The long-awaited OLED iPad Pro finally dropped today with, as we expected, two variants: an 11-inch model and a 13-inch model — slightly larger than the last generation's 12.9-inch model. Both are slightly thinner, and much faster than their predecessors.
The rumor mill was spot on about iPad Pro 2024 having an OLED display. Typically, it's the larger model that gets all the cool display technology while the base model, the 11-inch variant, gets left out of the fun. But this time around, both the 13-inch model and the 11-inch variant have OLED displays.
But you may be wondering, what else does the iPad Pro 2024 have to offer over its previous-generation model. Let's dive into the brand-spankin' new features.
iPad Pro 2024: 5 new features
The new iPad Pro has been reportedly delayed several times now, but the popular Apple tablet finally got released on Monday. But the question is, what new features has Apple stuffed into this new device? Let's explore all of them.
1. OLED display
Apple packed the new iPad Pro — both the 11-inch and 13-inch models —with new "tandem OLED" screens and Ultra Retina XDR. What does this mean for you? It should yield crisper and brighter visuals, with more contrast. Plus, OLED displays increase the accuracy of color reproduction — while sucking down less battery power.
In other words, the iPad Pro's display should look like a visual treat compared to the previous model, and leave you to do more without plugging in for longer.
2. Thinner and lighter
Apple says this new iPad pro is the thinnest gadget it has ever made, thinner even than the old-school iPod Nano. The 11-inch model is 0.21 inches thick, and the 13-inch is a hair thinner, at 0.2 inches. That compares to 0.23 inches and 0.25 inches respectively.
It's also lighter, in both sizes, than its predecessor. The 11-inch model weighs in at 0.98 pounds, versus 1.03 pounds previously, and the 13-inch screen model is 1.28 pounds, a significant improvement on 1.5 pounds.
3. Better front-facing camera
The new Pro has a 12-megapixel front-facing camera, the same as the previous model. However, the new camera can do landscape shots as well as portrait.
4. New TrueDepth camera location
Also on the previous iPad Pro, when you held it in portrait mode, the webcam would be on the top bezel. However, if you hold the new iPad Pro in the same position, you'd find it on the right bezel. In other words, the iPad Pro encourages you to hold it in landscape mode, ensuring that the webcam is on the top again.
4. New M4 chip
The iPad Pro 2024 now has a zippier chip with the M4 processor aboard, making it a performance beast in the tablet realm.
In an unexpected plot twist, the iPad Pro models have a new M4 chip that's four times faster than the M2, rather than jumping just one generation up to the M3. The chip also boasts a new "neural processing unit" that assists in AI features.
Does that mean that the iPad Pro 2024 can replace a laptop? Yes and no. As I mentioned in my experiment with using the iPad Air for a week for work, the performance is sufficient to handle my workflow, but iPadOS has its limitations.
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