iPad Pro Features Improved Storage Controller for Desktop-Class Performance

[MacRumors]

Apple's new iPad Pro is powered by a 64-bit A9X processor that delivers up to 1.6 times faster performance over the iPad Air 2, with up to twice as fast graphics. Apple also says the tablet is faster than 80% of portable PCs shipped in the last 12 months.

Apple's website notes the underlying technology behind the iPad Pro's desktop-class performance is a new storage controller that increases read and write speeds so that large files, such as 4K videos or RAW photos imported from an HD camera, can be opened much quicker (via AppleInsider).

The A9X chip is capable of processing data so quickly, it demanded a new memory architecture. iPad Pro features a revamped storage controller that helps deliver performance better than some desktop computers. This increases read and write speeds, so you can quickly open even the largest files. Like the big 4K movie you just edited or all the RAW images you imported from your HD camera.

iPad Pro launches in November in Silver, Space Gray and Gold, starting at $799 for a 32GB Wi-Fi only model. A 128GB Wi-Fi only model will cost $949 and a Wi-Fi + LTE 128GB model will cost $1,079. A new Apple Pencil and Smart Keyboard will launch alongside the tablet for $99 and $169 respectively.

Article Link: iPad Pro Features Improved Storage Controller for Desktop-Class Performance

 

[JXShine]

Won't get one until Apple puts 3D Touch on it

 

[BulkSlash]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

 

[HarryT]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

You're right - it said it was faster than 90% of portable PC's not that its 90% faster than portable PC's... Macrumors misquoted.

 

[Andres Cantu]

So the graphics more or less are around 500 GFLOPS. Does anybody know if that's actually faster than 90% of portable PC's?

 

[0815]

So everything about this iPad is Pro - except the OS .... This one should run MacOS

 

[pgiguere1]

Still hard to swallow the price tag IMO.

We've come to expect that bigger versions of iOS devices (e.g. iPhone Plus vs iPhone, iPad Air vs iPad mini) usually cost $100 more. And those even have a couple pros other than size over their smaller sibling too (iPhone Plus has OIS and longer battery life, iPad Air has more accurate colors, was thinner and faster until recently).

Now this is $300 more, and the biggest feature besides the larger screen is an active digitizer which can only be used if you buy the $100 Pencil, bringing it to a $400 premium over the iPad Air. Other than that, stuff like the A9X and other incremental hardware updates would have been expected on the $500 iPad Air 3, had it been released this fall as usual instead of the Pro.

Having a bigger iPad is worth an extra $100 IMO. The active stylus + digitizer is worth another $100. I think $69 would have been a reasonable price for the Smart Keyboard (same price as the Bluetooth Apple keyboard). That would have brought the total price to $768. In reality it's $1067, and that's completely nuts. It's a shame because the hardware itself is pretty attractive.

 

[one more]

Really looking forward to Apple bringing all this hardware awesomeness into an iPad Air sized tablet, as well as continuing to improve the iPad bits of the iOS to take full advantage of this.

 

[AngerDanger]

You'd have to be pretty brave to hold the iPad Pro as pictures in this article.

 

[John Mcgregor]

I hate how they put one tech in one device, but not the other. Only when it comes to pricing they just increase it by 100 or more every step.

 

[jtrenda33]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

And faster CPU than 80% of portable PCs.

 

[Joe Rossignol]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

Thanks. I have updated the article to address the misinformation.

 

[jtrenda33]

So the graphics more or less are around 500 GFLOPS. Does anybody know if that's actually faster than 90% of portable PC's?

Apple never said it was faster than 90% of portable PCs, Macrumors did.

Edit: Oh, right. I misread your comment.

 

[Starflyer]

So everything about this iPad is Pro - except the OS .... This one should run MacOS

I have heard this quite a bit since the iPad Pro's introduction so I have two serious questions for everyone in the OS X on the iPad camp:

1. What would be the benefit of running Mac OS X?

2. What apps would you like to run that there isn't already an optimized iOS equivalent available?

 

[Eidorian]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

And faster CPU than 80% of portable PCs.

I would really like to know what portable machines they are making the comparison too. I have an ARM based Chromebook so is it THAT model?

Storage is getting a lot better with updates to eMMC hitting speeds to SSDs on SATA II/3 Gbps speeds. Remember the old USB 2.0 days?

 

[Keane16]

I still can't believe you can edit 3 4K streams together on this thing. My MacBook Pro from 2011 is feeling underpowered.

 

[Andres Cantu]

Apple never said it was faster than 90% of portable PCs, Macrumors did.

I'm pretty sure Apple mentioned that in their keynote.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Apple never said it was faster than 90% of portable PCs, Macrumors did.

Apple said exactly this during their keynote. The GPU was 90%. The CPU was 80%.

Also, when I hear "portable PC", I assume that means laptops. What the hell is a laptop if not a portable PC, because it's definitely not a desktop.

 

[magbarn]

I still can't believe you can edit 3 4K streams together on this thing. My MacBook Pro from 2011 is feeling underpowered.

Have you actually tried working with 4 k files? They're huge!
It may have the horsepower to edit it, but unless apple secretly upgraded the the Lightning connector to usb 3.0 or thunderbolt speeds, it's going to be painfully slow moving those files in/out of the iPad pro. And no, wifi Ac is nowhere near as fast. The sad 32gb base model is another insult to injury. Even the 128gb would be limiting to a real 'pro' working on multiple 4k recordings due to the lack of fast external storage. I edit 4k videos on my rmbp 15 while on the road and I use a combo of the built in 512gb ssd, an external 1 tb ssd in a thunderbolt enclosure and 2x2tb usb 3.0 hdd.

 

[rdlink]

Apple never said it was faster than 90% of portable PCs, Macrumors did.

Actually, they did. They said that the CPU was faster than 80% of portable PCs, and that the GPU was faster than 90% of portable PCs.

 

[rdlink]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

By definition a laptop is a portable PC.

 

[canesalato]

and Yet the iPad still doesn't support Raw Editing

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

"up to 90% faster graphics over portable PCs"

I might be mis-remembering the slide from the press conference but I thought the claim was actually that the iPad Pro had graphics faster than 90% of portable PCs? My question to a few colleagues at the time was what counts as a portable PC? I'd assume a laptop doesn't count?

Laptops do count.

 

[lincolntran]

I have heard this quite a bit since the iPad Pro's introduction so I have two serious questions for everyone in the OS X on the iPad camp:

1. What would be the benefit of running Mac OS X?

2. What apps would you like to run that there isn't already an optimized iOS equivalent available?

I think their main complain is about the age old file system, but that's the ancient way of doing things. It's understandable because people are used to it since the first OS was built. Other things are just minors.

 

[Phil A.]

I have heard this quite a bit since the iPad Pro's introduction so I have two serious questions for everyone in the OS X on the iPad camp:

1. What would be the benefit of running Mac OS X?

2. What apps would you like to run that there isn't already an optimized iOS equivalent available?

An iPad Pro that could run OS X would have been an insta-buy for me, but with iOS it's a non-starter (so I guess I'm not the target market )
Some apps that I use daily that I can't run on iOS are:

Xcode
Photoshop
Lightroom
MySQL
SourceTree
Online dev tools such as C9.io (doesn't work with mobile safari)
Eclipse


As I said, I'm not the target audience for this device