[ad_1]
Is it time for Apple to rethink its lower-cost tablet? The 8th-gen iPad ($ 329; $ 299 for students) is, from what I can initially tell, just a processor bump from last year’s 7th-gen model. As an inexpensive multimedia tablet and main computer for students, it is a blast. But like an absent-minded boyfriend, my tech eyes drift to next month’s $ 599 iPad Air.
A familiar face
I’ve had the 2020 iPad for less than a day so these are just first impressions. But there is no doubt that it looks exactly like the 2019 model; it is so close that it fits in the same cases. That means it still has a very large bezel around the relatively reflective 10.2-inch screen, a physical home button, a single set of speakers on the bottom edge, and a Lightning port. In 2020, I’d love to see smaller bezels, dual speakers, and USB-C, but hey, I guess that’s what the iPad Air is for.
The 2020 iPad also continues to use the first-generation Apple Pencil, the one with the Lightning port. Because the 1st gen pencil is a perfect cylinder, it kept rolling across my slightly tilted work desk. The second-gen Pencil doesn’t have the cumbersome plug-in charger and has a flat side so it won’t roll. But again, you need the iPad Air for that.
Faster than ever
I am impressed by the increase in processor capacity brought by a major upgrade, a leap from the A10 to the A12 processor. That’s a massive jump in performance from the previous model – it increased the benchmark scores from 257,075 to 443,387 on Antutu, and from roughly 1,400 to 2,474 on Geekbench Multi-Core. A web browsing score of 592.82 on the Basemark Web benchmark beats last year’s iPad Air and comes close to the iPad Pro. That’s very impressive for a $ 300 tablet.
Otherwise, this is an iPad and it works like an iPad, which has been the allure of iPads for a few years now. With the A12 processor, it’s perfectly capable of split-screen multitasking, and action games are no problem. The cameras are the same that have been on iPads for a while, front and back. That includes the 1.2MP front camera, which should be better by now, but you’ll have to move to the iPad Air for a 7-megapixel front camera.
Should i update?
There is no reason to update an iPad less than three years old, it is a very stable platform. If you’re coming from a fifth-gen iPad or earlier, you’ll get smart keyboard and pen support here, as well as a vastly faster processor. If your old iPad seems sluggish, the difference between it and the new iPad will feel like night and day.
That said, if you can afford the next iPad Air, I see plenty of reasons to spend the extra money, including an even faster processor, better stylus compatibility, a nicer screen, and sharper cameras. I didn’t get this feeling about last year’s Air, but it really seems like the balance of power has shifted this time.
Better than a Chromebook?
Apple is not positioning this iPad as a professional creative solution, of course. You want the entry-level iPad (ideally with its $ 99 stylus and / or $ 159 Magic Keyboard) to take on low-cost Chromebooks for the millions of kids who are distance learning this year. The iPad is faster, more colorful, and more fun than most Chromebooks, with many more apps designed for its specific hardware and form factor, and the Pencil option makes it a world-class creative tablet for scribes and artists.
The problem Apple has struggled with is that Chromebook buyers are very price sensitive, and Apple’s keyboard and stylus accessories seriously drive up the price of the tablet. A good school Chromebook costs about $ 400; an iPad plus the official keyboard at the student price is now $ 458. Pick a less expensive keyboard like the $ 49 Logitech K480, though, and your iPad comes down to $ 348, which goes well with any Chromebook.
We’ll have a full iPad review next week, so check back soon.
