Don't WASTE Your MONEY! iPad Pro M4 vs iPad Air M2 Explained

Summary

Apple's latest iPads, the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air, offer a range of new features and accessories. The M4 Pro boasts a thinner design, a vibrant tandem OLED display, and advanced capabilities like hardware-accelerated ray tracing and Thunderbolt 4. The M2 Air, while similar in size to its predecessor, includes upgrades like WiFi 6E and hover functionality for the Apple Pencil. Both models feature landscape-oriented cameras and the new Apple Pencil Pro, but the Pro's additional power and features cater to creative professionals and gamers.

Takeaways

• 📱 The M4 iPad Pro and the M2 iPad Air are the newest models from Apple, offering more features than their predecessors.
• 🔍 The M4 iPad Pro has been redesigned to be thinner and lighter, with a noticeable difference in weight compared to the M2 iPad Air.
• 🖥️ The M4 iPad Pro features a new tandem OLED Ultra Retina XDR display with significantly higher peak brightness levels than the M2 iPad Air's IPS panel.
• 🎨 Both iPads support the new Apple Pencil Pro, which introduces features like tool palette access through barrel squeezing and brush rotation by rolling the barrel.
• 🔊 The M4 iPad Pro has a four-microphone array compared to the two-microphone array on the M2 iPad Air, enhancing audio capture for video calls.
• 💻 The M4 iPad Pro is equipped with an M4 chip with options for a 9 or 10-core CPU and advanced features like hardware-accelerated ray tracing, while the M2 iPad Air has an 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU.
• 🛠️ The M4 iPad Pro supports ProRes encoding and decoding and has a more powerful neural engine, making it better suited for creative work and AI tasks.
• 🔌 The M2 iPad Air has improved wireless connectivity with Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3, aligning with the latest Apple devices.
• 📚 The new Magic Keyboard for the M4 iPad Pro includes a function row and a haptic touchpad, but the M2 iPad Air still uses the older model without these features.
• 🎶 The M4 iPad Pro has a superior sound quality with four-speaker audio, contrasting the dual speakers of the M2 iPad Air.
• 💰 The M2 iPad Air starts at $599, while the M4 iPad Pro starts at $999, indicating a significant price difference reflecting their varying capabilities.

Q & A

What are the new features added to the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air?

The M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air have new features such as a thinner design, new display technologies, updated cameras, and landscape-oriented front-facing cameras. They also support new accessories like the Apple Pencil Pro and have improved wireless connectivity with Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3.

How does the thickness and weight of the M4 iPad Pro compare to its predecessor?

The M4 iPad Pro is significantly thinner and lighter than its predecessor. The 11-inch model is now 5.3mm thick and weighs 444g, while the 13-inch model is 5.1mm thick and weighs 579g, which is a substantial reduction from the previous generation.

What is the difference between the displays on the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air?

The M4 iPad Pro features a new tandem OLED Ultra Retina XDR display with up to 1,600 nits of peak brightness in HDR, while the M2 iPad Air retains a 60Hz IPS display with a peak brightness of 500 nits, or 600 nits for the 13-inch version.

What is the Apple Pencil Pro and what does it offer over the previous Apple Pencil?

The Apple Pencil Pro is a new accessory that works exclusively with the 2024 iPads. It offers features like the ability to squeeze the barrel to bring up the tool palette, a new haptic engine for feedback, and the ability to roll the barrel to rotate brush strokes in supported apps.

How does the camera setup differ between the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air?

Both the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air have landscape-oriented front-facing cameras, but the Pro model includes a LiDAR scanner for AR experiences and an all-new Adaptive flash for scanning documents. The Pro also has a four-mic array compared to the two-mic array on the Air.

What performance differences are there between the M2 iPad Air and the M4 iPad Pro?

The M2 iPad Air features an 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU, while the M4 iPad Pro has either a 9 or 10-core CPU and a 10-core GPU. The M4 Pro also includes dedicated media engines for encoding and decoding video, hardware-enabled ray tracing, and a more powerful neural engine for AI features.

What is the starting price for the base 11-inch variants of the M2 iPad Air and M4 iPad Pro?

The base 11-inch variant of the M2 iPad Air starts at $599 USD, while the M4 iPad Pro starts at $999 USD.

What is the significance of the Thunderbolt 4 support on the M4 iPad Pro?

Thunderbolt 4 support on the M4 iPad Pro allows for faster data transfer speeds of up to 40 Gbps compared to 10 Gbps on the M2 iPad Air. This is beneficial for creative work with large files or when using an external display.

How does the sound quality differ between the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air?

The M4 iPad Pro has a four-speaker audio system that provides noticeably better sound quality compared to the dual speakers on the M2 iPad Air. The Pro model is said to have a more immersive and richer audio experience.

What new keyboard accessory is available for the M4 iPad Pro?

The M4 iPad Pro supports a new Magic Keyboard with a working function row and a haptic touchpad made from glass that allows multi-touch, offering an enhanced typing and navigation experience.

What are the main reasons someone might choose the M4 iPad Pro over the M2 iPad Air?

One might choose the M4 iPad Pro over the M2 iPad Air for its superior display technology, more powerful performance capabilities, Thunderbolt 4 support, advanced camera features, and the option to use the new Magic Keyboard with a haptic touchpad.