“Apple has now unveiled the iPad Pro 9.7 giving the Pro range far wider appeal while retaining compatibility with the all-important Smart Keyboard and Pencil range of accessories,” Andrew Williams writes for IT Pro. “There’s more to the differences between these tablets that just screen size, though.”
“The iPad Pro launched as the most expensive iPad ever. The iPad Pro 9.7 brings the entry point down to a much more accessible level,” Williams writes. “In a pure game of numbers the iPad Pro 9.7 has a clear advantage. It’s slightly thinner at 6.1mm to the 12.9-inch version’s 6.9mm and weighs significantly less at 437g instead of 714g. The iPad Pro 9.7 also comes in Rose Gold too, while its larger brother ‘only’ comes in Space Grey, Silver and Gold.”
“The basic specs of these tablets’ screens indicate that they have been made to a similar standard. They are IPS LCD displays, both offering 264ppi. In the iPad Pro 9.7 that means a resolution of 2,048 x 1,536 pixels, and 2,732 x 2,048 for the iPad Pro 12.9,” Williams writes. “Both have a dual-core Apple A9X CPU. This is a 64-bit chip coupled with a M9 co-processor used to monitor the tablet’s sensors while it is not in active use. It is believed the 9.7in has 4GB RAM like its bigger counterpart, but it’s entirely possible it’s 2GB like the iPad Air 2 — Apple does not publicise the RAM specs of its mobile devices.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Which iPad Pro do you prefer?
MacDailyNews Note: Today is Good Friday. As such, the U.S. financial markets are closed for the day and posting will be less frequent today.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]
I’m torn, I think I want the 9.7″ at full 256 spec, but if it DOESN’T Have 4GB ram, then maybe the bigger one…
The 9.7″ iPad Pro has 2GB RAM:
http://appleinsider.com/articles/16/03/22/apples-97-ipad-pro-discovered-to-have-2gb-of-ram-half-that-of-129-model
That’s what I feared …
Nothing to fear. Remember the 9.7’s CPU / GPU are pushing far fewer pixels. From the brief reviews I’ve read, performance is still darned good.
BTW, I bought my wife a 128GB 12.9″ iPad Pro plus Pencil and Smart Keyboard for Christmas. Everything works seamlessly, and the Apple Pencil is truly wondrous.
I don’t think pushing pixels is the primary driver of how much RAM you need. It’s a factor, but that’s all.
It’s confirmed the 9.7″ iPad Pro has only 2GB system ram. Ars Technica first look review. I’m still ordering the Space Gray 256GB cell new model.
Ordered a 256GB 9.7″ iPad Pro right out of the gate… Replacing my iPad Air.
What’s this? I thought it was certain that the smaller iPad Pro had only 2GB of RAM….
See my comment above. The 9.7″ version has 2GB RAM.
What about the Lightning connector? Is it USB3 as the 12.9 Pro or is it USB2? This is the biggie for me.
No, the Lightning connector on the 9.7 is single sided and not USB 3 speeds or power charging.
AND if you visit MDN from inside the News app, you get a dialog box that prevents the Ads from opening the App Store. Nice workaround.
Not going to tempt me away from the 12.9 version. Once you have experienced that extra real-estate there is no going back. Also, the Apple Pencil is the way to go – 3rd party keyboards have been available to non-pro devices for years. Again, you have to try it and then there is no going back.
Yup. And the appropriate amount of RAM too. The “original” Pro just flies and is smooth as hell. That memory is necessary when copying and pasting large images/text while taking notes, working in Procreate, etc.
Last fall, I really wanted an iPad3 with same tech as the iPad Pro, which is what the 9.7 iPad Pro equates with. Rather than wait, I bought the 12 inch Pro and quickly got used to the screen size. While I was initially very hesitant about the size, I love it. The 9.7 inch iPad is almost quaint now by comparison. That said, I usually run with 2 iPads, so I might pick up the smaller Pro too just to have around (to replace iPad Air 1).
I just got my 12.1″ iPad Pro a couple days ago with Apple Pencil and snark keyboard, and I’m in love. Best computer I’ve ever owned
Where can I get one of those *snark* keyboards? Sounds like a great idea.
Looks to me like you already have one :-p
You have a point!
Me too. 4GB makes iOS so much more capable, the screen is fantastic, and the USB 3 Lightning port adds future-proofing.
Getting the 12.1″ iPad Pro with 256GB. The screen real estate sealed the deal. It is practically the size of two 9.7″ screens put together. I don’t care about a better camera, or “true tone”, or 4K video. It’s the screen that made the difference for me. Besides that Smart Keyboard on a 9.7″ iPad Pro looks cramped.
It’s actually 12.9″, not 12.1″.
I’m happy with my iPad Air. I don’t buy iOS as a Mac replacement (now, or ever) and the Air works fine for the few things I use it for.
I’m still using my iPad “3”, which is now 4 years old and has been used many hours each day since I bought it. It has gotten a tad slow, but it’s still good for basic functions. My wife, prior to getting her 12.9″ iPad Pro, had been using her iPad 2, which is now 5 years old. One nice thing about iPads is, if well taken care of, i.e., no hard drops, they are super reliable and require almost no maintenance. They really do “just work”.
The bigger iPad Pro is awesome, I wouldn’t even consider going back to the *tiny* iPad Air size again, that would just be too constraining.
The smaller iPad Pro does have a better camera, though, at 12 megapixels, vs 8 megapixels with my bigger iPad Pro. But that’s the only advantage I can see when comparing the two.
I love those Surface Pro ads talking about how sad the Mac doesn’t have the ability to draw right on the screen, conveniently neglecting the superior drawing experience on either of the iPad Pro’s. It makes you wish you could add product deflating correction info to those kinds of ads taking all the air of their lying POS Surface Pro tires.
They’re technically more correct than not. The Surface Pro is more of a hybrid laptop using a desktop OS with a detachable screen that also functions as a tablet. The iPad Pro is a tablet with an attachable keyboard, but a tablet OS. The Surface Pro competes with both the Macbook, Macbook Air, and the iPad family (regardless of how well it may performs against any of them). Just giving credit where it’s due.
I understand that already thanks. The only difference is Apple has yet to make a touch screen portable Mac. Surface Pro is a master of none IMHO.