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The branding has gotten so confusing As far as I can tell this is the exact same design the iPad Air has had for a couple years now, but "iPad" (no descriptor)
by brundolf 4y ago
The branding has gotten so confusing
As far as I can tell this is the exact same design the iPad Air has had for a couple years now, but "iPad" (no descriptor) is a separate product, which until now still used the old-school form factor with the physical home button, etc. So this design isn't new at all for "iPad the line of devices", but it is new for "iPad the budget-tier iPad"
...but even with that information- is this model still worse than the Air somehow even though its design has been updated? In what ways? Is it just slightly less powerful or something? Or did their positions flip? Why didn't they just drop this model, making the Air/Pro duality consistent with the MacBooks? Are they going to drop the Air instead? And most importantly for folks who haven't/can't research the technical details: "the iPad and iPad Air look identical [and have names that don't tell me how they're different]; which one should I buy??"
- the_lucifer 4y ago> is this model still worse than the Air somehow even though its design has been updated? Yes, in a myriad of ways! This iPad doesn’t have a laminated touchscreen, and it still uses the Gen. 1 Apple Pencil weirdly so no magnets and you need a type c to lightning adapter to charge it up.
- brundolf 4y agoLol wow, I thought that was a typo but you're right: > Apple Pencil (1st generation) is compatible with the new iPad. A new USB-C to Apple Pencil Adapter is required for pairing and charging and is included in the box with a new version of Apple Pencil (1st generation) for $99 (US). I didn't think they even still made the first-gen Apple Pencil So now we get to explain to grandma why this will work with some Apple Pencils but not others
- the_lucifer 4y agoYes, I am surprised to see it flying under the radar here. But it not having the gen 2 pencil support is egregious especially given the hike in prices
- crazygringo 4y agoThat's been the case for a long time. The "basic" iPad line has always only ever supported first-gen, it's never supported second-gen. You've had to explain this to grandma for years now. They really would have done better to brand them "Pencil" and "Pencil Pro", rather than 1st/2nd gen. There's a good reason for it though -- when schools etc. have all invested in buying tons of Pencils, they don't want to have to toss them for a new iPad. At $99 they ain't cheap.
- brewdad 4y agoI'm not familiar with the internals and what goes into supporting Gen1 vs Gen2 but is it not possible they could have allowed this new iPad to support both? Gen1 for those who have already invested in one and Gen2 for new customers they hope to attract or those who already own a Pro device and want a secondary tablet as well.
- crazygringo 4y agoNone of the iPads that support Gen2 have ever supported Gen1 (and vice-versa). I've never found any public details as to why. Obviously the charging and pairing mechanism is entirely different, but Gen1 can be charged with any USB charger, and Apple now sells a USB-C <-> Lightning adapter for pairing as well. I have no idea if there's anything about how the pencil interfaces with the screen that has changed between them. It almost makes me suspect there might be, for example since the new iPad Pro supports a new "hover" feature for Gen2.
- tomjen3 4y agoLol, good catch. I was waiting for the upgrade specifically for the upgraded pencil support.