iPad Pro vs. iPad Air | Should You Even Consider the iPad Pro in 2022?
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Apple hasn’t given much love to the iPad Pro recently. Sure we got a new iPad Pro just last year, but compared to the iPad Air or the iPad mini, the difference wasn’t big enough to make people feel a need to upgrade.
But that’s probably isn’t anyone’s fault; the iPad Pro is already a super-powerful machine thanks to the M1 chip inside. But the biggest problem for the iPad Pro is that there’s a new iPad on the block that might become everyone’s favorite: The new iPad Air.
Apple recently released a new iPad Air that has pretty much everything the iPad Pro has for almost half the price. It comes with an M1 chip, 5G support, and it even has Touch ID, which some people still prefer.
So that leaves us wondering if you should even consider getting an iPad Pro at this point? Keep reading to find out.
During its March presentation, Apple launched the fifth-generation iPad Air. This new iPad Air has pretty much everything you’re looking for in an iPad. Now, the iPad Air comes with the M1 chip, just like the iPad Pro and many new Mac computers. This makes the small device feature up to two times faster graphics performance compared to the previous models and even makes it faster than many laptop computers around the same price range.
What’s more, thanks to the CPU, GPU, and a 16-core Neural Engine, you can do heavy work like editing 4K videos, playing the most intense games on the App Store, and pretty much anything the iPad Pro and any laptop can do.
On top of the amazing new processor, the iPad Air also gets 5G support for the first time. Of course, it’ll only be available on the cellular model, which is a bit more expensive. But it’ll still give you a more secure connection and faster download speeds no matter where you are.
On top of that, the new iPad now also supports Center Stage, which lets the front-facing camera adjust itself to make you appear at the front of the frame all the time.
If you combine all of that and get yourself a few iPad Air accessories like the Magic Keyboard, you can truly replace your laptop with an iPad in no time.
iPad Pro’s Starting to Fall Behind
Unfortunately, for the iPad Pro fanbase, the biggest iPad is falling behind. Now that the iPad Air has become more powerful, the iPad Pro needs a little more to be a compelling choice.
Don’t get me wrong; the iPad Pro still has some amazing exclusive features. You can only get a mini-LED display on the iPad Pro, which it’s better than the Liquid Retina display on the iPad Air.
Plus, you also get ProMotion, which makes your experience on the iPad a lot smoother. So if you’re looking for the iPad with the biggest, best-looking display, then the 12-inch iPad Pro model will be your go-to choice.
On top of that, the iPad Pro is the only iPad to feature Face ID, which some people prefer. If you go for the iPad Air or even the iPad mini, you’ll have to deal with Touch ID located on the Side button.
- Another good thing about the iPad Pro is storage. If you’re looking to get up to 2TB of storage, the iPad Pro will be your only choice.
- The iPad Air only supports up to 256GB of storage, and that’ll cost you almost as much as the 11-inch iPad Pro.
There are still many other features that are exclusive to the iPad Pro, but if you don’t really mind any of them, you’d still get an amazing experience on the iPad Air for less money. So Apple needs to step up its iPad Pro game next time around.
What’s Next for the iPad Pro?
There are already some rumors saying that we might see a new iPad Pro as soon as this year. Some people were even expecting Apple to release it during the Peek Performance keynote.
Unfortunately, we don’t have enough information about the iPad Pro that really stands out. We’re expecting the new iPad Pro to feature a more powerful Apple Silicon processor, albeit we’re not sure which chip Apple would use.
We’ve also heard rumors that the smaller iPad Pro would also feature a mini-LED display, just like the 12-inch model.
Just a few months ago, there were a lot of rumors about a possible new Apple Pencil that we suspected would be exclusive to the iPad Pro. This third-generation Apple Pencil would be more precise and support different gestures to control the iPad. However, there haven’t been that many updates for the new Apple Pencil in the last few months.
Is the iPad Pro Worth It in 2022?
For all casual users and even power users who don’t mind some compromises, the iPad Air is the best iPad you can buy right now.
Sure, you won’t have a mini-LED display or access to 2TB of storage, but the iPad Air can still do mostly everything the iPad Pro can, even if it ends up not being as powerful when we see a full comparison.
If I were to tell you can spend over $1,000 for a big M1 iPad or $600 for a smaller M1 iPad, which one would you choose? Most of us, who want to have the latest and greatest, but don’t want to spend that much money, would go for the iPad Air.
Heck, you could even get an Apple Pencil and a Magic keyboard, and the iPad Air would still be cheaper than the 12-inch iPad Pro. That’s a deal not many of us are willing to miss out on.
The iPad Pro is still an amazing iPad, and it’s one of the most powerful devices you can get your hands on, even when compared to other tablets and laptops. But as of right now, you’d be better off saving a bit of money and getting an iPad Air – maybe that’ll change in the future, but we can only sit and wait.Shop iPad AirShop iPad Pro