After years of outdated iPads, there are now fresh models

up and down the Apple store, which of course,

begs the question, should you buy an iPad in 2019?

Apple got a lot right with the first gen iPad.

The overall size and form factor, well definitely evolved,

they're still actually not that far away

from the iPads that we have today.

For example, look at battery life.

Back when the iPad first launched,

it had a pretty impressive 10 hours on a charge.

Fast forward nearly 10 years later and surprise, surprise,

every single iPad you can buy today

still has that exact same 10 hour rating.

Things got a lot thinner with the iPad 2,

where basics we expect such as cameras were added

and it wasn't until the third generation iPad

that we got the much needed retina display

which was far, far better than what you had

on the original 2 iPads.

Beyond that though, there really wasn't a lot

of evolution on the iPad front, that is until 2012

with the introduction of the iPad Mini.

This shrunk things down to the form factor

that believe it or not, we basically still have today

with the current iPad Mini.

There were quite a few updates over the next few years

including the introduction of the iPad Air.

But the big news really was the iPad Pro in 2015.

This brought for the first time, a physical keyboard,

a much larger 12.9 inch screen as well as the introduction

of the Apple Pencil for the very first time.

Now the iPad lineup is actually the broadest

that it's ever been.

You have options all the way from $330 to an eye-wateringly

expensive $1,900 for the maxed out version of the iPad Pro.

First of all, we have the iPad iPad, which is I guess,

the best name for the base model of the iPad.

Now sure, you lose out on some of the high-end features,

but only $330, this really is my go to answer

when most people ask, what's the iPad I should go for?

Next up in the line is the newly refreshed 2019 iPad Mini.

Now for a while, this was still being sold,

but it was way, way out of date.

Now thankfully, while it hasn't seen the biggest hardware

update, it has seen a major internal upgrade,

which really does bring it back up to that 2019 spec

that you expect when you're paying $400 for an iPad.

At $500, there's the iPad Air.

Now this is also refreshed for 2019.

It has very similar specs to that iPad Mini.

You can really think of this as an upgrade

from the iPad iPad, sure it's a little bit more expensive,

but you're getting a better display.

You're getting support for things such as the smart keyboard

and you do get those more modern specs.

Last, but definitely not least, we have the big guy.

The iPad Pro, now available in not only an 11 inch,

but a 12.9 inch size.

First of all, you get the best displays on any iPad here.

And there are a lot of other major advantages.

You've got the much better Apple Pencil support.

You've got USB-C, you've got great speakers.

Really this is the top of the line,

but it definitely costs top of the line prices.

It seems like a great time to buy an iPad right?

We've got brand new options pretty much from top to bottom.

But of course, the real question is

why does the iPad still exist and which one should you

even consider buying here in 2019?

Let's start with the $330 iPad iPad.

Now we did an entire video all about this

when it came out last year, but as of right now,

it doesn't look like it's going to see

any kind of major update for 2019.

That's not exactly a bad thing though.

For most people, this is the iPad that I actually recommend.

And there are a lot of reasons for that.

Now because I wanted to have a little bit

of a bigger scope to this video, I sat down

with a few people around the office and I asked them

how they used their own iPad iPads.

iPad iPads.

- So far I have not run into any limitations

with using the iPad, you know, the lower end version of it.

I feel like I'm not losing anything,

but it's just if I had an iPad Pro, it would be,

maybe I could have more capabilities.

I haven't really lost anything.

- I was using that to control the audio for the setup.

It's way easier to name the files, the inputs,

routing, everything like that on the iPad app

versus the touch style on the actual audio recording device.

We also use logic to do a backup recording

so there's a logic app that I can control

the thing from across the room.

So most of the time, I use that iPad for just light

audio control in our studio.

- I've been recently using the beat making

program FL Studio and a lot

of the plugins,

the playlist and different aspects

of the program get really congested

on the screen, so just being able to drag and drop

one of those things onto the screen just so I have

another thing to look at, it's really helped me out a lot.

So that's I'm mainly using it, not as the main power driver,

but to assist my MacBook Pro.

- The basics are all here.

The screen is decent, although there is a screen gap

which you find on those higher end models.

And the hardware itself is very similar,

as well as you do have the exact same pencil

and crayon support from the Mini as well as the Air.

Performance really is the only downside.

Here you'll find the Apple A10 processor

with two gigs of RAM, as opposed to the Apple A12

with three gigs of RAM on the higher end Air

as well as on the higher end Mini.

Now it sounds like a lot on paper, however,

in reality, it's not a big deal.

So even if you're trying to take your iPad

and turn it into a laptop replacement,

unless you're doing like hardcore gaming

or a lot of very memory intensive programs,

the iPad iPad actually works totally fine.

And especially if you're using it as a content consumption

device, which I assume most people are doing when they're

spending $330 on an iPad, it really works completely fine.

I think a lot of people get way wound up in all the specs.

And while it's nice to have a more powerful device,

this is still absolutely no slouch.

This is actually a surprisingly straightforward decision.

If you're buying an iPad, you should pick up the base model

unless you need some of the other higher end features.

So sure, if you want a bigger display or smaller display,

the Mini and the Pro are both available.

If you want the absolute best screen,

you want the absolute best keyboard experience,

then you can consider upgrading.

But for most people, the basic iPad iPad

is absolutely the best move.

For 330 bucks, it's actually even pretty reasonably priced.

- It's been almost four years since the iPad Mini

has seen an update, but now in 2019,

it's finally offered with more modern specs.

Powered by the A12 bionic chip found

in this generation's iPhone XR and XS,

the Mini is definitely more capable than it's ever been.

But performance only tells half the story.

Unsurprisingly, form factor and size is why

you'd even consider the Mini in the first place.

Phones have gotten bigger, this is the iPhone XS Max

which is the same vertical length as the iPad Mini screen.

But not only that, laptops have gotten much more powerful

and thinner and tablets like the higher end iPad Pro

have not improved, but have also become

more expensive and niche.

This new iPad Mini with its updated specs sits

right in the middle of all of that.

And I think it's honestly the one

that people should consider buying the most.

First, while it's not as heavy hitting or fully featured

as the flagship iPad Pro, you're not compromising much

with the 2019 Mini, it runs that same full tablet

iteration of iOS, just scaled down to a 7.9 inch screen.

It has the same multitasking with the same app management,

and even has the same home screen and dock.

It's actually comical how small and cramped it is

at points, but still very useful.

The iPad Mini size also makes it easier to hold

and operate than larger iPads if you tend

to move around a lot in your day.

Hey look, I move around a lot in the day.

I move from my chair to my other chair.

Here in the office, when we're going over video scripts

before a shoot, having something that I can easily take

around with minimal thought and even have it fit

in my back pocket has become super handy.

And if you grab the LTE version like I did for $130 more,

having an always connected tiny iPad just opens up

tons of use cases which also means I'll be more inclined

to keep using it instead of shoving it in my junk drawer

after three weeks like every other iPad that I've owned.

I especially like that the iPad Mini is still small enough

to type with your thumbs, it's such a little usability thing

that goes a longer way than I expected.

But the real icing on the cake for me,

is that it is only $70 more than that iPad iPad,

but with updated specs and a better looking screen.

That to me is perfect, especially if you're

down with the size or even if you're not,

but are willing to compromise.

- The next step up the ladder is the new iPad Air.

And well new might be a slight exaggeration,

because this is essentially a mix of a bunch

of different parts from previous generation iPads.

For example, the design is almost identical

to the 10.5 inch previous generation iPad Pro.

Now because of this, even though the iPad Pro,

the iPad Air and the iPad iPad all have very similar

form factors, they have three different screen sizes.

The iPad iPad is 9.7, this is 10.5

and the iPad Pro is 11 inch.

The only real difference here is

just how big the bezels are.

While the screen size isn't a big difference,

the panel itself is nicer here than on the iPad iPad,

mostly thanks being laminated to the glass.

And it does share the exact same pencil support.

So if you plug in a first generation Apple Pencil,

it will work just as well, although while I guess

this is working just as well.

(laughing)

What is a bigger deal is the smart connector.

Now with this, you can use the exact same keyboard

from the 10.5 inch iPad Pro, and what this means

is that it is very easy to have

a fully wired keyboard on your iPad.

Now sure, there are definitely Bluetooth options.

And realistically, they're going to be a lot cheaper

and give you more functionality.

But I like how thin this is.

I like the idea that you don't have to worry

about syncing, about charging, anything like that.

The only problem though, is that $160,

this very much pushes the iPad Air into Pro territory.

And this kinda comes down to

what you actually want to do with your iPad.

If you're just using it as a content and consumption device,

the software keyboard is totally fine.

But for me, I actually want to get some more real work done.

So I'm sitting around and I wanna do email,

I wanna be able to write up documents,