Apple recently announced a new 9.7-inch iPad as its first launch of the year. The tablet is an effective descendant of the iPad Air 2 and is facing more competition from Apple’s existing iPad Pro than any other device.
Both machines are sleek and powerful. The new iPad offers an A10 Fusion chip and support for the Apple pencil, whereas the iPad Pro continues to offer a faster processor, a better camera, and better display. But which one is right for you? We have rounded up the key differences between the two devices so that you can work out how to select the device that’s best for you.
Now the good news is that both the devices look almost identical, with the nearly same form factor and the aluminium unibody aesthetic. All the usual buttons are on the front and side with cameras both on the front and rear. Coming to the differences, the new iPad is marginally heavier than the iPad Pro, weighing 469 gm to iPad Pro’s 437 gm. The 6th Gen iPad is also 1.4mm thicker and the screen panel is also slightly different as it does not have an anti-reflective coating or the support of wide colour.
Having said that, the iPad pro uses ProMotion Technology which makes all the motions smoother, crispier, and more responsive. It also has the True Tone Technology which adjusts the white balance of the display to match the lighting along with the wide colour feature for brighter and more vivid colours. Meanwhile, the new iPad uses the same old non-laminated display with a new touch sensor to support the Apple Pencil.
The camera structure on the new iPad is far less impressive than what we are used to from the iPad Pro. For starters, you are getting an 8 MP image resolution while the iPad Pro packs a high resolution 12 MP camera. Needless to say, this simply means that the iPad pro takes bigger pictures and not necessarily better.
Although the new iPad does pack a slightly larger battery, it offers the same 10-hour battery life as the iPad Pro. Both devices feature a Touch ID fingerprint sensor, lighting ports, and models with cellular connectivity.
The only real difference is that the new iPad only comes in the 32 GB and 128 GB variant whereas there is an additional 256GB option with the iPad Pro. Coming to the most important question: Does the new iPad have good value for money when compared to the almost similar iPad Pro? Well, the new iPad retails for $329, which is a budget-friendly price as compared to the far heftier $599 of the iPad Pro.
The final verdict depends on what you want. If you want an impressive, fast and affordable tablet that works with the Apple Pencil with the ability to access most of the recent games and apps, go with the new iPad. However, if you want the fastest, thinnest devices with the unquestionably best display available in the market, the iPad Pro should be your ideal choice.