During October, Apple held their Fall event in Brooklyn, NYC. These product launches always please the Apple faithful, but was there enough enhancements on the current range to encourage you to upgrade?
Apple iPad Pro 2018
To launch the latest series of Pro tablets Apple opened with an interesting statistic; more iPads have been sold globally in the past 4 quarters, than laptops from the top-selling manufacturers. But, could an iPad, or any other tablet only device, really replace a laptop?
Features
For the first time in a long time I see a reason to be excited about a new Apple product. Finally, there is a real tangible improvement on the last model with enough change to justify an upgrade!
Although we live in a world of cloud storage, streaming and WiFi access in most places, local storage is still important. Nearly all Android powered tablets have expandable MicroSD slots, but Apple avoided it or even restricted how much they did provide. The new 2018 Pro models can now be built with up to 1TB of internal storage!
A welcome change is USB-C connectivity!! No more lightning port for charging, and now, more possibilities to connect other devices direct to your tablet. However this will likely mean more dongles to be purchased! Apple also decided to remove the headphone port from the Pro 2018 range.
The external design and shape is what I’m welcoming the most. To me it just looks better from every angle, and is more becoming of what a tablet should look and feel like. The corners are more rounded off and the bezel has been thinned down to let that lovely Liquid Retina Display do all the talking.
The Apple Pencil (sold separately) has also had an overhaul since last year. It can now magnetically connect to the side of the Pro for storage and wireless charging! No more lost end caps or snapped lighting connections from the 1st Gen Pencil!
It even has more control with tap gestures included and configurable to the App being used.
Specifications
So with a new look, new features and a huge step closer to replacing laptops, the new Pro does give you a reason to upgrade. I don’t think it is ready to replace a laptop for most users but a tablet only world is getting closer!
- Dimensions – 9.74×7.02×0.23″ iPad Pro 9″ // 11.04×8.46×0.23″ iPad Pro 12.9″
- Weight – 468 grams iPad Pro 9″ // from 631 grams iPad Pro 12.9″
- Storage – 64/256/512GB or 1TB
- Liquid Retina Display
- Powered by the new Apple A12X chip
- 12MP Rear Camera with 5x Digital Zoom & 5MP Selfie Camera
- Four Speakers
- USB-C Charging and Connectivity
How Much does the Apple iPad Pro Cost?
The new 11″ iPad pro starts at £769 for the basic 64GB WiFi only model. At the top end the new series of 12.9″ Pro with 1TB of storage and WiFi + Cellular connectivity is £1,869!
AppleCare+ is £129, and a small price to pay to insure those, now, expensive tablets.
Connect with Apple
Launch Video
https://youtu.be/YJ5q8Wrkbdw