Apple announced the new 2020 fourth-generation iPad Air in September, but the new tablets just started shipping out to customers last Friday. We picked one up and thought we’d do a hands-on comparison with the iPad Pro, which was last updated in March, because both tablets are about as powerful and share many similarities.
When it comes to design, the 11-inch iPad Pro and the 10.9-inch iPad Air look quite similar with flat edges like the iPhone 12, a camera bump at the back, and an edge-to-edge display with no Home button.
Other than that, display quality is similar, with one notable exception: the iPad Pro supports 120Hz ProMotion refresh rates for smoother scrolling and a better overall experience.
Both the iPad Air and iPad Pro support the Apple Pencil 2, and it’s worth noting that writing and sketching is somewhat smoother with the ProMotion display. It’s fast and effortless, but you do need to reach up to the top of the iPad to unlock it, and it’s not as seamless of an experience as Face ID, especially when you’re using accessories like the Magic Keyboard.
We haven’t noticed differences in photo or video editing, though, and both are capable devices. It lacks when it comes to the display because it doesn’t have ProMotion, but it’s more affordable, faster, and available in better colors, all of which give it an edge over the iPad Pro at this time. The iPad Pro still wins out if you want the more advanced LiDAR Scanner and camera features and the ProMotion display, or if you need the larger 12.9-inch form factor which is not available with the iPad Air.
iPad Air 2020 vs. iPad Pro 2021 Buyer’s Guide
In April 2021, Apple updated its popular iPad Pro lineup, introducing the M1 chip, a Liquid Retina XDR display, a Thunderbolt port, and more. Since the iPad Air saw a major update in September last year, both the iPad Air and the iPad Pro now share similar designs and an increasingly close feature set. The iPad Air and iPad Pro share a number of key features, such as design, rear Wide camera, and a USB-C port: Liquid Retina display with 264 ppi, full lamination, oleophobic and anti-reflective coating, P3 Wide Color, and True Tone
ƒ/1.8 12MP Wide rear camera, with digital zoom up to 5x and Smart HDR 3 for photos Apple’s specification breakdown shows that the two iPads share a number of important features.
Even so, there are an even larger number of meaningful differences between the iPad Air and iPad Pro that are worth highlighting, including their displays, authentication technologies, processors, and camera setups. Available in Silver, Space Gray, Rose Gold, Green, and Sky Blue Both the iPad Air and the iPad Pro use Apple’s most recent product design language, also seen on the iPhone 12 and the iMac, featuring industrial squared-off edges. Unlocking is something that may be used dozens of times every day, so it is important to choose your preferred method of authentication if you feel particularly strongly about it.
That being said, both Touch ID and Face ID are now extremely refined technologies that work well, and most users will likely be happy with whichever they have. These models are around half a pound lighter than the 12.9-inch iPad Pro and will be best for users focused on portability and easy handheld use.
Both the iPad Air and the 11-inch iPad Pro feature Liquid Retina LED displays with 264 ppi, full lamination, an oleophobic and anti-reflective coating, P3 Wide Color, and True Tone. Apple calls the 12.9-inch iPad Pro’s mini-LED screen a “Liquid Retina XDR display.”
The display can reflect what can be seen in the real world by capturing the brightest highlights and subtle details in even the darkest images, allowing users to view and edit true-to-life HDR and Dolby Vision content, which is especially important to creative professionals, including photographers, videographers, and filmmakers. The iPad Air’s Liquid Retina display will be sufficient for the vast majority of users, but some may prefer the responsiveness of ProMotion of the iPad Pro for tasks such as gaming. Both chips are fabricated using a 5nm process and contain Apple’s most advanced 16-core Neural Engine for machine learning. Only users with an intensely demanding workflow will need the extra power the M1 in the iPad Pro offers over the A14 in the iPad Air.
For example, photographers working with large images, graphic designers, and video editors may be able to take advantage of the M1’s extra power. 4GB in the iPad Air will be adequate for casual users, but 8GB will be defter at handling multiple windows of the same application and a range of intense background tasks. The iPad Pro has extended dynamic range when recording video up to 30 fps, and also features a True Tone flash. LiDAR allows the iPad Pro to measure the distance to surrounding objects up to five meters away, operating at the photon level at nano-second speed. This makes the iPad Pro capable of a “new class” of improved AR experiences with better motion capture, understanding of the environment, and people occlusion. If you use your iPad for consuming lots of music and videos with the built-in speakers, the iPad Pro will deliver a slightly better experience.
As well as being considerably faster, Thunderbolt opens up the potential for compatibility with a much broader range of Thunderbolt-only accessories such as external hard drives and monitors. Since they both support the same accessories, there is no reason to buy one model over the other when it comes to the likes of keyboards or trackpads. Nevertheless, it should be considered that accessories such as the Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard have to be purchased separately from the iPad, so will push up the overall price. While it lacks the all-screen design of the iPad Air, USB-C, and 4K video recording, the eighth-generation iPad is an excellent low-cost alternative to the mid to high-end iPads. Moreover, if you are looking for the smallest, most portable iPad, you should consider the iPad mini, which features a smaller 7.9-inch display and the A12 chip, for $399. For most people, the additional $200+ needed to buy the iPad Pro will not be justified to get a better camera system, more memory, and a 120Hz display. Some iPad Pro features, such as LiDAR, the Ultra-Wide camera, large storage configurations, and Thunderbolt, will only be practically useful to a small niche of iPad users. Professionals who have a clear use case for needing larger amounts of RAM and storage, Thunderbolt, mini-LED for HDR content, and the added performance of the M1 chip will benefit from buying the iPad Pro. Prosumers will also enjoy features such as 120Hz ProMotion for smoother scrolling and gaming, deeper blacks and more vivid colors with the mini-LED display, Center Stage, and LiDAR for AR experiences, even if they are not necessary, and those who want a larger 12.9-inch display will need to go with the higher-end iPad Pro model. Prosumers and professionals who want the iPad to replace their laptop or computer should likely choose the 12.9-inch iPad Pro if they are pairing it with the Magic Keyboard due to the added screen space for multiple applications.
We put the latest iPad Pro and iPad Air head to head, and it’s clear the cheaper iPad Air is the better tablet for most people
Apple’s iPad Pros differentiate with ProMotion screen tech, better cameras, and a 12.9-inch option. Get honest reviews on top products & services — delivered weekly to your inbox. But if you value a bigger screen, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is essentially one of this line’s primary differentiators.
If you’re using an iPad for simpler tasks like browsing the web, running standard apps like email, social media, or shopping apps and playing casual games, you’d likely be fine with 64GB iPad Air. Just keep in mind that the iPad Air doesn’t come with Apple’s ProMotion screen tech, if that sounds tempting to you, as well. The iPad Pros also have a LiDar scanner that helps with better focus when taking photos in low light. I’d also consider this a niche feature that should only really speak to professionals who are often transferring big projects to and from the iPad and external storage devices. It basically means that big files or projects will transfer faster on the iPad Pros.
After considering the storage options and their prices, knowing that they possess the same processing power, the iPad Air 2022 poses the best value at the time of writing. While ProMotion on the iPad Pro is great, it’s still a cosmetic feature that adds to the experience rather than the utility of the tablet. But if 128GB of storage is enough for you, and you value a more premium experience from Apple’s ProMotion screen tech, the iPad Pro is for you. If you want the best cameras possible on a tablet, or super fast data transfer speeds, the iPad Pros are again your best bet.
2020 iPad Air vs. iPad Pro: Hands-On Comparison
Apple announced the new 2020 fourth-generation iPad Air in September, but the new tablets just started shipping out to customers last Friday. We picked one up and thought we’d do a hands-on comparison with the iPad Pro, which was last updated in March, because both tablets are about as powerful and share many similarities. When it comes to design, the 11-inch iPad Pro and the 10.9-inch iPad Air look quite similar with flat edges like the iPhone 12, a camera bump at the back, and an edge-to-edge display with no Home button. Other than that, display quality is similar, with one notable exception: the iPad Pro supports 120Hz ProMotion refresh rates for smoother scrolling and a better overall experience.
Both the iPad Air and iPad Pro support the Apple Pencil 2, and it’s worth noting that writing and sketching is somewhat smoother with the ProMotion display. It’s fast and effortless, but you do need to reach up to the top of the iPad to unlock it, and it’s not as seamless of an experience as Face ID, especially when you’re using accessories like the Magic Keyboard.
We haven’t noticed differences in photo or video editing, though, and both are capable devices. It lacks when it comes to the display because it doesn’t have ProMotion, but it’s more affordable, faster, and available in better colors, all of which give it an edge over the iPad Pro at this time. The iPad Pro still wins out if you want the more advanced LiDAR Scanner and camera features and the ProMotion display, or if you need the larger 12.9-inch form factor which is not available with the iPad Air.
iPad – Compare Models
Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music
Up to 10 hours of surfing the web on Wi‑Fi, watching video, or listening to music
iPad Air (2020) vs iPad Pro (2020): which iPad is for you?
The two iPad Pros, for example, boast two rear cameras as well as a LiDAR scanner, which can be used for everything from advanced 3D scanning to AR gaming. A fully kitted out model with 1TB storage space and Cellular connectivity will cost you a pretty penny – a whopping £1,419/$1,449/AU$2,429. The iPad Air (2020) is feature-rich in its own right and has gone through a bit of a design transformation from the previous generation with a bigger screen (owing to its much thinner bezels) and a more powerful camera. Those things include the bigger 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display, which is only 0.1 inch smaller than the 11-inch Pro, the 12MP wide rear camera with ƒ/1.8 aperture, compatibility with the 2nd-gen Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard, 4K video recording and 1080p slow-motion recording capabilities, Wi-Fi 6, and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity.
Of course, for that lofty price of entry, the two iPad Pro (2020) models do have advantages over the Air when it comes to design and features. True to their moniker, these tablets come with a display with 600 nits of brightness (about 20% more than the iPad Air) and ProMotion technology, which delivers up to 120Hz refresh rates for butter-smooth viewing. Other pro features are a second rear camera that’s an ultra wide angle with 10MP and ƒ/2.4 aperture, brighter True Tone rear flash, a TrueDepth front camera with portrait lighting as well as Animoji and Memoji support, and a Face ID (as opposed to the Air’s Touch ID login). More cores mean it has a better multi-core processing performance – a boon for video editing, gaming, and other more complex tasks.
To be fair to the Air, if you aren’t a professional and don’t really need all that power and storage space, it should be more than enough to see you through your tablet needs – whether those include taking and light editing photos or videos or simply streaming your favourite shows and casual gaming.
However, it’s better suited for the more casual users with more discerning tastes or perhaps some creative inclinations – more for hobbies than pros.
It’ll also serve as a great accessory for professionals who need a tablet for performing less demanding tasks like sending emails and typing up a document while on the go, as well as some light designing, editing, and music production. The iPad Pro’s innards are built exactly for demanding tasks such as video editing and a feature set made for creative endeavours.
Not everyone will be able to use it as their main computer, but its flexibility means there are lots of situations where creative pros will much prefer it to a laptop.
Should you buy the new iPad Air or the 11-inch iPad Pro? Here’s how they compare
In 2021, the 11-inch iPad Pro arrived with the powerful M1 chip, Thunderbolt connectivity, 5G for cellular models, new camera features like Center Stage, and more. But for the vast majority of users, the M1 with 8GB RAM will be more than powerful enough for years to come.
With the iPad Air’s screen, you’re getting a 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display with True Tone and P3 wide color. It’s almost exactly the same Liquid Retina display as the 11-inch iPad Pro (ok, technically 0.1″ smaller 😅).
However, the biggest difference is you only get ProMotion with up to 120Hz refresh rates with the iPad Pro display. 2022 iPad Air 2021 iPad Pro 2020 iPad Air Display 10.9″ 11″ 10.9″ Resolution 2360 x 1640 2388 x 1668 2360 x 1640 PPI (pixels per inch) 264 264 264 Display brightness 500 nits 600 nits 500 nits True Tone ✅ ✅ ✅ P3 wide color ✅ ✅ ✅ ProMotion (120Hz) ❌ ✅ ❌ Anti-reflective coating ✅ ✅ ✅ Liquid Retina Display ✅ ✅ ✅ Like the iPhone SE 3, the new iPad Air doesn’t get mmWave 5G support with its cellular models. But as mmWave is the rarest version of 5G coverage to find, that’s probably not an issue for most people.
The new model comes in space gray, starlight, pink, purple, and blue.
However, with the iPad Pro, you’ve also got a 10 MP ultra wide lens plus the LiDAR Scanner, and the True Tone flash. 2022 iPad Air 2021 iPad Pro 2020 iPad Air 12 MP wide lens ✅ ✅ ✅ 10 MP ultra wide lens ❌ ✅ ❌ LiDAR ❌ ✅ ❌ 4K video ✅ ✅ ✅ Extended dynamic range ✅ ✅ ❌ Slo-mo video ✅ ✅ ✅ Rear camera flash ❌ ✅ ❌ TrueDepth camera with Face ID ❌ ✅ ❌ FaceTime 7 MP front camera – – ✅ Ultra wide 12 MP front camera ✅ ✅ ❌ 2x optical zoom out ✅ ✅ ❌ Center Stage auto-tracking ✅ ✅ ❌ Stereo recording ❌ ✅ ❌ A couple of differences – the iPad Pro front camera features support for Portrait mode, Portrait Lighting, and Animoji/Memoji while the iPad Air front camera does not.
If you know you’ll be pushing your tablet to the limit regularly, the iPad Pro still delivers the top-performing package with up to 16GB RAM, up to 2TB storage, 120Hz ProMotion display, and Thunderbolt support.
Apple iPad Air 2020 vs iPad Pro 2020: What’s the difference?
It adopted the design of the Pro, added a splash of colour and even used a really powerful processor inside. iPad Pro: Quad speaker system, FaceID in the bezel iPad Air: silver, space grey, rose gold, green and sky blue
Even the dimensions are similar, with the Air featuring identical width and height to the 11-inch Pro.
One thing that’s immediately obvious about the Air range is its array of colour options. It has rose gold (pink), green and sky blue alongside the silver and space grey options. iPad Pro uses FaceID for authentication, where the Air uses a TouchID fingerprint sensor in the power button at the top, which might actually be more convenient for some. All models support Apple’s most recent Pencil and can clip it magnetically to the side while wireless charging the accessory.
What’s more, the iPad Air even supports the latest, expensive Magic Keyboard cover with the floating arm. Those extra pixels on the 11 and 12.9-inch screens versus the Air’s 10.9-inch just ensure there’s the same level of detail to the user’s eye. With 600 nits of peak brightness, the Pro series displays are brighter than the iPad Air’s 500 nits, plus the iPad Pro series features an adaptive frame rate technology that goes as high as 120Hz/120 frames-per-second. All tablets have the anti-reflective screen and boast the same wide colour gamut support.
With the iPad Air, Apple introduced a brand new processor called the A14 Bionic. It’s based on a new 5nm process, meaning there’s a lot of tiny transistors all over it and it features both a 6-core CPU and a 4-core GPU. As for the iPad Pro, Apple equipped the tablet with an A12z Bionic chip, and that features an 8-core CPU and 8-core GPU, that means the GPU has double the cores of the iPad Air, which makes sense since the display its driving has a faster refresh rate, and so it needs to deliver faster graphics. Apple doesn’t typically publish clock speeds and so it’s not easy to compare the specifications in that regard. But if you opt for the larger 12.9-inch model, the price soon pushes near the $1000/£1000 mark, and that’s when it becomes more a decision of whether or not this is just a tablet as an entertainment device or one that you use as a laptop replacement. In all the ways that matter, the iPad Air will offer most people everything they would hope to get from a ‘Pro’ tablet. It offers so many of the features we’ve seen adopted by the iPad Pro range, and the processor inside is powerful. That means for those who love the ultra-smooth animations and almost completely lag-free Pencil responses, it’ll still be the Pro that draws the eye.
We put the latest iPad Pro and iPad Air head to head, and it’s clear the cheaper iPad Air is the better tablet for most people
Apple’s iPad Pros differentiate with ProMotion screen tech, better cameras, and a 12.9-inch option. Get honest reviews on top products & services — delivered weekly to your inbox.
But if you value a bigger screen, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is essentially one of this line’s primary differentiators.
If you’re using an iPad for simpler tasks like browsing the web, running standard apps like email, social media, or shopping apps and playing casual games, you’d likely be fine with 64GB iPad Air.
Just keep in mind that the iPad Air doesn’t come with Apple’s ProMotion screen tech, if that sounds tempting to you, as well. The iPad Pros also have a LiDar scanner that helps with better focus when taking photos in low light.
I’d also consider this a niche feature that should only really speak to professionals who are often transferring big projects to and from the iPad and external storage devices. It basically means that big files or projects will transfer faster on the iPad Pros.
After considering the storage options and their prices, knowing that they possess the same processing power, the iPad Air 2022 poses the best value at the time of writing. While ProMotion on the iPad Pro is great, it’s still a cosmetic feature that adds to the experience rather than the utility of the tablet.
But if 128GB of storage is enough for you, and you value a more premium experience from Apple’s ProMotion screen tech, the iPad Pro is for you. If you want the best cameras possible on a tablet, or super fast data transfer speeds, the iPad Pros are again your best bet.
11-inch iPad Pro vs iPad Air: Which M1 tablet is right for you?
The standard 10.2-inch iPad is the budget option, with an aging design (big bezels, home button, Lightning port) and older processor, and the 12.9-inch iPad Pro starts at a whopping $1,099 and is geared toward only the most demanding of users. But a tablet is more than its processor, and the Pro model does offer a few improvements that might be worth your money.
You’re also getting ever-so-slightly smaller bezels on the iPad Pro, which is why Apple says it has room for an 11-inch display instead of 10.9 inches.
Both displays also have True Tone and a wide P3 color gamut and follow Apple’s “liquid” retina design, meaning the corners of the screen are rounded to match the device itself.
But the big benefit is ProMotion, which lets the display run-up to 120Hz for smoother motion and lower latency, especially when using the Apple Pencil. Our pick: The extra brightness isn’t a huge deal, but ProMotion is really nice and helps justify the higher price of the iPad Pro.
Those storage options don’t come cheap, however, and the extra RAM probably isn’t going to make much of a difference with iPadOS. It’s the same processor, and to get 16GB of RAM you need to pay for a huge chunk of storage on the iPad Pro.
On the other hand, the iPad Pro’s brighter display will likely drain the battery a little faster if you crank up the brightness.
More important is that the starting storage is twice as big on the iPad Pro, and 64GB might be a little small for all of the apps and games you’re going to download.
Like the iPhone, the iPad Pro uses Face ID, which uses the TrueDepth sensors on the front to unlock the tablet and authenticate purchases and passwords. The iPad Air doesn’t have a TrueDepth module; it has Touch ID built into the side button.
We don’t think you’ll be taking too many pictures with either of these somewhat awkward cameras, but if you want to, the iPad Pro has a clearly superior array. Apple upgraded the iPad Air to a 12MP Ultra-Wide camera on the front, with support for Center Stage, which pans and zooms to keep you the subject (you) in the frame.
The iPad Pro has a TrueDepth sensor for Face ID, which means it also supports Apple’s Animoj/Memoji, but photo and video-taking should be about the same when using the front camera. The iPad Pro has an edge with its 10MP Ultra Wide rear camera if that sort of thing matters to you.
The iPad Air has decent sound from its two-speaker stereo setup and a dual microphone array. We love the iPad Air’s USB-C port, and it’s event fast with the fifth-generation model, supporting data transfers up to 10Gbps.
Both models support the new Magic Keyboard—though the camera cutouts fit a little nicer on the 11-inch Pro—as well as the 2nd-generation Apple Pencil. Both iPads have Wi-Fi 6 with MIMO, simultaneous dual-band, and speeds up to 1.6Gbps, so they’ll work great at home.
Our pick: You should consider carefully whether you really need cellular access on your iPad—using your iPhone as a wireless hotspot works extremely well.
This year, thanks to the processor upgrade and improved front camera in the iPad Air, our opinion has reversed. The iPad Pro is essentially the same size and performance and supports the same peripherals, but it costs $200 more ($250 more if you want a cellular-equipped model).
iPad Air (2020) vs. iPad Pro (2021): Which tablet should you buy?
If you want the pinnacle of tablets, the iPad Pro is the best choice thanks to its speedy performance, gorgeous mini-LED display and 5G wireless support. The iPad Pro may be the best tablet for crafting and consuming content, but Apple’s most advanced features don’t come cheap. The sticker shock alone is enough to make prospective buyers flee into the arms of a Surface Pro tablet or Chromebook.
Surface Laptop 4, Acer Nitro 5 vs. Asus TUF Dash F15 and Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon vs MacBook Pro. If you can’t store in the cloud or work with gigantic files, the 2TB model with 16GB of RAM costs $2,199. Both have sharply rounded corners, a centered chrome Apple logo and a comfortable flat-edge design.
I doubt many people care about the camera modules; what they might desire is a range of colors to choose from. Where the Pro is available in bland silver and boring Space Gray, the iPad Air comes in rose gold, green, sky blue and the aforementioned traditional shades.
They also share a similar magnetic holder on the top edge for charging and securing the Apple Pencil accessory. Instead of a uniformly backlit LED screen, the iPad Pro uses 2,500 local dimming zones that can illuminate during bright scenes or turn off completely during dark ones.
That is, until you play high-res HDR content, which lets the XDR display fan its feathers like a peacock in courtship. Moving on to the benchmarks, we tested the 12.9-inch iPad Pro screen twice: once with HDR and once playing non-HDR content.
For most people, the performance gap between the Pro and Air won’t matter — both slates can run demanding tasks like CPU-intensive apps or workloads containing multiple browser instances and background processes. What the iPad Pro grants is extra juice for prosumer apps made for video and photo editors, 3D graphics designers, architects, AR enthusiasts and the like. Some apps are taking advantage of the extra oomph; Zoom, for example, lets you see 48 people in Gallery View versus 25 on other iPad models. Final Cut Pro and Tableau are absent while Photoshop is a “lite” version of the desktop program. When we ran the Adobe Premiere Rush test, the M1-equipped iPad Pro took 22 seconds to add a color filter and transition to a 4K video before exporting it to 1080p resolution. The iPad Pro gained 5G connectivity, giving it the faster wireless speeds available from the major US carriers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon).
Instead, it maintained about the same endurance as the previous model, lasting for 10 hours and 48 minutes on the Laptop Mag battery test. The iPad Pro has a slight edge, but the 19-minute gulf between these two slates shouldn’t factor into your buying decision.
The iPad Pro has a dual-camera setup consisting of a 12-megapixel, f/1.8 wide-angle lens and the secondary 10MP, f/2.4 ultra-wide-angle camera. The cameras on both tablets are better than they have any right to be, but if you take lots of photos on your slate, the iPad Pro gets you the versatility of an ultra-wide lens for landscape photography. If I were determining the most capable tablet, the iPad Pro would be the obvious choice, but you already knew that because of the price gap between these models. If you’re on a strict budget and need a tablet for content consumption, browsing the web and using popular apps, the 64GB iPad Air for $599 is the best option.
If you have $800 to spend, and onboard storage isn’t a high priority, go with the base 11-inch iPad Pro. For $50 more, you get the M1 chip, quad speakers (versus deal), better front and rear cameras, and Face ID.
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