The base model iPad has always been an attractive option for customers looking to get a great tablet for relatively affordable prices. In fact, it’s usually the first Apple device people buy to get into the ecosystem. Having decently capable internals, and a large screen, it’s not hard to see why it’s so popular.
For the 2019 model, Apple decided to bump the screen size to 10.2″”. For the 2020 8th Generation model, it follows the exact same design as last time. At first glance, this is disappointing, especially given that the iPad Air got a design refresh as well. But considering the price point, it makes sense for Apple to not put much R&D expenditure into it, and instead use an existing design (like they did with the iPhone SE).
Instead, this time the upgrades are in the insides. The processor gets a nice upgrade from the A10 Fusion to the A12 Bionic, seen in the iPhone XS. Apple says this gives the iPad a 40-percent uplift in CPU performance and up to 2x the GPU performance compared to the last generation. This is a great move, as it gives more power to the base model iPad to keep it running smoothly through Apple’s 5-year long software support plan.
Some people seem to be visibly irritated by the fact that the iPad 10.2 still uses Lightning and not USB Type-C. I was too, but it makes sense here. Due to the curved body design, it only supports the Apple Pencil (1st Generation), and that can only be charged using the Lightning port. So I’m forgiving Apple for it this time, but can we please have all Type-C products by 2022?
Another thing that still disappoints me is the non-laminated display. In simple words, it means that the glass panel isn’t “glued” to the display, rather a gap exists between then. This isn’t really visible looking at it straight-on but is seen from other angles. What bothers me about this isn’t the aesthetic deficit with non-lamination, rather the durability concerns that it presents. A small ant somehow crawled into my iPad 2017 (5th Generation), and got stuck in the gap between the glass and the display — and died. There is now an annoying black spot in the display each time I look at it, something I’m not particularly fond of.
The iPad 10.2 (2020) is still compatible with all previous-gen accessories, as expected. In conclusion, this year’s spec bump adds to the capabilities of an already capable entry-level tablet. Powered by the new iPad OS 14 with more iPad-specific apps new features such as Scribble, this $279 tablet beats many of Android’s most expensive offerings — just because of the lackluster tabled implementation in Google’s OS. And as long as that doesn’t change, I’ll stand by my statement: The only tablet anyone should buy is an iPad.
Apple iPad iPad (2020) iPad (4th Generation) iPad 10.2 iPad Air iPad Pro
Last modified: September 24, 2020
