Second impressions of the all-new M4 13” iPad Pro - it’s thin and light!

Last week I posted my first impressions on the new 13” iPad Pro and since I’m still happy with my current, almost-three-year-old M1 iPad Pro, I’ve decided to wait up until the first reviews show up and the iPad is on sale so I can touch it and feel the difference. I’m impressed:

• It’s noticeably thinner and lighter!
• With Magic Keyboard it’s less bulky and 150 grams lighter!
• The new black/dark grey Aluminium finish is the better option this time!
• The screen is much brighter!
• Which model?
• Impressions from other reviewers

It’s noticeably thinner and lighter!

I was impressed last week and now after getting some hands-on action I’m even more impressed. In a close-up you can see the difference, it’s really impossibly thin:

When I pick it up in one hand, the difference is staggering. It’s so much more comfortable to carry it in one hand!

I even lifted the new 11” iPad Pro and it’s not noticeably lighter than its bigger brother. Definitely the bigger 13” is the major winner of this 2024 update.

With Magic Keyboard it’s less bulky and 150 grams lighter!

Even the whole package, with the new Magic Keyboard is thinner and lighter:

According to the reviewers, the new Magic Keyboard weighs 660 grams, compared to the old one at 710 grams, so as I predicted it’s 50 grams less.

This also means, that now the Magic Keyboard weighs the same as the “combo touch” keyboard from Logitech which before used to be the lighter and cheaper option. Not lighter anymore.

Together with 100 grams lighter iPad, the total package is 150 grams lighter which is in total weight is very comparable to the M2 MacBook Air. Now that’s something I’m very excited about as I carry my iPad Pro everywhere.

Speaking of carrying the iPad, because they’ve slimmed down both the iPad and the Magic Keyboard and they’ve also rotated the USB-C port to vertical from horizontal, the entire package is not only lighter but also less bulky. It’s a little smaller in all dimensions which is great for my small backpacks where iPad will fit even more easily.

The new black/dark grey Aluminium finish is the better option this time!

I love my elegant silver and white iPad Pro but this time around I believe the dark grey or “space black” version is the way. Especially that the Magic Keyboard has the same finish. You can’t see it on this photo, but the color of the aluminum is the same and it looks very cool:

Also, I’m hoping the aluminium finish around the keyboard and trackpad will age better than my old one:

Other than that, the new Keyboard has a little better viewing angle, the iPad is a little further away from your eyes which is better for ergonomics and the big new trackpad is amazing.

The screen is much brighter!

According to Apple this new iPad has a screen capable of max brightness of 1000 nits (compared to 600 in previous generation) also in normal usage and they’re right. It’s brighter than my old iPad which is a big deal for working outside, which I do a lot of:

I haven’t tested the nano-texture coating yet, but looking at the glossy iPad I’m going to go with this model. I can always put the Paperlike screen on it and later take it out. But I think that in the beginning I’ll be using the new iPad without the Paperlike.

Which model?

I’ve finally placed an order and I’ll get the new iPad at the end of June, which is not ideal, but again, my current iPad Pro is more than fine. I’m getting the same spec as last time for the sole reason of having twice as RAM. I’m going to be using this computer daily for the next 3 years or more:

My current iPad Pro will be handed down to my eldest daughter. She’s been rocking my previous 11” iPad Pro all these years and I think she’ll appreciate the upgrade.

Impressions from other reviewers

Apart from my hands-on experience, I’ve been watching and reading some reviews and here are some additional thoughts:

According to a very scientific test by MobileReviewsEh, even though the new iPad Pro is thinner, it’s as sturdy as the previous model:

MaxTech didn’t disappoint and shared some cool benchmarks of comparing the 256GB base model to the 1TB, which I’m getting:

• Write/Read speeds: 46%/76% faster
• Geekbench single-core score: 3728 (almost same for both) is the fastest in ANY Apple computer ever! In a tiny thinpossible iPad Pro! The multi-core is at 14479 (8% faster for the bigger model).
• Geekbench GPU - same results for normal and ML tests - probably because of iOS limitations, more RAM doesn’t help. Same for Lightroom export or 3DMark Wildlife test.
• Overall, the extra cores don’t give you more performance.

They conclude that it’s not worth getting the bigger model for the RAM, but what they didn’t do is a true multi-tasking test which previously proved that having extra RAM keeps apps in memory longer which is a nice thing for a person like me who is #iPadOnly.

So maybe instead of getting the 1TB model for $2099 this time, I should get the 512MB Model for $1699? After all, it’s $400 bucks less and apparently the tests show that it’s not a big deal in the end!

What do you think?