iPad iPad Pro: thoughts, reviews, rumors... - Page 4

harriska2 · 11-11-2015, 02:00 PM

I am unable to find out if you can test drive the ipad pro WITH the pencil at an Apple store. They have the ipad pros in stock at the stores to purchase and no pencils available. But they can not tell you if they have a pencil to test drive the display model. When you call an Apple store, you are not calling them directly but you are calling a call center. BTW, the pencil is not available because it is merely an accessory (as told to me by their call center person). So they will not be available for purchase until Friday or later.

Dumb, dumb, dumb.

harriska2 · 11-11-2015, 02:02 PM

nrubenstein, if you happen to use numbers, excel, or a spreadsheet how does it look?

tomsem · 11-11-2015, 03:23 PM

For me, the main issue with iOS as a 'productivity' platform is its lack of flexibility when it comes to user input. Yes, you can pair a keyboard, but you still have to constantly lift a hand up to touch the screen to do many things. You cannot pair a mouse or trackpad to simulate touch. Simple things that just work in Android or Windows, like using arrow keys to turn a page, or to move focus around, don't work with most apps.

When iPad first launched, they were astute enough to offer a keyboard made for use with it. But then they dropped it. As a result, most iOS apps typically do not include any keyboard navigation features (apart from Accessibility, if the app implements that).

And until now, using a stylus with an iPad seemed like heresy as far as Apple was concerned. Companies that tried their best via Bluetooth to create pressure-sensitive experience via their respective SDKs were fighting an upward battle, and often losing. Even simple things like handwriting do not work well (until the Pro).

kyteflyer · 11-11-2015, 03:42 PM

Well, pricing is in for Australia. Not quite as bad as Harry predicted but close enough.

32GB $1249
128GB $1499
128GB wifi + cellular $1699.

Thats me out. Cannot find any justification to pay those sorts of prices. Pencil is $165 and keyboard case is $269. Ludicrous. Not that I don't want it. I just don't have the kind of cash flow that allows it. I have a friend in Sydney who has probably already pre-ordered. His income is something like 6x mine so he can do it. I'm envious of people who can go through life buying what they want when they want with absolutely no worries about whether it will impinge on their capacity to pay bills and feed themselves. Sighhh.

SCION · 11-11-2015, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by harriska2

When you call an Apple store, you are not calling them directly but you are calling a call center...

When you get the automated prompt, just say "Manager" and it will put you through to the retail store.

nrubenstein · 11-11-2015, 04:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by harriska2

I am unable to find out if you can test drive the ipad pro WITH the pencil at an Apple store. They have the ipad pros in stock at the stores to purchase and no pencils available. But they can not tell you if they have a pencil to test drive the display model. When you call an Apple store, you are not calling them directly but you are calling a call center. BTW, the pencil is not available because it is merely an accessory (as told to me by their call center person). So they will not be available for purchase until Friday or later.

Dumb, dumb, dumb.

They had *one* pencil and *one* Apple Keyboard cover for demonstration purposes only at the store I went to.

I don't see a huge amount of value in the keyboard, but the pencil is awesome.

nrubenstein · 11-11-2015, 04:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by harriska2

nrubenstein, if you happen to use numbers, excel, or a spreadsheet how does it look?

Same problem as always. Looks *great*, but actual editing is a bit of a weakness.

nrubenstein · 11-11-2015, 07:09 PM

Given the huge area of the screen, it sure would have been nice if the sidebar app could stay on the sidebar when you go to the home screen.

That said, web browsing plus tweetbot plus a video simultaneously is pretty nice. You could do this on the Air 2, but it just wasn't big enough to make that feel good.

HarryT · 11-12-2015, 04:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kyteflyer

Well, pricing is in for Australia. Not quite as bad as Harry predicted but close enough.

32GB $1249
128GB $1499
128GB wifi + cellular $1699.

UK prices are:

32GB: £679 (A$1446)
128GB Wifi: £799 (A$1702)
128GB WiFi+4G: £899 (A$1915)

About the same if you take into account our 20% VAT against your 10% GST.

(I predicted A$1660 in post #30 for you for the 128 WiFi+4G, and it's $1699, so I don't think that was a bad estimate

).

Josieb1 · 11-12-2015, 08:36 AM

In the UK John Lewis has them in stock, they sent an email already.

kyteflyer · 11-12-2015, 08:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

UK prices are:

32GB: £679 (A$1446)
128GB Wifi: £799 (A$1702)
128GB WiFi+4G: £899 (A$1915)

About the same if you take into account our 20% VAT against your 10% GST.

(I predicted A$1660 in post #30 for you for the 128 WiFi+4G, and it's $1699, so I don't think that was a bad estimate

).

LOL I didnt check back.. I was thinking you'd said about 1800. But, no matter, its all beyond me. My Air2 has suddenly become my very favourite thing. (after my AppleTV, that is)

HarryT · 11-12-2015, 09:02 AM

It's an expensicve device, no doubt about it, and I think the "Pro" tag on it is perhaps an indication that it's not really being targeted at the home market.

At least though, Apple seem to be adopting the same base price in all the countries in which it's sold: the prices I predicted for the UK and Australia were a straight currency conversion (and adding tax) from the US prices, and they were only a few £/$ out. It's all too common for a device sold in the US to be marketed in the UK with the "$" replaced by a "£" and the "number" the same. Apple don't do that, for which they deserve commendation.

FlorenceArt · 11-12-2015, 09:33 AM

919€/1099€/1249€ in France. I was surprised to get the e-mail this morning, I didn't expect them to be available here so soon. And they are still available a few hours later, so either they had really huge stocks available, or there was no big rush to get them.

HarryT · 11-12-2015, 09:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FlorenceArt

919€/1099€/1249€ in France. I was surprised to get the e-mail this morning, I didn't expect them to be available here so soon. And they are still available a few hours later, so either they had really huge stocks available, or there was no big rush to get them.

Again a pretty much exact conversion of US/UK prices, so they really are using the same price in all countries.

FlorenceArt · 11-24-2015, 02:26 PM

Couldn't go home for a while due to public transport problems, so I passed the time by going to the Apple Store. I easily found access to an iPad pro and apple pen. Man, this thing is HUGE! No way I'm carrying that in my handbag. Even the pen is big, or at least much bigger than I expected, but it's relatively light and comfortable to use. I had trouble finding a way to test drive it. Couldn't use it with Notes because I missed the tiny pen icon (you have to get rid of the keyboard first to see it). Searched for a while for a suitable app but all I could find was Paper, which I don't like, and Notability, which I like better but never found a use for. Notability has a good response to the pen, Paper had a small lag. Neither app seems to use the pressure sensitivity, they both simulate it as they do with an ordinary stylus. I was hoping to find a real painting app such as Procreate but no such luck.

I went in ready to be convinced, but now I'm not so sure I can find a use for the iPad Pro. I am typing this on the train (which I finally managed to get on) because I carried my iPad to work as usual. I could not do this with a Pro, and I'm not sure what else it would offer that would justify the loss of portability.

And now I'll go back to reading on my iPad Air. I might be on this train a while, at the rate it's going.

11-11-2015, 03:23 PM	#48
tomsem Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,939 Karma: 27060151 Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: USA Device: iPhone 15PM, Kindle Scribe, iPad mini 6, PocketBook InkPad Color 3	For me, the main issue with iOS as a 'productivity' platform is its lack of flexibility when it comes to user input. Yes, you can pair a keyboard, but you still have to constantly lift a hand up to touch the screen to do many things. You cannot pair a mouse or trackpad to simulate touch. Simple things that just work in Android or Windows, like using arrow keys to turn a page, or to move focus around, don't work with most apps. When iPad first launched, they were astute enough to offer a keyboard made for use with it. But then they dropped it. As a result, most iOS apps typically do not include any keyboard navigation features (apart from Accessibility, if the app implements that). And until now, using a stylus with an iPad seemed like heresy as far as Apple was concerned. Companies that tried their best via Bluetooth to create pressure-sensitive experience via their respective SDKs were fighting an upward battle, and often losing. Even simple things like handwriting do not work well (until the Pro). Last edited by tomsem; 11-11-2015 at 03:31 PM.

11-11-2015, 03:42 PM	#49
kyteflyer Wizard Posts: 1,844 Karma: 9547754 Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Newcastle, Australia Device: iPhone 12 Mini	Well, pricing is in for Australia. Not quite as bad as Harry predicted but close enough. 32GB $1249 128GB $1499 128GB wifi + cellular $1699. Thats me out. Cannot find any justification to pay those sorts of prices. Pencil is $165 and keyboard case is $269. Ludicrous. Not that I don't want it. I just don't have the kind of cash flow that allows it. I have a friend in Sydney who has probably already pre-ordered. His income is something like 6x mine so he can do it. I'm envious of people who can go through life buying what they want when they want with absolutely no worries about whether it will impinge on their capacity to pay bills and feed themselves. Sighhh. Last edited by kyteflyer; 11-11-2015 at 03:48 PM.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Windows 8 Surface Pro Reviews	fjtorres	News	39	01-18-2013 05:07 PM
Thoughts on 1-star reviews....	xg4bx	General Discussions	51	08-06-2011 10:26 PM
My humble thoughts on the Pocket Pro	Davimee	Astak EZReader	18	03-02-2010 12:44 PM
First thoughts on my new Pocket Pro	skoobwoman	Astak EZReader	13	11-06-2009 03:23 PM
New Professional Reviews on Pocket PRO	Robertb	Astak EZReader	21	09-10-2009 10:06 AM

11-11-2015, 02:00 PM	#46
harriska2 Addict Posts: 272 Karma: 8000000 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Corvallis, OR Device: Kindle PW2, iPad Pro	I am unable to find out if you can test drive the ipad pro WITH the pencil at an Apple store. They have the ipad pros in stock at the stores to purchase and no pencils available. But they can not tell you if they have a pencil to test drive the display model. When you call an Apple store, you are not calling them directly but you are calling a call center. BTW, the pencil is not available because it is merely an accessory (as told to me by their call center person). So they will not be available for purchase until Friday or later. Dumb, dumb, dumb.

11-11-2015, 02:02 PM	#47
harriska2 Addict Posts: 272 Karma: 8000000 Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Corvallis, OR Device: Kindle PW2, iPad Pro	nrubenstein, if you happen to use numbers, excel, or a spreadsheet how does it look?

11-11-2015, 07:09 PM	#53
nrubenstein Member Posts: 22 Karma: 22082 Join Date: Sep 2015 Device: iPhone	Given the huge area of the screen, it sure would have been nice if the sidebar app could stay on the sidebar when you go to the home screen. That said, web browsing plus tweetbot plus a video simultaneously is pretty nice. You could do this on the Air 2, but it just wasn't big enough to make that feel good.

11-12-2015, 08:36 AM	#55
Josieb1 Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,086 Karma: 18051062 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: UK Device: Kindle Scribe, Coloursoft, PW SE, Kindle 6, Kobo Libra 2	In the UK John Lewis has them in stock, they sent an email already.

11-12-2015, 09:02 AM	#57
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	It's an expensicve device, no doubt about it, and I think the "Pro" tag on it is perhaps an indication that it's not really being targeted at the home market. At least though, Apple seem to be adopting the same base price in all the countries in which it's sold: the prices I predicted for the UK and Australia were a straight currency conversion (and adding tax) from the US prices, and they were only a few £/$ out. It's all too common for a device sold in the US to be marketed in the UK with the "$" replaced by a "£" and the "number" the same. Apple don't do that, for which they deserve commendation.

11-12-2015, 09:33 AM	#58
FlorenceArt High Priestess Posts: 5,761 Karma: 5042529 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Montreuil sous bois, France Device: iPad Pro 9.7, iPhone 6 Plus	919€/1099€/1249€ in France. I was surprised to get the e-mail this morning, I didn't expect them to be available here so soon. And they are still available a few hours later, so either they had really huge stocks available, or there was no big rush to get them.

11-24-2015, 02:26 PM	#60
FlorenceArt High Priestess Posts: 5,761 Karma: 5042529 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Montreuil sous bois, France Device: iPad Pro 9.7, iPhone 6 Plus	Couldn't go home for a while due to public transport problems, so I passed the time by going to the Apple Store. I easily found access to an iPad pro and apple pen. Man, this thing is HUGE! No way I'm carrying that in my handbag. Even the pen is big, or at least much bigger than I expected, but it's relatively light and comfortable to use. I had trouble finding a way to test drive it. Couldn't use it with Notes because I missed the tiny pen icon (you have to get rid of the keyboard first to see it). Searched for a while for a suitable app but all I could find was Paper, which I don't like, and Notability, which I like better but never found a use for. Notability has a good response to the pen, Paper had a small lag. Neither app seems to use the pressure sensitivity, they both simulate it as they do with an ordinary stylus. I was hoping to find a real painting app such as Procreate but no such luck. I went in ready to be convinced, but now I'm not so sure I can find a use for the iPad Pro. I am typing this on the train (which I finally managed to get on) because I carried my iPad to work as usual. I could not do this with a Pro, and I'm not sure what else it would offer that would justify the loss of portability. And now I'll go back to reading on my iPad Air. I might be on this train a while, at the rate it's going.

Advert

Advert