A thorough review of the iPad Pro by Engadget

Link to review

iPad Pro

PROS

• Well-built
• Robust performance
• Bright, pixel-dense screen
• Lighter than you'd expect
• Smooth, precise pen input
• Surprisingly good audio
• Long battery life

CONS

• Expensive, especially with the accessories sold separately
• Still heavy compared to other tablets
• No mouse support; none of the keyboards have touchpads
• Screen angle isn't adjustable on any of the keyboards
• iOS 9 doesn't multitask as well as desktop operating systems
• Nowhere to store the Pencil

SUMMARY

The iPad Pro isn't for everyone: It performs well, but iOS 9 isn't as adept at multitasking as a laptop operating system, and the lack of any mouse input can get tiresome. That said, its fast performance and smooth pen input could be useful for creative pros who need a way to stay productive while on the go. The Pro won't replace your computer, but for a certain kind of user, it could be a handy supplement.

According to the review, despite bad battery life, the Surface Pro 4 wins!

There's already a thread for reviews, I don't see why we needed another.

Because that thread is more about bragging rights of having a "Desktop Quality" Processor on the iPad Pro, when it doesn't have any "Professional Quality" apps to take full advantage of it ;)

This is about Engadget's reviews and they took a very long time to post it after a week of the launch. That's something I don't see the tech site do, usually they are allowed to have reviews on the day of the device is released, but something is rotting in their back room.

@FireEmblem_Man I still think this could have just gone in the other thread, but while we're on the topic...

The iPad Pro can be used as a second display for a Surface.

@NVIDIATI said:

@FireEmblem_Man I still think this could have just gone in the other thread, but while we're on the topic...

The iPad Pro can be used as a second display for a Surface.

That's Sacrilege! But yes, that is the only good thing for the iPad Pro, a better off to be a second screen display :P

It's kind of a weird review.

It gets knocked for a keyboard that doesn't have multiple angles, but the keyboard gets reviewed separately. It also gets knocked for features iOS has never had (mouse support?). The review seems to be comparing it to devices that are attempting to be more than a tablet (Surface Pro 4) when Apple hasn't attempted to make the iPad Pro a direct competitor in that device category (if you have evidence to the contrary, please share). And even though that is the case (as it is with many somewhat off-base reviews), Engadget fails to address relative performance between devices like the Surface Pro 4 and the iPad Pro. And it's even more evident that Engadget fumbled the angle on this review because you'll see no mention of 3D touch (which is, in my humble opinion, the most meaningful omission to the first-gen iPad Pro).

So, like many other reviews, this one is just okay. What's clear is that the iPad Pro is fast, the Pencil is the best stylus you'll find, and for creative pros on the go, it'll be tough to beat. It's also going to be a great machine for power-users who also enjoy tablets. But that said, it's also a first generation device, just like the first gen iPad (which although the iPhone 4 had a front facing camera, had no cameras of its own).

The other important take-away is this: The next iterations of the iPad Pro are going to be significantly faster and the next versions of iOS are going to be far more feature-rich specifically for use on the iPad Pro. It was true of the original iPhone, it was true of the original iPad, and it's nearly inevitable for the iPad Pro. And it'll all happen sooner than you think.

I didn't think I'd ever hear you talking about future potential ;).

The iPad Pro is not tough to beat, the one clear thing from numerous reviews, is that despite the hardware, it doesn't come close to having a "pro" ecosystem. Even the pen is a very polarizing accessory, while it has good performance for some software, it lacks the versatility and functionality of something like the Surface Pen. There has also been some feedback about the plastic body not being ideal to write with, but I imagine that can be fixed in future versions (or maybe with an accessory).

Heh, the difference here is that my post doesn't hinge entirely on what hasn't happened yet. It's just worth noting that the iPhone and iPad went from experimental to top in their respective field in the blink of an eye. And we've got evidence that supports the idea that the same is likely going to happen to the iPad Pro. If it doesn't happen, I will be the first to admit it.

I don't know if I'd call the Pencil polarizing. That tends to assume that people either love it or hate it. It's more about whether or not someone is going to need it.

The iPad Pro is a first-gen product, and it shows. But it's a better first-gen product than the original iPad was, by quite a measurable margin.

EDIT: I'm more confused and disappointed by the angle many of the reviews have taken, including this one here (for reasons I explained above).

Yet the iPad Pro, being marketed as the PC replacement for professionals by your new god Tim Cook, but Developers of Professional applications have a hard time thinking of putting their apps into the iPad Pro, due to competition of bottom of the barrel apps and expectations of consumers wanting to buy apps lower than $10.

Link

I think you're misinterpreting Cook's words. Let's look at them again.

Cook insisted that "the iPad Pro is a replacement for a notebook or a desktop for many, many people" who will "start using it and conclude they no longer need to use anything else, other than their phone."

That's true. It could replace a notebook or desktop for many people. What Cook didn't say was that the purpose of the device was to replace laptops or desktop computers. There's a very important distinction between those two things. Apple still makes laptops because they have a place in the world and in Apple's product lineup.

Apple is not marketing the iPad Pro as a PC replacement. Yet.

(Side note: In my opinion, apps like Pixelamtor will begin putting more pressure on the 'titans' of the industry. It's reminiscent of the days when the expensive MS Office was too important not to have. These days, Office isn't even a tiny bit necessary for 99% of the people of the world. I'm guessing Adobe will be quicker on the draw to adapt than Microsoft was, but only time will tell. We shall see. It's a brave new world.)

Okay, so where's the track pad in the Smart Keyboard, where is mouse support for iOS, where is a hinge to adjust the viewing angle of the smart keyboard? Also, it's lapability is piss poor. Also, since Office came into iOS, people immediately switched from the crappy iWorks. So Ofiice is still important for students and business people!

@FireEmblem_Man: If you need a track pad and mouse support for a TABLET that is trying to be a TABLET, you have missed the point entirely.

Also, your gripes remind me of Android and MS fans mocking the first iPhone for not having a physical keyboard or adobe flash support.

SP4 sales vs iPad sales. Numbers speak. All this discussion is worthless because SP4 hasn't even met a fraction of the iPads success. It's much more of a niche product than the iPad is.

Cry on.

I think you're under the false assumption that every computer user needs a mouse or hardware keyboard. My wife's mother hasn't touched their home computer since getting her iPad Air 2. For email, lists, Facebook, online shopping, reading, and web browsing, an iPad is more than enough. The same is true of my own mother.

Like I said before, it's a brave new world. There are exponentially more people like my mom and my wife's mom than there are people like you and me (who I would consider to be power users).

(Another note: Your quip about Apple's productivity software is off-target. Office is no longer necessary for 99% of the population, including students and people in businesses.)

@musicalmac: I like to find your source, where dis you get 99 percent?

@mister-man: We're not talking about sales! We're talking about the iPad Pro, stay on topic! Secondly, the iPad Pro is being advertise FOR professionals and you DON'T have a lot of Professional Apps! A lot of Professional Apple software developers have voiced their criticism on Apple of how the App Store runs as it favors for bottom of the barrel apps more than actual productivity!

It's too early to judge on the iPad Pro, maybe Apple and the developers are late to release the potential apps for it.

If you're looking for something portable that runs OS X, then you're looking at the wrong machine here. You have the new MacBook & MacBook Air for that.

Have either the Ipad Pro or SP4 even released sale numbers yet?

@ferret-gamer: I think both sold out, didn't they? That's not too specific, I know.

I'm fairly certain the iPad Pro is selling well. I think that in the past quarter alone, Apple sold more iPads than MS has sold Surface tablets in all the years they've been selling them. So from a sales standpoint, Apple is going to be in the lead for a while. In fact, I think Surface revenues plunged more than 25% in the past year.

And just a side note: Comparing the Surface Pro 4 to the iPad Pro (or Surface Pro to iPad generally), again, I don't think it's really the same product category. Just because there's a "Pro" in the name, doesn't mean we've got similar product identities. This is where I think many reviews really missed the mark.

Last quarter was the only quarter where Surface sales didn't significantly increase compared to the previous year, and the other quarters more than make up for the lower revenue last quarter. The difference in performance between this and the previous year's last quarter was that the previous year had the release of the Surface Pro 3, while this year's previous quarter didn't have a Surface release, and it was well known that the SP4 was coming in fall.

@ferret-gamer: Sure, though I think the increase in sales were only impressive by percentage, not by actual numbers sold.

You're point about timelines is certainly valid.

Well, it seems like despite the large screen of the ipad pro, it loses to the Surface Pro 4 and then loses to it's little brother, the iPad mini 4.

http://iphone.appleinsider.com/articles/15/11/17/apples-ipad-pro-boasts-top-tier-display-but-falls-behind-ipad-mini-4-microsoft-surface-pro-4

From A to A-... Yep, pretty disastrous defeat there. Hehe.

To re-visit this, we do have more to go on.

Apple projected to sell more iPad Pros in a single quarter than all MS Surfaces ever sold (w/$200 profit on each)

The info is in the link, but it's about what I imagined would happen.

So you're using future estimates? Also, this doesn't have anything to do about sales numbers, but the amount of profits and revenue. We already know even if the SP4 outsells the iPad Pro, that Apple will still make more profits.... Geez.....

I said this is what we have to go on, and that this is what I imagine would be the case.

I never care for profits, what I care is that everyone gets a SP4 over an iPad Pro and it will bound to happen. My dad thought of getting a Pro, but thought it was too big and looked too much like a toy than a Pro device, so he's going to wait for the SP4 or the Surface 4 LTE edition next year.

@FireEmblem_Man: Not sure how a black screen against an aluminum chassis looks like a "toy," per se.

When "toy" is mentioned, what comes to mind is those leap frog tablets for kids.

Profits matter a whole lot whether you'd like to admit so or not. It's the reason why iOS' app ecosystem is far more robust than MS and Androids offerings, the reason why third parties develop far more accessories for iDevices than any other competing product, and its how developers get paid.

Even scratch off profits, and you'll see Surface Pro's only sell a fraction of units compared to iPads

Cry more that your toy doesn't have any professional apps! ahahahahahahah!

Apple got themselves in this position. People complain about program being over 5 dollars. Also, software development is likely going to span across the entire ipad lineup. I doubt we'll see exclusive pro support for quite awhile, if ever, unless it is by apple themselves.

@Heirren: What position? The one where they're making almost every dollar in the mobile world and where ONE recently released product has likely outsold a product line that's been available for half a decade in a matter of weeks?

Do you truly believe the iPad won't enjoy specialized software? 'People' might hesitate to buy software that costs more than 5 dollars. Professionals will not.

Yes, that exact position. The position in which the itunes store has become a wave of 99 cent apps with countless knockoff apps. The position where the general consumer does not care to spend much on said apps. The position where the general consumer is willing to update their tech every year. Where Apple can update their product line twice a year. It is enormous. I am not saying otherwise. The question mark in my head deals more with the ipad and ipad pro. The current ipad market is astronomical. Because of its size I find it hard to believe that developers won't develop application which work across the ipad scenario as a whole, and not just the pro.

Perhaps at some point, but as in a different discussion, the line moves so fast that your device loses real world support very rapidly. At 1000 dollars I do not see people buying every new model. My guess is that Apple will simplify their current product scheme, as it is a bit messy.

@Heirren: Apple releases one update per device per year, and their legacy support is unrivaled to both current Android devices and Windows Mobile devices.

Also, evidence supports that the only platform where users do spend money on apps is on iOS. Enjoy the butthurt.

Your reading comprehension is very poor