Just 24 hours after its launch in the Apple Store, and without even having reached stores yet (until the 24th it will not be possible to reserve), the new iPad of this year 2017 is the center of controversy among those who see it an ideal device to be the cheapest in the iPad range, and others who think that Apple should have kept the iPad Air 2 and lowered the price without further ado. What's the point of an iPad like this 2017 model in the midst of all the models that were available? In AppleInsider They have analyzed the available data and have drawn some conclusions that I share and I find them really interesting.
Will this new iPad 2017 have a market?
The iPad is a device with a very high half-life, much more than that of the iPhone. In this aspect it looks much more like a computer than a mobile device, in fact As of December 2016, it is estimated that 30% of the iPads that are working around the world are iPad 2, 3 and 4. The iPad Air 1 and 2 models would keep 35% of the total, and the iPad Mini with 28%. The iPad Pro only accounts for 7% of the total. With these data, it is easy to deduce that a third of the iPads in the world are models that, at least, are 3 years old in the best of cases, or up to 6 years in the case of the iPad 2.
The new iPad 2017 comes to appeal to those who want a "new", powerful iPad that will last a few years, but do not want to spend the more than € 600 that the cheaper Pro costs. Also for those iPad 2, 3 and 4 owners who believe that the time has come to renew their tablets, and that they can do it for a more affordable price than usual by getting a recently launched device with a more than powerful processor. If they have been using an "obsolete" iPad for several years, they are not demanding users who want the most of the most, but they also do not want a model with two years on their backs. Buying an "old" device to replace an "old" one is unappealing.
More than enough power
The iPad 2017 has an A9 processor, the same as the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus, and the iPhone SE, still for sale. With excellent graphics power, it achieves benchmark results that still outperform many powerful smartphones on the market. Although we still do not have its own data, it must be practically identical to that of the iPhone SE, and therefore we can say that it will double in power to the iPad Air 1, and will be superior to the iPad Air 2 with a single core, although in multicore mode the results are very similar. It goes without saying that it is not even worth comparing the results with those of the iPad 3 or 4 that will not even reach your heels.
We do not know yet what RAM it will have, but it is expected that they include 2GB of RAM, as has the iPhone SE of which we have already commented that it shares many specifications. In short, it is an iPad that continues to be aimed at those who still do not have an Apple tablet and the iPad Pro are far away, or for those who have an old model, which, as we have pointed out, is 30% of iPad users, a not inconsiderable figure.
Same dimensions as the iPad Air 1 but very different
From the beginning it was one of the harshest criticisms of the iPad 2017. Accustomed to a company that always strives to slim down its devices as much as possible, it was strange that it had regressed in this regard. Although we do not know what reasons have led to this, it will certainly not be a capricious decision, and surely when ifixit breaks it down we will know more about the reasons. The iPad 2017 is 1,4mm thicker than the iPad Air 2, which seems like a mortal sin to many.
Will we be able to notice that difference on a day-to-day basis? It is highly unlikely. Surely it will have a lot to do with the fact that the battery of the iPad 2017 is larger than that of the iPad Air 2, or that the screen is not completely laminated, something that we will analyze later. But let's not be fooled by appearances, because apart from size there are few things the iPad 2017 and the iPad Air 1 have in common, Since the first one has WiFi-ac (the iPad Air 1 only WiFi-n), the camera of the iPad 2017 is 8Mpx (5Mpx that of the iPad Air 1), and as we mentioned before, the RAM will probably be double in the first than in the second, although that has yet to be confirmed.
The screen, another controversial component
It was one of the first features that surprised you when you saw the details of the iPad 2017: its screen is not completely laminated, nor does it have anti-reflective film. This means that it is more similar to the iPad Air 1 than to the 2, and that between the glass and the screen there is a space, which disappeared with the arrival of screens with integral lamination, such as not only that of the iPad Air 2, but also that of the iPad Pro and the iPhone.
Why would Apple have chosen to go back to an older screen than the one that comes with the iPad Air 2? Bearing in mind that we do not know the company's real motives from beginning to end, repairability may be one of them. The fact that the screen has integral lamination makes the images sharper, as if they were drawn on the glass, but it has a significant drawback: if the glass breaks, glass and screen must be replaced, and that repair is very expensive. The iPad 2017 screen does not have to be replaced if the glass breaks, making repair much simpler and cheaper.
At this point it is necessary to remember that this iPad is very much aimed at recovering the educational sector, lost in the United States because of Google's Chromebooks. They are devices very susceptible to falling, breaking, and Repairability can be a very strong point in your favor when it comes to convincing those who are in charge of authorizing the purchases of the tablets for a school. The same can happen in companies who want to order iPad for their workers. In any case, we will have to wait for the analysis of experts such as the people at DisplayMate to see how that screen behaves and to be able to assess whether it is closer to that of an iPad Air 1 or an iPad Air 2.
An iPad just for some
Many Apple users are disappointed in the specifications of the new iPad, and that is normal. Those users will be the ones who will not see the need to change to this new model, either because they are considering a superior one or because their iPad still works perfectly. This is what will happen to those who have an iPad Air 2, and maybe some of those who have an iPad Air 1. But let's not forget that these are 1/3 of current iPad users, and that There is another 1/3 that will see an important qualitative leap, and that are those who still have an iPad 2, 3 or 4 that already look very old and they want to get a new iPad that will last as many years as their old tablet.
Then there is the other segment to which it is directed: users who do not have an iPad and who see how € 399 is a more than attractive price for a latest model iPad with more than enough processor and RAM enough to last a few years without problems. In addition, the educational sector with its discount that makes it even cheaper, companies ... This iPad is not going to be a breakthrough in sales, but it will undoubtedly achieve good figures.
And the iPad Air 2?
Surely many of you will be thinking that Apple could have left the iPad Air 2 and not launch a new model that in some aspects is better, and in others such as thickness or screen is, a priori, worse. Obviously it would have been a possibility, but let's not forget that the Air 2 looks like an old model, launched in 2014 and that until now it was more expensive than the new iPad 2017. Marketing strategy, unification of assembly lines, cheaper cost ... the reasons that led Apple to make this decision are unknown, we have already talked about the advantages of the new iPad screen, or how it includes more battery. In spite of everything, if the iPad Air 2 is available to you with a good price now that it has become "outdated" it should not be underestimated because it can be an excellent alternative.