12.9” iPad Pro
On March 18, 2020, Apple announced an update to the iPad Pro, adding more memory, an ultra-wide camera, LiDAR, and a better binned A12Z processor.
REVIEW
Go Big or Go Home
Back in November 2019 I began to contemplated making my next iPad purchase a 12.9" iPad Pro. By then, my iPad had become my go-to device in-and-outside the home - whether that was to a local coffee shop or across the country. But this wouldn't have been my first big iPad; I had previously owned the first generation iPad Pro, purchasing it back in November 2015 but selling it only a year and a half later in March 2017. While I loved the vision of expanding the iPad with the Smart Keyboard & Apple Pencil, I found the original iPad Pro a little unwieldy, with massive bezels and an operating system that wasn't yet tuned to allow the iPad to be the device it was capable of being.
But as the iPad continued to be refined across time, in both hardware and software capabilities, my longing to return to a larger iOS canvas grew. The redesign of the iPad Pro in 2018 & bifurcation of iOS into a dedicated iPadOS sealed my decision that my next device would be a 12.9" iPad Pro.
Then on March 18, 2020, Apple announced an update to the iPad Pro, which included 50% more RAM (4-to-6GB), a better binned A12Z processor, and a new ultra-wide camera and LiDAR sensor. The upgrades were rather ho-hum, though it was the announcement of the new Magic Keyboard & the introduction of native cursor support to the iPad Pro that I became most enthusiastic about! These two additions helped elevate the usability of an iPad as a dedicated work device. One week later, I purchased the iPad, which shipped and then arrived at the beginning of April. Small aside: while I wasn't home for the delivery, which generally would have resulted in a delay in receiving my package, one outcome of the pandemic was that UPS briefly suspended their policy requiring signatures to leave a package from Apple, and so for 5 hours, my iPad Pro sat at my doorstep, in the cold -15ºC Canadian spring (winter doesn't end in Canada just because the calendar says that spring has arrived). I came home to excitedly open my very new, very cold, iPad Pro!
The 12.9” is Still a Niche Product
I need to write that unlike the 10.2, 10.9, or 11" iPad models, the iPad Pros size can be highly advantageous in some contexts, but that size does come with some trade-offs to consider. To name a few, this isn't a device I prefer to read on. I've found that reading on the iPad Pro feels awkward since holding a nearly 13" tablet as your eyes jog across long rows of text is fatiguing. And generally, though this is a personal preference, I've found that I prefer a smaller tablet for tasks like drawing or taking notes with the Apple Pencil. It's also bigger (pointing out the obvious), so where & how you plan on using the iPad may affect how convenient you find this device. Historically travelling with the smallest full-featured tablet has been my preference, so I'm interested to see how I adjust with the larger model once travel becomes a thing again.
The iPad Pro is also a costly device that can quickly shoot into MacBook Pro territory after considering adding accessories, cellular capabilities, and additional storage to the device. Strongly consider how well this product can fit into your workflow to maximize its value, including what could change and whether the iPad would be able to adapt.
What I've Enjoyed Most
The thing I love most about using the iPad Pro is how light and modern the entire OS feels compared to its macOS counterpart (we'll see how Big Sur shakes things up). With the 12.9" Pro, that experience is supercharged by the much larger canvas to create and consume content. Of my devices, the iPad Pro is my favourite writing device because I can see and edit more content, resulting in a faster, more immersive workflow. But more than that, and while I know this may sound fluffy, using the iPad Pro feels like a much more intimate computing experience as any barriers between the hardware and the creative experience really seems to dissolve while using the device.
Other things to say about the device is that the larger display on the 12.9" means that when I use apps side-by-side, I nearly get the equivalent of two full-screen iPad apps without them becoming compressed. And the native cursor support and Magic Keyboard have also helped make the writing experience equivalent to the best Mac laptops. And because the iPad has evolved to be such a modular, personal, and engaging device, it has become my go-to browser, jukebox, video-viewing, writing, gaming, messaging, emailing, and a million-more-things-device!
Overall
Overall, while I dream of mini-LED displays or wished that Apple had put an A13X or newer chip into their refresh, the 2020 iPad Pro remains a powerful and incredibly capable device. But specs aside, Apple is at it's best when the products they create bring a sense of joy to the customer, and Apple's 2020 iPad Pro continues to delight me each time I go to use it!
