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shakeman0

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jul 20, 2009
632
22
Hello everyone,

I wanted to share my experience for those on the fence about updating from the iPad Air 2 to the 9.7" iPad Pro.

I'll begin by going over some of the most noticeable improvements out of the box. First, the screen. The iPad Pro's screen with the ambient light sensing is phenomenal. The color correction makes an incredible amount of difference while reading, and there is almost no glare when reading in lit rooms. Second, the stero speakers. I've been using my iPad to watch movies and TV for the past couple of weeks and there is a night and day difference between the sound quality of the iPad Air 2 vs the iPad Pro. I have a late 2012 15" MBP and the iPad Pro honestly blows its sound out of the water. Third is the speed. This is especially apparent when multitasking, which actually is a usable and interesting feature now. I've particularly been taking advantage of this by having Evernote open along with safari or another application. This allows you to copy and paste images, text, and links directly into Evernote. Additionally, game experience is greatly improved.

Features that are vastly improved that I use much less frequently are the cameras. The new camera is well suited for document scanning, which is likely to be my primary use for it. The front facing camera is fantastic for FaceTime calls, which I plan on taking advantage of regularly.

Lastly, the Pencil. I've been waiting for a feature like this for a very long time. The ability to highlight and annotate while I read is a game changer for me. Additionally, doing quick UI sketches and flow charts is incredibly on the iPad Pro. Handwriting seems very natural and is perfect for mathematics or handwritten notes.

There has been one major frustration that I'm sure many of you have faced, but I was very irritated that my iPad Air 2 Smart Cover didn't work with the iPad Pro. The cover was a purchase that I didn't intend on having to make as part of the upgrade.

Finally, I would consider the storage space in your decision. Going from a 64gb air to a 32gb pro will likely be a little jarring, and I believe you would quickly find yourself running low on storage space as you install a suite of capable apps and graphic heavy games. This would like change based on your use case scenario, but is definitely worth the consideration. I bit the bullet and went with 128gb and have been happy with that choice so far.

As an example of the storage, I have little more installed than iWork, Office, and a few games and have already reached 40gb used.
 

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Indeed, if you limit yourself to purely "Pro" purposes without multi-megabyte app downloads or excessive media storage, it's definitely possible to stay within the 32GB envelope.

I'll never get low capacity iOS device because I like to "fire and forget" on app / media downloads, but if you're careful enough it should be manageable.
 
Indeed, if you limit yourself to purely "Pro" purposes without multi-megabyte app downloads or excessive media storage, it's definitely possible to stay within the 32GB envelope.

I'll never get low capacity iOS device because I like to "fire and forget" on app / media downloads, but if you're careful enough it should be manageable.


yea , i have no problem with 32gb , i use it for work , play and i always have around 10-12gb free. I love how you get people complain its not enough and have it stuffed with 20 games.

Delete some of the games....32gb is more than plenty.
 
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But wouldn't the 32GB be a limiting factor once you consider the future spacing requirements of software updates and the addition of a few more apps?
 
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But wouldn't the 32GB be a limiting factor once you consider the future spacing requirements of software updates and the addition of a few more apps?
Software updates won't ever take up more than an additional GB or two, and in the past couple years, I haven't downloaded and kept more than a dozen new apps.

If I had at least 10GB free after setting up my device and installing everything I needed, I would have no issues with storage for the life of that device.
 
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I have the 128gb version and only 62gb left for editing en apps after I dropped my media on it.
 
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I am getting a used iPad Air 2 today, you really notice that much of a difference in performance for everyday tasks?
 
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You know, i had Air 2 for more than year and then i switched to iPad Pro 9.7. Difference in performance - from minimal to no difference :) Yes, the screen is better, but this is it.

Few days ago i sold my 9.7 and bought 12.9. Yep, and that's the Pro that is really different kind of animal. Bigger, faster, stronger :D I know that all depends from preferences and it's OK. But if you have Air 2 - stay with it. Until 9.7 pro vol. 2 (if you want this size) :)
 
You know, i had Air 2 for more than year and then i switched to iPad Pro 9.7. Difference in performance - from minimal to no difference :) Yes, the screen is better, but this is it.:)

Is there a difference in speakers between the 9.7 Pro and the Air 2? I'm often too lazy to bother with headphones, and am curious about that.
 
Thanks for your thoughts here. I got some money from my tax return so I'm considering upgrading my Air 2 to the Pro. I might wait until the next one (iPad pro 9.7" 2... or iPad 8... or whatever they're going to call it with this ridiculous naming scheme they're on).
 
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I also went from the Air 2 to a 9.7 IPP. The difference in speakers can not be overstated. I had such a hard time hearing simple videos on the Air 2 (no, I'm not hard of hearing). The fact that the IPP has stereo speakers is nice, but the volume and clarity at low volumes is significant.

Yes, the screen is wonderful, without the harsh blue glow of the Air 2. Definitely reference quality, in all lighting conditions.

I haven't used many of the other "Pro" features yet, but for my purposes, it's doing quite well. I too waffled between 32GB and 128GB, ended up going with the bigger. But it's overkill for me. I guess it will prompt me to load some movies on there, there's plenty of things I need to catch up on when I'm traveling.
 
I have 128 GB now and I wish I had gotten the 32GB instead. Next time I'll learn my lesson. 32 GB is just pleanty, at least for me.
I bought a 64GB iPhone SE because I wanted to store more music on it than 16GB would allow with everything else I needed, but 32GB would have been plenty. Since I had so much extra storage, I wound up storing all of my music on my phone (12.1GB) and all five seasons of Game of Thrones (15.8GB), which I haven't even watched once on my phone, and still have 15.3GB available. If I just stored my Last Added playlist (500 most recent songs), which is all I really need, and removed all those episodes, 32GB would be plenty for me. I would have bought a 32GB iPhone SE if one was available and costed less.
 
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You know, i had Air 2 for more than year and then i switched to iPad Pro 9.7. Difference in performance - from minimal to no difference :) Yes, the screen is better, but this is it.

I came from an Air 2 as well and somewhat agree with you're comments. I'd say that for someone who plans to use the 9.7 pro primarily for consuming content (consuming videos, Internet, etc...) plus for mail and a few apps, they probably won't notice much of a difference between the Air 2 and Pro 9.7 in terms of performance and everyday use. Yes, the display and speakers are better on the 9.7, but the Air 2 was more than "good enough" for me in those departments.

What really separates the 9.7 (for me) is the pencil and the smart connector for keyboards (i.e. No more Bluetooth keyboards needing periodic charges, etc...). When I added the Pencil (use it with Goodnotes) and the Logitech Create keyboard cover to the 9.7, it transformed the iPad into what feels like a small laptop....in addition to an iPad. The setup is very productive. I've never quite felt that way about any of my other iPads.
 
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Miserable?

Would you push an 9.7 as hard as an 12"? most won't and screen wise it's not needed.
 
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I have 128 GB now and I wish I had gotten the 32GB instead. Next time I'll learn my lesson. 32 GB is just pleanty, at least for me.
That's why apple doesn't offer the 64gb model

Gotta love the business model of Apple and GB selling points.

They love to increase the average selling price per unit and what better way than to drop the "sweet spot" GB.

They will do it with the new iPhone 32-128gb as well
 
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I came from an Air 2 as well and somewhat agree with you're comments. I'd say that for someone who plans to use the 9.7 pro primarily for consuming content (consuming videos, Internet, etc...) plus for mail and a few apps, they probably won't notice much of a difference between the Air 2 and Pro 9.7 in terms of performance and everyday use.
Am I the only one who thinks websites nowadays have gotten bloated? Honestly, I'd rather have an app that's had to abide by App Store restrictions than JavaScript-laden websites. Thank goodness for content blocking.
 
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Am I the only one who thinks websites nowadays have gotten bloated? Honestly, I'd rather have an app that's had to abide by App Store restrictions than JavaScript-laden websites. Thank goodness for content blocking.

No your not the only one!

Yep thank god for Adguard Pro!
 
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I also went from the Air 2 to the 9.7" Pro and agree with your impressions, although I don't find the Pro that much faster in day to day use. The screen is easily the best part and the improved speakers actually make it something I want to watch media on now.

Both the Air 2 and iPad Pro have only 2GB of RAM correct?
Yup, 2GB in both. Only the big 12.9" Pro has 4GB RAM.
 
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