The 9.7" iPad Pro Review
by Brandon Chester on June 1, 2016 9:00 AM ESTStill Image Quality
With the iPhone SE we saw Apple bring the 12MP camera from the iPhone 6s to a $399 phone. The 9.7" iPad Pro brings it to the iPad. More specifically, it's a ~1/3" 12MP sensor with a f/2.2 aperture. The A9X SoC comes with the same ISP as Apple A9, and so we should see parity between the photo quality on the iPhone 6s, the iPhone SE, and the 9.7" iPad Pro. In my iPhone SE review I said that the camera was a substantial upgrade over the one used in the iPhone 5s. In this case the gap is even larger, with Apple moving from an 8MP sensor with 1.1-micron pixels to a 12MP sensor with 1.22-micron pixels. Not only does moving to a higher resolution sensor enable UHD video recording, but the fact that the sensor is larger with more pixels will help to improve the quality of photos in good lighting, and even more so in poor lighting. Using Apple's latest SoC is also what allows for 1080p120 slow motion video and Live Photos.
| Daytime Photography |
As I said in my iPhone SE review, there's not a lot to say about this camera because we've already seen it in the market for many months now. While it's not the absolute best sensor in a smartphone, it's by far the best one in any tablet. Apple's processing gave them a lead over the competition when they were shipping 1.1-micron 8MP sensors in iPads, and with the 9.7" Pro moving to the same camera as the iPhone 6s the leap in image quality is significant. In the day you can see improved detail. It's also possible that the optics are an improvement over those used in other iPads, as you can see proper detail capture in some areas of photos where MTF limitations caused artifacting on older iPads.
| Night Photography |
As with the iPhone SE, the 9.7" iPad Pro is equivalent to the iPhone 6s when shooting in low light. In these particular shots there's a slight different in exposure but that could simply be due to me having a bit of trouble focusing on the same area with such a large device. The overall detail is equivalent between all the devices using Apple's 12MP sensor, and when you compare the 9.7" Pro to other tablets they're in completely different classes. The competition from Google is let down by worse cameras, worse ISPs, and worse processing, to the point where you basically can't use them to take a photo in low light. The best competition I've seen for the iPads was the Tab S2. Unfortunately, Samsung only loaned that to us for a short period so I no longer have it for comparisons, but given that it was equivalent to the iPad Air 2, it's safe to say that this new iPad Pro is really without competition for camera quality.
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ragingfighter - Wednesday, July 13, 2016 - link
If $1000 for a tablet is something you could afford that's fine but keep in mind $1000 can get you a good laptop as well I don't not your choice and this is not a criticism to what you chose for your workflow so I don't want you to take it as such it's just a general opinion.syxbit - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Google should be ashamed of themselves with those internal NAND (sequential write) results. The iPad is 10x the performance of the Pixel C...Wolfpup - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
I wonder if that's with encryption on or off? I sure hope that's with it on :-OI love that iOS just comes with it on now, and users don't need to know anything, manage it, etc., NOR worry about performance.
I know my Android tablet was seriously dirt slow...well, dirt slow in general, and in storage performance specifically. (What blew me away was my equivalently speced Surface running close-to-full-Windows ran circles around it...which is like WHAAAAAT, the limited mobile OS is supposed to at least be faster LOL)
grayson_carr - Thursday, June 2, 2016 - link
New Android devices all come with encryption on as well. And while Apple does hold a huge lead in NAND performance, I haven't noticed the storage performance of Android devices negatively impacting day to day use since the Nexus 6.ragingfighter - Wednesday, July 13, 2016 - link
I think it's the cost of having a filesystem a more Advanced interaction with it all and having the full on options of tweaking and placement and so on that also can bog down an operating system. A lot of how we perceive a ui or user interface or operating system is in which the speed and workflow comes across such as finding what you're trying to work on how fast it comes on screen how much time you save. With iOS, either not have a file system as you just have apps apps that do specific things. Depending on what type of workflow you have this can be easier or harder you do not have to look through a lot of submenus to find a file or something you're working on. Is your work something that you can transferred to the cloud and just so you have access to other devices after it's done or do you work on a tablet at home and have a come up on your computer at work?When you start getting into the sub areas of an operating system terminal command lines and all types of other advanced features and code and stuff that is one in a way I believe the operating system gets perceived as cluttered. Even something as simple as removing programs and just drag them to the garbage can for being deleted is something common sense and I was amazed that is not implemented across all operating systems. The complexity of having to go to your ad and remove programs list on windows to delete something still is amazing to me that people would have to do such a thing for such a basic function Especially during the year 2016. The thing that makes iOS really good is also the same thing that makes it really bad for some and that is its basic simplicity iOS is at its greatest for young children for people that have a writing type of workflow for consumption, but especially for the elderly that do not have as much technical know-how as others have in life I know I have relatives that if it wasn't for the iPad they would still be thinking of 56K not know how to check their emails and truly enjoy the web. They are not great typists not nearly there not know what the Home row is. In this regard voice dictation gives them another way to interact with their tablets which are computers and allows them to use them much better than without.
Hemlocke - Thursday, June 2, 2016 - link
It shows in daily usage, too. My Pixel C went out the door to get my Pro 9.7, and after a few hours, I know I made the right choice. The Pixel was irritating, with hiccups and stutters when there is no reason for it. My Air 2 was a better tablet.lucam - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Hi Brandon,There is the new GFX Bench 3.1 available for IOS too; especially the new one 1440 resolution.
It's worth trying it.
Oyeve - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Would be nice if you actually FINISHED your S7 review to see those pic samples against this tablet. I own the 9.7 pro and the S7 and the S7 just blows the pro away. Hmmm, thats probably why you guys never finished the S7 review. It would crush your apple love.Brandon Chester - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
I stated in the article that the sensor used in the 6s/SE/9.7" is not the best sensor in a smartphone. I would argue that the Galaxy S6 is superior, let alone 2016's Android devices. Your perception of bias is unfounded.KPOM - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Apple haters gonna hate. For whatever reason they can't accept a decent review of an Apple product, even one that points out its flaws.I like AT and am glad the new ownership doesn't seem to have affected its editorial independence. Kudos to Ryan and the whole team.