With the iPad, Apple changed the way people interact with tablets and paved the way for a whole new way to create and consume media. With the iPad Pro M4, Apple has pushed the boundaries even further, delivering one of the most powerful and thin portable computing devices the company has ever created. The Apple iPad Pro M4 is a device that doesn’t just push the boundaries of what a tablet can do; it redefines the category. Unveiled at Apple’s recent Let Loose event, this tablet is a testament to Apple’s relentless pursuit of innovation, combining portability, performance and advanced features in an almost futuristic way.
Unboxing the device, I was shocked by how incredibly thin the iPad Pro M4 is. The design is an impressive display of engineering, with the 13-inch model being Apple’s thinnest product yet at an eye-popping 5.1mm, while the 11-inch model isn’t far behind at 5.3mm. Despite this incredible thinness, Apple says both models are just as durable as their predecessors, thanks to a redesigned internal structure that improves rigidity and heat dissipation. The result is an incredibly portable device, with the 11-inch model weighing less than a pound and the 13-inch model nearly a quarter of a pound lighter than its predecessor. It’s a device that begs to be picked up, held, and taken anywhere.
While it is a stunning piece of hardware, it is not the design that makes it so exciting. Under the hood, the iPad Pro is powered by the blazingly fast M4 chip, which delivers performance levels comparable to the M3 processor found in the MacBook Air, with a significant boost in AI capabilities.
Apple boldly claims that the M4’s Neural Engine is “faster than the neural processing unit in any AI PC today,” capable of an astonishing 38 trillion operations per second. This opens up a world of possibilities for AI-driven applications and features, from advanced image and video editing to real-time language translation and beyond. Having tested the tablet extensively since we brought it into the office, I tend to agree with Apple.
The M4 chip also brings a number of other improvements, making it surprising that Apple was able to cram it all into such a small package. The CPU is up to 50% faster than the M2 in the previous iPad Pro and about 20-25% faster than the CPU in the M3. This means that even the most demanding tasks, such as 4K video editing or 3D modelling, can be handled with ease.
The GPU is said to be up to four times faster than the M2, and the addition of hardware-accelerated mesh shading and ray tracing brings these advanced graphics capabilities to the iPad for the first time. For creative professionals, this enables you to work with complex 3D models and render high-quality graphics or, of course, content creation on the go.
To take advantage of the raw horsepower, apple has paired the M4 chip with a truly stunning display. Both sizes feature what Apple calls “the world’s most advanced display”—a new Ultra Retina XDR display with state-of-the-art tandem OLED technology. This breakthrough display uses two OLED panels, combining the light from both to provide phenomenal full-screen brightness, inky blacks, and vibrant colours. The result is a display that’s not just beautiful to look at but also incredibly accurate, with support for a wide colour gamut and HDR. For those who need it, there’s even a new nano-texture glass option to reduce glare, making it easier to work in bright environments.
“…for the creative professional who demands the best, the iPad Pro M4 is worth the investment.”
Another area where the iPad Pro M4 shines is in its camera system. It features a new dual-camera setup with a 12-megapixel wide-angle camera. This gives you more flexibility when taking photos and videos, whether you’re shooting a product demo or documenting a creative process. The camera supports all the features you would expect from a modern photography system, including LiDAR, up to 4K video at 60 fps, and even ProRes 4K at 30 fps.
The front-facing camera has also been upgraded to a 12MP TrueDepth camera, which enables Face ID for secure authentication and also supports Center Stage, a feature that automatically keeps you centred in the frame during video calls. With the rest of the device offering top-of-the-line specs, I would have liked to see the camera improve a bit to give more options for creatives; what they offer should be more than enough for casual pictures along with pictures as part of a creative process for reference photography.
In terms of connectivity, the iPad Pro M4 supports Wi-Fi 6E, which provides faster and more reliable wireless performance. There’s also support for 5G cellular networks, allowing for fast data speeds when you’re on the go. With Thunderbolt 4 support, you can connect to external displays, storage devices, and other peripherals with ease. Even though it is incredibly thin, the iPad Pro M4 has everything you could need to make it a vital part of your workflow, including the ability to act as a second monitor for your Mac.
Even though it is incredibly powerful, the new iPad Pro M4 models deliver impressive battery life, allowing you to work and play for extended periods without the stress of needing to find a power outlet. Both the 11-inch and 13-inch models are designed to provide up to 10 hours of battery life when browsing the web or watching videos on Wi-Fi and up to 9 hours when using cellular data.
Under the hood, the 11-inch iPad Pro M4 has a 31.29-watt-hour battery, while the larger 13-inch model has a 38.99-watt-hour battery. These capacities are similar to those of their M2 predecessors, but Apple has optimized the power efficiency of the M4 chip to maintain the same impressive battery life despite significant performance improvements.
When it comes to charging, iPad Pro M4 models come with a USB-C charging cable (1 meter) and a 20W USB-C power adapter. This allows for quick and convenient charging, whether you’re using the included power adapter or connecting to a computer via USB-C.
“…the iPad Pro M4 is on another level. “
In testing, the iPad Pro lived up to its promise, only losing 10 percent in an hour of watching YouTube with the screen at full brightness, and video editing fared very well, also only losing about 12 percent with about an hour of working in software. Charging is a little slower than I would have hoped, with it charging around one percent per minute with the included charger, and while it is not as fast as some tablets I have used, it should be more than enough for someone looking to top up before a trip or while at the airport.
The versatility and advanced capabilities of the iPad Pro M4 are further enhanced by all-new accessories. The Apple Pencil Pro brings powerful new interactions, like a squeeze gesture for selecting tools and haptic feedback, taking the Apple Pencil experience to new heights. It’s a tool that feels like a natural extension of your hand, allowing for precise control and a level of expressiveness that was previously impossible on a tablet. The Magic Keyboard has also been redesigned, now thinner and lighter but still packed with features like a larger trackpad with haptic feedback, an aluminum palm rest, and a function row for brightness and volume control. It’s a keyboard that turns the iPad Pro into a full-fledged laptop replacement.
While the specs are great, seeing the display in action is what sold me on its capabilities. I’ve been using the iPad Pro M4 for a few days now, and using it for anything visual is fantastic. OLED technology has a leg up on LED because of the level of contrast and visuals it can bring to life on the screen. I tried a few games, including Death Stranding, and it is, to put it bluntly, stunning.
It brings out the detail that other displays cannot, and when you get into content creation, it allows you to work with footage or images the way they are meant to be seen. This means you don’t have to worry about it being oversaturated or showing the wrong colours, which is invaluable in production environments.
While I briefly touched on gaming, I’m just amazed at how much power the M4 brings to the iPad Pro in gaming, and the screen makes it fantastic for media as well. The new Ultra Retina XDR display is perfect for watching movies and TV shows, with deep blacks, vibrant colours and HDR support. The four-speaker audio system has also been upgraded with support for spatial audio and Dolby Atmos for an immersive sound experience that can rival some budget-dedicated home theatre systems.
While it may seem overkill to buy an iPad Pro M4 for gaming, it does the job well. The new processor brings ray tracing capabilities to games like Diablo Immortal and War Thunder. I was able to test this out during the Apple event and got a taste of what it all looks like with the dynamic lights and shadows that were beautifully brought to life on the OLED display. While Diablo Immortal has always been a very impressive mobile title, the ray-tracing update for the iPad brings the visuals up to modern console quality.
While it may be hard to compete with Diablo 4, which is firing on all cylinders, I have to say this comes close. Sadly, there is a bit of a delay in experiencing this update on iPad, with it launching later this year. Thankfully, War Thunder is out now and has these features ready to go, and while it is a different type of experience, it looks just as fantastic running on the M4.
More games are coming to take advantage of the iPad Pro M4, making it the most capable iOS gaming device you can currently buy. You still are limited to the games available on the App Store, so while it may be capable, many of your favourite titles may not be there yet, although Hyper Light Drifter, Darkest Dungeon, Monster Hunter Stories, Civilization VI, along with Genshin Impact and Resident Evil 4 are just a few of the games currently available.
While the iPad Pro M4 excels at gaming, it is, first and foremost, a pro-level device made to tackle work normally reserved for a desktop. Tablets and phones have come a long way in the world of content creation, but the iPad Pro M4 is on another level. Combined with the Magic Keyboard and the Apple Pencil Pro, the iPad Pro has everything you need to take on complex tasks like video editing, 3D modelling, photo editing, and even animation.
“While the iPad Pro M4 excels at gaming, it is, first and foremost, a pro-level device made to tackle work normally reserved for a desktop.”
Apps like Procreate, Procreate Dreams, the Affinity suite, and all of the tools from Adobe are starting to offer desktop-level experiences on the tablet. While they are made for touch-first environments, there is support for a mouse or pen, and they take full advantage of the hardware to enable never-before-possible workflows.
The new M4 chip means apps like Final Cut Pro can use the neural engine to easily perform tasks like live writing for video or even complex masking tasks, turning what used to take minutes or hours into seconds. With Logic Pro, iPad Pro offers a full suite of professional audio tools, making it possible to create music on the go with all the features you expect from software like Logic Pro.
It is here I must make it clear: I was skeptical of how much of my desktop or laptop tasks this device could replace, even with the help of a chip like the M4, but here we are. I managed to edit videos, work on photos, edit documents, and even mess around with pro-level software on the iPad Pro M4 without ever touching my desktop, something I would have said impossible even a year ago.
“I managed to edit videos, work on photos, edit documents, and even mess around with pro-level software on the iPad Pro M4 without ever touching my desktop, something I would have said impossible even a year ago.”
As with anything aimed at a professional audience, all this innovation comes at a price. The 11-inch model starts at $999, while the 13-inch model starts at $1,299, an increase of $200 over the previous generation. However, for the creative professional who demands the best, the iPad Pro M4 is worth the investment. It’s a device that pushes the boundaries of what a tablet can be, with performance that rivals laptops and a design that’s in a class of its own.
For the average student or someone looking for a media device, I’ll be blunt: the iPad Pro M4 is overkill. It would have no problem doing those tasks, but much of what you are paying for would be wasted. If you must have an iPad and want the best, the new iPad Air M2 would be more than enough for almost anything you could imagine while relaxing at home.
The iPad Pro M4 is an innovative device that redefines the tablet experience. Its combination of portability, performance, and advanced features make it an essential tool for anyone who wants the ultimate creative workspace on the go. Whether you’re a designer, photographer, filmmaker, or simply someone who appreciates the best in technology, the iPad Pro M4 is a device that will exceed your expectations.
While its price may be steep for some, for those who can afford it, the iPad Pro M4 is a ride that’s as exciting as it is practical. It’s a device that not only meets the needs of today’s creative professionals but also anticipates the needs of tomorrow. With its advanced AI capabilities, stunning display, and powerful accessories, the iPad Pro M4 is a device that will keep you at the forefront of your field.
