Is the pro worth the extra price? I plan to use it for notes, and probably some texts book. I also do have an older 2015 MacBook Pro so it won’t be my replacement for a laptop. They seem pretty similar size and weight but I am so far out of the loop on the newest technology. Which one would be best, price aside.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
All iPads iPad Air or iPad Pro 11 better for school?
- Thread starter pang55
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
How much storage do you need?
If you need more than 64GB but less than 128GB, at $749 for Air 4 256GB and $799 for 2021 Pro 11 128GB, I'd be inclined to get the Pro.
Alternately, there are some pretty good discounts on the Apple refurb store on last year's Pro.
If you need more than 64GB but less than 128GB, at $749 for Air 4 256GB and $799 for 2021 Pro 11 128GB, I'd be inclined to get the Pro.
Alternately, there are some pretty good discounts on the Apple refurb store on last year's Pro.
School? The regular iPad (9th Gen) will do fine.
Once you finish school and go off to Uni I’d probably recommend the Pro or Air just to give you some more but see what is available then.
Once you finish school and go off to Uni I’d probably recommend the Pro or Air just to give you some more but see what is available then.
Besides the cool factor of having the best tech, then the pro doesn’t seem worth it for the tasks mentioned - if the 11inch had the mini-led it would be much better for reading textbooks. But Price aside the pro is without doubt the best of the two, and if you need more than 64gb then the Pro is the better buy than the current Air (at retail).
Agree on the basic iPad is more than enough. Unless you also want to draw (or need the pressure sensitivity) then 1gen pencil is good enough for note-taking and cheaper alternatives with same functions and better charging-design can be found on amazon for $20-30, useable for all new iPads.
However, for mainly note-take and some textbook reading the new mini might be a better option due being more portable. Although the higher storage models seems very overpriced IMO.
Sorry for going slightly off topic😂
Agree on the basic iPad is more than enough. Unless you also want to draw (or need the pressure sensitivity) then 1gen pencil is good enough for note-taking and cheaper alternatives with same functions and better charging-design can be found on amazon for $20-30, useable for all new iPads.
However, for mainly note-take and some textbook reading the new mini might be a better option due being more portable. Although the higher storage models seems very overpriced IMO.
Sorry for going slightly off topic😂
The 9th gen would work great for you but if you have the money and want something fancy then get the pro. I would skip the air.
The Pro is certainly ‘better’, but the added Pro functionality might not be worth it for some people. If you have the money, then you can go for the Pro.
You need to consider storage options and peripheral setups (and their associated costs):
iPad Air 64GB or 256GB
iPad Pro 128GB or 256GB (or even above this if you need the storage)
Keyboards: Magic Keyboard or Logitech Combo Touch or a Bluetooth keyboard
Pencils: Apple Pencil 2 or Logitech Crayon
Personally I have the 12.9 Pro with a Magic Keyboard and the Apple Pencil 2. The Pencil is amazing for note-taking and annotating screenshots and PDFs. The MK is a great laptop-style experience.
If you need/want both peripherals then a potential cheap option is something like: iPad Air 4 + Logitech Crayon + Logitech Combo Touch. Both the Logitech peripherals are cheaper than the apple equivalents (although many find the Apple peripherals more convenient). Or perhaps an Air 4 + Logitech Crayon or Apple Pencil 2.
It all depends on how price-sensitive your budget is. Some who can afford an 11” Pro then go back down to the Air 4 and use the money saving to add a crayon/pencil and/or a keyboard. There’s a lot to consider.
You need to consider storage options and peripheral setups (and their associated costs):
iPad Air 64GB or 256GB
iPad Pro 128GB or 256GB (or even above this if you need the storage)
Keyboards: Magic Keyboard or Logitech Combo Touch or a Bluetooth keyboard
Pencils: Apple Pencil 2 or Logitech Crayon
Personally I have the 12.9 Pro with a Magic Keyboard and the Apple Pencil 2. The Pencil is amazing for note-taking and annotating screenshots and PDFs. The MK is a great laptop-style experience.
If you need/want both peripherals then a potential cheap option is something like: iPad Air 4 + Logitech Crayon + Logitech Combo Touch. Both the Logitech peripherals are cheaper than the apple equivalents (although many find the Apple peripherals more convenient). Or perhaps an Air 4 + Logitech Crayon or Apple Pencil 2.
It all depends on how price-sensitive your budget is. Some who can afford an 11” Pro then go back down to the Air 4 and use the money saving to add a crayon/pencil and/or a keyboard. There’s a lot to consider.
Thank you everyone for the input, I think I may just go with the regular iPad based on the feedback here.
The Pro without a doubt! You will be getting the M1 chip with 8GB of ram. It’s going to fly through every single task you throw at it. Promotion is going to come in handy when scrolling, multitasking, games, etc… When your switching back and fourth in between apps, the experience will be so much better. Promotion will be your best friend if you plan writing notes with the Apple Pencil. The Air 4 is going to feel laggy in comparison. When it comes to software, Apps are nowhere near as limited as they used to be. I can go through an entire day without even touching my Mac. I would say go for the Pro and get the Magic Keyboard and Pencil to go with it. The 11 inch M1 Pro is the best iPad I have ever owned. I’m actually surprised at how much I use it. It was initially just going to be secondary device, but lately I’ve been using my Mac less and less. I will always use both, but currently the iPad is getting the most use of both of them.
I really don’t think someone using an iPad for school is going to notice the performance difference between a regular iPad and an Air or Pro.
Perhaps when they go to University or College they’ll be doing stuff that will benefit owning one of the higher end units but if they’re just starting school (I’m assuming High School here) then it’s best to just grab the most affordable one.
The OP stated ’price aside’, so obviously the pro is a no brainer, even if you think they somehow wont need as much power or better screen tech to write notes for school compared with for university.
As somebody who used to work in education IT, iPads have a pretty poor use case in school unless you’re in Kinder with developing motor skills.
The M1 MacBook Air is $849 right now, that’s a much better value for a much more useful device. The price everybody is quoting for the iPad is without the keyboard or pencil, and without either the iPad is just a glorified YouTube machine.
The M1 MacBook Air is $849 right now, that’s a much better value for a much more useful device. The price everybody is quoting for the iPad is without the keyboard or pencil, and without either the iPad is just a glorified YouTube machine.
There are very few things that the MacBook can do that the iPad cant, yet there are plenty of things an iPad can do that a MacBook cant. Your comment is not very constuctive.
OP already mentioned the iPad won't be a laptop replacement and will be used in conjunction with a 2015 MBP.
So what your saying is anyone who uses an iPad is comparable to a kindergartener developing motor skills? That is a rude and condescending statement. If it’s not right for you and your profession then that’s fine. For many people the iPad is enough. It has evolved past being a “YouTube machine” a long time ago. The people that buy iPad’s know exactly what they will be using it for. If they needed a Mac, they would buy a Mac.The iPad isn’t perfect, but it’s far more useful and capable than it was 3-4 years ago.
How are you getting offended at a factual statement? That’s literally where they were deployed, which wasn’t an IT decision but one made by professional Curriculum and Instruction departments for that exact reason. All other grade levels had Chromebooks deployed as those were much more useful. iPads have very little value in the upper grade levels outside of gimmick apps.
OP asked about an opinion for school. Having actually worked in that sector, I wouldn’t recommend an iPad. Sure you can accomplish some tasks, but the workflows aren’t ideal and consists of workarounds to accomplish what you need to do.
If OP wants an iPad because they look cool and wants a shiny toy under the guise of being used as a school device, then okay. But it makes zero sense to buy an iPad, plus a keyboard and a pen when a the MacBook Air is a much more useful device for that purpose.
To answer OP’s question, I like my 11” iPad Pro. But I never use it because the workflows are terrible, even for taking notes as I’m studying for my CCNP cert. It literally sits in my bedroom on the charger.
Saying it over and over again doesn’t make it true. For example; note taking alone - which is the ops actual stated use case, it’s very, very clear the iPad runs rings around the MacBook anything. Perhaps you should take your iPad off its charger and use it more? It’s extremely versatile if you use it properly.
Plus, the op has a MacBook and you seem to be suggesting they buy a second. I don’t understand really.
Read his first post. Reading book, note taking, probably annotating pdfs is far far better on iPad with a pencil than on any traditional computer. OP should get a pencil. Base iPad plus a pencil is better than iPP without for this use case. Keyboard is not needed as he/she has a MBP.
IT departments in general have never understood iPads or what they are good for.