Is the iPad Pro (M4) a mass improvement overall or a downgrade in some areas?

Yesterday, Apple debuted the new iPad Pro. Featuring the tandem OLED display, the breakthrough M4 chip, and an even thinner design, the iPad Pro is now in a class of its own as Apple’s most advanced tablet yet.

However, to achieve its goal of creating its thinnest product yet, Apple had to make several compromises across several tech specs. In this article, we’re going to compare the M4 model to the previous M2 model.

1. All storage tiers of the M2 model had the same M2 variant with all 8 cores of CPU enabled. However, both the entry 256GB and 512GB tiers on the M4 model feature the binned chip with 9 cores of CPU. In other words, if you want the full-fledge chip with all 10 CPU cores enabled, you’d have to step up to either the 1TB or 2TB tier.
2. The M2 model had a 10MP Ultra Wide camera on the back in addition to the 12MP Wide camera. However, the new M4 model dropped the Ultra Wide camera, leaving just a 12MP Wide camera on the rear side.
3. The M2 model had five studio-quality microphones to provide great audio quality with a low signal-to-noise ratio. However, the M4 model now has down to just four studio-quality mics. While we haven’t had reviews on comparisons on how the audio quality will be on the new model, this downgrade on paper is still worth pointing out.
4. If you went for a 256GB tier of the M2 model, you could record ProRes footage up to 4K at 30 fps. However, if you go for the exact capacity of the M4 model, you can record up to 1080p at 30fps. This was the same limitation for the base 128GB capacity of the M2 model.
5. The M2 model had support for 5G mmWave connectivity along with sub-6 GHz. However, the new M4 model omitted support for mmWave that was introduced on the M1 model, leaving just support for sub-6 GHz 5G connectivity.
6. If you opt for the Wi-Fi + Cellular M2 model, you’d have a physical SIM slot in addition to eSIM support. However, the M4 model also removed that physical SIM slot. Instead, you’d have to rely only on eSIM when you’re signing up for new plans or roaming around the globe.

As you can see, Apple had to cut corners when redesigning the iPad Pro to feature all of the breakthrough technologies. So is the new iPad Pro somewhat of a downgrade, or a massive improvement overall? I believe it’s the latter, and I’ll tell you why.

Although all of those features found in the previous M2 model were quite impressive on paper, many users either didn’t care or ever needed those features, some of which were impractical for their specific use cases. As you may have known, it took the company a lot of research and development to develop such a breakthrough product, so expenses would be significantly high. Not to mention that some of those components have been quite expensive to produce such as mmWave technology. So by removing some features that customers won’t need and adding breakthrough technologies that would matter more to them, this would allow the company to offset R&D costs and keep the product not as expensive as before.

If you take a look at the previous 11-inch M2 model (Wi-Fi) with 256GB of storage, that was priced at $899. The larger 12.9-inch model of that exact configuration was priced at $1,199. Now, the 11-inch M4 model is priced at $999, and the larger 13-inch model is priced at $1,299. So despite a $100 price increase over the previous model, I believe you’re getting a lot more for what you’re paying for, especially with all of the breakthrough technologies that the newest models have to offer, especially with the most advanced display ever on an iPad.

What do you think about the iPad Pro (M4)? Do you think it’s an improvement overall despite the specs on paper? Let us know in the comments below. If you enjoy our content, make sure to follow @Appleosophy for more articles or deals to come.