The price development of older generation iPads is fascinating. I decided to get a new iPad Pro, mine is 8 years old. I figured I’d rather get an M1 with more storage than the latest with fewer storage for the budget I have. Now the price for a refurbished iPad Pro M1 11" 512GB is almost identical to a new one from a retailer that still has that generation in stock. And it’s really not that cheaper than the initial price when it was new. But the price for the higher storage models has gone down much more. In fact at the place where I ordered it, the 2 TB model was 120€ cheaper than the 1 Tb model! And only about 70€ more than the 512 gig model. I guess the people that buy the big ones usually want the latest model, so the price for these drops unproportionally much.
Apple is a master marketer. Macs, iPads, or iPhones always have a base model at a reasonable (for Apple) price that frequently needs something not available in the entry level model. By the time you have what you need the price is very close to a higher priced model.
I have a 2020 iPad Pro. Since I’ll never need more processing power or storage, I thought an iPad Air would be a good replacement when the time comes. But the current 11" iPad Air with 256GB storage and cellular is only $199 less than an M2 iPP with the same specs. So . . .
You’ll probably find that the retailer selling the M1 has reduced their prices to get rid of “out of date” stock that Apple no longer sells. Apple is just trying to flip refurbs but holds a higher line.
Yes, that’s certainly selling remaining outdated stock. But the difference in price between the 512 gb and the 2Tb model was only 70€, while the difference between the current models at the Apple shop would be 1000€. So the big one was dropping extraordinarily more in price than the smaller one.
It’s supply and demand with the emphasis on demand. Most customers for used (or New Old Stock) products are after low cost and don’t value high-end models. It’s not just iPads but applies to all consumer products.
That’s what I think: The customers for the high end tiers usually want the latest and greatest, so the older models with large storage are just not demanded that much. But it really gets funny when the 2Tb are actually cheaper than the 1Tb. But good for me. 
I’m starting to be baffled by iPad pricing and product offerings generally.
The buzzing from my cracked iPad Pro (2019) is starting to get more pronounced, so I am going to have to replace it soon. In the past, the Pro had more processing power and supported Apple Pencil, which meant the “lighter” iPad models weren’t of much use to me. But for the last few versions Pencil has worked on both, and since the Air carries the M1 chip I’m just not sure what the Pro actually offers now unless you’re like a video illustrator or something. Most users probably aren’t noticing that much difference in speed across M1 and M2 for the apps they use? Whatever I buy will be a “step up” from what I’m currently running (and as a bonus won’t have a cracked screen 
).
Originally I was budgeting like £1900 for 12.9” iPad Pro (256GB), new pencil and new keyboard, but these last couple of days I’ve been thinking I can cut that cost to £1300 by switching to an iPad Air, and do I really want to pay basically £600 just for that extra bit of screen?
(I am starting to feel that way about the MBP too. Given that a MBA is now running an M2 chip, I’m just not convinced most non-illustrator people need an MBP? I’m not sure I do.)
The one thing I don’t hear talked about a ton that differentiates iPad Pro from Air is the Pro has quad speakers and the Air just has stereo. Years ago, I got a hairline crack on my 9.7in iPad Pro screen and couldn’t switch to the Air even though I tried it partly because the speakers were so much worse. All that said, the current Air is a much stronger product than the old one. I can’t believe the Pro 11in still doesn’t have the miniLED screen like the big one. There’s just not a reason really to buy that 11in Pro.
Besides usual stuff I use the iPad for music production. But actually I hear from many iPad musicians that a M1 Air is totally sufficient. The M chip makes a huge difference, but if 1 or 2 isn’t so important. And I heard several times that there are no apps at all that can even use the 16gb RAM (I’m not sure if that was only referring to music apps or generally).
My main reason for the pro was storage space (and that feels like a somewhat artificial constraint for the Air - they could make one with bigger storage without making it a pro).
But I tend to buy a little oversized devices and use them a long time. So I’m also hoping that the 16gb RAM might come handy in a couple of years. I don’t know how much the true tone display is worth in practice, but it feels nice to have it.
Not counting the differences between the M1 and M2 (I assume the Air will eventually get the M2), an 11" Pro gets you get variable refresh, True Tone, and better speakers and mics.
Each jump (standard, Air, 11", 12.9") is a roughly similar price jump. Here they are at equivalent storage:
- 9th gen iPad: $480
- 10th gen iPad: $600
- Air: $750
- 11" Pro: $900
- 12.9" Pro: $1200
I love the 12.9", but I think it’s reasonable to decide to buy in the middle of that range, especially if you just want to use a Pencil on a good laminated display.
As for memory, iPadOS 15 apps can now get a 12GB RAM entitlement (use case has to be approved by Apple.) Previously it was 5GB per app max.
I was unable to commit to a choice yesterday, so still haven’t placed an order. I hadn’t thought about the difference in audio quality and now wonder if I do care about that, perhaps more than screen size. However, a friend is being round their Air later so I’m going to do a side-by-side test with my 2019 Pro to see what the difference is.
I’m still unsure if I even care about screen size a whole £600 worth. My main iPad use (aside from this forum) is reading PDFs (academic papers and reports). Do I really really need a 12.9 inch screen for that? I’m struggling to work out what is a legitimate need and what is just my desire for shiny things 
(If you do use a 12.9 inch Pro for reading papers and think it is awesome, feel free to tell me about it and justify my purchase!)
I had the original 12.9, wich is larger than the current ones and the size was actually annoying me a lot recently. That was one reason to get a new one. It was really unhandy (is that a word?) to hold comfortably when sitting on a couch.
If I could justify two iPad Pros I would own a 12.9. But I don’t like large iPhones so I’m constantly reaching for my iPad Pro. I even keep light weight stands in both my living room & bedroom for it.
While I would love a larger screen the 12.9 iPad Pro is not as portable as the 11".
It’s so good! 12.9" is the only one that feels like you have the document on your lap and gives you space to properly work in the margins. 
Carrying comfort partly depends on your physical size. I’m tall with large hands, so 12.9" fits me as well as my wife carrying an 11" or Air. But, the weight gain is proportionately more than the size gain. If I had to walk around all day with a tablet in hand or carried by hand bag, I’d use a lighter iPad.
I use an 11” iPad Pro for (among other things) marking up PDFs of academic journal articles, and I find the size still works fine for me. I used to own a 12.9” (2nd generation, which was the last one with the home button) and was hesitating between the 12.9” and the 11” when I went to upgrade, mainly because as much as I wanted a more portable iPad experience so I could use it in more contexts, I was worried that the PDF annotation experience would be subpar. It has turned out to be a non-issue for me (I can even do Sunday crosswords comfortably on it, without needing to zoom in on the crossword itself to fill in answers!) but YMMV of course 
I’ve ordered an iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard so I guess I will report back what I think of it for PDF use. (I’ve largely ordered it on a whim because I’m fed up of thinking about it )
Continuing our conversation of weird prices though, the price of the iPad Pro with the same amount of storage costs more than a MacBook Air.
I’m sure Apple will say that it’s not comparable given the touch screen and different users, but as a counter-argument there’s a lot we can’t do on an iPad that needs a “proper computer” so I do find the price variation a little jarring. Once you factor in the keyboard (which of course is included in the cost of a MacBook Air), you’re easily looking at £500-600 more for a device that, depending on your perspective, can do less than a full laptop.
(I don’t want to start down the well-trod roads of iPad v. laptop, I’m just remarking on the significant price difference!)
It is a little weird, isn’t it? I’d like the Pros to start at 256GB, like laptops (without the base costing an extra hundred, of course.)
A nice iPP for art and a cheap MBA for client/file management and staying present on Zoom is a combo you see among digital artists.
Digital art is why I still have an iPad! Apple should be indebted to Procreate.
The only reason I don’t have a new iPad is that I try to decide which one to get and always give up.