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Every time Apple releases a new product, it’s always touted as the fastest, brightest, and most powerful device they’ve ever made. But this time, it feels less convincing—or maybe I’m just starting to question Apple more.
For years, buying an iPad Pro hasn’t really made sense unless you needed its larger screen and extra storage. Now, with the new 13-inch iPad Air, which comes with 1TB of storage and the M2 chip, Apple may have outdone itself. Essentially, it’s the M2 iPad Pro rebranded as the Air, minus a few minor features you probably won’t miss. For note-takers, this is great news. You don’t need a lot of power for note-taking, and the M2 is more than enough. With the bigger screen, the M2 iPad Air seems like the most logical choice.
Apple claims the iPad Pro is for everyone, but who exactly are they targeting? Compared to the new iPad Air, the iPad Pro seems ridiculously overpriced for the average user. And for the creatives they’re aiming at, iPadOS still doesn’t have all the tools necessary for the best creative experience on a 13-inch screen. A bigger screen would have been better for creative work, right? We watched the ad multiple times to get Apple’s message, and it seems they’re trying to say they’re pushing the limits of the iPad Pro’s creative capabilities in the thinnest design yet. Did anyone else get that impression?
As for the new design of the iPad Pro, it’s not really an improvement. Thin isn’t always better, especially after seeing the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra. We’re tired of Apple presenting old ideas as if they’re new, and it’s starting to feel like they’re misleading us. The so-called Tandem OLED display isn’t new—they just gave it a different name. OLED screens have been around for years. Apple is starting to remind me of Anytype, innovating by renaming existing ideas.
The brighter screen might be interesting to check out, but I’m not planning to upgrade from my 2018 iPad Pro. Apple seems to sabotage every device eventually, so why bother upgrading? It’s funny how the M2 iPad Pro feels slow now, yet the M2 iPad Air with the same specs will probably work better just because it’s newer. When Apple says a new device is 50% faster than the previous one, I wonder—50% faster than when it launched, or 50% faster than our devices now, after they’ve slowed them down? They never clarify, and I’m starting to think that’s intentional.
Apple also mentioned the 1600 nits brightness as if it’s an upgrade, but we already have that on the M2 iPad Pro. For a while, I thought Apple was just marketing their new products, but after this recent keynote, it feels like they don’t respect their customers. They must think we’ll jump at anything they dangle in front of us. Are we still under their spell, or is this their last attempt to keep us hooked?
The introduction of the M4 chip: to what end? Are we all getting tired of these theoretical specs that don’t translate to real-world improvements? I’m curious to see if we’ll get an iPadOS Pro for the new iPad Pro, or at least the option to run macOS on it. That might convince some users to consider the iPad Pro more seriously.
I also wonder if creatives will actually use the iPad Pro for professional work. If you’re a videographer or music producer, do any of the updates to Final Cut Pro and Logic Pro make you want to switch to the iPad Pro? The ones I’ve asked aren’t convinced, but maybe they’re missing something. It seems like Apple is really just targeting creatives with the iPad Pro, despite claiming it’s for everyone. Do they really expect people to replace their desktops and PCs with a tablet?
As for the Apple Pencil USB-C, it was a terrible design choice. Maybe they’ll improve it with an Apple Pencil Pro. I’m still getting used to the hover feature, which I eventually turned off, just like the double-tap feature for switching tools. Most app tools are easily accessible on-screen, so these new features seem unnecessary unless the app is particularly complex. Apple should let developers design their own tools or, better yet, skip showcasing features if they don’t want honest feedback.
Apple made so many misleading statements in this keynote that it’s disheartening. We’re no longer thinking of it as harmless marketing—we’re calling it what it is. They said the new iPad Pro comes with double the storage, but all they did was remove the 128GB option, which was overdue anyway. They also claimed the 10th generation iPad is now more affordable, but compared to what? The 6th generation iPad launched at $349, so when did they decide to raise its price? Now they’ve lowered it back to $349, and we’re supposed to be grateful?
Many of us loved Apple products because they were durable, and we didn’t mind paying a premium for that. But with Apple pushing so much consumerism, we’re getting tired. It feels like they’re sabotaging our old devices to force us into upgrading. Maybe it’s time to explore alternatives.
