Is the 13-Inch iPad Pro the Obvious Big iPad You Should Buy? I Have Thoughts

With the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air, Apple now offers two different 13-inch iPads.

Published May 13, 2024

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Updated May 13, 2024

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If you’re in the market for a big-screen iPad, you now have options. That’s because, for the first time, Apple now offers two unique 13-inch iPad models: the 13-inch M2 iPad Air and 13-inch M4 iPad Pro. In previous years, the Pro was Apple’s only big-screen option.

iPad Air vs iPad Pro: How They’re Similar

I’ve been testing both of Apple’s newest tablets since the company’s May launch event and, admittedly, they have a lot in common.

The new iPad Air and iPad Pro look basically identical (especially from head-on). They run the same iPadOS and work with the same apps. And they’re compatible with the same accessories, including the new Apple Pencil Pro ($129) and Magic Keyboard ($349).

Similar form factor
Run the same operating system
Compatible with the same accessories

iPad Air vs iPad Pro: How They’re Different

As for the differences between the 13-inch M2 iPad Air and 13-inch M4 iPad Pro, it comes down to the hardware: display, design and cameras. Simply put, the Pro is a nicer machine.

Then there’s the issue of price. Neither is cheap but the 13-inch iPad Air starts at $799 and comes with 128GB, while the 13-inch iPad Pro starts at $1,299 and comes with 256GB.

M2 iPad Air (13-inch)

Specs

Processor	M2
Display	13-inch Liquid Retina
Colors	Space Gray, Blue, Purple or Starlight

Starts at $799

Apple M4 iPad Pro

Specs

Display	Ultra Retina XDR (Tandem OLED)
Colors	Silver or Space Black
Processor	M4 Chip
Sizes	11 and 13 inches
Storage	Up to 2TB
Thickness	.21 inch (11-inch version), .20 inch (13-inch version)
Weight	.98 pound (11-inch version), 1.28 pounds (13-inch version)

The iPad Pro’s OLED display is its the main reason to “go Pro”

The main reason to pick the Pro over the Air is the display. This year’s Pros are the first iPads to be decked out with an OLED display — it’s actually two (or tandem) OLED displays stacked on top of each other, which Apple is calling “Ultra Retina XDR” — and the result is that it delivers many of the same benefits that OLED TVs have over LED TVs. The colors are brighter and more vibrant. The blacks are deeper and darker. The picture is simply stunning.

13-inch iPad Air vs 13-inch iPad Pro — Watching *Dune 2*. The 13-inch M4 iPad Pro (right) is the superior looking and sounding machine. But the M2 iPad Air (left) is no slouch.

On the flip side, the M2 iPad Air basically has the same Liquid Retina display of its predecessor, the 2022-released M1 iPad Air. It doesn’t look bad by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, when reviewing the two iPads, it was pretty easy to forget which one I was using since they look (and feel) so similar. However, when you put the two side by side, it’s pretty obvious to tell which is which. The iPad Pro just looks brighter, crisper and generally better.

The iPad Pro just looks brighter, crisper and generally better.

You can buy the iPad Pros with a nano-texture glass finish, similar to that on its high-end Pro Display XDR. It costs an extra $100 and is only available on its most expensive 1TB or 2TB models. (My review unit did not have the nano-texture glass finish.)

The iPad Pro’s high-refresh-rate display feels smooth

The other significant difference between the displays of this year’s Pros and Airs is ProMotion — Apple’s word for high refresh rate screens.

Just like in past models, this year’s iPad Pros support it, while the iPad Airs do not. This means that the Pro’s displays can refresh twice as fast, 120Hz vs the Air’s 60Hz, making scrolling and swiping feel more fluid.

Movies and games run noticeably smoother, too. If you’ve ever switched between an iPhone Pro versus a non-Pro iPhone, you likely have experienced this same difference.

However, ProMotion is probably a bigger deal when it comes to iPads because even though this year’s iPad Pro and iPad Air support the same stylus, the Apple Pencil Pro, the experience is different.

The higher-refresh rate screen on the iPhone Pro is more responsive and there’s less lag using the Apple Pencil Pro to draw and take notes. While I’m no artist or design professional, it’s pretty obvious that the stylus is a bit sharper and more accurate.

M4 chips is faster than the M2 but they’re both workhorses

It’s a bit of a running joke on the internet about how fast, powerful and generally capable iPads have become with the M-series chips. Heck, even before this year’s launch event, The Verge‘s David Pierce wrote that a spec bump was “the last thing” that these new iPads needed. But here we are, with iPads that are faster than ever.

The new iPad Air is decked out with Apple’s M2 chip, which is the same M2 chip that was in the previous generation iPad Pros — Apple claims that this M2 chip makes the new iPad Air about 50-percent faster than its M1 predecessor. And the new iPad Pro packs an all-new M4 chip, which promises some pretty mind-blowing performance upgrades over the M2 chip; Apple claims the M4 can deliver the same performance as M2 using half the power.

Apple claims the M4 can deliver the same performance as M2 using half the power.

As somebody who uses an iPad generally for “casual use,” watching movies and shows, checking email, browsing the web and signing the occasional electronic document, I’m not the person to hit you with benchmark scores or stories about how pushed their workloads to the limits.

I have, however, watched Dune 2 on each of these tablets, played a few hours of Sonic Dream Team on Apple Arcade and drew a number of subpar sketches in Procreate — and both the iPad Pro and iPad Air handled each with breeze. They’re both fast.

The Pro is officially the “most portable” iPad

The new iPad Pro is thin. Apple made a big promotional push at its launch event explaining how the iPad Pro — specifically the larger, 13-inch model — which is 5.1mm thick and the thinnest Apple device ever made. And after using the iPad Pro for the past few days, I can confirm: it’s wicked thin.

The secret to redesigning the iPad Pro and making it so thin mostly comes down to power for the M4 chip. As previously mentioned, it’s able to achieve the performance of the M2 while using half the power so presumably these gains in efficiency has allowed Apple to reduce the size of the physical battery in the Pros. Despite the size difference, Apple claims that both the M2 iPad Air and M4 iPad Pro get the same “up to 10 hours” of battery life as before.

That said, the 13-inch iPad Air doesn’t exactly feel thick by comparison. It’s 6.1mm thick, an entire millimeter thicker, but it’s basically the same thickness as the previous iPad Pros and iPad Airs (and I’m not sure anybody was complaining that they were too bulky). Throw in the fact that with an accessory like Smart Folio or a Magic Keyboard (quite bulky), and I think the thinnest between the two becomes more and more negligible.

Other than thinness, I think the more interesting thing is that, for the first time, the new Pros are actually lighter than the new Airs. The 13-inch M4 iPad Pro weighs 1.28 pounds while the 13-inch M2 iPad Air weighs 1.36 pounds. The difference isn’t jarring by any stretch, but the Pro definitely feels a little lighter when you hold the two up. Technically, the Pro is now the more portable machine.

The iPad Pro has some other “Pro” features

The main advantages that the 13-inch M4 iPad Pro has over the 13-inch M2 iPad Air mostly come down to its display (OLED and ProMotion), differences in power (M4 versus M2) and actually being thinner and lighter tablet. However, there are some other noteworthy differences that make it a more “Pro” machine.

The iPad Pro supports Face ID, while the iPad Air does not; instead, it has Touch ID integrated into its side power button. The iPad Pro sounds better thanks to its four-speaker setup compared to the Air’s two speakers. The Pro has more microphones (four versus two) for better recording. And the Pro supports Thunderbolt (USB-C 4) for faster data transfer speeds.

Then there’s the cameras, which are actually more similar than in the past. Both the Pro and Air have the same 12-megapixel front-facing camera — albeit the Air lacks the TrueDepth sensor for Face ID — that’s now positioned on the landscape edge so you can look straight-on (instead of off to the side) during video calls.

Apple notably got rid of the extra ultra-wide rear camera on the newest iPad Pro, meaning that it and the newest Air have the same single 12-megapixel wide-angle lens in the back. The Pro’s rear camera system is more advanced, however. It does have a LiDAR scanner and a flash, making it superior at scanning documents. It also supports ProRes video (up to 4K 30fps), which the new Air lacks.

Admittedly, I’m not one for taking a lot of photos on my iPad — that’s what my iPhone is for — for those who do use for photos, or AR apps like Ikea’s app or Sky Guide (as the LiDAR scanner helps more accurately take the measure of a room or space), then Pro is definitely the better bet.

iPad Air vs iPad Pro: The Bottom Line

The Pro’s OLED display is absolutely gorgeous. Its M4 chip is beyond powerful. And, for the first time, the Pro is actually thinner and lighter than its iPad Air counterpart. It’s a superior all-around tablet, with better speakers, mics and cameras, to boot.

That said, the 13-inch M2 iPad Air isn’t too far behind in terms of performance. It’s basically the same size (albeit a little thicker and heavier). It’s still super powerful thanks to its M2 chip. It even works with the same accessories.

Unless you’re a creative professional or somebody who simply wants the best big-screen iPad available, the 13-inch M2 iPad Air is still an excellent choice.

The M2 iPad Air and M4 iPad Pro are up for preorder now. They’ll be available everywhere on May 15th.