Why most users do not need

It's been interesting to watch the iPad as it's been overseen by Apple to pivot to the high end.

The problem with the standard iPad, for Apple at least, was always going to be that it's harder to get people to upgrade than it is with phones or computers. The most obvious uses for the thing are not really processor or intensive RAM, and unlike your phone, you do not really need it to take great pictures, or any of the fancy connectivity tricks introduced in the past few years.

If you rushed out and bought an iPhone 5S in late 2013, you'll be upgraded by now, but if you bought an iPad Air that same year, it's probably still fit for purpose. Unless you want your iPad to double as a computer.

Apple introduced the iPad Air 2, which would be the last time a 9.7-inch tablet was Apple's biggest and best. In late 2015 Apple introduced the iPad Pro – its first attempt to position the tablet as a full fledged replacement for your laptop – and, from then on, high-end tablets have been the focus as Apple pushes them along with new MacBooks as two parallel brands of mobile computer.

So what's you going to do in the market for a new PhotoShop or edit multiple 4K video streams?

Apple does not make a big deal about it, but it actually does not have a Pro iPad as well, starting some $ 760 below the cheapest new Pro model. Introduced in 2017 and given a minor upgrade this year, the simply-named "iPad" picks up where the 2014 iPad Air 2 left off in terms of size and visual design. In some ways it is actually a downgrade from the Air 2 (lacking the fully laminated display and anti-reflective coating, which are exclusive to the Pro pair). But on the other hand, it's a lot cheaper, starting at $ 469.

Compared to the all-new gear on the 2018 Pros, the iPad standard gets you Apple's 2016 mobile processor and cameras, which still is not anything to sneeze at, a sensor that scans your fingerprint instead of one that scans your face, and pretty much the same battery life. It's also obviously the same iOS 12 operating system and App Store, and should be more than enough for the non-pros out there who want a new Apple tablet.