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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Klug4Pres - Thursday, June 2, 2016 - link
Didn't stop you in the LG G5 review.Meteor2 - Thursday, June 2, 2016 - link
It would be great if you could source one, I think a lot of people are in this situation. Well, I am :)ragingfighter - Wednesday, July 13, 2016 - link
I still believe the original iPad if you want it is still good enough and it's not necessary to upgrade to even a pro. I would say for a couple reasons one it's in the middle of that list for upgradability so it's still future proof for a few more years, also it has a similar body and weight compared to the others. if it is absolutely necessary you need the best camera well then obviously there will be aspects of the newer tablets upgrade. Drawing also would be the next reason to as well if it's something that you desire or your workflow needs without the use of a laptop or other. All in all though I still consider the first generation iPad Air a recommended keep still. Sure you will get a faster boot up by about 28 seconds give or take and your apps will launch a little quicker but in no way is the original iPad Air or even air 2 sluggish and my opinion. I'm surprise many reviews don't even consider this to their readersKilgharrah - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Another significant difference not mentioned between the 9.7 and 12.9 is that the larger unit supports USB3 speeds over lightning. The 9.7 is restricted to USB2. This difference is quite noticeable when importing pictures via the new SD card reader or USB adapter.Wolfpup - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
Huh, I didn't know that. That's cool...finally using something akin to an SSD in these things, so the faster speed is actually meaningful (and presumably would be on the three current iPhones and 9.7" iPad too).digiguy - Wednesday, June 1, 2016 - link
I own an air, a mini 2 and a pro 12.9. My air hardly gets any use anymore.. I bought the pro 12.9 as I wanted something larger and lighter than my Surface pro 3 for displaying documents and annotating. And I use it quite often for that, while my SP3 is used mainly a as small portable PC. The main advantage of the big pro for me is precisely its large and beautiful screen. And the 4GB RAM make me feel better when I think I spent close to $1000 for it, as it should last quite a few years. Also something that hardly any review mentions is that the sound of the 12.9 pro is definitely better and louder compared to the smaller pro.jlabelle2 - Thursday, June 2, 2016 - link
"something larger and lighter" : you spend 1000$ on another tablet to gain ... 66g ?Especially considering that one has a kickstand and the other not ?
digiguy - Thursday, June 2, 2016 - link
the exact difference is 85g (just checked both). My main use for reading and annotating is in vertical position. There is no vertical stand on Surface unfortunately. And when you hold it in your hand for some time you can definitely feel the 85g difference. But that's not the only reason. The combination of a inch larger plus a better aspect ratio for vertical position make a difference, making for a true A4 page display. Check here http://i.imgur.com/mmifVfU.jpg (SP3 on the left)And there there are other reasons for the purchase of an ipad pro, but reading and annotating was the main one for me.
trewtrew - Monday, June 6, 2016 - link
I switched from a SP3 to an iPad Pro 12.9" and MacBook Air. I decided that although one device to rule them all sounded awesome, it sucked in practice. It wasn't one of my deciding factors but it's crazy how much more fits on the iPad Pro's screen than the SP3. I figured they both have screens in the 12" range it should be similar but it's not.jlabelle2 - Tuesday, June 14, 2016 - link
A SP3 has a smaller screen than the SP4 and they have a 3:2 ratio which is PERFECTLY the A4 ratio so the it is better in this aspect compared to the iPad Pro but I see that you are showing music partition and there is nothing like iReal Pro or other specialized music softwares on the Surface matching the great selection on the iPad though.