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M4 iPad Pro, Pencil Pro, and Smart Keyboard case observations
Just got my new iPad set up in the mail, thought I’d share some thoughts for those interested.
The iPad Pro is definitely thinner and lighter than the M2 was, but it’s not as HUGE of a difference as maybe some reviews are making it out to be. There’s still a decent bit of heft and weight to it, it won’t drastically change how you hold or carry it.
The exception to this is the new Smart Keyboard Case. This feels much lighter than the old one, and turns the combo with the iPad Pro MUCH easier to carry around. The keyboard case is just higher quality all around, it’s not a MBP keyboard but it’s close enough that I keep reaching to the Touch ID button to unlock things out of habit only to remember this keyboard doesn’t have it. 
The metal top and new trackpad help a lot with the higher quality feeling.
The new OLED display on the pro is definitely pretty nice, in person it’s a bigger difference over the M2 Pro than I was expecting. Black text especially for me looks easier to read and sharper. While I didn’t get the new matte finish, I’d swear there’s anew coating on the regular screen that reduces glare a bit more too. Also, the M4 Pro feels every bit as solid and inflexible as the M2, I don't think it feels any more fragile at all.
Not much to say about the Pencil Pro other than that the squeeze haptics are really nice. It really does feel like you’re squeezing soft plastic that really flexes. Also, the tip feels softer than the previous stock tips as well.
Comments
Like your observations, thanks!
Thank you, very helpful. About to order one “for work” - it pays to stay on good terms with the IT guy!
Oh, and I just wanted to clarify. While the weight difference isn’t huge or game changing, it’s definitely very noticeable and welcome at the same time. It really is easier to carry around.
Also, the new blue Smart Folio cover is more like a storm grey or battleship color in person. I was kind of meh when I saw the color options this time around, but it looks pretty good. Also the inside of the new Smart Folio is less fuzzy than they been in the past. Still soft to protect the glass, but not as thick or plush.
Nothing changed as always. Love Apple.
I tried out the new keyboard in the store and it’s a night and day difference even on the 11 inch version it feels like you have a lot more space to type and it doesn’t flex as much. It almost pushed me to upgrade
Just set up my new iPad Pro – here are some quick thoughts:
How do the speakers compare to the previous iPads Pro?
Great observation, so it’s better in every aspect.
Did you test efficiency in the AUM on the heavy load? And in Procreate, there is a new barrel roll feature with the Pencil Pro?
The new barrel roll functionality is interesting, but only a few brushes in Procreate support it so far, so I think it’s a bit of a one trick pony at the moment. Would be cool if you could for instance put the pencil on a knob in a synth app and roll the pencils o change the value, but alas you can really only use it in procreate that I’ve seen so far.
I don’t use AUM for my music making, so I’m not the best person to ask about that. Sorry.
The speakers are good, but I’d probably say the M2 ones were a little better in terms of imaging and giving you a wider soundstage. But I can only hear a difference when directly comparing the two ipads. If you just plopped the M4 Pro in front of me on it’s own and asked me how it sounds I would be pretty impressed with what they can do with such smaller speakers.
One more slightly annoying observation about the M4, is that the new front camera placement is a bit of a double-edged sword. Since I started using iPads I mainly use the case the case prop it up on a table or my lap like so:
However, this places the Face ID camera at the bottom of the iPad. I’m finding if I’m leaning too far over the iPad or trying to interact with the screen when I need to unlock something, the camera is blocked just as much as it used to be for me when it was on the short side of the iPad. When using the iPad with the new Smart Keyboard case, this is obviously not an issue though. Bit of a bummer, but there you go.
Oh yeah, one more random observation. The new braided black USB-C cable that comes with it feels much thinner and more flexible than their previous braided cables. I wouldn’t call it flimsy, and it still feels better than the usual Apple USB-C cables, but it’s not as robust as the earlier braided cables.
I’m sticking with my Cable Matters TB4 cable for the iPad, faster data speeds and charging, much stronger feeling too.
Any pros for music production?
Yeah, that would be fantastic, to rotate knobs with a barrel roll. Or to twist bezier curves on the automation lane, and maybe some developers will make Den-den Daiko instruments, haha.
BTW, I like the night photo, is that a recent aurora?
If the CPU was a significant upgrade over the M2, I would be all in.
Yeah, the upgrade is barely noticeable.
M2:
M4:
He’s right, it isnt that big of a difference CPU wise.
What IS a big difference is the GPU. Like I said even the M1 retains 66% of the M4 power. If you own an m1 or m2 you won’t need to upgrade for years to come as we have seen, but obviously an m4 means you extend that life by 2 years. But unless you’re graphics app intensive and also need the display and pencil upgrade , you’re fine sticking with the m1/m2.
It is more than a significant upgrade from 5nm to 3nm, not to mention everything else. But of course, you don’t really need to upgrade from M1/M2 if you are not using your device for mission-critical jobs. 👍
The new Logic update is quite CPU intensive. I'm red-lining the CPU meter quite often on my M2. I'd love to see a Logic-specific CPU comparison if anyone knows of one.
It's not really 'red-lining' but rather switches more frequently between the efficiency cores and the performance cores when needed. You'll see that you can push it quite far before it actually craps out
That's interesting. What I'm seeing and why I say 'red-lining' is the CPU meter itself turns red and often will stay completely red during playback, and the sound does drop out & crackles from time to time. It's doing this during the new Session Player lessons, so it's not a huge project or anything; only a couple tracks which surprised me a bit compared to the last version. I'll try to take a video of it.
I just picked up my M4 Pro 256gb at the Apple Store.
It feels sturdy, even though its thinner it doesn't seem any less strong than my 2020 Air.
The new display is nicer, the blacks are blacker, but for what I'm using it for its not a big upgrade visually. Overall interacting with the Apple UI is noticeably quicker/smoother than my Air (I wasn't bothered by using my Air at all though).
One thing that's funny: even though the new iPad Pro is lighter than my Air (441.9g vs 462.7g), the new pro folio case is heaver (202.3g vs 168.6g) so the overall weight is heavier than my Air🤦. Its not enough that its a big deal but kind of a bummer. Also the new folio case is a bit annoyingly-springy, makes using the device a bit bouncy. I'm hoping it'll break in a bit and lessen.
I've tested running a maxed out (single-core) music project on the M4 Pro, and it seems to be able to keep the display bright. That was a big annoyance with my Air, it'd dim the display when running a higher load which made it somewhat hard to use. The device is also cooler to the touch doing this. I don't use any apps that support multi-core so I didn't test that (though I use Drambo and Loopy standalone at the same time).
Geekbench 6: 3639 / 13323
A significant upgrade is clearly subjective term here.
I still have to put it through its paces more fully for music stuff, I’ve been focusing on video and photo editing apps right now. I will say that navigating in Logic feels smoother now. Also, waveform scrolling in rekordbox is a lot more fluid and smooth as well.
Yes, we had some wild auroras last week where I live. Here’s the color version of it that I took:
The floaty bar at the bottom of the screen is a bit annoying with any app that has a keyboard.
You mean the white app switcher bar?
Fantastic, it must be an outworldly experience being there and taking the photo. 🤩
Yes. I’ve just jumped from an old iPad Pro 10.5. LOVING the performance headroom, missing the home button and headphone socket lol. And why is closing open apps such a tricky gesture lol.
My solution to the home button is to use the the AssistiveTouch home button https://support.apple.com/en-us/111794 . Its annoying in it own way as you have to move it out of the way of other UI elements, but I like it more than dragging up on the bottom of the iPad.
My solution to the white bar, very bothersome in many music applications to me as well, is Guided Access. Used to disable touch on certain parts of the screen. Enabling it with the entire screen enabled essentially turns the ipad into a single fullscreen app until you disable it with multiple power button clicks.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/111795
This way I get a fullscreen application without any worries of accidentally swiping my project away while finger drumming or moving a clip. Less accidental gestures and you can choose to lock the top/volume buttons if you want.
@qqq @Goldiblockz Many thanks for your suggestions. Assistive Touch set to App Switcher is perfect as a first step. Just what I needed. Will look at the other options as well. Cheers
I would be interested in hearing what interface to buy to connect my studio AKG. Any recommendations?