Read the most interesting iPad Pro 11-inch (2020 release) review excerpts from Mashable, PC Magazine, Wired, Ars Technica, CNET, and Macworld.
Apple iPad Pro 11 released in 2020 costs a whopping $800 and a quick look at a glossy product page on Apple website is not enough to make a cautious decision whether you need it – and whether you need the new accessories as well.
Is it worth buying the 11-inch iPad Pro? Sooner or later you will feel the need to search the web for the reviews.
And we’ve made it easier than ever to simplify the process – in an overview below, you will see review excerpts from leading tech blogs, including CNET, Mashable, and Wired.
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iPad Pro 11 2020 reviews
Mashable
In her review from April 10, Brenda Stolyar says that using the 2020 iPad Pro (with a Smart Keyboard Folio) isn’t different from using a laptop, but Apple’s newest top-shelf tablet is still no laptop killer.
Though the iPad Pro is fairly capable of replacing your laptop based on its fast performance and all-day battery life alone, I’ve come to one conclusion: Without the Magic Keyboard, it’s really just an expensive tablet.
Weighing in at just over a pound, it’s super lightweight. But the size felt a bit too unwieldy at times, especially when I was using it to read an e-book or take a photo.
I’m not quite sure how many of you will be using the iPad Pro for selfies, but it’s way better for things like FaceTime and video calls than the camera you’ll find on the MacBook Pro or Air.
Throughout a typical work day, I’d have multiple apps running at the same time including Chrome, Spotify, Slack, Gmail, Twitter, Google Calendar, Google Drive, and a few others. At no point, did the iPad Pro feel laggy or struggle to keep up between switching apps or when I was in multitasking mode.
If you were to ask me to list the new iPad Pro’s best features, I’d say: the Retina display, trackpad support, and all-day battery life.
Overall score: 4.3/5
PC Magazine
PCMag.com‘s lead mobile reviewer, Sascha Segan, claims that although iPad Pro 2020 pushes the limits of what an iPad can do, it’s too expensive. If you can afford to pay this much on an Apple device, you should rather choose a Mac.
The mouse and trackpad support is a game changer for people trying to use the tablet in an office-work context.
Paired with an Apple Magic Trackpad, on the other hand, the iPad works with a new level of fluidity. For web browsing, email, and office documents, you can now flick and zoom around much more easily than before.
The 2020 Pro has gotten a bump up in its networking. Unlike the other iPad models and the 2018 Pro, it features Wi-Fi 6, which should improve range and quality in crowded Wi-Fi situations – as long as you’re working with a Wi-Fi 6 router.
The iPad Pro has advantages: No Mac can use the Pencil for drawing or taking notes, and no Mac has the augmented reality capabilities to project objects into your room.
Overall score: 3.5/5
Macworld
Macworld Associate Editor Leif Johnson asks a question whether the 2020 iPad Pro, with all of its flashy features, would make it the best iPad for users.
This is the best iPad Apple has ever made, and peripherals like the new Magic Keyboard make Apple’s tablet more appealing as a work machine.
Finally, we have an Apple-made keyboard case with a properly adjustable display, backlit keys, and – wonder of wonders – a built-in trackpad.
This is the best iPad Apple has ever made, and peripherals like the new Magic Keyboard make Apple’s tablet more appealing as a work machine. The fact remains, though, that unless you’re heavily involved in video editing or professional artwork, most people will be served just fine with the $499 iPad Air.
The iPad is now a decent – though not perfect – device for some types of work. . . . If you work chiefly involved writing, you could make this tablet work.
Overall score: 4.5/5
Wired
For Lauren Goode, a senior writer at Wired who covers consumer tech, the newest iPad Pro looks and feels the same as the 2018 model, but “What Apple is offering with this new iPad Pro is the unspoken promise that technology marches on, that it will keep getting better.”
One of the more delightful new features of the new iPad Pro has to do with its software, not its hardware. The new iPadOS operating system . . . supports a trackpad and a mouse.
The new “studio quality” mics record noticeably better audio, capturing a much fuller version of my voice as I talked to the iPad’s camera, and quieting ambient sounds like the crunching of my puffy jacket.
It’s fast. The iPad Pro downloaded apps and installed games quickly, it switched between tasks easily, and it didn’t stutter during gameplay or video calls. And of course, a more efficient processor is good for batteries.
Overall score: 4.5/5
CNET
CNET editor Scott Stein thinks that the 2020 iPad Pro model is not notably faster than the 2018 model, and it’s best to be used with a trackpad.
The new A12Z processor on the 2020 Pro, based on Geekbench 5 benchmarks, didn’t show much speed difference at all compared to the October 2018 iPad Pro.
The design, from the excellent-but-not-OLED LCD “Liquid Retina” display to the Face ID camera to the USB-C port to the magnetically attaching Pencil, is the same.
This is the best iPad, but for its price it better be. It’s also closer to being my One Machine. But at this moment, based on what I’ve experienced, I love working on it… but I’ll still be using a laptop, too.
The best news is that trackpad support is coming to tons of other iPads. In these chaotic times, you could easily stay with what you have and add trackpad support for free in an update.
Ars Technica
For Samuel Axon, the Senior Reviews Editor at Ars Technica, the 2020 iPad Pro is the world’s best tablet for power users and probably the best consumer gadget for AR experiences, but it has disadvantages, too.
As a tablet, it’s still the best in the world; nothing else is even close. As a computer for professional productivity in the laptop and desktop sense, it’s OK.
this iPad is quite Surface-like—more so than I ever imagined from Apple. You can get real work done on this machine. It’s no competition for a MacBook Pro for heavy-duty creators, developers, or the like, though, if for no other reason than a comparative lack of third-party software support by companies like Adobe.
Apple is making big strides in AR, but it feels like groundwork for glasses, not a here-and-now value proposition to users.
It’s expensive, and its high-end features and performance are overkill for the majority of people.
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