Seeing is believing: Hands-on with Apple’s new iPad Pro (M4)

In what feels like a long time coming, Apple has finally announced new iPads, with two new iPad Air (M2) models, two new iPad Pro (M4) models, a new version of the Magic Keyboard and a new Apple Pencil called Apple Pencil Pro. Yes, it’s been busy.

Unsurprisingly it’s the iPad Pro models that get the most attention, not only sporting an OLED display in iPad for the first time, but a wonderfully slim design too. I got my hands on them at the ‘Let Loose’ event in London and while they are impressive in several areas, there’s one thing I really took a shine to.

Super slim and light

From a distance, you may not be able to tell the difference between the new iPad Pro models and the previous iPad Pro models – the uniform bezels, flat edges and aluminium bodies all remain. But get up close, spin the iPad Pro on its side and you’ll see the refinements straight away. The 13-inch model is just 5.1mm, while the 11-inch model is – oddly – slightly thicker at 5.3mm. It makes them the thinnest products Apple has made and it’s immediately evident. The iPod Nano previously held that accolade at 5.4mm so if you owned one of those, that gives you some indication as to quite how slim these iPads are.

The new iPad Pro models are also quite a bit lighter than their predecessors, both coming in under the 600g mark, with the iPad Pro 13-inch weighing 579g and the iPad Pro 11-inch hitting the scales at 444g. For context, the 11-inch model weighs around the same as a tin of tomatoes or almost exactly the same weight as two iPhone 15 Pro Max models – they would come to 442g – which is pretty light for the screen real estate you get here. 

Available in two colours – Silver and Space Black – it’s the same colour offering you’ll find in the MacBook Pro models and while they aren’t as fun as the iPad Air’s colour options, this is a more serious (and more expensive) tablet. The iPad Pro models are also more powerful than the recently launched MacBook Air with a new processor powering them, giving you an idea of what they are claiming to be capable of. They both step up from the Apple Silicon M2 processor that you’ll find in the previous generation of the iPad Pros, to the M4 processor.

I’m not going to go into how many trillions of operations the M4 processor can perform a second, but rather say that I believe the move to this processor is more of a nod of what’s to come in terms of AI and what Apple is gearing up to announce in just a month’s time at its Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC). 

All about the screen

What I will go into – because it’s by far my favourite element of the new iPad Pro models – is the nano-texture glass option screen. Apple doesn’t call it matte like Huawei does on its latest MatePad, but it has a matte effect in the flesh, reducing reflections and making for a really lovely finish.

What’s probably worth mentioning is that it’s an option and while that option is only available on the 1TB and 2TB models (yes, it’s really going to cost you), it’s an option on both the 11-inch and 13-inch models. In the past, the smaller iPad Pro model has a been left behind – it didn’t have the gorgeous Mini-LED display the larger model offered so despite offering the same power, it always felt like it lacked that special something.

That’s not the case for the new iPad Pro models with both the 11-inch and 13-inch (the screen sizes have been renamed from 11-inch and 12.9-inch) offering OLED panels. In Apple’s terms, it’s actually called Ultra Retina XDR and it is said to be a Tandem OLED, or in more simple terms, two OLED panels together for improved brightness.

The Mini-LED display on the previous iPad Pro was impressive so some may argue OLED wasn’t needed, but the colours delivered are full of punch and vibrancy and the blacks really are deep, making sure those uniform bezels go undetected with the right content. 

A little bit about the Apple Pencil Pro and Magic Keyboard 

It wouldn’t be right to talk about the new iPad Pro models without talking about the Apple Pencil Pro. In what is perhaps an odd name given this Apple Pencil is also compatible with the latest iPad Air models, the Apple Pencil Pro has some solid new functionality.

Now I’ll hold my hands up and say I don’t draw regularly – unless it’s to draw a dinosaur or unicorn for my children to colour in – but I can appreciate how the new features on the Apple Pencil Pro might be beneficial to those who do have more skills in this department than myself.

A squeeze will pull up a menu on the iPad’s screen (it varies depending on the app you’re in), allowing you to do things like switch between pen options. Haptic feedback (a small vibration) will let you know you’ve selected one, with a double tap allowing you to scroll through them. You can also roll the Apple Pencil to change the orientation of your mark and the Apple Pencil Hover feature that was previously available on iPad Pros carries over.

There’s also Find My support now and while this was glossed over, I’d say this is up there with my top three highlights of this event. You don’t want to know how many times I’ve lost the Apple Pencil (2nd generation) having drawn those unicorns. What’s a little disappointing is that the Apple Pencil Pro might have the same dimensions of the Apple Pencil (2nd generation) but it requires a different charging and pairing mechanism so it’s not compatible with old iPad Pro or iPad Air models. 

The same can be said for the new Magic Keyboard, which is specifically designed for the latest generation of the iPad Pro models. It has the same material on the outside as the previous Magic Keyboard, but the keyboard base is aluminium and there’s a new trackpad on board, claimed to be more like the one you’ll get on MacBooks thanks to now offering haptic feedback. I might not be a professional drawer so my experience with the Apple Pencil is limited in how I can test it, but keyboards I do know all too well.

I am a big fan of the current Magic Keyboard, which is still the option for the iPad Air, but the new aluminium model is lighter and has a row of 14 function keys – including brightness adjustments – and that is something I am absolutely on board with. 

How much are the new iPad Pros and when can you buy them?

The new Apple iPad Pro models start at £999 in the UK for the 11-inch model, with the 13-inch model costing from £1,299. If you want that nano-texture screen option I mentioned, you’ll need to opt for at least the 1TB model in either, which will cost you £1,599 and £1,899 respectively, along with the extra £100 for the screen option.

Pre-orders started on 7 May and both models will be available to buy from 15 May. In terms of whether you should preorder the new iPad Pros, there are a number reasons to if you have that kind of cash, but be prepared that you won’t be able to go back – especially not from that nano-texture display – if you do.