Apple iPad Pro (M4) - The Bleeding Edge of Mobile Computing

When it comes to reviewing iPads and other tablets, it's always tempting to ask, "Could I use this to replace my laptop?"

I've certainly been guilty of running that same theme and I now regret it. It's a flawed proposition for a number of reasons.

Firstly, if someone's in the market for a tablet, it's probably not because they really want a laptop.

Secondly, when a manufacturer like Apple makes both products, it's not an either/or situation; if you want a MacBook, buy a MacBook. 

Thirdly, how come nobody ever asks, "Could I use my laptop to replace my iPad?"

Of course, it's a safe bet most tech journalists use laptops a lot more than iPads or other tablets, so that goes a long way to explaining this rather skewed way of looking at things.

All that being said, if you did have to pick one over the other, wouldn’t you just go with whichever was more powerful?

The 2204 iPad Pro is powered by the M4 chip, Apple’s latest and greatest. This is the fastest, most powerful and efficient chip Apple has ever produced and right now, the iPad Pro is the only device running it.

Depending on which sized iPad Pro you go for, the M4 CPU offers as many as four performance cores and six efficiency cores - that means more speed for less battery. There’s a 10-core GPU for breakthrough graphics abilities, including ray-tracing and mesh-shading (resource-heavy 3D effects that make the unreal seem more real). And if that’s still isn’t enough cores for you, the 16-core Apple Neural Engine is allegedly capable of 38 trillion operations per second.

This last feature is what effectively future-proofs the iPad Pro for years to come. Whether you call it AI or Apple Intelligence (as rebranded at this week’s WWDC in Cupertino) only devices with this level of mind-blowing machine-learning will be up to the task… even if there are 38 trillion tasks.

As an early demonstration of just how next-level this device is, I was amazed how quickly I was able to set it up, migrating my settings, apps and preferences from the iPad Air I reviewed last week. The transfer of data took just a few minutes but then, once the transfer was complete, the actual setup happened in seconds. I know this will sound like an exaggeration but I’m talking instantly, before my eyes. 

The most time-consuming parts of the setup were any steps that involved my input - intitialising Face ID for example - this may well be the first time I’ve encountered a device that works faster than I can think.

Needless to say, I have yet to find any task the M4 iPad Pro can’t perform. Games of any genre and complexity install, load and run effortlessly.

Multitasking - be it screeds of tabs open in your browser or many apps open at once - nothing hampers the performance. Meanwhile, MacOS-like features such as Stage Manager let you manipulate, arrange and access different windows any way you like, making the most of the extra screen real estate if you go with the 13-inch model over the 11-inch option.

In fact, now I’ve brought it up, let’s talk screens because you’ve never seen a display like this… and I mean that quite literally. The Ultra Retina XDR display on the M4 iPad Pro is a world first. It’s also Apple’s first OLED screen on an iPad - that means the same ultimate level of true black until now we’ve only experienced on OLED TVs and monitors. However, no matter how sharp and colour-accurate OLED panels are can be, they’re notorious for underperforming in bright conditions.

That’s why Apple has reimagined the OLED concept and doubled up; effectively sandwiching two panels together in a tandem OLED design. This results in an astounding 1600 nits of peak brightness. In real-life terms that means if you’re anything like me when you watch video on your phone or tablet, you always turn the brightness setting up to maximum, right? Even then, sometimes the action is a bit of a mystery - especially if the protagonists are spending a lot of time inside a black box like they do on the new Apple series, “Dark Matter.”

Well, I’ve been streaming on the M4 iPad Pro for a while now, not just with Apple TV+ but Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video too - and I only realized last night I haven’t touched the brightness controls at all. Not once. Whether I was sitting in an armchair in the sun or a dark bedroom, everything looked amazing. Although, I will say as useful as the taller 4:3 ratio of the display is for stacking multiple windows and apps, when it comes to the more widescreen-formatted shows and movies, the letterbox created by the black sections top and bottom does seem like a bit of a waste.

I’ve yet to mention the other stunning design feature of this iPad; how slim it is. The 11-inch model is only 5.3mm while the bigger one I’m using right now is even thinner; a mere 5.1mm. There are two colour options; Silver and Space Black. The outer casing is 100% recycled aluminium and despite being so, so thin, the whole thing feels very robust, with no flex whatsoever.

The M4 iPad Pro also runs much cooler - it’s packed with graphite to dissipate heat and even the Apple logo on the back is copper to achieve a 20% drop in temperature from the previous model.

As far as accessories go, like last week’s M2 iPad Air, there’s a new Smart Folio which will now display the iPad Pro at multiple angles or you can really pimp your pad with the breathtakingly well designed (and excruciatingly priced) Magic Keyboard. The Pro version of the Magic Keyboard has been totally reworked - it now features aluminium palm rests and a full, 14-key function row across the top for easy access to things like volume, brightness and media controls.

Last week, I also featured the new Apple Pencil Pro quite heavily - so you can go back to find out more details on innovative features like squeezing for tool shortcuts and barrel-roll for calligraphy. Of course, you can do all that when paired with the M4 iPad Pro too but I also quickly came to depend on the Apple Pencil Pro when editing in the latest version of Final Cut Pro. Not only have I typed and created this whole review solely using the iPad Pro, I edited the video below on this device as well. And here’s where the new iPad Pro really comes into its own. Not only does it now have excess computing power for previously taxing tasks like video and audio editing, you also have the advantage of the touch screen for pinch-to-zoom and of course, the accuracy of the tip of the Pencil Pro. When it came time to resize inserts or fine-tune text and colours in my graphics, I found myself reflexively reaching for the Pencil Pro to manipulate my edits with a much finer touch than I would have been able to achieve with my fat fingers or even with a mouse.

There’s just so much more I could share with you - and I’m sure I’ll be referring back to what this year’s iPad can do in future reviews too. I haven’t even touched on the magical abilities of the four speaker sound system for example; how Apple has managed to squeeze such an immersive performance from such tiny drivers, I honestly couldn’t tell you.

The cameras are great - some of the best I’ve used on a tablet and definitely superior to what you’ll find on most laptops. The built-in LIDAR scanner combined with the awesome power of the M4 chip means 3D renderings for AR can be created in seconds.

And just like the new M2 iPad Air, connectivity is stronger, more reliable and faster than ever, thanks to the latest Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Thunderbolt, USB 4 and 5G protocols.

This week at WWDC, Apple launched new operating systems across its full range of devices, including iPadOS. While we won’t see these new features pushed out fully until Spring, it looks like the line between iPadOS and MacOS is blurring even further - which is great but as I said at the top, for the first time I’ve become less obsessed about trying to use this iPad as a MacBook because it’s just so damn good at being the best iPad it can be.

It certainly isn’t cheap. While the base model, 11-inch M4 iPad Pro starts at NZ$1,999.00 - that’s not what I’m using here. This is the 13-inch cellular version, it has a whopping 2TB of storage (as opposed to 256GB) and I’ve added the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro. That all adds up to almost six grand - and that’s without the option of Apple’s new Nano-texture glass for an even less reflective viewing experience.

Sure, six-thousand bucks would buy you a hell of a laptop but you wouldn’t get the uniquely sublime viewing experience of the tandem OLED Ultra Retina XDR display, the uber-fine control offered by Apple Pencil Pro or the supreme mobility of such a thin, lightweight device - even when it’s paired with the aptly named Magic Keyboard.

And most of all, you’d miss out on the outstanding performance of Apple’s record-breaking M4 chip. Remember, you simply won’t find it anywhere else.

Click here for more information and pricing on the Apple iPad Pro (M4).

Click here for more information and pricing on the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro.

Click here for more information and pricing on the Apple Pencil Pro.

Twelve South ButterFly - Perhaps the Best-Designed Charger Yet

There's a trap tech reviewers like me get caught in every now and again - it's just a hazard of the job.

Sometimes I fall in love with a product that's been sent to me, before I've taken the time to find out how much it actually costs. Reviewing gadgets is the ultimate try-before-you-buy scenario. Ideally, I like to use something for at least two weeks in my real, everyday life before passing judgement on it and writing up my thoughts.

That's not something most "normal" customers get to do. You can't just roll on into your local store and say, "Hey, do you mind if I take this home for a fortnight before I decide to buy it? If it's good, I definitely (probably) will purchase it but if it's not really my thing, I'll try and shove it back in the box (more or less the way I found it) and you can sell it to someone else. Okay?"

Which means that if something seems a lot more expensive than it should be, it probably won't even get a second look. Not online and definitely not in a shop.

And so it goes I often get quite a long way down the track with my review before I discover what people (normal people) are expected to shell out for the device I now can't do without.

On the other hand, if the device is really that good, isn't it worth paying a premium?

The Twelve South ButterFly is worth its over-the-top price tag. It'll cost you around NZ$240.00 or thereabouts which is obviously kind of insane for a travel charger and I get that.

Except...what if it's the best charger you've ever used?

It's certainly the smallest - when the two are halves magnetise closed together the whole thing isn't much larger than an Oreo cookie - if that Oreo was made of anodised aluminium layered with vegan leather. Yes, despite its small size, the ButterFly - like all Twelve South accessories - certainly looks and feels like the premium product it is.

Oh sorry; did you want to know what it actually does? Fair enough - it's a 2-in-1 MagSafe charger - specifically designed for charging an iPhone with one half and an Apple Watch with the other. That being said, it will also charge your AirPods case too, or in fact any other phone or pair of earbuds that charges wirelessly. It's just better with MagSafe and only Apple products have that magic magnetic ring built in.

That's an oversimplification though, because this charger does more than just charge.

It's also a stand. In fact, it's two stands.

The first is the most obvious; the Apple Watch charger hinges up out of its half of the ButterFly to present your Watch (or Watch Ultra) in nightstand mode. What's more, because you can also magnetise the two halves together back-to-back, you can stack everything up to take up less space on your bedside table; place your iPhone face down, the charger sits on its back, then the Watch charger sits on top of both and you can then place your Apple Watch on top of everything else.

If you have no idea what I'm on about (and who could blame you?) just watch the video below and let me demonstrate.

The other way to use the ButterFly as a stand is to stack it back-to-back once more then simply lean your iPhone against it as pictured here. This lets you view your phone at an appropriate angle if you're in a video call or streaming something and it will also activate the relatively recent Standby-Mode when not in use - displaying a bedside clock, calendar, photo slideshow or whatever else you've set up.

Of course, whichever way you stack it, the main thing the ButterFly does is charge. And it does this at high capacity (well, high capacity for iPhone and Apple Watch anyway) thanks to the 30W charging brick which is included in the box. Yes, you read that right - unlike Apple's own MagSafe Duo travel charger, TwelveSouth not only throws in the power supply but also four easily swapped-out plug adapters for anywhere in the world you might be heading to. The power adapter is very compact - it'll nestle in beside any other plugs on a multiboard, no problem. And it can't be overstated how crucial it is to have the right power source to plug your charger into. Many USB adapters only supply 5W or 9W which simply isn't enough to juice a double charger like this.

There's even a little drawstring travel bag to pop it all into.

So, as always, Twelve South has pushed the design curve to its extreme. This is the most compact dual-charger I've ever come across. It looks fantastic, feels very durable and as I've outlined, it's amazingly versatile given its small form factor. Is it worth almost two-hundred and forty bucks? If it's the best there is... maybe so.

    

Click here for more information on the Twelve South ButterFly.

Apple iPad Air (M2) - What More Do You Need?

Although Apple originally launched the iPad Air in 2013 and we wouldn't see the first iPad Pro until two years later, there was nothing awkward about it suddenly becoming the middle child.

It was instantly the perfect solution for all those entry-level iPad users who looked on at those Pro creator types in envy, coveting the extra processing power, more advanced displays and other added extras.

While every new generation of iPad Pro would set a new standard for all other tablets to follow, the iPad Air tended to eventually pick up many of those power-user features and then offer them a year or two later at a far more accessible price.

This is a trend Apple has been only too happy to continue in 2024.

This year's iPad Air comes in four colours; Space Gray, Starlight, Blue and Purple. Strangely, this is one colour less than in 2022 - no pink this time around - but still twice as many options as the new iPad Pro I'll be reviewing next week.

There are matching accessories of course, including the new Smart Folio case, now redesigned to support the iPad Air at extra angles. 

Even more useful is the amazing Magic Keyboard. This hasn’t really changed for the iPad Air, although there’s a new cursor experience when using the trackpad that’s easier to follow. As much as I love this accessory, I find the NZ$599.00 asking price to be truly eye-watering. I do believe I may have complained about this before.

The other (and probably most notable) accessory to mention is the all-new Apple Pencil Pro. Some may have expected this powerful tool to be compatible with the new iPad Pro only but Apple surprised many by allowing it to be paired with the M2 iPad Air as well. There are quite a few new tricks up its sleeve; you can now squeeze it to bring up an on-screen tool shortcut, there’s a new hover-to-preview functionality that ties in nicely with its barrel-roll abilities. This means you can roll wider brushes and pens while you’re drawing to alter the thickness of the line on screen. I’m not explaining it very well but you can see me demonstrate it in the video below.

Outwardly, the M2 iPad Air doesn’t look a whole lot different to its predecessor, other than this year's Air has now moved the selfie camera from the short side to the long side. I’d argue this is long overdue. In fact, I pointed out my frustration at the portrait-based camera on the last model in 2022. Thankfully, now it’s a lot easier to look your virtual meeting mates in the eye.

But the really big news - and I do mean “big” - is the iPad Air now comes in both 11 and 13-inch models. This larger size option now matches that of the iPad Pro and it makes a big difference when it comes to stacking multiple windows from different apps.

The 13-inch model also promises “twice as much bass” - not sure how that is measured, or indeed, what that sounds like because I only have the 11-inch version to review. I’m sure it sounds pretty good, because the sound on this one is already quite impressive.

Whichever size you go with, the Liquid Retina display is clear and bright, as we’ve all come to expect from any Apple device. In fact, this is another area where the larger model has a slight advantage, promising up to 600 nits of brightness as opposed to 500 from the device I’m typing on now. Either way, despite what Apple claims, if you take the iPad Air outside into the bright sunshine, you won’t see much in the murkier scenes of a show like “Dark Matter”. Mind you, there aren’t many screens that would perform in those conditions… or are there? Watch this space.

Some of the most significant iPad Air upgrades are also some of the least visible; improved connectivity is a biggie. You now have Wi-Fi 6e for a faster, more reliable connection (assuming you have a a Wi-Fi 6e router, obviously.) If you opt for the cellular version you can access 5G where available via eSIM. If you haven’t used eSIM before, don’t be afraid - I’ve been using it on my phone for months and it’s great. Bluetooth has been bumped up to the latest 5.3 iteration which is a significant boost for range and less delay. You’ll get up to 10GB/s fast data transfer via USB (using the right cable, of course) and perhaps most helpful of all, you now get simultaneous dual-band connection over Wi-Fi. I haven’t heard many people talking about this but it’s very useful when it comes to tasks like mirroring your screen using Apple TV. Whether you’re streaming, browsing or gaming, thanks to simultaneous dual-band you shouldn’t run into any of the stuttering, delays or dropouts you may have encountered when screen-sharing in the past.

In fact, stuttering, freezing or glitching are things that simply don’t happen with this device. By now Apple’s M2 chip has a proven (and highly regarded) performance record, both in MacBooks and the last iPad Pro. You won’t find many other laptops out there that keep things humming along as efficiently as the M2, let alone other tablets.

Whether editing audio and video, gaming or browsing multiple tabs, I haven’t really been able to make this iPad Air break much of a sweat and if it’s AI future-proofing you’re looking for, the M2 chip promises a great deal with its 16-core Apple Neural Engine. It’s capable of completing up to 15.8 trillion operations per second, so when it comes to on-device machine learning, you’re pretty well placed.

In fact, given I’ve yet to find something the M2 iPad Air can’t do, I really wonder what the 2024 iPad Pro has in store for me.

Oh wait, there is one thing. Face unlock. For some reason, we’re still left with the fingerprint sensor under the power button on the iPad Air, despite that very good 12MP Ultra Wide front-facing camera. I don’t know why we can’t have the same face-unlock most iPhones now offer, but there you go. The rear 12MP Wide camera is more than adequate for a tablet, offering Autofocus, Smart HDR and 5 X Digital Zoom. If you thought iPads couldn’t take decent photos and video, think again.

As expected, the M2 iPad Air is a slim, light yet extremely powerful device with excellent battery life, great sound and a lovely display - now available in a significantly larger size. The entry-level option starts at NZ$1199.00 which I consider to be excellent buying - especially since that base model now comes with 128GB of internal storage - thankfully nobody will ever be lured into thinking 64GB is a viable option ever again.

Unfortunately, accessories like the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro, although stunningly well designed are also stunningly expensive. If you really want to turn your iPad Air into a laptop, perhaps you should consider a MacBook Air instead? No touch-screen on a MacBook though. Tricky, isn’t it?

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the Apple iPad Air (M2).

Click here for more information and pricing on the Apple Pencil Pro.