M2 iPad Pro Tidbits: ProRes Video Support, RAM Configurations, and More

[Darth Tulhu]

I truly don't care that the iPad Pros got nothing but a spec bump. Those machines are pretty damn close to perfect as they can be. Narrower bezels, thinner and thus lighter weight perhaps would have been nice additions, as well as (arguably) having the camera in landscape (but I understand why they left it as is: the Apple Pencil has no better place).

All that said, what I REALLY wanted was for Apple to redesign the Magic Keyboard.

Instead, the base iPad keyboard got almost everything I wanted.

I would have been content if the Magic Keyboard got a MacBook-type MagSafe connector instead of USB-C.

Still, the iPad lineup is now more flexible than ever, although the lines between the base and Air iPads just got REALLY blurred.

Personally, I've thought for a long time that the iPad Air line should've become the base iPad.

 

[dbwie]

That'll probably be next year. Apple doesn't like redesigning more than one device at a time, so with the base iPad done now, the cycle starts all over again. Next year will be the iPad Pros, the following, the iPad Air, and so on.

Since the base iPad moved the camera to the side, you can expect the next Pro to do the same with a new redesign. It also means there will be a new Apple Pencil 3 since the Apple Pencil 2 won't work with the Pros anymore. The camera would sit where a Pencil charger would. I predict the Apple Pencil 3 will attach to the back like the Samsung tablets do. That is probably also why the base iPad doesn't move to the Apple Pencil 2. There's no space for it, plus the upgraders may already have a Pencil 1, so that's a cost savings for upgraders.

Likely all those rumors of a glass Apple logo and new pin connector will probably be in next year's iPad Pro redesign.

I do not think they would stick the pencil on the back like a Samsung tablet, very inelegant; I would surely knock it off many times. The other options are to keep the magnets where they are and lower the camera by putting it in a dynamic island. That works on the iPhone but with iPad not so well, because it would be weird if you use iPad in portrait orientation to have the island on the side, whereas iPhone is almost exlcusively portrait mode usage. Another option would be to make the hinge on the Magic Keyboard a little bit larger and slide it in there. If they made a smaller pencil and put it on the side, it would block ports, speakers, buttons, so that cannot happen either. I’m sure they will think of another option. Attach the pencil on the bottom side? Would be harder to close a magic keyboard and the folio keyboard cases would have issues with it.

 

[tobybrut]

I do not think they would stick the pencil on the back like a Samsung tablet, very inelegant; I would surely knock it off many times. The other options are to keep the magnets where they are and lower the camera by putting it in a dynamic island. That works on the iPhone but with iPad not so well, because it would be weird if you use iPad in portrait orientation to have the island on the side, whereas iPhone is almost exlcusively portrait mode usage. Another option would be to make the hinge on the Magic Keyboard a little bit larger and slide it in there. If they made a smaller pencil and put it on the side, it would block ports, speakers, buttons, so that cannot happen either. I’m sure they will think of another option. Attach the pencil on the bottom side? Would be harder to close a magic keyboard and the folio keyboard cases would have issues with it.

One other possibility I can think of is to straddle the camera with the charger components, having magnets on both sides of the camera. Or they could put the charger and camera side-by-side by using a smaller Apple Pencil, though that might break symmetry with the Pencil closer to one corner. Apple is all about symmetry. There have been rumors of a smaller Pencil for a while, so it's possible it's being saved for the next iPad Pro. Either way, the new iPad Pro wasn't slated for a redesign yet, so it's a problem Apple doesn't have to solve until next year. If I were to guess, we'll have a new Apple Pencil 3 with magnets and charging coils in a different spot on both the Pencil and on the iPad, all done to accommodate a camera move.

 

[svish]

Glad that a physical SIM is still available on iPad Pro.

 

[Shirasaki]

I mean it's an iPad, what do you do on a tablet that needs more than 8GB RAM?

Get a MacBook instead if you plan on doing video editing (or similar workflows) professionally. An iPad is not a professional device.

How about running 4 games? How about running 2 games plus safari and other apps? How about running more than 2 professional-grade applications?

Let's dial it back for a second: what value would an M3 bring to the iPad?

What do you do on a damn tablet to require more power than an M1 or A12X/Z?

just because you can’t see the values doesn’t mean others can’t.
I can max out M1 using ONE game. M3 would be god-sent for gaming.

Fellas, is it possible to use Touch ID with the new iPad Pros, or do I have to use Face ID like a clown?

wdym like a clown? Face ID has been on iPad Pro for 4 years. No way apple adds touch id to iPad Pro All of a sudden.

 

[Shirasaki]

Apple needs to unleash the M1/M2 beast inside

Stage manager is the way towards that direction, no doubt.
I can even drop game frames on M1 iPad Pro easily By launching more than 2.

 

[aeronatis]

Let's dial it back for a second: what value would an M3 bring to the iPad?

What do you do on a damn tablet to require more power than an M1 or A12X/Z?

There are apps like DaVinci Resolve and Octane X coming for iPad Pro by the end of the year. There are also current apps like Affinity Photo/Designer, LumaFusion which when working on projects with lots of layers utilizes the iPad hardware quite well. M1 16 GB will probably have noticeable performance difference compared to A12X/A12Z if the older than M1 models will get DaVinci Resolve at all. We don't not know what kind of capabilities M3 will bring (wishful thinking hardware RT), but it will make more professional apps available to the platform in time. I agree it is quite limited for now though.

Obviously, there's a lot of computing power, etc. with the iPad Pro 2, but really the only reason for wanting/needing a pro today is the option for a 12.9" screen. That's it.

It would be misleading to say that is the case for everyone. İt is rather the case for the majority of the users.

So why exactly does this still run a crippled OS? Why is this not running a touch version of MacOS? where we can install regular MacOS Apps, use a Mouse and Keyboard, and all that jazz?

Contrary to the popular belief, fullscreen app-based usage of the iPad is its strong side. The best example is the MS Surface Pro. The device is neither the best tablet nor the best computer simply because trying to be both. I believe better external display support, external device support (like using cameras for broadcasting just like we can do on Mac/PC) and definitely more advanced apps is the way to go. Apple showing DaVinci Resolve on iPad Pro but no mention of its own apps is a little weird.

 

[vtuberalpha]

just because you can’t see the values doesn’t mean others can’t.
I can max out M1 using ONE game. M3 would be god-sent for gaming.

And so what if the M1 GPU is maxed out using one game? Do you edit 4K videos while playing games?

The GPU is designed to be utilized as much as possible and the M3 will change nothing about that.

How about running 4 games? How about running 2 games plus safari and other apps? How about running more than 2 professional-grade applications?

Yeah, because who doesn't play 4 games at once on an iPad right? Oh and yeah, my base M1 iPad Pro holds 2 games + Safari + GoodNotes + Twitter + Discord in memory without a problem. Nobody's stopping you from buying the 16GB iPad.

This is just getting utterly ridiculous. The pro terminology only applies to artists in my opinion. It can nicely complement your MacBook/laptop (actual pro device) but it shouldn't replace it.

That just opens up a whole new world of nonsensical limitations brought about by iPadOS that are simply not present on a desktop operating system (Windows or macOS). It would hinder your workflow more than make it easier.

 

[Shirasaki]

And so what if the M1 GPU is maxed out using one game? Do you edit 4K videos while playing games?

The GPU is designed to be utilized as much as possible and the M3 will change nothing about that.

Yeah, because who doesn't play 4 games at once on an iPad right? Oh and yeah, my base M1 iPad Pro holds 2 games + Safari + GoodNotes + Twitter + Discord in memory without a problem.

This is just getting utterly ridiculous, I will say it again: an iPad is NOT a professional device. That terminology only applies to artists in my opinion. It can nicely complement your MacBook/laptop (actual pro device) but it shouldn't replace it.

That is just opening up a whole new world of nonsensical limitations brought about by iPadOS that are simply not present on a desktop operating system (Windows or macOS). It would hinder your workflow more than make it easier.

Do you edit 4K videos while playing games?
-- If I have the desire to do so I will do so, of course not "actual editing" but playing games while waiting for rendering to complete is a possibility. I don't see any problem here.

This is just getting utterly ridiculous, I will say it again: an iPad is NOT a professional device. That terminology only applies to artists in my opinion. It can nicely complement your MacBook/laptop (actual pro device) but it shouldn't replace it.
-- who has the authority to determine what a "Professional Device" is? I don't, and many here will not bother holding that title either. You are talking about artists, right? I'd argue pen and paper are better "professional devices" than a fancy iPad Pro could ever dream of, plus they are way cheaper.

That is just opening up a whole new world of nonsensical limitations brought about by iPadOS that are simply not present on a desktop operating system (Windows or macOS). It would hinder your workflow more than make it easier.
-- you are blaming marketing absurdity and Apple's stupid campaign over what iPadOS can and cannot do. I agree, the Apple marketing has gone way over the loop in their tin foil hat with no basis and no real substance in recent years. And yes, iPadOS is severely lacking in terms of serious application support and the basic functionality of a desktop OS. But, if someone's workflow HAPPENS to line up with what iPadOS is good at perfect enough, then there's no reason why that dude needs to relent on a MacBook Air instead of an iPad.

 

[vtuberalpha]

But, if someone's workflow HAPPENS to line up with what iPadOS is good at perfect enough, then there's no reason why that dude needs to relent on a MacBook Air instead of an iPad.

That's all fine and dandy until you realize that an iPad Pro costs as much if not more than a MacBook while running a fairly limited tablet operating system.

In an ideal world you would have an iPad to complement your MacBook (and vice versa) of course. But if one had to choose between either, I would honestly just advice them to get a MacBook simply because it's the same hardware running a desktop OS.

 

[SoldOnApple]

Hover is something I always wanted, even $30 plastic drawing tablets have hover.

 

[Shirasaki]

That's all fine and dandy until you realize that an iPad Pro costs as much if not more than a MacBook while running a fairly limited tablet operating system.

In an ideal world you would have an iPad to complement your MacBook (and vice versa) of course. But if one had to choose between either, I would honestly just advice them to get a MacBook simply because it's the same hardware running a desktop OS.

If Apple didn't just give away developers the control over which iOS app they decided to run on macOS I'd say the same. Not anymore.

Nevertheless, it is the user's "job" to figure out how those devices could work well with their workflow and lifestyle since Apple has done absolutely nothing to "figure that out for the customer". And given iPad is so much better at gaming-related entertainment than Mac by a long shot, I would ask someone "Do you play games? If so, what game do you play the most?" before recommending MacBook or iPad.

 

[Admiralbison]

MacOS to finally have pen support?

If it did, it would really put the need for iPad Pro + iOS even further.

 

[Admiralbison]

M1, M2, M3 etc.. iPad Pros are expensively pointless devices.


forever gimped by iOS and Apples’ monopoly App Store.

Let’s stop BS’ing each other here.

outside of extreme videophiles the iPad Pro peaked with the 2018 model.


Either Apple stops being greedy ripping off iPad Pro users by putting full blown MacOS to really utilize all that power or Apple to will continue to pull some software locking BS to try and pick up iPad Pro sales.


MacOS for the iPad Pro line = Pro OS, Pro Apps, Pro choice for Pro users.

 

[vtuberalpha]

M1, M2, M3 etc.. iPad Pros are expensively pointless devices.


forever gimped by iOS and Apples’ monopoly App Store.

Let’s stop BS’ing each other here.

outside of extreme videophiles the iPad Pro peaked with the 2018 model.


Either Apple stops being greedy ripping off iPad Pro users by putting full blown MacOS to really utilize all that power or Apple to will continue to pull some software locking BS to try and pick up iPad Pro sales.


MacOS for the iPad Pro line = Pro OS, Pro Apps, Pro choice for Pro users.

I totally agree for the MacBook prices they are charging but then again that would cannabalize the Mac and they always want to do things the "iPad way".

While I'm extremely happy with my 11" M1 Pro as a tablet for university and content consumption, I wouldn't even think about using it as a replacement for my M1 MacBook.

Coding is a joke/pretty much non-existent, it's locked down/dictated by the App Store, writing documents is better on my Mac (forget LaTeX on an iPad) and just inherent limitations of running a tablet OS.

Also honestly I am ****ing glad I got my 11" M1 and Pencil from Apple for a total of 850€ with the educational discount. I dodged a huge bullet with the M2 iPads.

 

[jonnysods]

We all have or tastes, but I'd rather get a MacBook Air running macOS than get an iPad and try to turn it into a computer by adding a keyboard and trackpad. iPadOS seems so limiting to me when it comes to file management.

 

[chetzar]

Contrary to the popular belief, fullscreen app-based usage of the iPad is its strong side. The best example is the MS Surface Pro. The device is neither the best tablet nor the best computer simply because trying to be both. I believe better external display support, external device support (like using cameras for broadcasting just like we can do on Mac/PC) and definitely more advanced apps is the way to go. Apple showing DaVinci Resolve on iPad Pro but no mention of its own apps is a little weird.

I would actually prefer if the iPad Pro was more like the Surface Pro and would have significant more use for my iPad Pro if it was. I wouldn’t have to travel with a Laptop for Photo/Video and an iPad.
I’ve had 2 Surface Pro’s and loved them save 1 thing: No iMessage.

I think people underestimate how useful an iPad that had a full version of MacOS when a Keyboard/Mouse is attached and goes into “tablet mode” like the current iPadOS would be.
iPadOS is literally crippling the devices hardware.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

Still, the iPad lineup is now more flexible than ever, although the lines between the base and Air iPads just got REALLY blurred.

I think it’s only blurred for those with the income to pick and choose from the entire line. The price ranges and sizes make the distinctions more clear.

 

[Unregistered 4U]

Apple showing DaVinci Resolve on iPad Pro but no mention of its own apps is a little weird.

I would guess that the folks at DaVinci are happy to not have FCP as competition. And, that could be the thinking here. Allowing opportunities for other companies to get some of that mobile pie, and Apple joins in when it’s more mature. It might even bring in more users to Resolve specifically for the iPad version which is good for both Apple and DaVinci.

 

[darngooddesign]

I would actually prefer if the iPad Pro was more like the Surface Pro and would have significant more use for my iPad Pro if it was. I wouldn’t have to travel with a Laptop for Photo/Video and an iPad.
I’ve had 2 Surface Pro’s and loved them save 1 thing: No iMessage.

I think people underestimate how useful an iPad that had a full version of MacOS when a Keyboard/Mouse is attached and goes into “tablet mode” like the current iPadOS would be.
iPadOS is literally crippling the devices hardware.

I bet you would still travel with both so you could have a larger screen for video work.

 

[vtuberalpha]

We all have or tastes, but I'd rather get a MacBook Air running macOS than get an iPad and try to turn it into a computer by adding a keyboard and trackpad. iPadOS seems so limiting to me when it comes to file management.

Which would end up costing more than a MacBook Air if you get the iPad Pro with the trackpad and keyboard 😂😂

 

[dbwie]

One other possibility I can think of is to straddle the camera with the charger components, having magnets on both sides of the camera. Or they could put the charger and camera side-by-side by using a smaller Apple Pencil, though that might break symmetry with the Pencil closer to one corner. Apple is all about symmetry. There have been rumors of a smaller Pencil for a while, so it's possible it's being saved for the next iPad Pro. Either way, the new iPad Pro wasn't slated for a redesign yet, so it's a problem Apple doesn't have to solve until next year. If I were to guess, we'll have a new Apple Pencil 3 with magnets and charging coils in a different spot on both the Pencil and on the iPad, all done to accommodate a camera move.

yes, magnets on either side of the camera seems like the most likely option.

 

[AndyMacAndMic]

yes, magnets on either side of the camera seems like the most likely option.

Or something like this?

Or is that blasphemy on this forum? Well so be it.

In any case: Better stolen well than badly conceived (if one can not innovate one's ass anymore).

Instead Apple 'innovates' this:
New iPad requires USB-C Apple Pencil adapter for pairing & charging

The Apple pen made and designed especially for the iPad needs a frickin adapter (which has to be bought separately for $9.-). Go figure.

 

[jonnysods]

Which would end up costing more than a MacBook Air if you get the iPad Pro with the trackpad and keyboard 😂😂

That's my point - the value proposition isn't there for me!

 

[Unregistered 4U]

Or is that blasphemy on this forum? Well so be it.

For a case that’s as thick or thicker than the Apple Pencil, that would work. For the current Apple keyboards and pencils, the stylus would be pressed against the screen if it was like that. They could squish the stylus like Microsoft did with the Surface Slim Pen 2 in the picture, but then you have a stylus that’s not round which, for some, might cause more irritation than “Where to put it!?”

The first quote I found for the Surface Slim Pen 2.
“Microsoft’s Surface Slim Pen 2 resembles a carpenter’s pencil and it works even better when paired to Surface Pro 8. But I find it awkward to use”