iPad 10.2in APPLE CHOICE
A bigger screen and
a smart connector –
the upgrades are
minimal but useful.HHHHH
Apple Pencil and
Smart Keyboard
support
10.2-in screen
32GB option
A10 chip doesn’t
hold up in all tasksVERDICT
Despite the upgrades,
the iPad is still Apple’s
most affordable tablet.macformat.com @macformat DECEMBER 2019 | MACFORMAT | 81take around four hours to
fully charge, though. In an age
where the iPhone 11 Pro comes
with an 18W fast-charger in the
box and fully charges in a little
over 90 minutes, this feels
painfully slow. It’s worth noting,
though, that the iPad 10.2-inch is
fast-charge compatible, so you could
invest in an 18W charger. We actually
swapped out the 12W charger for Apple’s
30W USB-C charger and were able to get
much faster charging speeds.
The cameras are basic but perfectly
acceptable for a quick FaceTime call, a quick
snap or a bit of video capture. Images with the
front camera tend to look soft and blown out,
but that’s to be expected from a 1.2MP selfie
camera. More importantly for a tablet these
days, the rear camera acts as a fully
operational AR gaming tool.
Performance
The iPad handled certain low-demand games
okay, but it tended to struggle with more
power-hungry options like FIFA Football.
As mentioned, AR apps are supported and
we found that the ones we tried worked well.
The A10 Fusion chip and memory boost
(from 2GB to 3GB) has a noticeable impact
on the iPad’s performance. Multitasking
with up to three apps works seamlessly,
and switching between several apps and
windows is quick and easy. Obviously,
iPadOS makes multi-window app support
more robust, and Slide Over and Split View
are easier to manipulate.
If you intend on using Sidecar (using the
iPad as a fully-functional second screen with
your Mac), be warned that it’s not a flawless
experience on an iPad with this kind of
processing power. Some apps work well, but
there’s a noticeable lag with heavy-duty apps
like InDesign and Photoshop. For designing,
video and photo editing, Sidecar works a great
deal better on an iPad Pro with an A12X
Bionic chip and at least 4GB of memory.
The A10 chipset is aged but generally it is
adequate for the basic iPad. Our desire for
more internal storage than the given 32GB or
128GB is more pressing and sorely missed.
While the new entry-level iPad is not a
radical transformation, it is bigger and better
than ever before. Certainly, if you have a
fourth-generation or older iPad, then it’s
worth upgrading for the Apple Pencil and
Smart Keyboard support, as well as the
benefits of using iPadOS.
MATT SWIDER & SRIVATS LAKSHMANThe new 10.2-inch screen is
great for multitasking in iPadOS.