Intro

Let’s start this conversation by making it clear that I am absolutely a fan of the Apple iPad series of devices and I have owned quite a few of them since they came onto the market in 2010.  My last iPad was the 2020 M1 iPad Pro (12.9″).   I used the device heavily, every day.  I used it more than any other computing device in my stable of devices, including my laptop computers.  It’s really just hard to beat the combination of size and performance that the iPad offers.

I’ve been focused on the larger (12.9: / 13”) iPads because I need to be able to read technical documents on a regular basis and this size iPad makes it easy to properly view full 8×11 pages when I need that, or even read novels using the 2 page side-by side format.  And when it comes to reading content, it’s more convenient than on a similar-sized laptop, because I can treat it like a tablet without the keyboard.   So that’s among my primary use cases.   But web browsing, watching movies, and creating content like this article you are reading now are also ways that I utilize an iPad.

So now there’s the new M4 iPad Pro models.  In the past few weeks, I have been working with the new 13″ M4 iPad Pro model and I have to say, I like where they’ve gone with the device.  Let’s talk about a few of the improvements in context.

Watching movies and reading books…

As I mentioned, I watch a lot of movies on my iPad as well as reading a lot of books and technical documents.  The movie experience on the new M4 iPad Pro is amazing on this device compared to its predecessors.   The dual-layer OLED screen is absolutely gorgeous.  Blacks are black and the lights are brighter than ever before.   It is one of the best media viewing devices I have ever worked with.  Although some would point out that the 4:3 aspect ratio of the iPad isn’t as good as Samsung’s Tab Ultra 16:10 ratio (because it doesn’t fit wide-format movies as well), I never found that to be a big deal for me, but I wanted to point it out because it may be important for some people and how they want to use the device.   At this point, I should also point out that I’m not going to spend a lot of time on specs in this write up because this is more of an impressions document than a full-blown review.

Continuing to look at media consumption, I read a lot on my iPad – I read both novels and a lot of technical documents.  For novels I use the Kindle app and Apple Books.  Both are really excellent reading apps.  For technical documents, I use either the built-in preview or Adobe Reader for PDF documents.  In all cases, the experience is great, crisp and sharp, but I have to say, this is the first device I’ve used that I actually found it necessary to turn the brightness down when reading black lettering on a white background.  Now, to be fair, I recently went through cataract surgery, so I think everything is brighter than before, but this is beyond that.  This thing has amazing output – yeah both indoors and outdoors.  I should note, that I haven’t spent any time with the nano-texture screen, so I can’t really speak to that, but I did spend some time with it in the Apple Store and for me, those screens slightly dim and ever so slightly blurred the image and text wasn’t quite as sharp – to my old eyes.  So I encourage you to go see the difference for yourself because your mileage may vary.

So what else has been improved?….

The M4 Processor

The most obvious thing that has changed, is that the new iPad Pros are the first Apple devices using the new M4 chip set.  If I’m being honest, the difference in performance, in everyday use, isn’t all that different between the M1 and the M4 chip.  Now, having said that, we don’t know what the impact of the Apple Intelligence features coming out later this year will be yet.   The new chips are also more power efficient.  This meaning that you get similar, if not better, battery life, even though the battery size is a little smaller than before.

 

The dual-layered OLED screen

I think I’ve already mentioned that this screen is gorgeous.  It’s bright and vivid and it’s really easy for me to say it’s one of the best screens I’ve ever seen – certainly the best I’ve seen on a tablet.  There have been some reports of the whites not being quite white or there being a pattern you can see if you use a magnifying glass.  I checked this in the store and now in daily use and I’m not noticing anything like any of that at all.  I’m not saying it isn’t true, because obviously some folks have shown evidence of what they’ve seen, but I haven’t seen it and I feel like it isn’t something that was likely to impact my daily use at all.  So maybe it’s certain devices only or certain environmental circumstances that cause these things to appear, but in my working with it they haven’t.   It’s simply a great screen.  Resolution is similar to past iPad Pros, but just brighter and more vivid and I think it’s a pleasure to use.  But again, if you are sensitive to those kinds of things, I strongly suggest you go take a look at one in person at your local Apple Store or other iPad retailer.

The new Magic Keyboard

I was a big fan of the last generation Magic Keyboard.  It wasn’t perfect, but, for me, I really liked it a lot.  I’m not a fan of those keyboards that mimic the MS Surface Pro kickstand approach, because that approach can really only be properly used on a solid desktop or table, whereas the Magic Keyboard also can be used on a lap pretty easily.   Is there a drawback?  Yes.  The range of tilt is limited because of the base weight of the keyboard vs the weight of the iPad itself.  The iPad is heavier so you can’t tilt it back very far before it’s falls backward, so they limit its ability to tilt back.  This means, for some people. They can’t tilt the device as far back as they want/need.  For me it’s not an issue, but again, your mileage may vary.   The old (2020) 12.9” version of the keyboard weighed 710 grams (1.6 pounds) (compared to the 2020 iPad’s weight 641 grams (1.41 pounds)).  The new keyboard is around 660 grams and the new 13” iPad is only around 579 grams – so both are much lighter so flipping backward is almost easier to happen than before.  Again, it hasn’t caused me any problems at all, but you should check it out for yourself if you are at all concerned.

 

So size and all that aside, the new keyboard has a metallic top and the whole thing feels more rigid than its predecessor.  The trackpad has haptic feedback and is MUCH more like a MacBook trackpad.  And lastly, the keys are now a little more “clicky” with slightly more travel now.  It’s overall all a much improved experience in my opinion.  Keyboard feel is very subjective, of course, but the overall effect is a more laptop like feel to the whole thing and if you like that, then you’ll likely enjoy the new keyboard.

Camera Changes

The cameras are a little different in the new iPad Pros.  The user-facing camera has moved from the short edge to the long edge meaning that if you use a video chat like FaceTime or Zoom, you are now centered in the image and you won’t look like your staring off screen when you are chatting.   On the down side, the big news is that the wide angle lens has been removed, but the general opinion (mine included) is that people don’t take a lot of pics with the iPad so it may not be a big deal for most people.  For me it isn’t, but again, your mileage may vary.

 

The Apple Pencil Pro

There is a new flavor of the Apple Pencil – the Pro.  The big difference with this is really the new squeeze function.  In apps that support it, it provides a number of functions, but usually a mini menu.  In at least one app, Notability, the squeeze function will cause the pen function to shift from pen to eraser, and the back to pen when you release the squeeze.  So, in this app, there’s no need to double-tap the pen and switch to an eraser.  It’s really cool and it makes note taking a LOT easier since it’s easier to erase on the fly without losing your train of thought as you switch between pen(cil) / eraser.  I really like this!   Additionally, the new pencil pro has a sensor so it behaves differently when you rotate the pencil.  If you are using a supported on screen tool like a paintbrush, it will behave differently as you rotate the pen, just as a paintbrush would behave differently as you rotated it.  I haven’t used this feature very much myself, but it seems like a great addition.  These improvements have already made me use it more and more for note taking than before.

In Summary – Some Plusses

The new iPad Pro has way more plusses than minuses, compared to its predecessor, but among the biggest are, of course, the new screen and the new Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro.  The screen is brighter and more vivid than before.  The new keyboard has a more solid feel and now has a row of function keys (and includes an ESC key now).  The Apple Pencil Pro kept all the good things about its predecessor, but added an incredibly helpful “squeeze” function that can be programmed to respond in many, extremely useful ways.

In Summary – Some Minuses

The biggest minus for some people is going to be the removal of the wide-angle camera from the setup.  As I mentioned before, it doesn’t bother me, but if you depend on that, then that may be a really important, possibly unacceptable loss.   The other big negative, for some people, is going to be the price.  It’s not a cheap device.  Neither is the Magic Keyboard.  To be fair, top of the line Android devices are in almost the same price range, so the argument can be made that the pricing isn’t unreasonable, but it’s still very expensive.  If it’s too much for your pocketbook, as it will be for a lot of folks, you can definitely go with the iPad Air with most (but not all) of the same goodness, but at a more palatable price.