M4 iPad Pro vs. M3 iPad Air: Which One is Best For You

[ZiBart]

iPadOS support. Going forward, even the current base iPad will be updated for longer than all the LCD iPad Pros.

Apple has always given the Pros 1-2 year longer software support vs all other iPads. Unless they change this moving forward, an m2/m3 ipad pro should still receive the same ipadOS support as the latest Air. Assuming people keep iPads as their primary tablet this long and dont pass it on to kids/family or sell it/trade it in. I typically upgrade within 3-4 years so the latest version software cut off never applies to me. Its really Apple’s fault and our benefit for making the m series ipad pros so good since 2018.

 

[EugW]

Apple has always given the Pros 1-2 year longer software support vs all other iPads. Unless they change this moving forward, an m2/m3 ipad pro should still receive the same ipadOS support as the latest Air. Assuming people keep iPads as their primary tablet this long and dont pass it on to kids/family or sell it/trade it in. I typically upgrade within 3-4 years so the latest version software cut off never applies to me. Its really Apple’s fault and our benefit for making the m series ipad pros so good since 2018.

Maybe a year longer OS support for the iPad Pros, but the last LCD iPad Pro was the M2 that was released way back in 2022. The iPad (A16) was released in 2025. IOW, there is a very good chance even the latest OLED iPad Pro M4 which came out in early 2024 will lose iPadOS support at the same time as the lowly iPad (A16). There is no M3 iPad Pro.

For example, my 2017 iPad Pro 10.5" (A10X, 4 GB RAM) does not support iPadOS 18.
However, my 2019 iPad 10.2" 7th gen (A10, 3 GB RAM) supports iPadOS 18.

 

[ZiBart]

Maybe a year longer OS support for the iPad Pros, but the last LCD iPad Pro was the M2 that was released way back in 2022. The iPad (A16) was released in 2025. IOW, there is a very good chance even the latest OLED iPad Pro M4 which came out in early 2024 will lose iPadOS support at the same time as the lowly iPad (A16). There is no M3 iPad Pro.

For example, my 2017 iPad Pro 10.5" (A10X, 4 GB RAM) does not support iPadOS 18.
However, my 2019 iPad 10.2" 7th gen (A10, 3 GB RAM) supports iPadOS 18.

I typically only speculate off historical patterns so can't say one way or the other for future support of latest devices unless Apple has made it official or something. You could be right or it could be like it has been. Who knows.

Lookin up support for upcoming iPadOS 19:

iPad Pro 2018 and newer
iPad Air 3 2019 and newer
iPad 8 2020 and newer
iPad mini 5 2019

Looks like a year to two gap between the main 3 models.

 

[EugW]

I typically only speculate off historical patterns so can't say one way or the other for future support of latest devices unless Apple has made it official or something. You could be right or it could be like it has been. Who knows.

Lookin up support for upcoming iPadOS 19:

iPad Pro 2018 and newer
iPad Air 3 2019 and newer
iPad 8 2020 and newer
iPad mini 5 2019

Looks like a year to two gap between the main 3 models.

Quoting the year of release is not sufficient. It also depends in part upon when in the year the device was released. The iPad Pro 2018 came out in November, after iPadOS 12 was already released in 2018.

In contrast, the iPad Pro M4 came out in May 2024, long before iOS 18 was released in 2024. Having something come out in early 2024 may effectively be like having something coming out in December 2023, from an OS support point of view, even though they are different calendar years.

 

[ZiBart]

Quoting the year of release is not sufficient. It also depends in part upon when in the year the device was released. The iPad Pro 2018 came out in November, after iPadOS 12 was already released in 2018.

In contrast, the iPad Pro M4 came out in May 2024, long before iOS 18 was released in 2024. Having something come out in early 2024 may effectively be like having something coming out in December 2023, from an OS support point of view, even though they are different calendar years.

If you’re going to go into that much detail, you’d also have to consider when the device was bought and when the new OS came out. But honestly, I don’t have the drive or see a point. I’ll still prefer a 1, 2, or 3-year-old m series iPad Pro over the latest Air, when similar price range or cheaper. That’s mainly because of the display, then the aesthetics, and then features/performance in some generations. And even if the new OS has extra support for ‘x’ months on latest Air, I don’t keep iPads, computers, or phones for 6 + years when that support becomes somewhat relevant. But I guess if you are one that likes to keep devices that long, your point might be relevant. Let’s remember, these devices will still continue to work fine for many years without the latest OS support.

 

[EugW]

If you’re going to go into that much detail, you’d also have to consider when the device was bought and when the new OS came out. But honestly, I don’t have the drive or see a point. I’ll still prefer a 1, 2, or 3-year-old m series iPad Pro over the latest Air, when similar price range or cheaper. That’s mainly because of the display, then the aesthetics, and then features/performance in some generations. And even if the new OS has extra support for ‘x’ months on latest Air, I don’t keep iPads, computers, or phones for 6 + years when that support becomes somewhat relevant. But I guess if you are one that likes to keep devices that long, your point might be relevant. Let’s remember, these devices will still continue to work fine for many years without the latest OS support.

Yeah we keep our devices a long time. Anyhow I was just reminding people here that higher specs don’t necessarily equate to longer support. The big disadvantage of older refurb iDevices is the shortened future OS support cycle. That is why I generally will no longer buy Apple refurbs that are more than about 1-2 years old.

 

[MacBH928]

OLEDs tend to be more cold (more bluesih) in appearance whereas LCDs appear more warmer (more yellowish). Most noticeable when compared side by side.

according to tv display enthusiast, the warmer yellow displays reflect the more true colors and true skin tones of people. So for video, the yellowish tint should be the one closer to reality. But people prefer the blue tone because it gives more of a "POP" to the image and hence used as default in tv stores to attract consumers.