iPad Pro First day - Thoughts

[harpyeagle]

So, got a 128G LTE (No keyboard/pencil yet) and here is what I think. YMMV.

Good:
-Immersive experience
-Big in a nice way
-Excellent speakers
-Doesn't feel heavy for the size
-Looks really good (In fact I switch it off and admired it more than a few times)
-Nice display; No visible flaws cosmetically
-Could be a Laptop replacement if browsing,movie watching,etc (basically consumption only) is all you do
-Keyboard more MAC like; Numbers/Symbols now are always present both on the same row (use shift to switch)
-Palm rejection seems to work well.

Bad:
-Touch ID not as fast as iPhone 6s+ (last generation, I think)
-Stutters sometimes (play video in safari -Ironically I was playing the iPad pro video in the apple site-, have a
few other apps open and try invoking multitasking. Once even in the lock screen)
-Coming from iPhone 6s+, feel the pinch of not having 3D Touch
-No split keyboard? Also little buggy with the magnifier not working sometimes
-Battery life not great coming from a iPad Air/iPhone 6s+. Just browsing/typing/watching few minutes of
videos last 3 hours and down by 30%
-Brightness of screen seems to be a tad less at the same settings compared to iPad Air
-Colors seem to shift a bit at the top when slightly tilted in landscape mode
-No big difference in user experience even with a big screen as iOS is same, but knew this going in

Verdict:
I think Pencil could be the key to this treasure, but regardless, I will wait for next generation for Apple to make this with better battery, 3D Touch and Touch ID -Will be returning this...not worth $1250, for me, even with the 22% discount that I get on my Discover card.

 

[AdonisSMU]

12.9" is even big for me. I love a challenge.

 

[yegon]

Yet to get mine but I know 3D Touch will feel conspicuous by its absence coming from a 6S Plus.

Not too alarmed that Touch ID is last gen though as I never had a problem with the old speed. Plus, it's not like I'm constantly locking and unlocking my iPad.

Your battery results seem surprising, general consensus from what I've read is that it's same old same old, maybe a little less than expected. Then again, I have an Air 2 which I've always felt has a lower battery life than previous iPads I've had, so the Pro's may feel normal to me now.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Well - I cancelled my order that was ready for pickup (LTE model).

Once I thought about it some more - It's just too expensive for me when the Pencil gets factored in as well

I still am disappointed that the top end model didn't have a Pencil included - Would have been a nice add-in considering the LTE option has been a complete butt rape for years now @ $129 extra - just outrageous

Perhaps a refurb 32gb wi-fi down the road or something

 

[jetjaguar]

Well - I cancelled my order that was ready for pickup (LTE model).

Once I thought about it some more - It's just too expensive for me when the Pencil gets factored in as well

I still am disappointed that the top end model didn't have a Pencil included - Would have been a nice add-in considering the LTE option has been a complete butt rape for years now @ $129 extra - just outrageous

Perhaps a refurb 32gb wi-fi down the road or something

I was dead set on getting a 128gb LTE .. but after thinking about it I think I am going to pass and stick with my air2 lte. It sucks that LTE has to be on the highest one only.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I was dead set on getting a 128gb LTE .. but after thinking about it I think I am going to pass and stick with my air2 lte. It sucks that LTE has to be on the highest one only.

Yeah. The LTE on top model only is irritating. Especially since Apple is so about "the cloud" now.

There's a really good argument to be made that the lowest storage tier makes the most sense with the mobile connection.

 

[d28z28]

Thanks for the info. To me - in my work - and my background - this iPad Pro has ONE compelling selling point - the Apple Pencil. I've been using Wacom Intuous tablets and Cintiq displays for 10 years or more and I've been waiting for Apple to come and do this with the iPad. I didn't think they actually would.

No offense to anyone obviously - this is just my opinion but I don't understand (if you're not an illustrator coming from Wacom products) why you'd necessarily freak out over the iPad Pro? I think what it looks like people are wanting to do with it (email, Netflix, web) the previous iPads are the perfect size for those things. Perfect to use in bed, travel with, etc. For me this product is ALL about the pressure sensitive pencil in great apps.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Thanks for the info. To me - in my work - and my background - this iPad Pro has ONE compelling selling point - the Apple Pencil. I've been using Wacom Intuous tablets and Cintiq displays for 10 years or more and I've waiting for Apple to come and do this with the iPad. I didn't think they actually would.

No offense to anyone obviously - this is just my opinion but I don't understand (if you're not an illustrator coming from Wacom products) why you'd necessarily freak out over the iPad Pro? I think what it looks like people are wanting to do with it (email, Netflix, web) the previous iPads are the perfect size for those things. Perfect to use in bed, travel with, etc. For me this product is ALL about the pressure sensitive pencil in great apps.

Well, I think you're being a touch narrowly focused there.

Lots and lots of things benefit from an even bigger screen than the 9.7" - But those benefits are definitely hard to justify with the price tag being such a dramatic jump up, especially if LTE is something you value on your iPads.

 

[Fancuku]

OP, it doesn't sound like you are the intended target and it looks like you bought it because you were curious and thought that it would be different than what you have.

 

[FrankySavvy]

Thanks for the info. To me - in my work - and my background - this iPad Pro has ONE compelling selling point - the Apple Pencil. I've been using Wacom Intuous tablets and Cintiq displays for 10 years or more and I've waiting for Apple to come and do this with the iPad. I didn't think they actually would.

No offense to anyone obviously - this is just my opinion but I don't understand (if you're not an illustrator coming from Wacom products) why you'd necessarily freak out over the iPad Pro? I think what it looks like people are wanting to do with it (email, Netflix, web) the previous iPads are the perfect size for those things. Perfect to use in bed, travel with, etc. For me this product is ALL about the pressure sensitive pencil in great apps.

Same here, the Apple Pencil is key for me as well. This iPad will be more of a "creation" device then "consumption".

 

[EdisEdward]

Same here, the Apple Pencil is key for me as well. This iPad will be more of a "creation" device then "consumption".

same here, although not for creating any artwork. jsut to take notes at work, make edits to pdf's etc. im hoping my work email account for office 365 works tho...if not..i will be sad

 

[Macalway]

My first impressions are very good.

 

[AdonisSMU]

I plan to use this thing to sketch apps and sites on it. Maybe write some pseudo code. I wish I could do the same thing with a regular iPad. Either way whatever. I think the regular one is big enough for my needs TBQH.

 

[tekchic]

Same here, the Apple Pencil is key for me as well. This iPad will be more of a "creation" device then "consumption".

Same here. I'm looking forward to having Procreate/Sketchbook up on the left side and my current reference art photo on the right, and sketch away. Can't believe they couldn't get the Pencil in supply on launch day. *grumpyface*

 

[harpyeagle]

OP, it doesn't sound like you are the intended target and it looks like you bought it because you were curious and thought that it would be different than what you have.

You may be right - I may not be the intended target as I am not a creator or anything, but I'd still get it as it is very cool -just not this year. I think they intentionally kept some features away from iPad pro so 6s/6s+ can have some exclusive features. I'll wait for v2 next year to make it worth spending >1.2k on this.

 

[d28z28]

Well, I think you're being a touch narrowly focused there.

Lots and lots of things benefit from an even bigger screen than the 9.7" - But those benefits are definitely hard to justify with the price tag being such a dramatic jump up, especially if LTE is something you value on your iPads.

I won't disagree that lots of things are "better" on a bigger screen, but are they SO much better that people will deal with the extra size ONLY to see Netflix or read an email a little bit bigger? I'm reading a lot of threads of people who are taking it back as a result of the size and that tells me the answer may be "no".

I got it for illustration with an Apple Pencil - i'd venture to say I didn't get it for "any" other reason - but I won't deny that I'm sure I'll enjoy those other tasks on a bigger screen, but that's absolutely not why I'm getting it.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I won't disagree that lots of things are "better" on a bigger screen, but are they SO much better that people will deal with the extra size ONLY to see Netflix or read an email a little bit bigger? I'm reading a lot of threads of people who are taking it back as a result of the size and that tells me the answer may be "no".

I have totally changed my tune in now completely agree with this.

After playing with one in the Apple Store it's just way too big for me to use it in any of the ways I've used iPads before.

I'm not even sure it should have the name it has… It should almost be like "iPad artist" or something

 

[Sandman3769]

I'm loving it. Coming off an iPad 2, this thing is lightning fast. Great video quality, and the speakers are awesome!

BTW, I have a couple of Bluetooth speakers for sale if anybody wants them.

 

[evrard]

What is this 22% discount you speak of?

 

[harpyeagle]

Discover has a promotion for new customers - 10% off for using Apple Pay in store until year end that doubles after first anniversary. They give 1% for everything on top of it which is doubled as well.

 

[AdonisSMU]

Thinking of trading up to the lte model.

 

[AntnyMikal]

I was gonna drive to Nashville and grab one, but not pencil+no deal, just hard to believe that they couldn't get the pencil in stock. I'll just sit this one out for awhile and see how it comes along I suppose. I do a lot of drawing and note taking in college so for me to get this now without a pencil is pointless, I'm just baffled that of all things the pencil is on backorder. Makes me feel like they don't really want to sell this. Oh well.

 

[nickyD410]

I was gonna drive to Nashville and grab one, but not pencil+no deal, just hard to believe that they couldn't get the pencil in stock. I'll just sit this one out for awhile and see how it comes along I suppose. I do a lot of drawing and note taking in college so for me to get this now without a pencil is pointless, I'm just baffled that of all things the pencil is on backorder. Makes me feel like they don't really want to sell this. Oh well.

I said this in another thread. I was all ready to order it when i saw the pencil was delayed until the 20th. Im going to wait till i can get both together.

 

[djeeyore25]

Here's a few impressions I have after a few hours with my iPad Pro (128gb LTE):

1. The screen is huge! Seriously huge. That sounds like a given, but until you hold it for a while you don't appreciate the screen size. The experience is much different from any other iPad I've used.
2. The speakers are really good, much better than the iPad Air. I do some music production work so four speakers is a welcome addition.
3. Some apps work better than others on the big screen. A few look stretched or empty (Facebook especially), much like using an iPhone only app on the iPad. Hopefully future updates will help.
4. Definitely the fastest iOS device I've used.
5. I'd like to see Apple allow more rows of apps per screen, or a least an extra app in each row. There's plenty of real estate!
6. The battery is very good, especially if you play with the settings a bit.
7. Both wifi and LTE are speedy.
8. I'd love to get the pencil just to see what it adds to the experience. I wasn't planning on buying one, but now I'm curious. I'm a terrible artist, but I could see the iPad Pro making learning how to draw a lot of fun.
9. The screen resolution is remarkable.

I'd recommend trying one out at a store if you are debating buying one. Use it for a few minutes and see how it feels. I love mine so far, but it's definitely different. The smaller iPads are much easier to hold for extended periods of time. I find myself resting the iPad Pro on something far more often.

I'd love for Apple to really make the most of the screen size and power, but it's only the first day. As more people use it they'll get a better understanding of what works and what people want.

 

[Macalway]

I'm going to hold of judging this for a while. There's a honeymoon period where posting impressions is silly.

I do like it though. Whatever.