Apple's New iPad Pro is All Screen

In one fell swoop, Apple has been a fan of Apple iPad. The result is a pair of business tablets with no space wasted on bezels or buttons. Accompanying the new iPad Pro are a new version of the Apple Pencil and a new keyboard. All of them are welcome additions.

The most obvious is the edge-to-edge screen on each model. For the 12.9-inch iPad Pro the result is a device that is almost exactly the same size as an 81/2 by 11 sheet of paper. The smaller version of the iPad Pro is now an 11-inch device which leaves the overall size of the iPad the same as its 9.7-inch predecessors.

The screen on each iPad stretches to within 3/8-inch of the edge, leaving a screen of the periphery, Touch ID sensors or camera notches. These iPads are 0.01 inches thinner than the earlier models, but you will not be able to tell the difference when you hold them.

Eliminating the Touch ID sensor on the iPad It works in the same way as the iPhone X series, but the iPad can be oriented in portrait or landscape modes, including upside down. The gestures that you use to control the iPad are similar to those on the iPhone X, except that it is swiping up or down is relative. Up or down is considered to be part of the tablet at the moment.

Liquid Retina Display a More

The iPad Pro models are nearly identical with the exception of screen size. Both have 264 pixels per inch resolution, but because of the larger screen, the 12.9 inch Pro has a 2732 x 2048 pixel screen versus 2388 x 1668 on the 11 inch iPad Pro. Both feature what Apple calls their Liquid Retina display, which is quite nice.

Processing power on these iPads comes from a 64-bit Bionic A12X processor with a neural engine and an embedded M12 processor. This processor allows the iPad to outperform the Mac Mini we reviewed last week.

In our tests, the iPad Pro, which was delivered in a basic configuration, produced an average Geekbench 4 single core score of 5007 and a multi-core score of 18127. This is equivalent to the scores for a Lenovo workstation that's currently being tested. The iPad Pro compute score was 43007, which is twice as fast as the HP Z620 workstation we upgraded last summer. This is superb performance.

Apple included two important accessories with the iPad Pro they feel for review, and the iPad Pro itself includes the potential for more. The new version of the Apple Pencil fixes two problems with the last version, with new capabilities for managing the device. Now, you just need to set the pencil along a magnetic edge of the iPad, and the pencil sticks there. While it's there, the Apple Pencil will recharge wirelessly.

Pencil Adds Business Functionality

The Pencil has had some added functionality. A double-tap on the side of the peninsula.

Apple's new Smart Keyboard Folio has improved typing compared to iPad Pro models. The new version allows you to zoom in on the screen, and it attaches to the back of the iPad magnetically.

However, a big change in add-ons comes in the form of a Thunderbolt 3 port that allows you to attach to the iPad. During the test, I connected to Thunderbolt 3 to DisplayPort to iPad, then I connected to Dell 27-inch 4K monitor to the adapter. The iPad immediately began working on the iPad's native resolution. The Thunderbolt 3 port replaces the previous Lightening connector.

Apple sells a series of Thunderbolt 3 and USB-C adapters for the iPad, but for this test we used a third-party fit we found on Amazon. It's the same adapter that was used in the review of the Mac Mini, which should give you some ideas of how to use the iPad.

May Be Best Business Tablet Yet

There's no question that these are the best iPads ever, and they may well be the best business tablets yet, although we performed exhaustive tests there. While Apple is suggesting the iPad as a replacement laptop, it depends on how you're using a laptop. As good as the keyboard is, I would not want one for writing my next book, but it's plenty good enough for most less-intense uses.

Overall, the new iPad is worth the money, which is $ 799.00 for the 11-inch model and $ 999.00 for the 12.9-inch version. If you're already using iPad in your business, you'll probably get your users to upgrade. They are smart users.