iPad Pro Upgrade or wait?

[PeterJP]

I've been using my 2018 11" iPP for 4 happy years now, adding more stuff that I do with it all the time. It's a base model, 64GB but with cellular. I got that because I was commuting by train back then, but I don't do that anymore. Main use is GoodNotes, mail/browse/... style office work. And then multi-track audio recording in AUM with some light use of plug-ins. That's around 10 tracks in 24-bit 48KHz simultaneously. I'm also planning to use miRack on holiday.

The iPP has taken all of this really well. I'm bumping into the limitations of the 64GB frequently and have to clean up my recordings every so often. They're all backed up onto a NAS, so it's no problem. I also notice the iPP needs to refresh frequently when switching apps, even when not recording. So going from mail back to Safari, it reloads. Almost all the time. So it's getting near the end of its useful life, though it's not quite there yet.

I see a couple of good deals on M1 iPads at the moment. I don't really need the 16GB RAM, but I'm looking at 256GB storage upward. Probably 512GB. There's an incredible 2TB cellular M1 deal here locally at the moment, but it still comes out €400 more than the 512GB so I don't think it's worth it.

Is there any reason to wait? Is there any real advantage of the iPad Air Center Stage camera versus the IPP one, and if yes, would that come to this year's iPP update?

 

[PeteBurgh]

It sounds like you have a pretty good understanding of your needs and the limitations of your current iPad.

I think it's a reasonable time to buy if you can afford it and see a good deal. It seems like the next significant update to the iPad Pros still some time away, and if it's a device you use a lot every day, even an incremental update (more RAM, a bit faster) will be very nice.

Personally, my 2018 IPP is still going great, and I'm reluctant to spend a significant replacing it with one where neither the industrial design nor fundamental OS limitations have moved on in almost five years. But for me it's very much a secondary device, so I'm happy to wait and see over a longer timeframe.

 

[okkibs]

If you can save some money on a previous-gen M1 model that's a good idea for sure, though the display will be very similar on the 11" model to your current one, for the XDR display you'd need the 12.9" - the old display tech is the only thing I don't like about the 11".

You might want to look at a Macbook Air M1? If you don't need it on the go often anymore, the Macbook is plenty mobile, has good battery life, a similar screen, and similar pricing. But you'll get the full MacOS instead. Of course no touchscreen.

However, the AUM - Audio Mixer app you are probably using says it's not available for MacOS. Technically the iPad apps run on M1 Macs but the developer didn't make that available for their app.

 

[PeterJP]

If you can save some money on a previous-gen M1 model that's a good idea for sure, though the display will be very similar on the 11" model to your current one, for the XDR display you'd need the 12.9" - the old display tech is the only thing I don't like about the 11".

I never had an issue with the screen. I tried a 12.9" M1 from a colleague for a week and didn't notice a difference. "Trying" as in: restore current iPad to that 12.9" and really using it in the same way. I'm not into photo/video/gaming so it's not a must have. The try-out was to see if I could benefit from the bigger screen. Conclusion there was also: not worth the €400 extra for me.

You might want to look at a Macbook Air M1? If you don't need it on the go often anymore, the Macbook is plenty mobile, has good battery life, a similar screen, and similar pricing. But you'll get the full MacOS instead. Of course no touchscreen.

However, the AUM - Audio Mixer app you are probably using says it's not available for MacOS. Technically the iPad apps run on M1 Macs but the developer didn't make that available for their app.

I like your out-of-the-box thinking. But I'm pretty well configured with a well spec'ed out 14" MBP, 11" iPP and iPhone. As mentioned above, the 12.9" iPP gets really close in size to the mac, so the iPP has less of a take-everywhere feel. And yes, AUM is key. I really like how the iPad in full screen becomes an appliance for a specific use. I do sometimes switch away from AUM to look at some docs, but it's limited. When I was making music on my mac, the combination of a complex DAW and a full computer experience was way too distracting.

 

[okkibs]

In that case the 11" M1 iPad Pro seems like a great choice. At the very minimum it doubles the memory from 4GiB to 8GiB, which should help a lot with Safari having to reload all tabs. But since I have that same issue on my older iPad and haven't upgraded yet, I am not 100% sure if the extra memory actually fixes it. I strongly suspect it will, but I don't have the experience to back it up. Hopefully there is no iPadOS limitation where it closes apps prematurely.

Personally, I'd look at a 1TB model for the extra memory if the price difference is small, but again, I don't know how much use the iPad can make of that, and I bet it's wasted even with extreme multitasking as iPad apps are generally rather limited in functionality. The 8GiB M1 version is for sure the better value for the money.

 

[rui no onna]

In that case the 11" M1 iPad Pro seems like a great choice. At the very minimum it doubles the memory from 4GiB to 8GiB, which should help a lot with Safari having to reload all tabs. But since I have that same issue on my older iPad and haven't upgraded yet, I am not 100% sure if the extra memory actually fixes it. I strongly suspect it will, but I don't have the experience to back it up. Hopefully there is no iPadOS limitation where it closes apps prematurely.

Doesn't totally get rid of reloads but for me, it has greatly reduced them.

 

[darngooddesign]

I've been using my 2018 11" iPP for 4 happy years now, adding more stuff that I do with it all the time. It's a base model, 64GB but with cellular. I got that because I was commuting by train back then, but I don't do that anymore. Main use is GoodNotes, mail/browse/... style office work. And then multi-track audio recording in AUM with some light use of plug-ins. That's around 10 tracks in 24-bit 48KHz simultaneously. I'm also planning to use miRack on holiday.

The iPP has taken all of this really well. I'm bumping into the limitations of the 64GB frequently and have to clean up my recordings every so often. They're all backed up onto a NAS, so it's no problem. I also notice the iPP needs to refresh frequently when switching apps, even when not recording. So going from mail back to Safari, it reloads. Almost all the time. So it's getting near the end of its useful life, though it's not quite there yet.

I see a couple of good deals on M1 iPads at the moment. I don't really need the 16GB RAM, but I'm looking at 256GB storage upward. Probably 512GB. There's an incredible 2TB cellular M1 deal here locally at the moment, but it still comes out €400 more than the 512GB so I don't think it's worth it.

Unlike the 512GB Pro and M1 Air, the 1TB and 2TB Pros have double the RAM at 16GB So that 400 isnt just for a larger drive. Do Safari and Mail keep reloading if you put them on the same Stage with Stage Manager?

I found an ridiculous deal on a 1TB cellular M1 Pro so I bought that instead of waiting for something newer.

Is there any reason to wait? Is there any real advantage of the iPad Air Center Stage camera versus the IPP one, and if yes, would that come to this year's iPP update?

The M1 iPad Pros have Center Stage.

It’s up to you if you want to keep dealing with 64GB until the M3 iPads are released, which might be next year. I think that the M3 iPad Pro will get a landscape camera with a new Pencil-3.

 

[floral]

The 2018 iPP is more than capable for today's uses - you just got stuck with an unfortunate storage configuration. I'd recommend waiting until the next generation of Pros come out, but you can definitely buy an M1 now and it would make total sense.

 

[PeterJP]

The M1 iPad Pros have Center Stage.

It’s up to you if you want to keep dealing with 64GB until the M3 iPads are released, which might be next year. I think that the M3 iPad Pro will get a landscape camera with a new Pencil-3.

I'm sorry, I meant the landscape camera. Pencil 3 won't be a help. I have a Pencil 2 and if possible, I'd like to reuse it. I just looked up the rumours about the 3 and if there's more functionality, I feel it might take away the simplicity of the current design. I turned off the tap on mine.

The 2018 iPP is more than capable for today's uses - you just got stuck with an unfortunate storage configuration. I'd recommend waiting until the next generation of Pros come out, but you can definitely buy an M1 now and it would make total sense.

Yes, that's a good summary.

I felt this might be a good time to buy because resellers must be getting rid of their M1 stocks by now. But the only configs left where they really offer serious discounts, are 1-2GB with cellular. A 40% reduction is cool, but it's overkill for me and still more expensive in absolute money than an M2 with 256-512GB and no cellular, which sounds about right for my use. There are discounts right now on those configs, but I feel they can only get bigger as the M2 generation iPP gets older. So I'm going to wait and see what happens, and not let myself be seduced by a larger config that I don't really need. This summer I'm planning to hand over this iPad to one of my sons. That's when I will look for the best price for what I really need.

Thanks y'all for the interesting chat!

 

[floral]

But the only configs left where they really offer serious discounts, are 1-2GB with cellular.

The last time I remember 1-2GB being offered as a storage option is the PowerBook 3400...

 

[Rychiar]

I just upgraded to an M1 Pro 12.9 from an ipad air 2. THAT was a big upgrade lol. I use an IPad Pro 2018 11” at work though and even from that the M1 is a big jump. It’s just so smooth and fast. It was also an $1100 machine when it came out last year and i bought a lightly used one on eBay for $650. Works perfect. Can’t complain.