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Tablets · Apple iPad Pro

Apple iPad Pro M1

25owners with an opinion
45%of verdicts positive
8/11positive/negative since 2024
3 yrslongest happy owner
1happy after 3+ years

Praised for performance and portability; criticized for ease of use and battery.

What owners wrote

Doesn’t like itOwned 5 years
My personal hope for John Ternus is that he relaxes some of Apple's anti-competitive bullshit to the point where the company is willing to make iPads actually useful for anything other than 2D drawing apps. As someone who has been daily-driving an M1 iPad Pro for five years, the iPad is the most glaring hole in Apple's lineup in terms of usefulness. Yes, I get that the iPad is supposed to be a "casual computing device" or whatever. Yes, I know Apple has delivered significant improvements to iPadOS's capabilities in those five years. But using it still feels like wearing a straitjacket a lot of the time.
Likes itOwned 3 years
I bought a M1 iPad Pro about three years ago, and I paid a lot more for 1 TB of storage in order to get 16G RAM. That was a good decision. I imaging the new M4 iPad Pros will frequently use LLMs, so future-proofing a new iPad model by getting 16G memory is a good idea. You can run powerful LLMs using 16G or 32G Apple Silicon devices but currently 8G RAM is very tight without having to use a smaller number of bits like Q1, Q2, or Q3.
Doesn’t like it
I've had a 12" iPad Pro (M1) that I am replacing with the HomeView. After a couple years of use of trying to use the iPad exactly as you stated here (it's lived 24/7 on my kitchen island, I've realized iPadOS is not that great to use in this way). I'll be happy to have a "dumbed down" stationary device that serves no purpose but exactly what it's intended for. That's just me, though; I get why many others may disagree. This is just my experience of actually using it in the way in which I will be replacing it for.
Likes it
"Almost anything that doesn’t involve the Apple Pencil (Procreate being one of the true killer apps, the app that may have sold more iPads to creative professionals than anything else) could be done better on a MacBook. Even email feels better on a MacBook. "Today, they sit in the corner. iPadOS simply isn’t an environment for most “serious” work." You sound ridiculous. Coming from a guy that writes about himself, "My work is powered by your memberships." What do you know about "serious work"? Oh, I have a podcast and take photos and walk around. Brother, you’re the Temu version of an OF model. Can I hire you as a clown for my niece’s birthday party? Do you have a support tier for that? Half of your argument evolves around your distorted view of "serious work". What do you consider serious work? I analyse satellite pictures from conflict zones on my M1 Pro iPad while smoking a blunt, on my back, on a blanket in the park, right now, and probably get paid by the hour more than you make in a day. I can ENHANCE with the power of my fingers as gradually as I need on a 13" screen, not being limited by tiny touchpad space or getting a stiff neck. Try the same with a MacBook. I’d call that serious work. My GF put her MacBook away and does Music via Creator Studio on her iPad Pro since it released, mobile and in a creative setting without disruption by her phone, or the necessity of a table, because the iPad got Cellular, and she can live comfortably from it. She’s actually working…
Likes it
>With Wayland, it's borderline identical. Come on lol. I have a couple steam decks and both are really clunky. Most applications are not built using GTK4 nor Qt6 for that matter. On my steam deck the keyboard never pops up by itself so I have to use a key combination and it feels like I am moving a ghost mouse around the place (rather than proper touch screen support) I ran gnome on the deck for a while but anyway the on-screen keyboard provided by the gnome sucked so bad that I gave up (sucked as in, it groups all the keys around the center of the screen tightly together and very small) I also have an M1 iPad Pro. No comparison because those issues simply don’t exist on iOS.
Doesn’t like it
I was hoping for OLED or dual-OLED based monitors, especially for this price point but I’d want this slightly lower than the XDR price. Sequoia+Tahoe seems like they’ve been laying the groundwork for OLED macs — removing the menu bar background and making text dynamically change colour, moving/cycling backgrounds, liquid glass reducing the effect of static UI elements, etc. I personally wouldn’t buy a new LCD based display anymore at this price. There are flaws inherent to the technology that affect all of my recent Apple displays (Studio Display, M1 Pro iPad, M1 Pro MPB, M4 Pro MPB). After using OLED TVs and OLED iPhones for years, it’s very difficult to look past LCD’s issues (edge yellowing+dimming specifically affects all my Apple screens more than I am happy with). There are no reviews/studies on long-term aging of Apple’s LCD displays, so all of this should be taken with a grain of salt, maybe my devices are just unlucky. I don’t know if the Pro XDR line is better or how that would carry over to the Studio XDR. I haven’t seen many complains about the Pro XDR, but the Studio Display form factor has a different cooling design which would affect longevity. I will say I can never go back from retina resolution text, and that alone has made the experience of Studio Display good. If we could get OLED it would be perfection. I think I would have to see the XDR in practice to be convinced, but 120hz requiring a whole new computer does make it a non-starter for me.
Doesn’t like it
I bought M1 pro ipad that ended up being on a windowsill in kitchen as a youtube tv or a again a youtube viewport while rowing, lol. What a waste, but I cannot find a better use for it. User interface also sucks, half the time i have to ask chatgpt to extricate me from some accidental split screen or what not. Kicker is that it needs to be charged almost daily while it is really only used about 30-45 min a day in the morning while my kids m4 air can go for a week.
Neutral
I have a M1 iPad Pro and I'm open to doing a trade-in for a new M5 iPad Pro: however the problem is the accessories. I rely on the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil and they would have to be repurchased since they are not compatable, which upps the total price too much.
Doesn’t like it
1. I do know what to do with it. I take notes, a lot, in my work as a doctor. That's been the case since I owned an iPad Air from 2020, which I replaced with an 11 inch M1 iPad Pro (which broke), and I finally caved and bought a 13" iPad Pro to replace it. I ended up getting the M4 model because there just didn't seem to be older ones reasonably available. Even the M1 was more than fast enough for the overwhelming majority of iPadOS applicantions. Why an iPad? Android tablets have been... not great for a long time. The pencil is very handy, and the ecosystem has the best apps. Also, I know a few rather handy tricks Safari can do, such as exporting entire webpages as PDF after a full-screen screenshot, that are very useful to my workflow. 2. I already own multiple general purpose computers. They're not as convenient as an iPad. My ridiculously powerful PC or even my decent laptop doesn't allow the same workflow. However, that's not an intentional software limitation, it's a consequence of their form factor, so I can't hold Microsoft to blame. On the other hand,Apple could easily make an iPad equivalent to a MacBook by getting out of the way. 3. The inability/difficulty of side-loading apps, the restriction to a locked down store. Refusing to make an interface that would allow for laptop-equivalent usage with an external/Bluetooth m+k. You can use an external monitor, but a 13" screen should already be perfectly good if window management and M+K usage wasn't subpar. Macs and
Doesn’t like it
I am running iOS26 on my iPhone 13 Pro, and on my m1 iPad Pro. It runs fine on both, but I really regret upgrading on my iPad because the new window management options are terrible. It makes me actively dislike using my iPad now, and it used to be my daily driver.
Likes it
I really started to enjoy my iPad Pro M1 messing around making music. There are hundreds of fantastic apps out there from mixers, sequencers to excellent synthesizers, effects and samplers. For an idea of what this can look like, here's a video: https://youtu.be/ft8erjlzg4A?si=lCg77DZAUYNa1SEf Add a midi controller and you can make pretty much any kind of music you want. A great benefit over mac / pc computer based music making is that the apps are very affordable.
Neutral
The base models maybe, but the Pros have crazy OLEDs that almost have me drooling. The speed hasn't changed much, i just got a 11 Pro with M1 and it isn't any faster in normal stuff than the A12 on my 12.9". I always get my Apple devices from used shops and got my 11 Pro for $250 when it was 2 gens old and feel I won't get the OLED one till I find one for $300ish.
Doesn’t like it
Honestly, it' crazy how limited the iPad still is in this day and age. I was hoping for them to add a terminal and improve the files app. But I already gave up on it especially after the recent comments from Apple as they want people to buy both devices to 'complement' each other: https://www.macrumors.com/2024/05/13/apple-vp-mac-ipad-compl... I own an M1 iPad Pro but 80% of the time I use it as a sidecar due to how limited it is.
Doesn’t like it
Yeah I had the same experience and ultimately got rid of an M1 iPad Pro for an M3 MacBook Air. I still have the ease and portability for watching videos while doing the dishes or on an airplane, with the added benefit of a keyboard and OS for productivity in case the muse visits.
Neutral
I own M1, A10X and A12X iPad Pros. I have yet to see any of them ever max out their processor or get slow. I have no idea why anyone would need an M4 one. Sure, it's because Apple no longer has M1s being fabbed at TSMC. But seriously, who would upgrade. Put MacOS on iPad Pro, then it gets interesting. The most interesting thing my ipad pros do are look at security cameras or read ODB-II settings on my vehichle. Hell, they can't even maintain an SSH connection correctly. Rediculous. I see Apple always show videos of people editing video on their iPad Pro. Who does that??? A 4 year old Chromebook is 3x as useful as a new iPad Pro.
Likes it
the idea of spending a cool $1000 on a neutered consumption device Neutered because you can't side-load apps or use it as a dev machine? That's a pretty limited use-case overall. I have an M1 iPad Pro and it's great for moderate photo editing (Photomator or Adobe) and basic "office" stuff.
Likes it
I'm going to. Every digital thing I do outside of my job happens on an iPad Pro and I absolutely love it. I make music in Logic Pro on an M1 iPad Pro - it's hard to overstate how amazing it is to be able to carry around an entire recording studio in such a tactile form factor. I can't get on with desktop DAWs at all.
Doesn’t like it
The only thing that has me thinking 'ah that would be nice' over my m1 version is that it's lighter, especially with the new magic keyboard. With the keyboard, mine is heavy as hell. Frustratingly, I can't find a weight spec for the magic keyboards, so I have no idea whether it's significantly lighter or what.
Likes it
I agree that just M1 MacBook Pro is not great for gaming. However my M1 iPad Pro is very nice for some types of games. Lots to enjoy in Apple Arcade that takes advantage of motion detection in the tablet, developer support for VR/AR, etc. I worked on Nintendo video games about 22 years ago, but I am not much of a gamer now because my iPad and Quest just about do it for me.
Likes it
Recently I visited the Apple store and compared the latest 11 inch iPad Air (A14 processor) and iPad Pro (M1 processor) models side-by-side. I loaded up Apple’s website in Safari and scrolled. The Pro is noticeably butter-smooth, while the Air stutters. My iPhone also stutters in the same way, but it’s never bothered me before. It’s only after looking at the performance of the M1-driven iPad Pro that I knew to look for it. And I previously had a similar experience noticing how much smoother my iPhone was than my old Android phones! I don’t know for sure the processor is the difference, this is just a report of my observations.