As an Apple product owner for years, I’ve long experienced the durability and extended lifespan that the “Pro” models of MacBooks and iPads offer versus their standard counterparts. My iPad Pro 10.5″ 2nd generation from 2017 was finally starting to show its age, so an upgrade was due. The Apple iPad Pro M4 11″ with Ultra XDR Display, M4 chip, and the all-new Magic Keyboard is a knockout combination. Our full review of the 2024 Apple iPad Pro M4 and Magic Keyboard continues.
The Magic Keyboard is impressive and necessary for anyone seeking a laptop replacement. Combined with the new iPad Pro, you’ll have the performance and utility of a MacBook Pro in tablet form. But, at $1199 for the 512GB WiFi model and $299 for the Magic Keyboard, a $1498 price point for a tablet will give anyone sticker shock.
That’s not even including the optional $129 Apple Pencil Pro.
So, is it worth the high cost of entry?
In a single word: yes. This is the closest Apple has come to a proper tablet-form laptop replacement.
The iPad Pro M4 is so good I sold my MacBook Pro M1
One of my first reactions to the new M4-powered iPad Pro is the pure performance this model delivers. Multitasking, video editing, and video games never ran so smoothly on an iPad.
Three chip generations ahead of my 16″ 2021 MacBook Pro M1, I had to ask myself, is it even worth keeping my MacBook Pro anymore? The answer was no–I couldn’t justify it–so I traded it in swiftly for a new Mac Studio (more on that switch to come). I’m already getting better use out of my Mac Studio with a Satechi Stand & Hub, too.
In every way, this new iPad Pro outperformed my MacBook Pro M1. Paired with the new Magic Keyboard, it operates just like a laptop, too–save for the fact that it runs on iPadOS.
The Apple M4 chip is a workhorse
The 2024 iPad Pro 11″ M4 is Apple’s latest professional-grade tablet, designed for users demanding top-tier performance and versatility. It retains the sleek design language of its predecessors while packing significant upgrades under the hood, most notably the groundbreaking M4 chip.
The M4 chip is what makes the new iPad Pro so compelling. The newest system-on-a-chip architecture is a workhorse designed to handle demanding AI workloads. The M4 chip has an embedded central processing unit (CPU), graphical processing unit (GPU), neural processing unit (NPU), and a digital signal processor (DSP).
The M4 chip directly competes with the Intel Core Ultra and Qualcomm Snapdragon chips, both supporting NPUs for AI workloads. Apple states that the M4 performs better than the M2 chip and uses half the power.
Apple has bold visions for its Apple Intelligence AI features exclusively for the M4-powered Apple devices running iOS 18. Unless Apple backtracks, Apple Intelligence AI will require M4 processors. Part of Apple’s justification is the computing throughput the M4 processor delivers. The M4 chip has 4 performance and 6 efficiency processors baked into the iPad Pro 11″ and 13″ models.
Although anyone buying an M4-powered iPad Pro today has to wait for iOS 18.1 to use most Apple Intelligence features, it will become one of the most significant changes to iOS since its inception (but you can join the Apple iOS 18 beta today).
The new M4 iPad Pro is a true mobile creative powerhouse for any creative professional. Editing videos with Final Cut Pro and images with Adobe Photoshop, creating music, playing video games, or using data visualization tools won’t knock the M4 chip off its throne. In fact, we are mainly relying on benchmark tests versus older Apple chips to get a feel for how much more powerful the M4 chip is. It will be long before we “max out” the M4 performance in the wild.
A 10-core GPU powers all the graphical workloads, supporting a next-generation architecture with dynamic caching, mesh shading, and ray tracing. While Dynamic caching was available with the M3 chip, it’s a new level of graphical performance within the iPad model line. Rendering performance is four times better in Octane versus previous iPad Pro M2 models.
Finally, the NPU neural engine is a 16-core design capable of performing 38 trillion operations per second. Apple claims this is the top-performing AI chip on the market and is 60x faster than its A11 Bionic chipset (which appeared on the iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and X).
The Ultra XDR Display with ProMotion and OLED
The M4 lineup of iPad Pro models arrives with Apple’s new Ultra XDR Display. The Ultra XDR display supports OLED, one of the most anticipated new features. OLED displays utilize ProMotion technology, providing variable refresh rates between 10 and 120Hz. According to Apple, this helps extend the battery lifespan of the iPad Pro between charges.
Now, with OLED support, truer blacks and brighter colors are immediately apparent compared to my seemingly ancient 2017 iPad Pro. The new tablet is far superior in accurate color reproduction, brightness, and tones for indoor and outdoor use.
I often use my iPad Pro to enjoy movies while traveling, especially on long-haul flights. I finally feel that Apple has delivered the visual quality in an iPad display that iPhones have supported since the X model. I don’t know how it took Apple this long to support OLED for iPads. But it’s finally here.
The all-new Apple Magic Keyboard: a must for the iPad Pro
Is the Apple Magic Keyboard worth it? Yes. It’s not cheap–$299 for the 11″ iPad Pro–but this fundamentally changes the entire iPad Pro experience. On its own, the new iPad Pro is incredibly agile and useful. But connect the effortless integration of the Magic Keyboard, and this tablet truly is a laptop replacement.
The first thing you’ll notice with the new Magic Keyboard is that it truly feels and looks like a MacBook keyboard. Gone are the rubber feeling of the previous Magic Keyboard buttons that felt like you were using a foldable rubber keyboard. Now, you have a full MacBook keyboard with backlighting and a touchpad that combine to give you that laptop experience.
There will be many third-party options, but as of today, you’re cheating yourself unless you go with the Apple Magic Keyboard.
Once the Magic Keyboard is connected to your iPad Pro, it automatically is recognized and supported. No Bluetooth pairing process or setup is required. The Magic Keyboard also tactfully adjusts the display, pivoting on a hinge with a firm hold to your desired viewing angle.
To someone unfamiliar with the new iPad and Magic Keyboard, this looks like a laptop or a new MacBook. There really isn’t much you miss out on once you use the iPad with a Magic Keyboard as a laptop. Multitasking, side-by-side apps, and even remote desktop using Chrome browser have made it easier to still get what I need done on a tablet. And that’s without using an external mouse or extending my display to an external monitor, which would blur the lines even more.
Review Rating
Must Buy
Overall Verdict: The Apple iPad Pro 11″ M4 is the ultimate tablet whether you’re a mobile road warrior or creative professional. The 11″ model is the perfect balance between being easily portable and having a useful screen size. Paired with the all-new Magic Keyboard, the iPad Pro is a true laptop replacement and will be sufficient for most owners. It isn’t cheap, but this combination is the most powerful and useful Apple tablet ever.
Where to Buy: We recommend Apple.com, Apple Stores, Amazon and Best Buy
| Pros: | Incredibly thin and lightweight: The 11″ model is 0.21″ thick and weighs just under a pound, making it ultra-portable. Ultra XDR Retina display: iPad models finally have an OLED display with ProMotion support. Movies, multimedia, and graphics have never looked so good. M4 Chip: The true hero of the new iPad Pro lineup, this chip provides enough power to last years. |
| Cons: | Expensive: Great things are never cheap, but the iPad Pro 11″ 512GB WiFi only with the new Magic Keyboard costs $1498. If you want more storage or 5G, you’ll pay even more. |
| Overall Verdict: | 5/5 |
