Hands-On With the New 2020 12.9-Inch iPad Pro

[Falhófnir]

People expect some level of performance improvement with every new release from Apple products and the new early 2020 IPP failed to do just that.

Except graphics and RAM, which will both boost the performance of this model compared to the 2018. The jump from 64 to 128GB base storage will also likely mean faster storage speeds for that model, as larger SSDs are inherently faster than smaller ones. There's other metrics that affect performance, you know. It's not just about raw CPU power - in fact that's probably the thing that was least in need of improvement from the 2018 models!

 

[MarianPrague]

CAMERAS: I miss better cameras on iPads. Technically there is much more space and capacity to run even better camera system than on iPhone. When you shoot a talking head video just by yourself it would be much comfortable to do it with a higher quality front camera on iPad and why on iPad? You have the bigger display of iPad to see yourself and the whole scene which really useful. When you need a second camera while shooting with your iPhone I would love to use iPad if it had at least the same back cameras. I dont want to buy a second iPhone because of that. And finally I would really buy just an Apple camera in a body kind of iPhone just little thicker, with a tiltable display and really a super camera system which is not space-restricted by many other technologies in a small space like iPhone.

 

[BarrettF77]

No issues here. I’m assume you tried to clean the screen. Looks super dirty for day one. I can make mine look brand in new in 10 seconds with my t-shirt. Also, why the hell did you buy two if your hating on it so much? Buying for an org?

that’s called dust from wiping it in the smaller specs so yes even going to using a fingernail and it’s a chip. And I bought several for my household. So that is exactly why I’m hating on it. It’s a huge hassle to spend this much money and spend another hour on the phone getting the return pick up scheduled. Call me weird for expecting a expensive product like this to actually look and feel new out of the box.

instead I wasted thousands and my time. Will wait till the next version and things calm down. I think we are getting half truths from Apple on this stuff And from China about the production levels.
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CAMERAS: I miss better cameras on iPads. Technically there is much more space and capacity to run even better camera system than on iPhone. When you shoot a talking head video just by yourself it would be much comfortable to do it with a higher quality front camera on iPad and why on iPad? You have the bigger display of iPad to see yourself and the whole scene which really useful. When you need a second camera while shooting with your iPhone I would love to use iPad if it had at least the same back cameras. I dont want to buy a second iPhone because of that. And finally I would really buy just an Apple camera in a body kind of iPhone just little thicker, with a tiltable display and really a super camera system which is not space-restricted by many other technologies in a small space like iPhone.

these new iPads cannot even do portrait on the back dual setup. Missed opportunity. It’s basically got all these new things on it that it doesn’t use. No value add

 

[Digital Dude]

I think you will struggle giving up MacOS for a pure IOS solution.

I agree with you, wholeheartedly! As much as I like Apple products, I do believe I could get away with a windows PC while everything else in my house is iOS and macOS.

Yeah, I know, the ecosystem is a big deal although I like the progress that Microsoft has made in the last 3-years. Notwithstanding, if I could swing it, I would have the baseline MacPro rackmount and be high as a kite. 😬

 

[Mr.Blacky]

Why does trackpad/mouse support suddenly make it a Mac replacement? I mean, software- and function wise it stays exactly the same.🤔

 

[makitango]

RAM on an ipad is irrelevant, except for Safari apparently. It's a help for the ML stuff too.

chromebooks need ram because chrome is a pig.

If you have nothing else to do than stay in one app or don’t care about saved app states of other apps, aka multitasking in the flesh and not multiswitching and multireloading apps from scratch then sure, RAM doesn‘t matter.
But it‘s a Pro why think about productivity, aye?
At least with a Chromebook you have a pagefile which saves you from losing progress in any application no matter if the developer put precautions in place or not.

 

[ascender]

Why does trackpad/mouse support suddenly make it a Mac replacement? I mean, software- and function wise it stays exactly the same.🤔

In my use case, every time I've tried to replace my MBP with an iPad, the lack of pointer support always rears its head. When using it in landscape mode on a desk, its a total pain to try and use Safari when you have to keep touching the screen. I suspect that's been the same for quite a few people who have considered switching.

 

[ZipZap]

I'll never understand posts like this. It's a spec bump because yields are better, and a few minor tweaks included. I'm not sure why this is a problem for some.

If you have the previous model it's just not for you. If you have nothing or an older model then you can get a discount on an older device or nab this. (or grab a discount on this model at Best Buy if they're still doing it)

That is soooo few people. Its a cash grab. Most apple releases are.

 

[xxray]

Jason Snell noted one of the more likely reasons to launch a refreshed iPad Pro now and a more significant update later this year is for the AR capability so that Apple can talk about AR during WWDC and developers can start working with it now without having to wait for the iPhone 12 Pro (and which may be delayed past late September).

The A12X was already a beast of a CPU, so the immediate need for "more powah!" (to quote Jeremy Clarkson) is not really necessary. Jason Snell also thinks that Apple might use the iPad Pro as the platform to test "macOS ARM Edition" which could explain the boost in memory from 4GB to 6GB (or perhaps the AR sensor needs more RAM to work with).

As Falhófnir noted, it's a nice update to the 2018 line for those that do not already have a 2018 model. The Late 2020 model will be the one for those, like myself, who do have a 2018 model (as we'll be at the two-year mark).




Per 9to5Mac, the displays are identical to the 2018 models. Have to wait till this Fall for an upgraded display (assuming the miniLED rumors are true).

I was thinking the same thing. Releasing the, sort of, under-the-radar iPad Pro with LIDAR and the new version of ARKit will give developers 6 months to test and implement LIDAR into more applications. This will make LIDAR much more useful right when people first get their new iPhone 12's.

 

[Pupalei]

That is soooo few people. Its a cash grab. Most apple releases are.

Soooo few people don’t have a 2018 iPad Pro? Nonsense.

Every product released by every company in the world is (an attempt at) a cash grab. If people have a 2018 iPad Pro and feel the need to upgrade after two short years, they and their money will be soon parted anyway.

 

[The Game 161]

So the 6GB across all models has been confirmed by Apple? I know there has been conflicting info in reviews.

Apple never confirm ram but yeah other sources have confirmed It

 

[The Game 161]

Soooo few people don’t have a 2018 iPad Pro? Nonsense.

Every product released by every company in the world is (an attempt at) a cash grab. If people have a 2018 iPad Pro and feel the need to upgrade after two short years, they and their money will be soon parted anyway.

This is the thing this upgrade wasn’t really for 2018 users and why the new keyboard will work on them

For me I don’t have an iPad so I can’t wait to get it...and get the new model is the smart thing to do

 

[stbrown]

Anything can bend if you are trying to make it bend...

If it bends over time or in your bag that’s different so yeah these are pointless videos

Does it bend in your bag? I carry my iPad Air 2 in my bag all the time with other items and its been fine. But these Pro's do bend easily and I would worry doing the same

It does seem similar to the iPhone 6 issue where for a lot of people it was fine but for some it bent when using it like their previous phones

 

[The Game 161]

Does it bend in your bag? I carry my iPad Air 2 in my bag all the time with other items and its been fine. But these Pro's do bend easily and I would worry doing the same

It does seem similar to the iPhone 6 issue where for a lot of people it was fine but for some it bent when using it like their previous phones

From memory the issue happened on cellular models. Mine had no such issues though

 

[ericwn]

I'd held off buying a refurbished Pro 11" but now I'm wondering why?
Ordered the new Pro 11" last week, still hasn't shipped.
Does anyone know if the cameras on this new Pro has the same night time photography ability as the iPhone 11?

I thought that requires the A13 chips.

 

[gnipgnop]

People expect some level of performance improvement with every new release from Apple products and the new early 2020 IPP failed to do just that.

That's the scenario where the tech press says "most users won't notice the difference in daily usage"...which is implying that the benchmark improvements aren't that important. That's the irony.

 

[mattopotamus]

In the last mkbhd video he specifically asked Apple and they choose not to say, showing how silly they can be about specs.

but I believe benchmarks for all models showed 6 gigs across all the board. Someone correct me if I’m wrong

Thanks, that is one of the videos I was referencing. I know Apple has always been silent about RAM and certain other specs.

 

[ericwn]

Inspect your shinies. I got a few units today and one had a chip in the glass, another two scratches down the middle, and another with scuffs on the bottom metal. All fresh out of the box. Extremely disappointed.

Also of note, the chassis flexes like the old one, the camera on the back does not do portrait even though it has two cameras, the speakers sound no better, and the display quality isn’t improved over the old one as many already knew. So if you have a 2018 and I have the 1TB models, which already has 6 GB of ram, there is absolutely no reason to upgrade. Just get the magic keyboard.

Apples QC is so bad right now I’m actually embarrassed for them. Got a full refund coming. Not buying replacements. China has done enough damage for one season.

Thanks for sharing some real world experience, appreciate it!

Portrait mode on the camera missing is no surprise though, right? It only has two wide angle lenses which are probably more useful for iPad owners.

 

[GuruZac]

Nuts paying $1K starting for a 12.9" device with only 6GB DRAM in 2020. For comparison, $1K Pixelbook Go has 16GB DRAM.

Maybe Apple should've skipped the 2018 rebranding and focus more on porting MacOS to ARM.

And? The 6GB iPad Pro is still a better overall device, certainly the hardware.

 

[ericwn]

I am pleased they didn’t upgrade anything I care about. I get to read the reviews and feel like my iPad is new again. Even downloaded the new wallpapers so it feels new.

Nothing more important on a a Pro / content creation device than looking at the home or lock screen at the latest wallpaper!

 

[GuruZac]

Inspect your shinies. I got a few units today and one had a chip in the glass, another two scratches down the middle, and another with scuffs on the bottom metal. All fresh out of the box. Extremely disappointed.

Also of note, the chassis flexes like the old one, the camera on the back does not do portrait even though it has two cameras, the speakers sound no better, and the display quality isn’t improved over the old one as many already knew. So if you have a 2018 and I have the 1TB models, which already has 6 GB of ram, there is absolutely no reason to upgrade. Just get the magic keyboard.

Apples QC is so bad right now I’m actually embarrassed for them. Got a full refund coming. Not buying replacements. China has done enough damage for one season.

Wow. That is very disappointing. I’ve never seen a new Apple device that rough out of the box.

My 2018 12.9 is just 256GB so it only has 4GB of RAM, but AI only use it for Notability, YouTube, Web, email, safari browsing, and Microsoft office. I’m not exactly a power user so I think I will be fine for a few more years. Wish it had the 2 extra GB of RAM but my 2015 12.9 iPad Pro still runs strong with the old A9X and 4GB of RAM, and it’s 4 and a half years old.

 

[windywalks]

]

It automatically request desktop websites since iOS 13.

It does request them, but still receives mobile versions instead. I've had this problem countless times.

 

[ericwn]

RAM on an ipad is irrelevant, except for Safari apparently. It's a help for the ML stuff too.

chromebooks need ram because chrome is a pig.

Relevance depends on the use case I think.

 

[citysnaps]

People expect some level of performance improvement with every new release from Apple products and the new early 2020 IPP failed to do just that.

I've asked a few 2018 IPP owners on this forum if they've ever felt their device being/feeling limited in processing power, in any aspect. The answer has been no.

 

[ericwn]

check your self
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check by your self

I’d be more interested in realistic experience on bending from use instead of bending through abuse. Any iPad will bend if abused at some stage.