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Uncle Dan has been experimenting with different iPads since the first iPad Pro was released in 2015. After nearly a decade, he’s decided to keep just one for his work going forward. But before making that decision, we asked him to share his journey and findings.
The only iPad missing from his collection is the iPad Pro 2015, which he got rid of a few years ago. Currently, he has the 2018 iPad (6th generation), the 2018 iPad Pro, the 2020 iPad Pro (4th generation), and the 2022 M2 iPad Pro. Uncle Dan is responsible for recording and editing our app reviews and courses for both Paperless X and Paperless Humans, primarily using LumaFusion, his most-used app.
After using these devices since 2015, Uncle Dan concluded that an iPad Pro lasts him less than four years before it needs replacing. Over nine years, he’s gone through four devices, averaging about three years per device. Some of our team members think he’s using the wrong device for video editing, but we’re curious about your thoughts.
Uncle Dan bought the iPad Pro 2015 in April 2016. He considers an iPad unusable when LumaFusion starts lagging, especially when moving, cutting, or viewing clips on the timeline. The 2015 iPad Pro, with only 128 GB of storage, began lagging in January 2019, and by May 2019, it was no longer usable for editing.
Before switching to the 2018 iPad Pro, Uncle Dan considered the 2018 iPad, thinking it might be a good, cheaper alternative. However, despite being three years newer, it didn’t have the power of a Pro model and was just as slow as the 2015 iPad Pro for editing. So, he moved to the 2018 iPad Pro.
To extend its lifespan, he opted for the 1 TB version of the 12.9-inch 2018 iPad Pro. It worked well for a while, but as our videos got longer, the device became noticeably slower after editing just 10 minutes of footage. Editing 20-minute videos became a real struggle, and exporting them was even worse. By December 2023, the 2018 iPad Pro was no longer viable for editing, but Uncle Dan didn’t want to buy a new iPad Pro. Instead, he got a great deal on a barely-used 2020 iPad Pro from a relative.
The 2020 iPad Pro was practically new, with 1 TB of storage, but surprisingly, it performed poorly for video editing right from the start. This was unexpected, considering it was a newer model, released two years after the 2018 iPad Pro. Both devices ran the latest version of iPadOS, yet their performance was identical. The 1 TB storage didn’t make a difference either, as even with 700 GB of free space, the lag was unbearable.
In contrast, I’ve been using the 2018 iPad Pro for studying and taking notes without any issues. My work doesn’t demand much processing power since I mostly use Noteful and Apple Notes.
With the 2022 iPad Pro, Uncle Dan has started a new experiment based on his past experiences. He loves the touchscreen interface of iPads and plans to continue editing on one. However, he’s aware that Apple may slow down his device after about two years, as happened with the 2020 iPad Pro. Since storage capacity didn’t prevent lag, he opted for the 512 GB model this time, as he typically uses about 300 GB. Do you think he made the right choice, or will he need to upgrade again as soon as Apple releases the next iPad Pro?
Regarding the Apple Pencil, Uncle Dan chose the second-generation model, which is the best option for our work. The USB-C Apple Pencil isn’t ideal for digital note-taking and won’t work with most newer note-taking apps. It’s more like using a finger, offering a subpar handwriting experience compared to the first- and second-generation Apple Pencils, even with subscription apps.
