For a long time, tablets have been seen as consumption devices, with little to offer for productivity. But today, the boundaries between laptops, hybrids, and tablets are much blurrier. Apple not only recognized this situation but decided to bring its own solution to market with the new iPad Pro. With a 12.9-inch screen and dedicated accessories like a keyboard and a stylus, the message is clear: Creativity and work.
Market watchers have reported declining tablet sales over the past months. The rise of laptops and hybrids, especially in terms of performance and battery life, has won back some consumer interest. Apple hasn't been immune to this trend: money that used to go to iPads has been flowing to the new MacBooks or the iPhone 6 Plus. This fueled rumors that the Cupertino giant might cut back on its iPad lineup, even canceling the iPad Mini. But Apple often creates rumors and just as often eliminates them, and the latest proof is the impressive iPad Pro.
A Display That Rivals Laptops
The first thing to note about the iPad Pro is its size. Unlike previous models, the new tablet features a 12.9-inch display with a resolution of 2732 x 2048 pixels, a definition that even surpasses the Retina display of MacBook Pro laptops. While Apple has found comfort in the 4:3 aspect ratio, the new screen should favor the optimized multitasking features coming in iOS 9. Under the hood, there's the new A9X chip, accompanied by the M9 motion coprocessor. Apple says the A9X is 1.8 times faster than the previous chip and 22 times faster than the SoC of the original iPad. Once again, the company manages to keep the battery life at an average of ten hours, and nine hours with LTE. The iPad Pro also features four built-in speakers, emphasizing its audio capabilities, and comes with Touch ID as expected. Storage options are 32 or 128 GB, with a $150 difference between them.
Accessories That Redefine the Tablet
If there's something that deserves its own chapter in the iPad Pro presentation, it's the new set of accessories. On one hand, we have the Smart Keyboard, priced at $169, offering a full-size QWERTY keyboard (without a numeric keypad) with butterfly switches identical to those on the MacBook. And on the other hand, something we never thought possible: a stylus. Yes, the iPad Pro is compatible with a new stylus called the Pencil. The $99 stylus has an internal battery that lasts up to twelve hours and can be charged directly from the iPad Pro. Clearly, Apple decided not to ignore market signals, and by that I mean Microsoft's work on Windows 10 and the Surface Pro 3, which is already a year old. The official price for the iPad Pro starts at $799, and both the tablet and the accessories will arrive in November.
