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New iPad Pro 11 USB-C Data transfer speeds

stylinexpat

stylinexpat

macrumors 68020
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Mar 6, 2009
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Over the years syncing with a MacBook Pro has been a nightmare with syncing speeds being very slow using the standard lightning Cable we got. I am wondering how much faster this new cable will be for syncing with iTunes compared to before on previous iPads and iPhones.

I did notice that the new iPad Pro comes with 5 microphones compared top previous 2 microphones and added more satellites for GPS so better navigation when using Apple or Google Maps and better call quality when using FaceTime audio calls with new microphones. Now for the important part for data sync speeds between laptop and iPad.

https://www.engadget.com/2018/10/30/apple-ipad-pro-usb-c/

https://www.theverge.com/2018/10/30...s-on-screen-features-pencil-usb-c-photos-2018

Note that this isn’t Thunderbolt 3, it’s USB 3.1 gen 2, supporting up to 10-gigabit transfer speeds.
 
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I hope it is a lot faster and it actually reaches USB3.1 speeds because transferring files has been a nightmare before. Wireless is a more convenient option but it’s also very slow.
 
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iPad Pro cable is the "iPad USB-C Charging cable" which is USB 2.0. Built for maximum charging voltage but very slow on data speed and doesn't support video.

You need to buy a USB-C to USB-C cable that says USB 3.0, USB 3.1 or Thunderbolt speeds to get the 5Gbps and higher data transfer speeds and video support. The included cable won't be any faster than the lightning cables were.

Here's a 10Gbps cable for example..
https://www.amazon.com/Anker-PowerL...pID=31f35ybeDLL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch
 
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AndrewS said:
iPad Pro cable is the "iPad USB-C Charging cable" which is USB 2.0. Built for maximum charging voltage but very slow on data speed and doesn't support video.

You need to buy a USB-C to USB-C cable that says USB 3.0, USB 3.1 or Thunderbolt speeds to get the 5Gbps and higher data transfer speeds and video support. The included cable won't be any faster than the lightning cables were.

Here's a 10Gbps cable for example..
https://www.amazon.com/Anker-PowerL...pID=31f35ybeDLL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch
Click to expand...

Thanks, this is interesting. So new cable supplied with iPad Pro syncs at same speed as in previous models. One would need to buy another cable to get faster sync speeds then, correct?
 
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stylinexpat said:
Thanks, this is interesting. So new cable supplied with iPad Pro syncs at same speed as in previous models. One would need to buy another cable to get faster sync speeds then, correct?
Click to expand...

That's right, for fast data transfer, you should get a USB-c cable that is specifically made for high bandwidth connections. The cable that comes in the box won't work for that, it's made for charging.

Here is one that should work with the new iPad:

https://www.amazon.com/Belkin-Thund...4aab6249e31079940a6f5f5303b3bc&language=en_US
 
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stylinexpat said:
Note that this isn’t Thunderbolt 3, it’s USB 3.1 gen 2, supporting up to 10-gigabit transfer speeds.
Click to expand...

This is an important point. The iPad can output to 5K displays. However, the LG 5K Ultrafine display that Apple sells is not compatible. Why? It has a USB-C connector but it is a Thunderbolt 3 display. The iPad does not support Thunderbolt.
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stylinexpat said:
Thanks, the 40Gbps 1.6 foot looks like a good one. To try.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but just keep in mind, the new port on the iPad is a USB-c 3.1 Gen 2 that can support a maximum of 10 gigabits per second. The 40 Gigabits/sec may be overkill and a waste of money given the limitations of the port.
 
the future said:
I always put loads of music on my iPads and can confirm that with the proper cable the copy/sync speed of the new Pros is now much faster than with all other iPads before. Which is very awesome.
Click to expand...

Good to know, thanks for sharing.

Can you share which cable you used and where you got it?
 
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the future said:
I always put loads of music on my iPads and can confirm that with the proper cable the copy/sync speed of the new Pros is now much faster than with all other iPads before. Which is very awesome.
Click to expand...
Good to know. The iPad Pro I bought (10.5) and the current iPhone 8 Plus I have all sync at snail speeds as if they were from the 80’s or something with Norton running in the background.

New iPad Pro pretty much has faster sync with extra cable that buyer has to fork for,2 more microphones,2 more GPS Satelites and 2 more GB’s of RAM for another arm and a leg cost.
 
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the future said:
I always put loads of music on my iPads and can confirm that with the proper cable the copy/sync speed of the new Pros is now much faster than with all other iPads before. Which is very awesome.
Click to expand...

Can you please do the percentage difference for that "much faster" speed? Also I'd like to see the comparison with 1000 small files. I'm currently on 10.5" iPad Pro and my condition for next iPad is to have a much needed "significant" read/write speed improvement for small files. Though this is perhaps more relevant to NAND than USB but I'm still curious.
 
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Jailbreaking Bad said:
Can you please do the percentage difference for that "much faster" speed? Also I'd like to see the comparison with 1000 small files. I'm currently on 10.5" iPad Pro and my condition for next iPad is to have a much needed "significant" read/write speed improvement for small files. Though this is perhaps more relevant to NAND than USB but I'm still curious.
Click to expand...

No I can't, because I don't use a stopwatch or something like that when I restore a new iPad from a previous backup. I would estimate that file transfer was at least 2x-3x faster than before. And mp3/mp4 are small files, right? I transfered over 23000 of them …
 
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Tested. With a proper USB 3.1 Gen2 USB-C to USB-C cable, I transferred a 20GB 4K video file to the iPad Pro 2018 in just a few minutes. I didn't time it but it was really fast. Comparing with the old iPad Pro which needed half an hour.

The previous iPad Pros are really trash in this regard. USB 2.0 in 2018? Come on.
 
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There's definitely going to be a big difference, even if you just look at the USB specifications (not sure which one the iPad supports)

USB 2.0: 40 MB/s
USB 3.0: 300 MB/s
USB 3.1: 900 MB/s
USB 3.2: 1800 MB/s
 
Okay so I need to buy 2 USB-C cables, one for charging and one for transferring.

Does Apple supply both to buy or will 3rd party ones be compatible without issues?

I need 1.5m or 2m length cables the one they provide is not long enough to reach my outlets.


Kallum.
 
I used a USB A to c cable to sync my music last night, about 40GB was done in around 10 minutes.

That was an old cable though and not sure if it was USB 3 speed, I have USB 3 cables coming today and I’ll test the speed with those.
 
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Binarymix said:
I used a USB A to c cable to sync my music last night, about 40GB was done in around 10 minutes.

That was an old cable though and not sure if it was USB 3 speed, I have USB 3 cables coming today and I’ll test the speed with those.
Click to expand...
10 minutes seems a bit long. I have around 60-70 Gb in my current iPad Pro between music, photos, notes,contacts and Calendars. Having to wait 10-15 minutes each time it needs to back things back up again and then sync again seems like a long time each time. Seems like it takes 5 times the amount of time it should for each sync/backup each time I need to sync with my MacBook Pro on iPad Pro and iPhone 8 Plus
 
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Kal-037 said:
Okay so I need to buy 2 USB-C cables, one for charging and one for transferring.

Does Apple supply both to buy or will 3rd party ones be compatible without issues?

I need 1.5m or 2m length cables the one they provide is not long enough to reach my outlets.


Kallum.
Click to expand...
A lot of manufacturers try to cut cost when manufacturing cables. Inside the main cable there are other cables inside. One for charging and one for syncing. Most try to keep them thin to cut down on cost. They have different gauges of cables for charging and syncing.
 
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haruhiko said:
Tested. With a proper USB 3.1 Gen2 USB-C to USB-C cable, I transferred a 20GB 4K video file to the iPad Pro 2018 in just a few minutes. I didn't time it but it was really fast. Comparing with the old iPad Pro which needed half an hour.
Click to expand...
I had a similar result with a usb-c to usb-c cable from xiaomi, transferring 11GB in 2 files from a Windows computer to the new iPad Pro through iTunes, finished in 450 seconds, which translates to 24MB/s.
 
This has been a standard issue with MBPs for a while. (the difference between charge, USB, and TB (versions 2 and 3) cables)

With these iPads, you most likely are safe with any USB-C TB cable (overkill for sure, but apparently they work great with just USB, as it's a dual spec).

Things like DUET, which is badly broken with (without hacks) recently. Somebody needs to use a good 'data' cable directly to a MBP and see what kind of monitor emulation we can get.

Then you have all these peripherals: (Audio interfaces, etc.). A real 'surprise package', no doubt :D

Of course I would contribute something useful if I actually had one of these. Going to have to wait a little while (for you to beta for me :D )
 
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My Anker USB C cable arrived today so i was able to back up my iPad 11" and sync to my MacBook. It was lightening quick. I also downloaded some movies from the cloud down to the iPad and it synced everything in less than an hour...two hours quicker than when i synced to my 10.5. This is one quick machine.
 
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