The significance of pro motion...

[prism]

Ive always loved the form factor and especially the superior dpi of the iPad mini but eventually had to move on to the iPad Pro when Apple stopped updated the mini.
Now that the mini has been updated, I was thrilled to swap it with my 11" pro but it didn't take long after starting to use it that I realised to what extent pro motion was important. This might be a subjective matter but in my case it turned out to be a deal breaker: after getting use to promotion, I just can't go back so I have decided to keep the 11" pro.
Would be curious to hear from others on this matter.

 

[AutomaticApple]

Ive always loved the form factor and especially the superior dpi of the iPad mini but eventually had to move on to the iPad Pro when Apple stopped updated the mini.
Now that the mini has been updated, I was thrilled to swap it with my 11" pro but it didn't take long after starting to use it that I realised to what extent pro motion was important. This might be a subjective matter but in my case it turned out to be a deal breaker: after getting use to promotion, I just can't go back so I have decided to keep the 11" pro.
Would be curious to hear from others on this matter.

Promotion isn’t a dealbreaker for me.

 

[EugW]

ProMotion for scrolling is very nice. Not a dealbreaker for me but a definite big plus.

ProMotion also reduces lag for Pencil but I don’t know how important that lower lag will be for me. The Pencil arrives today but I won’t have anything with which to compare since none of my previous iPads supported Pencil. I don’t draw either. I will be using it mainly for notes and to navigate certain apps.

 

[Jetcat3]

Ive always loved the form factor and especially the superior dpi of the iPad mini but eventually had to move on to the iPad Pro when Apple stopped updated the mini.
Now that the mini has been updated, I was thrilled to swap it with my 11" pro but it didn't take long after starting to use it that I realised to what extent pro motion was important. This might be a subjective matter but in my case it turned out to be a deal breaker: after getting use to promotion, I just can't go back so I have decided to keep the 11" pro.
Would be curious to hear from others on this matter.

I know exactly what you mean. It’s honestly jarring going back to the Mini from an 11” or the 10.5” Pro.

 

[Newtons Apple]

I remember when I got my 10.5 the ProMotion effect was striking. I replaced it with the 11" and still love it. Scrolls are much smoother.

 

[zhenya]

Yes, even my high end laptop feels jerky at 60hz now.

 

[sracer]

Ive always loved the form factor and especially the superior dpi of the iPad mini but eventually had to move on to the iPad Pro when Apple stopped updated the mini.
Now that the mini has been updated, I was thrilled to swap it with my 11" pro but it didn't take long after starting to use it that I realised to what extent pro motion was important. This might be a subjective matter but in my case it turned out to be a deal breaker: after getting use to promotion, I just can't go back so I have decided to keep the 11" pro.
Would be curious to hear from others on this matter.

I'm pretty much the lone hold-out in thinking that ProMotion is little more than a gimmick to stir up sales. Yes, having ProMotion is nicer than not having it, but I won't pay extra for it.

iPads used to have buttery smooth performance... until iOS 7. Then people began noticing hiccups and stutters in UI animations. Those complaints hung around until the introduction of ProMotion. Apple took something way only to reintroduce it as a "feechur" later on.

I find it funny (in an odd way) how the 1st gen iPad Pros (without ProMotion) had great performance and minimal latency with the Pencil and were often praised as superior to the Surface and Surface Pen... but as soon as the 2nd gen Pros were released with ProMotion, suddenly, the 1st gens were viewed as laggy, blurry messes that were barely usable with the Pencil.

I understand that everyone else loves ProMotion and is an important feature for them. My view of ProMotion is NOT a commentary on those people...only on ProMotion itself.

 

[EugW]

I'm pretty much the lone hold-out in thinking that ProMotion is little more than a gimmick to stir up sales. Yes, having ProMotion is nicer than not having it, but I won't pay extra for it.

iPads used to have buttery smooth performance... until iOS 7. Then people began noticing hiccups and stutters in UI animations. Those complaints hung around until the introduction of ProMotion. Apple took something way only to reintroduce it as a "feechur" later on.

iOS on a 60 Hz screen has NEVER been as smooth as iOS on a ProMotion screen. Never. I have had iPads ever since the iPad 2, with iOS 4. And I've had iPhones ever since the iPhone 3G, with iOS 2.

Also, it's theoretically impossible for a 60 Hz non-ProMotion screen to be as smooth as a 120 Hz ProMotion screen, because you need the added frame rate in order to achieve the smoothness.

Now I myself agree it's not a dealkiller feature, and in fact I suspect 95% of the population wouldn't even care, but your statement that Apple had it before 120 Hz screens is simply false.

I find it funny (in an odd way) how the 1st gen iPad Pros (without ProMotion) had great performance and minimal latency with the Pencil and were often praised as superior to the Surface and Surface Pen... but as soon as the 2nd gen Pros were released with ProMotion, suddenly, the 1st gens were viewed as laggy, blurry messes that were barely usable with the Pencil.

I understand that everyone else loves ProMotion and is an important feature for them. My view of ProMotion is NOT a commentary on those people...only on ProMotion itself.

I don't remember it that way. I remember people saying the 1st generation with Pencil was good, but 2nd generation with Pencil was even better.

 

[sracer]

I don't remember it that way. I remember people saying the 1st generation with Pencil was good, but 2nd generation with Pencil was even better.

"good vs. even better" is different, than "indispensable" and "lack of it is a deal-breaker"... those were (and still are) the words used to describe ProMotion. That certainly sets the bar that using the Pencil on non-ProMotion equipped iPads as being unacceptable.

 

[EugW]

"good vs. even better" is different, than "indispensable" and "lack of it is a deal-breaker"... those were (and still are) the words used to describe ProMotion. That certainly sets the bar that using the Pencil on non-ProMotion equipped iPads as being unacceptable.

Well, technology progresses. I certainly wouldn't buy a 1st gen Pro today, unless it was uber cheap.

The thing is though, you can buy a ProMotion 10.5" iPad for the same price as a non-ProMotion 10.5" iPad right now, as long as you're willing to accept the possiblity it won't get updated for as long.

 

[Starfia]

Wow, that's cool.

I switched from an iPad to a new iPad Pro last year. I noticed ProMotion, but it struck me as subtle – 60 hertz was already really good. I wouldn't call it a deal-breaker now; maybe I'll start taking it for granted and the difference will strike me later.

 

[sracer]

Well, technology progresses. I certainly wouldn't buy a 1st gen today, unless it was uber cheap.

The thing is though, you can buy a ProMotion 10.5" iPad for the same price as a non-ProMotion 10.5" iPad.

My comment was to address your remembrance of how non-ProMotion iPads were perceived by people. There WAS an immediate disdain for the 1st gen Pros after the 2nd gen was released that, IMO, wasn't warranted given the accolades of the 1st gen w/Pencil.

 

[tps3443]

Promotion is real. A true 120Hz panel on a computer, or phone, or tablet is a drastic change for anyone that is used to 60hz.

All I can say is, once you try Promotion for a few weeks. Your other devices will feel weird in comparison.

Promotion is awesome for gaming, a few games even support the 120FPS mode, which pretty much turns our graphics settings to ultra low, so we can sustain a minimum off around 100-120FPS. There is zero latency, and no delay. It is incredible.

Once you go promotion, you can’t really go back. That is the one downside. The same thing happen to me with computer monitors. Once I went 1440P resolution @165Hz, 4K 60Hz wasn’t so fun anymore.

 

[EugW]

My comment was to address your remembrance of how non-ProMotion iPads were perceived by people. There WAS an immediate disdain for the 1st gen Pros after the 2nd gen was released that, IMO, wasn't warranted given the accolades of the 1st gen w/Pencil.

To be honest, I did feel the 9.7” Pro was a lame product. But I felt that since day one. It had a reduced size keyboard and only 2 GB RAM, the same as my 2014 iPad Air 2. The 10.5” Pro was an upgrade in almost every way... but I didn’t buy that either at launch because it cost too much.

Finally in 2019 I HAD to buy since the kids wanted my Air 2, and luckily we had the choice between two reasonably priced 10.5” models.

 

[KamilG]

The Pencil arrives today but I won’t have anything with which to compare since none of my previous iPads supported Pencil. I don’t draw either. I will be using it mainly for notes and to navigate certain apps.

Settings > General > Accessibility > Display Accommodations > Limit Frame Rate

 

[EugW]

Settings > General > Accessibility > Display Accommodations > Limit Frame Rate

Why would I do that? Do you mean just for comparison purposes?

Cuz I wouldn't want to turn off 120 Hz for scrolling.

 

[KamilG]

Why would I do that? Do you mean just for comparison purposes?

Cuz I wouldn't want to turn off 120 Hz for scrolling.

Oh yea, should’ve mentioned that in the original post, but yeah, for comparison.

 

[ahostmadsen]

I have to be honest, I can see essentially no difference. I went to the 11" pro from the 9.7" pro, and sometimes I still use the 9.7", and I don't notice any difference unless I look very, very closely.

 

[CrazyForCashews]

The best feature of the iPad Pros, period.

 

[tps3443]

I have to be honest, I can see essentially no difference. I went to the 11" pro from the 9.7" pro, and sometimes I still use the 9.7", and I don't notice any difference unless I look very, very closely.

I can go pick up my sons iPad 2018 6th Gen. Simply just typing in a password for my son on his iPad so he can download another game, or app. I don’t notice a slower cpu, I don’t notice that his iPad only has 2GB of ram. His iPad runs great just like mine, but the absolute first thing that I do notice is the refresh rate.

 

[ThugFreak]

I have to be honest, I can see essentially no difference. I went to the 11" pro from the 9.7" pro, and sometimes I still use the 9.7", and I don't notice any difference unless I look very, very closely.

Deleted

 

[rowspaxe]

Massively overhyped. Also, did not change my pencil experience

 

[muzzy996]

For me just because something is a deal breaker doesn’t mean I’ll sell others on the idea that it should be a deal breaker for them too. Promotion yields a smoother experience overall for me and that is worth extra money. I do not separate it out from the other benefits that I get by having an iPad Pro though because there are several other improvements over other iPads that contribute to price and experience.

 

[Naaaaak]

ProMotion is the biggest display improvement since the Retina display.

Screw P3.
Screw TrueTone.
Screw HiDPI.

All of that crap requires someone with a good camera/editor to make a good picture and the differences are subtle (like a 2% difference) AT BEST.

ProMotion improves everything, across the board, and makes the experience noticeably better. If you aren't seeing it, you probably are one of the few people who can't see above 60Hz or something and there should be a disability named for that.

I want 120Hz monitors or ProMotion across the board, even on the Mac. 60Hz is dated and laggy crap.

 

[rui no onna]

I'm pretty much the lone hold-out in thinking that ProMotion is little more than a gimmick to stir up sales. Yes, having ProMotion is nicer than not having it, but I won't pay extra for it.

iPads used to have buttery smooth performance... until iOS 7. Then people began noticing hiccups and stutters in UI animations. Those complaints hung around until the introduction of ProMotion. Apple took something way only to reintroduce it as a "feechur" later on.

I understand that everyone else loves ProMotion and is an important feature for them. My view of ProMotion is NOT a commentary on those people...only on ProMotion itself.

It's like switching to SSDs. At first you don't notice much difference upgrading to SSD. After a few months of using SSDs, going back to HDD is a pain.

If all you're used to are HDDs, though, you can't miss what you never had.