How to move iPad forward (part 2)
I recently wrote about what I feel is the main thing keeping iPad from growing and becoming much more useful device: multitasking. It feels less than inspiring at the moment, even after iOS 9. Changes in iOS 9 to make moving around and working in multiple apps are simply shortcuts, neither smart nor deep, more like adding functions was done on feature phones before the advent of smartphones. Now I’d like to address the second biggest issue I see: the current iPad lineup. Or to be more precise, lack of clarity and purpose in it.
Even though there aren’t many iPads, the lineup is a mess of different names, models, performance and prices. If anything, Apple is focused, a fact that is best illustrated with how Steve Jobs simplified their entire computer portfolio after returning to Apple. Jobs famously made a chart with “Consumer” and “Professional” on one axis, and “Desktop” and “Portable” on other. Each of four spaces is to be filled by one device. That was clear, understandable and allowed them to focus and excel. Others fail to capture that even today; right now laptop section on HP website shows 282 total models.
Focus in the laptop range got a bit diluted with this years’ MacBook, but overall it’s not terribly confusing. Now they offer laptops in three series: Air, Pro and MacBook, with two key differentiators among them: display and performance. Screen comes as either retina or plain old; in MacBook we have retina only, in Air non-retina, and Pro gets a mix. Performance can be low, mid or high end, but even low is not too bad. At least there’s meaningful movement and it looks like things are moving towards retina-only, mid performance, ultralight enclosure. iPads offered on the other hand tell not a different story, but 3–4 different stories.
Starting with the original model and size, 10 inch Air 2 came out last year with absolute top of the line specifications and performance: A8X was unmatched in entire Apple lineup and double the RAM compared to latest iPhones makes a great user experience when browsing and switching between apps. But this year nothing changed. It didn’t get a successor, it wasn’t updated, and most surprisingly there was no price drop. So same hardware that cost 499$ last year, this year will again make you 499$ lighter. iPad Air (not 2) is 2 year old hardware, available at last year’s price. I just don’t see how it can compete with mini 4 since they are equal in price.
iPad mini (the series) is the 8 inch variant, and two models of that series are available: mini 2 and mini 4. Now the first obvious question is, where’s the iPad mini 3? Second one, how many generations is mini 2 behind mini 4? Apple’s page attempts to answer this by taking mini 2 and it’s A7 processor as baseline, and comparing other models to it. And it almost makes sense, but further comparison is made more difficult by them coming in various capacity configurations and by two years between them still make them one CPU generation apart. At least Apple is not selling original iPad mini anymore — while originally a decent option price-wise, it stuck around far too long, with Apple selling hardware from 2011 up until mid 2015. I’ve seen how it runs on two latest iOS updates and it’s not a nice sight.
iPad mini 4, while being the latest model, does not have the latest CPU — it’s using A8 which is a bit behind than CPU from last year’s iPad Air 2. As I find the mini lineup most confusing, let’s not forget that originally mini was a generation behind 10 inch iPad, then mini 2 was on par with same-year iPad Air, after that mini 3 was generation behind Air 2, and now mini 4 is close (but not quite) equivalent to Air 2. It’s like each year someone changes their mind on whether the mini shall be an equivalent to latest iPad, or should it be the budget option on all accounts.
And then finally we have the announced but not released iPad Pro, 300$ more expensive than Air 2, with performance and features that position it as laptop competitor, not laptop replacement as iPads typically are. This one has most uncertainties, so let’s wait for the release.
Prices and different capacity options also make one model go well into the territory occupied by a different iPad. 500 USD gets you all kinds of iPads, but it’s less than clear which is the right one. And being stuck with a device with replacement cycle is apparently over 3, or even 4 years, does not make for a nice experience. It would be much more pleasant to get at least very decent capacity in all base options, and then monetize further by leveraging usefulness of iCloud — which hey, is a service you can pay for as your needs grow. Naming could perhaps be closer to MacBooks; a model and year number — it’s not directly comparable since iPads are getting major new features each year (such as Touch ID) while laptops get CPU update, but having mini 2 and mini 4 at the same time doesn’t seem better. Selling old models is cost efficient alternative to having a high end and low end model, but it creates confusion and can leave users disappointed as new iOS updates come out (or don’t come). And finally plenty has been said about selling 16 GB as a start model on devices where it’s reasonable to expect that lots of media and games will be consumed.
If someone asked me which iPad to buy, I just wouldn’t know what to say. iPad mini 4 is good but could offer better value for money. iPad Air 2 is a great device but I’d have a hard time recommending year old hardware that didn’t drop in price. iPad mini 2 then? That’s 2 year old hardware which can’t support latest and greatest iOS 9 features. Overall I’d probably recommend that if you already have any iPad, skip upgrading this year.
