Apple has released two new tablets: the iPad 10 and the iPad Pro 2022. Both look to be impressive upgrades on their predecessors, but which is the best iPad for you?
We’ve created this guide to explain the key differences between the two so you know which is the best option for your planned workload. Here they are:
There’s a big price difference
The first thing to note is that there’s a huge price difference between the two tablets. The entry-level iPad 10 is available from £499, which gets you 64GB of storage. There’s also the option of a 5G model from £679. There’s only one size available in a 10.9-inch display.
Meanwhile, the 11-inch model of the iPad Pro 2022 has a starting price of £899 for 128GB of storage. Upgrading to 5G will set you back a whopping £1079. And if you fancy opting for the larger 12.9-inch edition, you’ll need to pay at least £1249 for standard Wi-Fi connectivity or £1429 for 5G freedom.
Neither iPad comes with an Apple Pencil or Keyboard bundled in, so you’ll need to pay even more if you want to use such accessories.
The iPad Pro is more powerful
This may be an obvious one, but it’s still nevertheless important to highlight. The iPad Pro looks to be significantly more powerful than the standard iPad thanks to the inclusion of an M2 chip.
The M2 chip is widely recognised as one of the most powerful productivity laptop chips right now, featuring in the latest MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro, and so it should greatly outpace any other tablet processor on the market. The M2 chip has a 10-core GPU, making it a great option for video editing (or any other intensive creative tasks) on the fly.
In comparison, the iPad 10 is powered by the Apple A14 Bionic – that’s the same processor that debuted inside the iPhone 12 back in 2020. This means it can’t compete with the Pro with graphics-intensive workloads, but should still be absolutely fine for more casual tasks such as browsing the web and running your favourite entertainment apps.
The iPad 10 doesn’t support Apple Pencil 2
Surprisingly, the new iPad 10 is not compatible with Apple Pencil 2, so you’ll need to purchase the 1st generation edition instead. That’s a major contrast to the iPad Pro 2022, which does offer support for Apple Pencil 2.
What’s the difference between the two Apple Pencil generations? Well, Apple Pencil 2 features a matte finish which is comfortable to use, and doesn’t show off greasy fingerprint marks like the glossy design of the preceding model. You also get a non-physical button that can recognise double-tap gestures, allowing you to configure whatever inputs you desire, be it to activate an eraser or switch between tools.
But the biggest difference between the two Apple Pencil generations is how they recharge. The Apple Pencil 2 can clip magnetically to the tablet to activate wireless charging, which is incredibly convenient.
The charging process is a lot more annoying with the Apple Pencil 1, as it needs a physical connection to replenish the battery – and to make matters worse, it won’t plug into the iPad 10 due to the tablet’s lack of a Lightning port. Instead, you’ll need to purchase a separate accessory to charge up the Pencil.
The iPad 10 has a landscape selfie camera
If you’ve ever used an iPad for a FaceTime video call, you may have felt it odd to have the camera at the top of the tablet. This results in the camera being positioned off to the side when holding the device in landscape position. Apple has now rectified the issue with the new iPad 10.
The 12MP Ultra Wide camera, which is capable of 1080p video recording, is now positioned at the top of the tablet when used in landscape mode. This should improve the experience for FaceTime calls, which is likely going to be your main use of the front-facing camera.
The new iPad Pro 2022 still has the camera located up top for portrait mode rather than landscape, which is less ideal. Apple seemingly has a good reason for this though, as the Apple Pencil 2 wireless charging unit is in the same location where Apple would ideally reposition the selfie camera to.
On a more positive note for the iPad Pro, it has a better rear camera array than the cheaper iPad, with a 12MP wide sensor as well as a 10MP ultra wide sensor. For comparison, the iPad 10 just has the lone 12MP wide camera sensor on the rear.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.