Apple has unveiled a big redesign for the iPad Pro, slimming down the bezels, adding Face ID, and the ability to magnetically attach and charge the Apple Pencil. All of this comes at a high cost however, as the iPad Pro starts at $799 for the 11-inch model, and $999 for the 12.9-inch option.
Apple’s 2018 iPad Pro is an impressive workhorse of a tablet, with stunning performance and tablet-optimized iOS apps that make it a fantastic entertainment machine. As the “Pro” moniker suggests, this is undoubtedly a tablet for professionals, and most people will find the $330 iPad to be more than sufficient.
At a starting price of $799, the new iPad Pro attempts to cater to all your needs. Apple draws a ton of comparisons to laptops and desktop computers in its marketing materials for the iPad Pro, promising the tablet can successfully replace them. If you’re looking for a new laptop, the iPad Pro comes very close to being able to replace it, but quirks with iOS hold it back from being a true laptop killer.
Editor’s note: We’ve only been using our iPad Pro for four days, and haven’t had enough time to test it thoroughly. This is a preliminary review, and we will be updating in after we’ve fully put it through its paces.
Shrinking down the bezels around a screen is something we’ve been seeing for quite some time across all products, from TVs and smartphones to tablets. The new iPad Pro does exactly that, cutting down the edges for a more modern look, and it looks beautifully symmetrical.
There are two iPad Pro sizes: An 11-inch model, which is the same size as 2017’s 10.5-inch iPad Pro thanks to the shaved bezels; and a 12.9-inch model, which is 15 percent thinner with 25 percent less volume than the largest iPad Pro of old, despite having the same screen size. We are looking at the 12.9-inch model here, but both iPad Pro devices share the same features.
The 12.9-inch iPad Pro feels massive in the hand, but it’s lightweight enough to become at least kinda manageable. The 11-inch is easier to maneuver – but we’ve fallen in love again with the 12.9-inch screen size. It’s a fantastic canvas, whether you’re drawing or watching a movie.
The flat edges help with grip, but the slimmed-down bezels do make it a little awkward to hold without touching the screen. The back has more of a matte texture now, and it’s much more pleasant to the touch.
One big change from slimming these bezels is the lack of a home button. All the new iPhones also cut it, so it’s hardly a surprise. Instead, you’ll navigate iOS with gestures akin to what you’ll find on the iPhone XS and iPhone X. It’s intuitive and easy to use, but more important is the new method of unlocking the tablet: Face ID.
Apple has brought over Face ID, and unlike the iPhone, the iPad Pro can unlock by detecting your face in any orientation it’s held. You won’t need to worry about keeping the iPad in portrait orientation or tilting your head sideways when the tablet is in landscape mode. It unlocks swiftly in any lighting condition, permitted your face is directly in from of the iPad. We’re quite satisfied with Face ID here, and we haven’t missed Touch ID or the home button at all (Apple is still selling the 10.5-inch iPad Pro if you do prefer the home button).
In portrait orientation, the volume rocker sits on the right edge with the power button up top. The same quad-speaker setup is still here, but there’s a crucial component missing — a headphone jack. While we’ve come to terms with the omission on the iPhone, we’re annoyed with its disappearance on the iPad Pro. Apple said it had to remove the headphone jack to keep the iPad Pro so thin, and the slimmer bezels didn’t leave a lot of room internally. It’s also Apple’s “wireless” philosophy, so it’s just the next step after taking it out of the iPhone in 2016. We think the headphone jack would still be a valuable option here, but if you have Bluetooth earbuds or headphones, you shouldn’t have any issues pairing them to the iPad Pro.
Another change is the positioning of the smart connector that lets you attach the iPad Pro to Apple’s Smart Keyboard or third-party keyboards. The connector is now on the back of the iPad instead of being on the bottom edge. This doesn’t really change any functionality of the iPad, but it does mean the Smart Keyboard also got a revamp. There are now two viewing angles, but we’re still not fans of the typing experience. The keys don’t deliver a satisfying click, and the fabric-like material isn’t pleasant to touch. It does silently manage to get the job done, but it’s too expensive at $200 for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro ($179 for the 11-inch). Take a look at alternative keyboard covers, though there aren’t many others available just yet.
If you want to use the iPad Pro as a laptop replacement, that puts the total cost close to $1,000 for the smallest iPad Pro. Apple is pricing its tablet up there next with laptops, but we think it could work on two things to improve usability: Add mouse support to iOS, or add a trackpad and improve the Smart Keyboard. While we love the touchscreen, our fingers aren’t the most precise tool to complete tasks, and a trackpad or a Bluetooth mouse would go a long way in making us work faster on the iPad Pro.
The Apple Pencil is one of our favorite parts of using the iPad Pro, though we believe only people who like writing handwritten notes or drawing should buy it. It’s not the best tool to navigate the operating system, but it finally does have a place to rest: Apple has added magnets to the top edge of the iPad Pro (in landscape), and the Pencil satisfyingly snaps into place when you hover it over. We’ve yet to see it get knocked off, but we have come close when fumbling around with the Smart Keyboard.
The Pencil charges wireless in its new home too, which greatly improves the user experience. It’s intuitive, elegant, and one less thing to worry about.
The Pencil itself is still one of the best drawing utensils for tablets. There’s little to no latency, it reacts quickly to pressure applied when drawing, and the matte texture makes it feel more like a pencil than ever before. It’s a joy to use, but there is a downside: If you have a first-gen Apple Pencil, it won’t be compatible with the new iPad Pro. Similarly, the new Apple Pencil won’t work with your old iPad Pro. It’s a shame Apple couldn’t expand compatibility.
The new Apple Pencil also introduces additional functionality. You can now double tap the bottom half of the Pencil to swap to the eraser when drawing or writing (or the last used tool), and vice versa. This action is customizable and open to third-party apps, so expect to see developers adding support soon. We’ve found this feature genuinely helpful when drawing, as it reduces the time needed to swap to the last used tool or eraser.
Another nice touch is if you tap the screen of the iPad Pro with the Pencil, the Notes app will automatically launch, allowing you to quickly start writing or drawing.
These improvements come at a cost. The new Apple Pencil costs $30 more at $129. Yep. Another price hike, one that comes alongside a higher price for the iPad Pro itself.
The 2018 iPad Pro is the first tablet from Apple to use a USB Type-C port instead of Apple’s proprietary Lightning port, and we couldn’t be happier. USB-C makes the iPad far more versatile. We plugged it into a USB-C dock, which allowed us to hook up two external monitors to use with the iPad Pro. The lack of mouse support is a bit of a drag here, but it does allow you to access an even bigger screen.
We were also surprised to see our USB-C to Ethernet jack work on the iPad Pro. We were able to sustain a faster internet connection by connecting the iPad to an Ethernet port, which can be handy if you’re uploading or downloading large files.
Being able to use the same USB-C tools we’ve been using on other laptops, phones, and tablets is a blessing, as it means fewer proprietary dongles to carry around. For instance, we were able to snap some photos, throw the SD card from the camera into a standard USB-C card reader, and plug the reader into the iPad Pro. Apple’s Photos app immediately launches, and we were able to import the photos to our iCloud library and then edit them in Lightroom or any other third-party app.
There are reports of some USB-C devices not playing nice, though, specifically external storage devices. This is because iOS has no native file management system. Apple said if the external storage device comes with an app available on the App Store, then it will work with the iPad Pro, as the app will allow you to interact with the files on the storage drive. We imagine more USB-C products will join the market soon for the iPad Pro, which will only further expand support, though it would be nice if iOS had some kind of native file system.
The iPad Pro’s display is breathtaking, using Liquid Retina LCD technology similar to the iPhone XR. The 12.9-inch offers 2,732 x 2,048 resolution, while the 11-inch model packs 2,388 x 1,668. ProMotion technology delivers a screen with a refresh rate of 120Hz, meaning you see incredibly smooth scrolling and an overall more responsive experience. It’s sharp, vibrant, and while blacks aren’t as deep as the OLED on the iPhone XS, this is still such an excellent display. We’ve had absolutely zero qualms with the screen in our testing; it’s fantastic for consuming and creating content.
