Watch: M1 iPad Pro Unboxing Videos and First Impressions

[mazz0]

I think one guy said it is there but its not noticable, you have to really look for it. You can only see it if you're doing the dimming test (or playing pong) but he said it was fairly hard to distinguish between OLED. He did mention something about a weird pillow impact on the kindle app when in dark mode but its likely software. I suppose you may have to go in store and try it out... The vast majority of them showed a comparison between mini led and lcd but they mentioned you cant tell on camera. Kind of like watching an advert for super duper amazing OLED tv on a crappy TV, you can really see it

Yeah, I ended up watching that one after the other article mentioned it.

I would imagine that grey is because the backlights all have to be on for the writing, as clearly the dimming zones are far bigger than the stroke of a character (they look to be similar in size to the full width of a character in fact).

Also looking at that pong demo, if that's the size of the dimming zone I'd imagine stars, for example, will look dreadful.

Hmm. I don't think it is a match for OLED.

 

[brofkand]

Apple is killing the environment by shipping a charger with this device.

 

[gimarbazat]

Which version of Big Sur works best on this M1 iPad?

 

[jonnyb098]

Exactly right. They and their ilk are a curse on the tech world.

The thumbnails mean clicks, clicks mean money. Most , not all, but most of the tech youtubers have become nothing more than advertisers for tech companies. MKBHD basically bashed the iMac for half his video complaining about all sorts of little things. Guess what, its got over a million views and he probably made more off of it than some do in an entire year of work.

 

[Lukomaldini]

Yeah, I ended up watching that one after the other article mentioned it.

I would imagine that grey is because the backlights all have to be on for the writing, as clearly the dimming zones are far bigger than the stroke of a character (they look to be similar in size to the full width of a character in fact).

Also looking at that pong demo, if that's the size of the dimming zone I'd imagine stars, for example, will look dreadful.

Hmm. I don't think it is a match for OLED.

You might be right. I think once they get in people’s hands they may improve the algorithm which controls the backlights but that’s just a guess. What I have seen with reviews is the cameras aren’t great at capturing halos as they sometimes struggle to focus and introduce an artificial halo. I would take a low risk of haloing but amazing display over lcd and grey like blacks any day. That’s just my preference

 

[mazz0]

You might be right. I think once they get in people’s hands they may improve the algorithm which controls the backlights but that’s just a guess. What I have seen with reviews is the cameras aren’t great at capturing halos as they sometimes struggle to focus and introduce an artificial halo. I would take a low risk of haloing but amazing display over lcd and grey like blacks any day. That’s just my preference

Yeah, I would too, it’s very tempting indeed, but I don’t think the jump is necessarily *quite* big enough to make me upgrade from my 2018. Unless something big comes at WWDC to make use of all that RAM.

I don’t think any algorithm tweak could help - the dimming zones are the size they are. In ebooks for example they have to be illuminated to light the letter in a book, so the whole book background has to be lit (except maybe between paragraphs).

 

[Lukomaldini]

Yeah, I would too, it’s very tempting indeed, but I don’t think the jump is necessarily *quite* big enough to make me upgrade from my 2018. Unless something big comes at WWDC to make use of all that RAM.

I don’t think any algorithm tweak could help - the dimming zones are the size they are. In ebooks for example they have to be illuminated to light the letter in a book, so the whole book background has to be lit (except maybe between paragraphs).

I was a bit confused about the grey background on the Amazon, compared to traditional lcd but I guess the blooming is essentially what the black looks like on traditional lcd. My thinking behind the algorithm was that it handles text in a different way or gets more optimised to showing text, but my knowledge on that is slim so I could be talking rubbish

 

[javigarrido]

It doesn't matter how fast the iPad is if the OS is limiting what you can do. If they ever decide to turn this iPad into a Macbook/iPad hybrid, they'll get a lot of new buyers.
I truly believe it's just money, they still want people to spend twice as long as they possibly can. I get it. But now with their M1 chip, there's no excuse.

 

[mazz0]

I was a bit confused about the grey background on the Amazon, compared to traditional lcd but I guess the blooming is essentially what the black looks like on traditional lcd. My thinking behind the algorithm was that it handles text in a different way or gets more optimised to showing text, but my knowledge on that is slim so I could be talking rubbish

Yeah - I think that’s it exactly: when you have something bright at regular, frequent intervals (eg writing) the screen all has to be lit up, so it’s effectively just like a standard LCD backlight.

 

[steve09090]

Super portable, super crisp, super fast setup with the M1 MacBook Air & the M1 12.9” iPad Pro running sidecar.

 

[Bawstun]

Completely useless product until they allow the iPads to run full iOS and not some crippled version. It’s a shame, all that processing speed and power and it’s still just a large iPhone, now with Magic Mouse accessories and greater power. Still useless, lol.

 

[The Game 161]

It doesn't matter how fast the iPad is if the OS is limiting what you can do. If they ever decide to turn this iPad into a Macbook/iPad hybrid, they'll get a lot of new buyers.
I truly believe it's just money, they still want people to spend twice as long as they possibly can. I get it. But now with their M1 chip, there's no excuse.

Issue is they wouldn’t just get a lot of buyers chances are it will pretty much end their high end sales for ye mac

 

[steve09090]

Completely useless product until they allow the iPads to run full iOS and not some crippled version. It’s a shame, all that processing speed and power and it’s still just a large iPhone, now with Magic Mouse accessories and greater power. Still useless, lol.

So you don’t have an iPad then?

 

[Bawstun]

So you don’t have an iPad then?

Nope, and I also haven’t purchased a new iPhone design since the introduction of the notch years ago. I am currently only supporting the iPhone SE 2020, which was the last good design Apple released for phones.

I put my money where my mouth is. The iPad will be crippled and useless in its current form, forever. And the notch was a decision that Steve would have never made, it’s a very poor compromise and even worse design. Should not be.

 

[steve09090]

Nope, and I also haven’t purchased a new iPhone design since the introduction of the notch years ago. I am currently only supporting the iPhone SE 2020, which was the last good design Apple released for phones.

I put my money where my mouth is. The iPad will be crippled and useless in its current form, forever. And the notch was a decision that Steve would have never made, it’s a very poor compromise and even worse design. Should not be.

Let's unpack this.

You say you haven’t bought a new iPhone since they introduced the notch in 2017 (iPhone X) then how do you have a 2020 iPhone? The iPhone SE is a good option if you can't afford, or don’t need/want what the premium versions have. But if you think a notch is an example of poor design then you are obviously a form over function kinda person. Even with that horrible chin and forehead on the iPhone SE.

With a billion iOS and Mac devices active in the world, I suggest Apple know what good design is. But then, if you don’t see the value of an iPad, then that’s not a loss for you because you’re obviously happy with what you have. This doesn't mean it's crippled, because it is simply the best tablet out there. It just means it's not for you. How is the iPad crippled?

Having a notch was never a "very poor" compromise, but it's definitely a compromise, and until a better solution comes along, it's what we have. I'd rather Face ID and edge to edge screen, and most iPhone users don't even see the notch when using it. But that Chin & Forehead?? really?

BTW, Steve wasn't a designer, he was a marketing person. What would he have done? Please tell us, we'd love to know what he thinks.

 

[Bawstun]

Let's unpack this.

You say you haven’t bought a new iPhone since they introduced the notch in 2017 (iPhone X) then how do you have a 2020 iPhone? The iPhone SE is a good option if you can't afford, or don’t need/want what the premium versions have. But if you think a notch is an example of poor design then you are obviously a form over function kinda person. Even with that horrible chin and forehead on the iPhone SE.

With a billion iOS and Mac devices active in the world, I suggest Apple know what good design is. But then, if you don’t see the value of an iPad, then that’s not a loss for you because you’re obviously happy with what you have. This doesn't mean it's crippled, because it is simply the best tablet out there. It just means it's not for you. How is the iPad crippled?

Having a notch was never a "very poor" compromise, but it's definitely a compromise, and until a better solution comes along, it's what we have. I'd rather Face ID and edge to edge screen, and most iPhone users don't even see the notch when using it. But that Chin & Forehead?? really?

BTW, Steve wasn't a designer, he was a marketing person. What would he have done? Please tell us, we'd love to know what he thinks.

That’s a lot of words defending poor design. I went to school for design - and it’s awful, and as long as there is a notch on iPhones, I will never purchase one. If they drop the iPhone SE 2020 design and go to something with a notch, I’ll get an iPhone 8+ or I’ll switch manufacturers and ecosystems. I simply do not support bad design, it’s really that simple, and the notch is poor. It’s a visual trade off that sacrifices the enjoyment of the user, in order to make their (Apple’s) R&D easier. Not sure how else to put it to you. There are viable workarounds to a notch and have been since it was introduced. Apple wasn’t interested because the notch was easier and less expensive. That is poor design.

And iPad OS cripples all of the functioning power of the iPad and that’s not really debatable, either. You already need keyboard accessories and stands - and for what? To use half of its power, half as efficient?

The original iPad iterations were fine on iOS. What they are trying to make them now, and charging for them, is laughable. It’s a crippled big iPhone for $1,000+. Totally nuts. Should not be supported and unfortunately consumers have gone away from good design.

 

[steve09090]

And iPad OS cripples all of the functioning power of the iPad and that’s not really debatable, either. You already need keyboard accessories and stands - and for what? To use half of its power, half as efficient?

I won’t comment on your delusion of an iPhone being poor design, but your iPad complaints are pretty unique. The only accessory I use for my iPad Pro is an Apple Pencil, which is pretty amazing btw. If you don’t want a device that isnt able to be max'd out, and prefer those where you have to use all of its power to enjoy it, then there's nothing more than I can add.

 

[Bawstun]

I won’t comment on your delusion of an iPhone being poor design, but your iPad complaints are pretty unique. The only accessory I use for my iPad Pro is an Apple Pencil, which is pretty amazing btw. If you don’t want a device that isnt able to be max'd out, and prefer those where you have to use all of its power to enjoy it, then there's nothing more than I can add.

How is an inconvenient notch not bad design? From how it looks when the phone is off, to how it looks when the screen is on, to the trade off of watching fullscreen video and on and on. It’s as if Apple has slowly but surely brainwashed people into accepting that this is good design. I’ve hated it from the moment it came onto the scene and I’ve never just “accepted” it as they’ve kept using it (being lazy) for years, and years, and years.