LONDON: The big screen iPad is being pitched as a laptop replacement. And the first casualty will be its elder MacBook sibling
The sales of the iPad and the iPad Mini have shrunk in the past two quarters. Which is why, perhaps, it became critical for Apple to refresh the entire idea of the tablet.
The iPad Pro, as it is called, features a 12.9-inch Retina display with a very powerful specification sheet—the latest A9X processor, 2,732 x 2,048 pixel display resolution, support for more 4G LTE networks and claimed 10-hour battery life. In terms of design, the aesthetics remain very similar to the Apple iPad Air.
In a tablet market where there aren’t many big-screen devices, the iPad Pro goes head on against Samsung’s Galaxy Note Pro (Android) and Microsoft’s Surface Pro 3 (Windows). At 6.9mm thickness, the iPad Pro is thinner than the two tablets, which measure 7.95mm and 9.14mm, respectively. At 713gm, it is lighter too, as compared with 750gm and 790gm, respectively. And while the Galaxy Note Pro’s 12.2-inch screen was the biggest among tablets now, Apple has bettered that, too.
But, is Apple actually taking on the rival tablets or eyeing this as a replacement for the ageing MacBook Air line-up? We think the latter seems more likely.
At 12.9 inches, the screen is bigger than the MacBook Air 11 and pretty much at par with the MacBook Air 13. The iPad Pro also gets a Smart Keyboard accessory (you buy it separately for $169), which makes it more of a work device than one meant for only entertainment needs—the new iPad Mini 4 and the iPad Air take care of that requirement.
