing. That is fine if it's a product that doesn't see regular updates, such as a console. Most people can remember the Sega Master System, then Mega Drive, then Saturn and the Dreamcast - Those names cover 13 years of product lines.

When I'm searching for an iPad, especially to buy one, I'm never going to write iPad Pro. I'm going to specify which iPad I'm after so I would often write 2018 iPad Pro 12.9 128GB LTE Silver for example. That's not even because I'm a bit more "techie" than most consumers. Both my parents who know nothing of iPads still managed to buy the iPads they wanted by writing something along the lines of 2019 iPad 64GB. Now they just knew the basics, they wanted a new iPad and I'd previously told them that they would be fine with 64GB. They don't even know what 64GB is.

As for individual names, I've been a macOS user for about 17 years now, and I would struggle to tell you the order that macOS/OS X releases were named (yeah, I know they're also numbered 10.1, 10.2 ... etc).

I've only used Windows for on and off for short periods of time, however I can tell you all of their home releases in that time period since they're usually numbered:
  • Windows XP
  • Windows Vista
  • Windows 7
  • Windows 8
  • Windows 8.1
  • Windows 10
Even with newer versions of Windows 10, it's easy to understand the version you're running and how new it is as it's essentially the month and year. For example:
  • Windows 1809 (September 2018) - older
  • Windows 1903 (May 2019) - newer
Just a couple of digits can convey a lot of information, much more than the same number of letters typically can (at least without becoming cryptic).
 
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Branaghan

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 3, 2019
195
61
I think having a unique name after the iPad is much more confusing. That is fine if it's a product that doesn't see regular updates, such as a console. Most people can remember the Sega Master System, then Mega Drive, then Saturn and the Dreamcast - Those names cover 13 years of product lines.
Naming the line "Pro" is not a stupid idea. It's absolutely required, otherwise anyone would confuse the cheaper iPAD lacking lots of features with the Pros.

When I make all these suggestions I not only talk about the fanboys which have owned tons of Apple products. I am mentioning the new customers or people like me which would benefit from an unique name even if it has the "Pro" attached to it that would make it easier to identify among 378 others.

If anyone here talks about videogame consoles in gaming communities I bet 1% will know which generation a specific product came from. For example: the Super NES is from the 4th:

It's not important to know, for instance, the first Sony PlayStation console was released in 1994/1995 or the PS One revision came in the year 2000. When we talk about the PS1 we don't attach SCPH-1001 or SCPH-9001 into the name (for a quick search, that's what I mean).

We may be looking for all that, but what it matters in the end is if we are talking about the PS1 and not PS4, or the old Dreamcast.

The screen size is never going to be a major difference between the iPADs, because there are other companies offering similar products.

When you look for a tablet you are concerned if the name attached to it conveys something (and which company is behind it, of course) that means it's a top product with a combination of features that make it better among similar models.

That's how I can tell you the iPhone 4 is inferior to the iPhone 11.

So if I tell you "PlayStation" you know this is one of the best-selling videogames of all time because it had a massive library, good graphics, etc. which Atari Jaguar lacked.

At the same time if I tell you that I own an iPAD Pro you will have to ask me what screen size the device has, in an attempt to first check if it's an old model such as the IPP 9.7 from 2016 or the 10.5" from 2017.

If it happens to be the IPP 11" or 12.9" then it could be multiple ones, so I have to add the year.

iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2015
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2017
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2021

The problem here is that telling you it's from the year 2018 or 2020 doesn't mean anything, that if it's from 2018 instead of 2020 then it's useless, garbage.

While stuff that came in 2021/a few years later is miles better.

How would you know, if you only had this information about it?

iPad Pro 12.9'' 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' 2020

Knowing the year means nothing. At least to me.

When you buy a tablet it is supposed to last MANY YEARS, not to be replaced so quickly.

That's why I mentioned Windows XP. It was released in 2001 and was the most widely used operating system until August 2012 (remember Windows Vista and Windows 7 were released in 2007/2009).

If I replace "Windows XP" with "Windows 2001" or "Windows 5.1" no one will know I am mentioning XP.

Sometimes even if you attribute numbers to relevant releases it may be a bad idea. I stopped investing in videogames more than a decade ago (I only care about PCs). Yet even I know the PS3 was way different than my old PS2 and the same for the PS4 compared to what came before. But I doubt the PS5 is much different from the PS4. Meaning just naming it "PlayStation" has not drawn my attention, the name has been worn out.

Repeating the same name over and over is not a good marketing strategy.

Insisting in naming it "PLAYSTATION" suggests to me Sony is not being original. A few decades ago it was really common to use these odd names. Today it sounds ridiculous, for whatever reason...

When you say all iPAD Pros are... Pros! and nothing specific such as "iPAD Pro 4K" (even the Apple TV had that, that's why I know I am better buying the 5th gen from 2017 and not what came before - note how the insertion of "4K" was perfect and made me realize this is an improvement over the past releases) then you are implying (even if that was not your intention) that all of them are the same.

Like I said: if Apple makes major changes such as adding 5G, 2 TB of space, 16 GB of RAM, better battery, etc. much better CPU/GPU, OLED, etc.

Then it has to put a new name attached to it. If the changes are small then I would propose they name it like this:

iPAD Pro 1st gen
iPAD Pro 2nd gen
iPAD Pro 3rd gen
iPAD Pro 4th gen

Such as we do when we release iOS 14.0, 14.1, 14.2, 14.3

And then iPAD M1 or anything else like iPAD Max or iPAD Pro Max to make you forget everything that came before.

When Apple makes a significant release (iOS 15) then it's way different from 14.X. You may have tons of 14.X releases, with few changes/fixes. That's to be expected.

So if they release something with a new name we could tell it's a departure from past releases.

We could easily find in all search engines.

Naming it Pro again is in the eyes of customers as effective as saying this can be compared to an old IPP 9.7 from 2016. I am not implying we are all dumb and would be easily fooled by a mere change in a product's name.

I am saying it's a mistake to insist in calling twins by the same name. On the surface they may look the same, inside and if you follow their lives they are totally different. Two human beings.

You wouldn't call one "Michael 11:05 AM" and the other "Michael 11:09 AM", would you?

When you look for a new monitor the first thing the store tells you it's what is the intended use:

Gaming ? 5K/4K/2K ? Curved ? UltraWide ? Thunderbolt ? Portable ?

Then in a monitor page you read stuff like that:

************
[COMPANY'S NAME] FV43U 43" QLED UHD 4K 3840 x 2160 144Hz 1ms (MPRT) FreeSync Premium Pro, 1 x Display Port 1.4, 2 x HDMI 2.1, 2 x USB 3.0, KVM w/ USB Type-C Gaming Monitor
************

Knowing it's the number 4 release from Samsung doesn't tell me anything, if it's good or bad. What I need to know isn't there in the title.

Knowing it has been released in 2021 is also useless information, because crap is released every year, such as the basic iPADs. For example: a 4K monitor with a 60 Hz refresh rate against another 4K with 120 Hz.

Of course if I call both 60 and 120 Hz monitors "Pros" I am scamming the customers.

Don't you think this is the case?

Even worse is to call the regular iPAD as "iPAD 2020" or "iPAD 5th generation" while at the same time releasing the Air and Pro Lines which also make use of the "2nd/3rd/etc. generation" and year.

If the "BASIC" iPAD and the Air are both lacking stuff which the best iPAD has, then why release the BASIC + Air?

From a marketing standpoint everything I said makes sense.
 
Last edited:

muzzy996

macrumors 65816
Feb 16, 2018
1,119
1,067
So, why isn't that good enough for iPhone? Why do they get a number as part of their name whereas everything else in Apple's product lineup doesn't?
My guess is it’s because Apple wants to feed the yearly upgrade craving of some consumers by incrementing the device name directly. iPads are upgraded less frequently on average. As has been stated, on the ipads there’s generation or year designations in place of the incrementing model numbers of the iphone but the fact remains that there is distinction between ipad product lines and increments in some way in how they are referred to despite not necessarily having a number in their direct name.
 

DreamPod

macrumors 65816
Mar 15, 2008
1,265
188
I don't see the issue. You only need to know the year of your iPad Pro, it's obvious to everybody, even people who know nothing about Apple, that a newer year will be the newer, better device since it's still the "Pro". And knowing the year it's very easy to google it and it'll tell you everything you need to know. That's much more understandable than giving it some name - tell someone they should get the iPad Pro Chamomile and they'll know nothing about it whatsoever without googling it. Tell them they should get the smaller iPad Pro 2021, well that's obviously the newest one.

Sure, there are two models every generation, but only two, a bigger one and a smaller one, and the rest of the specs almost never matter between the two, I think this is the first generation with a major difference between the sizes, with the different screens.
 

barry.pearson

macrumors member
Jan 26, 2016
86
29
England
Naming the line "Pro" is not a stupid idea. It's absolutely required, otherwise anyone would confuse the cheaper iPAD lacking lots of features with the Pros.

When I make all these suggestions I not only talk about the fanboys which have owned tons of Apple products. I am mentioning the new customers or people like me which would benefit from an unique name even if it has the "Pro" attached to it that would make it easier to identify among 378 others.

If anyone here talks about videogame consoles in gaming communities I bet 1% will know which generation a specific product came from. For example: the Super NES is from the 4th:

It's not important to know, for instance, the first Sony PlayStation console was released in 1994/1995 or the PS One revision came in the year 2000. When we talk about the PS1 we don't attach SCPH-1001 or SCPH-9001 into the name (for a quick search, that's what I mean).

We may be looking for all that, but what it matters in the end is if we are talking about the PS1 and not PS4, or the old Dreamcast.

The screen size is never going to be a major difference between the iPADs, because there are other companies offering similar products.

When you look for a tablet you are concerned if the name attached to it conveys something (and which company is behind it, of course) that means it's a top product with a combination of features that make it better among similar models.

That's how I can tell you the iPhone 4 is inferior to the iPhone 11.

So if I tell you "PlayStation" you know this is one of the best-selling videogames of all time because it had a massive library, good graphics, etc. which Atari Jaguar lacked.

At the same time if I tell you that I own an iPAD Pro you will have to ask me what screen size the device has, in an attempt to first check if it's an old model such as the IPP 9.7 from 2016 or the 10.5" from 2017.

If it happens to be the IPP 11" or 12.9" then it could be multiple ones, so I have to add the year.

iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2015
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2017
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2020
iPad Pro 12.9'' from 2021

The problem here is that telling you it's from the year 2018 or 2020 doesn't mean anything, that if it's from 2018 instead of 2020 then it's useless, garbage.

While stuff that came in 2021/a few years later is miles better.

How would you know, if you only had this information about it?

iPad Pro 12.9'' 2018
iPad Pro 12.9'' 2020

Knowing the year means nothing. At least to me.

When you buy a tablet it is supposed to last MANY YEARS, not to be replaced so quickly.

That's why I mentioned Windows XP. It was released in 2001 and was the most widely used operating system until August 2012 (remember Windows Vista and Windows 7 were released in 2007/2009).

If I replace "Windows XP" with "Windows 2001" or "Windows 5.1" no one will know I am mentioning XP.

Sometimes even if you attribute numbers to relevant releases it may be a bad idea. I stopped investing in videogames more than a decade ago (I only care about PCs). Yet even I know the PS3 was way different than my old PS2 and the same for the PS4 compared to what came before. But I doubt the PS5 is much different from the PS4. Meaning just naming it "PlayStation" has not drawn my attention, the name has been worn out.

Repeating the same name over and over is not a good marketing strategy.

Insisting in naming it "PLAYSTATION" suggests to me Sony is not being original. A few decades ago it was really common to use these odd names. Today it sounds ridiculous, for whatever reason...

When you say all iPAD Pros are... Pros! and nothing specific such as "iPAD Pro 4K" (even the Apple TV had that, that's why I know I am better buying the 5th gen from 2017 and not what came before - note how the insertion of "4K" was perfect and made me realize this is an improvement over the past releases) then you are implying (even if that was not your intention) that all of them are the same.

Like I said: if Apple makes major changes such as adding 5G, 2 TB of space, 16 GB of RAM, better battery, etc. much better CPU/GPU, OLED, etc.

Then it has to put a new name attached to it. If the changes are small then I would propose they name it like this:

iPAD Pro 1st gen
iPAD Pro 2nd gen
iPAD Pro 3rd gen
iPAD Pro 4th gen

Such as we do when we release iOS 14.0, 14.1, 14.2, 14.3

And then iPAD M1 or anything else like iPAD Max or iPAD Pro Max to make you forget everything that came before.

When Apple makes a significant release (iOS 15) then it's way different from 14.X. You may have tons of 14.X releases, with few changes/fixes. That's to be expected.

So if they release something with a new name we could tell it's a departure from past releases.

We could easily find in all search engines.

Naming it Pro again is in the eyes of customers as effective as saying this can be compared to an old IPP 9.7 from 2016. I am not implying we are all dumb and would be easily fooled by a mere change in a product's name.

I am saying it's a mistake to insist in calling twins by the same name. On the surface they may look the same, inside and if you follow their lives they are totally different. Two human beings.

You wouldn't call one "Michael 11:05 AM" and the other "Michael 11:09 AM", would you?

When you look for a new monitor the first thing the store tells you it's what is the intended use:

Gaming ? 5K/4K/2K ? Curved ? UltraWide ? Thunderbolt ? Portable ?

Then in a monitor page you read stuff like that:

************
[COMPANY'S NAME] FV43U 43" QLED UHD 4K 3840 x 2160 144Hz 1ms (MPRT) FreeSync Premium Pro, 1 x Display Port 1.4, 2 x HDMI 2.1, 2 x USB 3.0, KVM w/ USB Type-C Gaming Monitor
************

Knowing it's the number 4 release from Samsung doesn't tell me anything, if it's good or bad. What I need to know isn't there in the title.

Knowing it has been released in 2021 is also useless information, because crap is released every year, such as the basic iPADs. For example: a 4K monitor with a 60 Hz refresh rate against another 4K with 120 Hz.

Of course if I call both 60 and 120 Hz monitors "Pros" I am scamming the customers.

Don't you think this is the case?

Even worse is to call the regular iPAD as "iPAD 2020" or "iPAD 5th generation" while at the same time releasing the Air and Pro Lines which also make use of the "2nd/3rd/etc. generation" and year.

If the "BASIC" iPAD and the Air are both lacking stuff which the best iPAD has, then why release the BASIC + Air?

From a marketing standpoint everything I said makes sense.
Apologies, I’ve only managed to skim this message as I’m currently commuting to work. So sorry if I mention something that you’ve addressed.

As for consoles, the reason a lot of people know which generation a particular console belongs to is because there’s typically 5-8 years between these generations. The iPads are often updated every 1-2 years (other than the poor iPad mini ?).

As with Windows, the reason someone may not know Windows XP is version 5 and Vista is version 6 is because they were never branded that way. Had they simply been called Version 5 and 6 then it would have made more sense looking back now. Perhaps a little more confusing for some people back in the day when we went from Windows 95, 98 and then down to Windows 5, 6, 7 etc. I think this is more due to changing name conventions through, I think some sports games are also often guilty of this too.

Although it’s not important to know that the PS1 was released in 1995, as again there’s only a limited number of console releases. However, as just mentioned a game series with yearly releases such as FIFA and Madden do use the year to denote which version of the title you’re looking at. If they were called FIFA Scorer and FIFA Striker then it becomes much more difficult to determine which is the newer title. Especially when looking back through almost three decades of titles.


I would argue that for a lot of people the screen size is important to know, so describing an iPad as “iPad Pro 12.9 2021” is common with most iPads.

When looking for a new iPad screen size is typically my first choice. “Do I want a 11” or a 12.9” iPad Pro?” This will then be followed by which capacity and connectivity options I’m looking for.

As mentioned earlier, my parents don’t know much about iPads, but they will either know what size they want, or at least know they don’t want a little 7.9” iPad mini or a larger 12.9” Pro.

To them, an iPad is an iPad. Regardless of whether it’s named an iPad mini, iPad Air or iPad Pro. They’re just “iPads”.

When I had my Mac Pro, and was talking about it say on this forum, I’d always call it the 2009 Mac Pro. This way other users would at least understand which model I was talking about, they knew it was an older Intel based cheese grater design, not a trash can or newer cheese grater.

Perhaps it’s a habit with me, and that’s why I don’t see any issue with it? I mean, even now I will say I’ve got the 2020 M1 Mac mini… even know it’s the only model that exists!

I’m not against giving products names, I just think it’s difficult to do it for devices that are regularly updated. When I say updated I don’t mean replaced by a user each year, more that they get spec improvements regularly.

Again this may be my bias as it’s how I’m used to looking at Apple products, but I actually wish more companies would follow suit. Where I work I deal with a lot of computers and laptops, main from Lenovo. Their computers are simply named as their product line and part of the model number. This makes it difficult to work out which is a newer machine just at a quick glance without knowing the models.
  • Thinkcentre m710
  • Thinkcentre m720
  • Thinkcentre m900
  • Thinkcentre m70
  • Thinkcentre m93
Which model is newer or older in this list? Unless you know the models it’s really difficult to tell.
 

Lategamer

macrumors member
May 12, 2021
43
53
Just the way they do it so you have to adapt. For now, the iPhone is a bit easier in that they do them like "iPhone 12" and I can see them at some future point pulling it back to "iPhone Pro" and "iPhone Mini", but they probably get pushback from carriers on that front.
I can see them getting rid of the number.

IPhone 13 beckons bad luck. And really, is there going to be an iPhone 17? An iPhone 22?

Sounds ridiculous.
 
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