Apple`s iPad Pro - Facelift

November 25, 2018, 5:25 pm
Apple`s iPad Pro - Facelift
Unveiled Tuesday in Brooklyn, New York, the new iPad Pro packs an edge-to-edge display and ditches its
Touch IDit is biometric technology that provides
iOSApple iOS is a proprietary mobile operating system for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch.
user identification through a finger scanner
fingerprint sensor for the Face ID camera used in recent iPhones.Its a dramatic upgrade for the iPad line, and with a starting price of $799 for the new 11-inch model and $999 for the 12.9-inch version, its not cheap.But behind spending some hands-on time with it, the new Pro looks like it might be the best tablet
AppleTechnology company
has ever made.
Apples (AAPL)
iPadtablet made by Apple
Pro, the high-powered slate that Apple(apple.com) says may replace your
laptopusually called a notebook computer by manufacturers
but not your MacBook, of course is changing.It now more closely resembles the companys
iPhonecellular phone made by Apple
XS and XS Max than the original iPad.
To the edge
Like the new iPhone XR, the updated iPad Pro uses Apples Liquid
Retinait is a backlit LCD liquid crystal display
Display.Basically that means its an LCD panel that
AppleTechnology company
managed to curve about the devices edges to create for smooth, round corners.Since this is an LCD panel, it wont produce the kind of inky blacks and vibrant colors the XS and XS Max offer, but your images will look wonderful nonetheless.In fact, if youve used an iPad in the last few years you shouldnt notice a difference.
While the Pros have an incredibly slim bezel running around their screens, theyre still not as edge-to-edge as the iPhones.The remaining bezel isnt just necessary for the lighting elements in the displays, but to provide you with a means of holding the tablet without touching the screen by accident.A smartphone can have a truly edge-to-edge screen in view of the fact that you can wrap your hands around it entirely.A tablet not so much.
View photosThe 12.9-inch iPad Pro has a smaller footprint, but its absolutely still a big-screen slate.MoreThe edge-to-edge screen also means that Apple had to kill off the iPad Pros Home button.And I dont miss it in the least.Face ID on the XR, X, XS and XS Max is responsive and simple to use.And if getting rid of the Home button means more screen real estate, sign me up.
In fact, Face ID on the iPad Pro is even improved than on the iPhone, because you can use it in any orientation.Thats right instead of having to hold your device in portrait mode once you use Face ID on your iPhone, you can use it in landscape, portrait or anything in between on the iPad Pro.It makes sense for Apple to add that capability to the iPad since, as company reps put it, theres no right way to hold the tablet.Face ID on the iPhone only works when the phone is in portrait orientation.
Thanks to those edge-to-edge screens, Apple was able to play with the size of the new Pros, too.The new 12.9-inch model has a far smaller footprint.Apple says it has 25% less volume than the previous generation 12.9-inch Pro.Thats a big improvement, because, frankly, the older 12.9-inch Pro was just too big to for me.Dont get me wrong, its still a big slate, but its definitely easier to handle than the original.
View photosThe new iPad Pro also gets an updated Folio keyboard cover.MoreThen theres the new 11-inch iPad Pro, which is basically the old 10.5-inch Pro with its screen stretched to the edges.This is the one that Id feel comfortable buying, since you can easily hold it with one hand.Apple also sells the older 10.5-inch Pro, but it doesnt get any of the benefits of the new models like a faster processor or Face ID.
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The Pros new screens might get all of the attention, but its truly the slates processors that put the new models ahead.Both the 12.9-inch and 11-inch Pros come with Apples new A12X Bionic chip, a 7-nanometer, 8-core processor with 10 billion transistors.If all of that sounds like nonsense to you, then how about this: Apple claims the A12X Bionic chip makes the Pros faster than 92% of notebooks sold in the last year, even those with Intel Core i7 processors.
Thats a heck of a lofty claim, and there wasnt anything I could really test on the Pro during my hands-on to put the processor through its paces, so I cant verify the slates performance quite yet.But if true, that would be an incredible feat.
Apple also claims that the iPad Pros graphics processing unit is capable of delivering graphics that are on a par with Microsofts Xbox One S.Again, thats a serious statement, and while a demo of 2K Gamess NBA 2K19 looked fantastic, Id like to play it on my own to see if it runs as smoothly as it looked on stage.
As far as storage capacity goes, the new iPads start out at 64GB, jump to 256GB, then
512GB 256 GigaByte
and finally a whopping 1TB.But for that much space, youll spend a pretty penny.The 11-inch Pro with 1TB of space costs $1,549, while the 12.9-inch will set you back $1,749.
Pencil me in
Since Apple is upgrading the Pro, its also upgrading the Apple Pencil.This time around the Pencil can attach to the side of the Pro magnetically, which is something Microsofts Surface Pro also does.But the iPad Pro also charges and pairs the Pencil while tied.
View photosThe new Apple Pencil charges and pairs with the iPad Pro magnetically.MoreTheres also a new double-tap
featureSpecial attraction
that lets you fast switch between writing and drawing tools in specific applications.You simply double tap the side of the Pencil and, voila, youve switched tasks.
Perhaps most surprising of all okay, not really if you followed the leaks, but still is the fact that Apple has switched out its proprietary Lightning port for a USB C connector.Thats big news because it means that you can connect a slew of new peripherals to the iPad Pro, including a digital camera, a display or even a cable to charge your iPhone.This could be a big deal for the Pro and open up a world of new use-cases in the future.
So should you snag a Pro for yourself? Its expensive, sure, but it certainly seems like a fantastic device.Stay tuned for my full review to see if you should cut a check for this slate.
 
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