Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
This has been obviously needed since the original iPad Pro came out. I guess people don't know what they want until Apple waits seven years to show it to them.
 
When the new base iPad launched with only gen 1 (USB-C) pencil support people kept saying that the reason the gen 2 pencil with magnetic charging wasn't supported was because the landscape camera got in the way of that charger.
This is 100% correct.
Maybe now those people will finally acknowledge that Apple can put the pencil charger on the top, like they always could have with the base iPad.
Apple can put a magnetically charging Pencil on top ONLY with a new magnetic Pencil and pencil charging design; probably two smaller magnets on either side. Maybe Apple waited, or maybe the new charging design wasn't ready in time for the iPad 10.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DesertN0mad
That’s the biggest annoyance about the current design. I’m forever getting the “camera covered” warning when picking the iPad Pro up because the short edge makes the most sense when using in landscape mode.

Come to think of it, I don't remember the last time I used an iPad in portrait mode…
 
I’m gonna be honest. If it wasn’t because OLED displays, namely those Apple uses, induce me eye-strain, I’d gladly buy one of the new iPad Pros. Or even better, I’d wait for the M4 or M5 model.

However, I use the iPad a lot, and being all day looking at that screen, if it bothers my eyes the same way as iPhone OLED screens, I’d have to stop using it as often as I currently do.

Anyways, at some point (likely near Christmas) I’ll get one and use it consistently to see how it goes with my eyes.

Maybe by the M5 gen the OLED screens it uses are easier on the eyes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: jimmy_uk
How Apple has achieved this switch to a landscape FaceTime camera on the new iPad models is unclear, since the second-generation Apple Pencil connects to both the iPad Air and iPad Pro using an inductive magnetic charger along the same side.
Maybe this is somehow related to the new Apple Pencil we’re expecting this month?
 
The Pencil and iPad’s magnets are currently already split, with the charging window (visible pill) in between.
 
  • Like
Reactions: darngooddesign
cool but it's still a big iphone.
Not even close. I use my iPad Pro 12.9 about 90% at work and 100% of the time for personal use and it is much more than a big phone.

Totally awesome if landscape FaceTime rumor is true. So odd to have the other way.
 
Sad if true. One of the iPad’s biggest strengths is that it’s truly versatile when it comes to orientation. Ideally, we would have cameras in both positions - but obviously this doesn’t make any sense in the real world. And since we have to choose one, I think portrait is better: it reminds that the iPad is not a classic laptop, and I think using it in portrait with landscape camera feels way more awkward than the other way around.
 
Yes they can, and yes they did, but as predicted, it required a Pencil redesign.
No one I interacted with said that, and there were so many people saying it wasn't possible. They were just people that can't acknowledge something until Apple does it.

The pencil doesn't need a redesign to fit on top, even if Apple is releasing a better one. If that was true, the iPad mini wouldn't support it now. Space is just as limited on the mini's long side as the larger iPads short side.
 
Sad if true. One of the iPad’s biggest strengths is that it’s truly versatile when it comes to orientation. Ideally, we would have cameras in both positions - but obviously this doesn’t make any sense in the real world.
It does makes sense. Add both.
 
The uncomfortable way to hold the iPad is in landscape orientation. Does Apple believe most people use the zombie keyboard with iPads? Use a Pencil with an iPad. Get a MacBook if you mostly use a keyboard for inputting.
 
Please no notch. I would rather have a slightly thicker border.
The notch makes a lot of sense on the iPhone and Mac, which have a clear main orientation (specially the later). It wouldn’t work at all on the iPad, that doesn’t have a clear main one.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Tagbert
No one I interacted with said that, and there were so many people saying it wasn't possible. They were just people that can't acknowledge something until Apple does it.
I think "they cant do it" implies "with the Pencil 2", not "they cant do it at all".
The pencil doesn't need a redesign to fit on top, even if Apple is releasing a better one. If that was true, the iPad mini wouldn't support it now. Space is just as limited on the mini's long side as the larger iPads short side.
We're not going to know for sure until the new iPads get a landscape camera, but I suspect they tried using the Pencil 2 on the iPad 10 and there were either interference or internal spacing issues between the camera and charging pad which needed to be addressed.
 
We're not going to know for sure until the new iPads get a landscape camera, but I suspect they tried using the Pencil 2 on the iPad 10 and there were either interference or spacing issues which needed to be addressed.

It wasn't included for cost reasons. We can never verify it because we'll only ever get the narrative Apple wants to tell, and they'll never say it was to protect their margins. I looked at teardowns at the time, Apple definitely could have configured components in a way to accommodate it.

Cost is a valid reason to exclude something but I'm not a a fan of Apple's endless pursuit of margins at the expense of the user experience, nor those who defend it. The continued fragmentation of the Apple pencil lineup was unnecessary. Hopefully this new pencil and updated iPads puts an end to it.

Edit: sorry, I didn't mean to outright dismiss your suggestions (especially the interference one) as you actually put some thought into it. I don't know if they did that, but I imagine those would be solvable problems if they really wanted to accommodate the gen 2 pencil.
 
It wasn't included for cost reasons. We can never verify it because we'll only ever get the narrative Apple wants to tell, and they'll never say it was to protect their margins. I looked at teardowns at the time, Apple definitely could have configured components in a way to accommodate it.

Cost is a valid reason to exclude something but I'm not a a fan of Apple's endless pursuit of margins at the expense of the user experience, nor those who defend it. The continued fragmentation of the Apple pencil lineup was unnecessary. Hopefully this new pencil and updated iPads puts an end to it.
Then again, if they had included it they could sell the more expensive pencil without having the costs associated with designing the USB Pencil.

I think its quite simple really, if there is new Pencil then the iPad 10 couldn't use the Pencil 2, but if the Pencil doesn't change then the reason was costs, a valid reason to exclude it, and differentiating the iPad from the iPad Air.
Edit: sorry, I didn't mean to outright dismiss your suggestions (especially the interference one) as you actually put some thought into it. I don't know if they did that, but I imagine those would be solvable problems if they really wanted to accommodate the gen 2 pencil.
No problem. We're all just speculating until the new iPads are real.
 
Last edited:
What percentage of people use tablets in portrait orientation I wonder
 
Then again, if they had included it they could sell the more expensive pencil without having the costs associated with designing the USB Pencil.

I should have listed two reasons. First is cost of components for the base iPad. Second is they want to upsell you to the iPad Air. Giving gen 2 pencil support to the base iPad undercuts some of the upsell value.
 
One problem I've had with landscape cameras, at least in an elementary school setting, is that we often use those Osmo game things, which requires a mirror to be placed over the camera so it can see what's in front of the iPad. Osmo was designed for portrait mode cameras, so we'd have to to spend a whole bunch of money buying new versions of Osmo. I wouldn't be surprised if other apps have similar issues. Kinda like going from the original 40 pin connector > Lightning and now > USB-C
 
One problem I've had with landscape cameras, at least in an elementary school setting, is that we often use those Osmo game things, which requires a mirror to be placed over the camera so it can see what's in front of the iPad. Osmo was designed for portrait mode cameras, so we'd have to to spend a whole bunch of money buying new versions of Osmo. I wouldn't be surprised if other apps have similar issues. Kinda like going from the original 40 pin connector > Lightning and now > USB-C
I was looking at the Osmo stuff and their compatibility isn't based on camera orientation, they also support the iPad-10, but rather iPad design. The updated reflector is for any non-homebutton iPad, but that reflector supports iPad with both types of cameras. The updated reflector is $10 and it may be necessary for the shape and thickness of the non-home button iPads.

  • Compatible with iPad (Gen 5 — 10), iPad Mini (Gen 4 — 6), iPad Air (Gen 2 — 5), iPad Pro 9.7-inch, iPad Pro 10.5-inch, iPad Pro 11-inch (Gen 1 — 4) and iPad Pro 12.9-inch (Gen 1 — 6).
  • The Reflector for iPad 2021 is required for the iPad Mini 6, Air 4, Air 5, iPad 10th Gen, iPad Pro 11" (Gen 1 — 4), and iPad Pro 12.9" (Gen 3 — 6).
 
Last edited:
I'm planning on buying the new 12.9" Air if the price isn't ridiculous, and the camera in landscape orientation would just be icing on the cake for me.
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.