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emembee

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 31, 2013
330
102
Surrey,UK
I recently bought a refurb 2020 Pro 256 gig cellular as a backup to my M1 Air5 which only had 64 gig as I wanted another iPad with more space if needed and also as a backup.

Much to my surprise, the whole experience has been superior to the Air even though it is an older chip so I am now using it as my main iPad and not bothering with the M1. The sound I knew would be superior but the screen really is noticeably better, seems clearer and brighter and performance appears as fast if not faster which seems impossible but this is my experience so far. Battery life seemed poor on the Air so will monitor the Pro and see how it compares.

Anyway just thought I’d mention it as a relatively cheaper way of having the pro if you want one but at a reduced cost vs high prices of the M2.
 
I have the 1st-gen, 9.7-inch iPad Pro and the iPad Air 5. Even the first iPad Pro has advantages over the Air 5. Its speakers are far, far better (and far closer to the 11-inch iPad Pro than many might think), and performance-wise, for what I use them for, they are comparable (mine runs iOS 12, though).

I’d have no issue using my 9.7-inch iPad Pro, and I only upgraded because of battery life and the screen.

The 2020 iPad Pro is extremely close to the Air, with a better screen and better speakers. The Air, in your case, doesn’t even have the screen as an advantage. The only advantage is the chipset, and I reckon that if you use it for content consumption, you don’t need the performance.
 
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