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Refreshed Low-Cost iPad Said to Feature Larger Display, A14 Chip, USB-C and 5G
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It might be thinner and lighter, but the design is the same.
The regular iPad is a necessary option though.
For most US customers, I reckon the choice is between even cheaper Android or Amazon Fire tablets and this ~$300 iPad. Majority of customers aren’t willing to spend much more than $300 on a tablet.
Apple pretty much just offers:
Good
iPad
Better
iPad Air
iPad mini
Best
iPad Pro 11”
iPad Pro 12.9”
Well the current 9th gen 10.2" model isn't laminated. And it's not laminated because it's sold to education. Broken screens are easier & less expensive to repair if it's not laminated.
The base iPad has been in this 10.2 configuration for three years now and continues to be Apple’s best selling iPad. And with the prices of so much else going up everywhere the 10.2 iPad is holding its price and making it an even better value than ever.
A14 chip with bigger display is good particularly if they can keep the cost increase minimal. Most people who buy the base iPad love the home button, but they would adapt if it disappears. Still going with something like the iPad Pro 10.5 design would be a winner and make it easier to distinguish from the current Air.
A14 chip with bigger display is good particularly if they can keep the cost increase minimal. Most people who buy the base iPad love the home button, but they would adapt if it disappears. Still going with something like the iPad Pro 10.5 design would be a winner and make it easier to distinguish from the current Air.
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Exactly while I’m waiting for the new iPad Pro in landscape mode, I know they have a trick up their sleeve. I despise the Apple Pencil v1 design, charging and storage is just so fiddly
The base iPad is a great value product IMO. I hope they keep it at the same price point.
This is key. If they can do the upgrades AND hold the price point it will be a helluva good buy.
As noted earlier, on many devices the 10.5 IPP screen suffers from a stagelight effect about 2.5 inches above the touchid button. I am looking at it right now. A clear, and common design/build fault that should have been recalled.
If it has USB-C, the first gen Apple Pencil would be a little hard to connect to the iPad, wouldn't it?
Mine is fine. But that’s irrelevant. If they need to sacrifice say the lamination technique or something and make it a hair thicker for reliability’s sake I wouldn’t mind.
However I could concede for the point others brought up about the Apple Pencil. I use my tablets as strictly touch input devices so it didn’t occur to me that the old design pencil is lightning and would be annoying to charge.
The Pro gives you a better screen, better speakers, larger storage sizes, better cameras, faster USB-C with Thunderbolt/USB4, better audio recording, and more robust 5G.
So if you don't need those things, the Air is a great alternative.
I’m actually thinking this might look similar to a large iPhone 4(s)/5(s). Square design but keeps the Home Button TouchID.
Frankly, I’m more than willing to pay the extra $200 for FaceID alone.
I have both the Air 4 and mini 6, and the new power button TouchID fails almost 100% of the time when I use the fingers on my left hand.
Plus, FaceID is a lot more convenient than TouchID when you’re using the iPad with mouse and keyboard.
Happy to see USB-C coming to entry level iPad! If that's true, that means we will get the Apple Pencil 2 as well as a redesign to accommodate both changes! And I hope they laminate the display as well, but this will be highly unlikely as laminating the screen can cut into sales of the higher priced laminated iPads. Yes there is a argument about people not noticing the non laminated display, but there is some people like me who can't stand the non laminated display. If they decide to laminate, there will be no change to people who doesn't care/notice non laminated display, but people like me will just buy the entry level iPad instead of higher priced ones, thus cutting into the sales.
Android tablets have navigation buttons in the screen. My Samsung can wake/sleep with a double tap on the screen. I use it a lot without the case, which does not wake/sleep.
Everyone should put a sensor in the screen, except for the power button. Yeah, the button will take a gazillion taps, but why do that?
My Nokia tablet requires constant use of the power button.
I love the touch sensor and my iPad is the only one with it.
It allows me secure other apps besides Apple.
I only use my Lightning cable for charging and it is white. Everything else is black.
I do vote for USB-C. By now it just makes sense.
Everyone should put a sensor in the screen, except for the power button. Yeah, the button will take a gazillion taps, but why do that?
My Nokia tablet requires constant use of the power button.
I love the touch sensor and my iPad is the only one with it.
It allows me secure other apps besides Apple.
I only use my Lightning cable for charging and it is white. Everything else is black.
I do vote for USB-C. By now it just makes sense.
I hope the slightly larger screen is a sign they are going to shrink the bezels as part of removing the home button. It is extremely confusing to have two different gesturing triggering systems depending on the iPad and we need to move forward to something unified.
At this point, can we also get the USB C on the 2022 iPhones and call it a day?
Well I guess USB C suggests it will need a flat edge for the Pencil 2, unless they redesign the pencil with USB C just for this device? I also suppose they could keep the front the same as now but just flatten off the sides.
Actually I’m pretty sure you can use similar gestures on the 10.2 iPad as you can on the Air and Pro. For example you don’t have to use the home button to go back to home screen—you can just swipe up from the bottom corner just like on the Air and Pro.
The gestures for the non-Home Button iPads work the same way on iPads with Home Button. You just avoid the eyesore of the Home Bar.
Since it’s still 10.5, I reckon this will still have Home Button probably in a chassis similar to Air 4/5 and Pro 11 (to maintain Smart Keyboard Folio and Magic Keyboard compatibility). If they get rid of the Home Button, not much point in keeping the bezels that big and it also lessens the differences between the $599 Air and this less expensive iPad. Aesthetics are often a selling point.
This is more or less what I’m expecting. Kinda like a gigantic iPhone 4/5.