M4 iPad Pro vs M2 iPad Air

The iPad Pro 2024 improves performance as the first Apple device with the M4 chip. And Apple’s new mid-range tablet is the iPad Air M2, available in two sizes for the first time. So what’s different between these 2024 iPads and is the high end worth the extra money? Here’s our detailed look at the iPad Pro M4 vs. the iPad Air M2.

The 2022 iPad Air 5 with M1 blurred the line between mid- and high-end iPads, prompting many to buy the Air that started $200 (or more) below the $799 11-inch iPad Pro.

Now the 2024 iPad Air M2 (6th generation) lineup offers even more choice and power than the iPad Air M1.

However, the new iPad Air models contrast with the M4 iPad Pro devices – but they are more expensive this year with starting prices of $999 and $1,299 – making the difference between an iPad Air and a Pro of $300 to $400.

iPad Pro M4 vs. iPad Air M2

Performance

The big performance difference between the new iPad Pro and Air is due to the M4 chip upgrade. Apple claims it offers an up to 50% faster CPU, 4x faster GPU, and an increase in memory bandwidth from 100 GB/s to 120 GB/s compared to the M2.

The new GPU comes with a media engine that offers hardware-accelerated 8K H.264, HEVC, ProRes, and ProRes RAW support, joining the Mac as a device capable of handling 8K video.

Other new features include 38 trillion operations per second with the M4 Neural Engine, hardware-accelerated ray tracing, and much more.

Note: iPad Pro models with 128, 256, and 512 GB of storage have 8 GB of RAM, 1 TB and 2 TB models have 16 GB of RAM.

Other upgrades to the Pro are Thunderbolt/USB 4 and hardware-accelerated ray tracing.

One of the losses is mmWave connectivity for 5G with the 2024 iPad Pro models (the 2022 versions had it). This matches the 5G radio on the iPad Air 2024.

Display

New iPad Pro M4 models outperform iPad Air with new ‘Ultra Retina XDR display’.

It is the first to use Tandem OLED compared to the Liquid Retina display which uses LEDs in the iPad Air M2 devices.

Apple says the benefits of the new OLED display are brighter specular highlights, deeper true blacks, better detail in shadows and low light, and much more.

The smaller and larger iPad Pro features the new OLED display and you can also now upgrade the 1TB or 2TB iPad Pro M4 with nano-textured display glass.

You also get brighter SDR content up to 1,000 nits with M4 iPad Pro models (600 nits for M2 iPad Pro SDR content). That’s 2x brighter than the 500 nits of SDR with the iPad Air.

Display features shared across all iPad Pro M4 and iPad Air M2 models include P3 Wide Colors, Fully Laminated Displays, Anti-Glare Coating, Apple Pencil Hover, and True Tone.

Design, dimensions, weight, colors

The iPad Pro M4 is the “thinnest product ever created by Apple” with 5.1 mm for the 13″ model and 5.3 mm for the 11″ version.

Along with this, the new iPad Pro M4 is lighter than ever, less than 1 pound for the 11″ and 1.28 pounds for the 13″.

This is ironic since the “Air” version of Apple’s iPad and Mac generally claim the title of thinnest and lightest.

New this time is the Space Black finish replacing Space Gray for the iPad Pro M4, while silver remains the other choice.

Meanwhile, the iPad Air M2 comes in four color choices: Space Gray, Starlight, Blue, and Purple.

Connectivity and accessories

The new iPad Pro and Air models work with the same type of Apple accessories. These come in the form of a new Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil Pro – or you can opt for the mid-range Apple Pencil with USB-C.

Other major I/O upgrades with the iPad Pro are Face ID and Thunderbolt connectivity.

Beyond the drop in mmWave for 5G, the M4 iPad Pro and M2 iPad Air devices also only have an eSIM, no physical nano-SIM slot.

Battery life

The 2024 iPad Pro and Air models have the same battery life as previous iPads:

• 10 hours of web or video use over WiFi
• 9 hours of web use with cell phone

Storage and prices

Storage has been updated with the iPad Pro M4 starting with 256GB and going up to 2TB models. And nano-textured glass is another $100 upgrade.

Storage is also increased for the iPad Air M2, starting at 64GB and going up to 1TB.

Cameras, video and audio

On the M4 iPad Pro rear camera system, you get a 12 MP wide lens, LiDAR scanner, and Retina flash with True Tone.

Interestingly, the iPad Pro M4 ditched the 10MP ultrawide lens of the iPad Pro M2. This means that the iPad Pro M4 and iPad Air M2 are more similar in terms of camera capabilities.

On the front, you get a 12 MP ultra-wide lens with Center Stage support that is now centered on the long edge of the landscape instead of the short edge with the iPad Pro 2024 M4 models.

Conclusion iPad Pro M4 vs iPad Air M2

Why buy an iPad Pro M4?

When choosing between the iPad Pro M4 and iPad Air M2, it may make more sense to buy the new model only if you’re a pro or aspiring pro with workflows that will benefit from the M4 chip. Or you’re totally fine spending money on the latest and greatest from Apple 😁.

Upgrades include the new OLED display with a nano-texture option and higher brightness, higher top storage, Thunderbolt, a more powerful chip, and a slimmer design.

The iPad Pro M4 is available at Apple, Amazon, soon Best Buy and more.

Why buy an iPad Air M2?

When you can get many of the basic features of the iPad Pro M4 with the iPad Air M2 and the processor difference isn’t a limiting factor for many users, saving some money might be a good thing. Or you can keep your current iPad.

Plus, at a discounted price, the iPad Air M1 is a great choice for people with light to medium workflows or occasional use. It has many great features of the modern iPad Air/Pro M2 and the same design.

Thanks for reading our guide on iPad Pro M4 vs iPad Air M2

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