Technology
Apple’s FIRST 5G iPad has a better screen than your TV – and is faster than a laptop
APPLE has just launched a new 5G iPad Pro at it’s ‘Spring Loaded’ event.
Experts and Apple analysts have been predicting the imminent release of a new iPad with a screen that’s better than your telly.
Read our Apple Event 2021 live blog for the latest updates
The iPad comes in two screen sizes which are 11 inches and 12.9 inches.
Both are said to have a 75 times faster CPU performance.
It relies on Apple’s new M1 chip, which makes it the fastest device of its kind.
The 12.9 inch offering has a liquid retina display.
The iPad Pro 12.9 inch screen has a liquid Retina display[/caption]
The iPad Pro comes with a new and improved camera.
You’ll get better low-light performance, an ultra-wide selfie cam, and studio-quality audio recording for your videos.
There’s adaptive zoom on video calls too, so the camera will adjust and pan to keep you centerstage.
You can order iPad Pro from April 30.
The 11 inch iPad Pro starts at $799.
The 12 inch iPad Pro starts at $1099.
There’s a new white colour option for the iPad (as well as the traditional black and grey alternative).
The new iPad Pro comes in white, grey and black[/caption]
There’s a new 2TB configuration for the iPad Pro, which is frankly ludicrous storage capacity.
And there’s support for Thunderbolt and USB 4.0, making the iPad Pro more versatile than ever.
You’ll be able to hook it up with super-fast external storage and high-performance displays, as a result.
But perhaps the most exciting change (aside from M1) is new support for 5G.
Apple only introduced 5G support with last year’s iPad, so the tech has made its way to iPad fairly quickly.
If you’re getting the bigger iPad Pro, you’re in for a visual treat as well.
The new iPad has an upgraded display that’s called Liquid Retina XDR.
It’s got 1,000 nits of full screen brightness, 1,600 nits peak brightness, and mimics the performance of Apple’s pro-grade Pro XDR display.
Apple says the screen offers the brightest highlights, as well as details in the darkest parts of an image.
It’s thanks to revolutionary Mini LED tech – there are 10,000 Mini LEDs inside the screen.
The result is a 1,000,000:1 contrast ratio, thanks to the LED density and dimming zones.
Basically, the iPad Pro gives you better contrast, brighter visuals, and a wider range of colours.
What is the Apple Spring Event 2021?
Apple regularly hosts special events in the spring.
It’s usually a chance to showcase products that aren’t the flagship iPhone.
This includes spin-off iPhones, iPads or accessories.
Apple confirmed the April 20 event last week, but didn’t say what would be announced.
Mini LED explained
Here’s what you need to know…
When it comes to screens, there are lots of types.
You’ve probably heard of an LCD and a plasma, but there are other premium displays available too: like OLED and Mini LED.
Your typical TV or mid-range smartphone will use an LCD screen, which stands for liquid-crystal display.
But these crystals don’t light up on their own – for that, you’d want an OLED.
Instead an LCD screen uses lots of LEDs to “backlight” it, allowing you to see a picture.
Part of the problem with this method is that it doesn’t give the TV very much control over some of the finer aspects of video – like the highs and lows of brightness and contrast.
One way to solve this is to make the LEDs smaller, so you can fit more in.
A bit like cramming more pixels into a TV lets you offer more detail, the same is true of LEDs.
So a Mini LED TV is one where the LEDs are much smaller, with many more of them making up the screen.
That way, the TV can provide more detailed lighting in very specific areas of the screen.
The end result is that you get a more accurate representation of the original video.
Most read in Phones & Gadgets
In other news, Samsung has launched a “try before you buy” scheme for its most expensive mobiles to date.
Apple is rumoured to be working on a foldable phone to rival Samsung.
And, check out this juicy new iPhone 13 leak.
Do you want a new iPad? Let us know in the comments…
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