Apple iPad differences?

[HEN12Y]

So I wanted to pick up something for sofa surfing, some Netflix on the commute, emailing on a beanbag rather than at my desk etc. I was looking to pick up a 2nd hand iPad, probably the 12.9 version. Scrolling through eBay and CEX the price differences between the 3rd gen 2018 A12X and the 5th Gen 2021 M1 seem to be in the 200 range, now going from a 500 iPad to a 700 iPad for the M1 and 3 years less-old is arguably money well spent (perhaps!) but the brand new ones at over 1k are too much for what I want to do really.

I was doing a fairly detailed comparison on GsM arena between all the versions https://m.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?...&idPhone2=9387

But apart from the CPU and the LCD to Liquid Retina change there’s not much in it, it seems.

I’m never going to be encoding iMovie films with this, so is there any real reason to not go for the cheaper older one?

Ive been trying to find functional differences which have changed over the generations, like a changelog, but no real success! Anyone know of one? I don’t want to get the older one and find out that it doesn’t support an external display, or some other widget that I end up yearning for!!

[Dave O'Sullivan]

As with most Apple stuff, if you intend on keeping it for a while, go for the newest one you can afford.
They’ll eventually stop supporting the older stuff so the newer you go, the longer you’ll have until that’s a problem.

[wileeeeeey]

So long as it has Face ID it will be modern enough.

There are new iPads due in May apparently so I would consider waiting a few weeks if you want a new one from a shop

My wife has the 12.9 pro and I have the 11 pro. We both seem to only really at them breakfast bar while cooking/eating or on a plane if ever going on holiday. Don’t think we’ve ever used them on the sofa but my mum is glued to hers on the sofa all day long.

[Phil Lee]

If you can hold off for a couple of weeks there is a refresh of the iPad Air and iPad Pro lines coming. There is going to be a larger iPad Air, OLED iPad Pro models and a new Magic keyboard. Whilst you may not want the latest and greatest, it will mean the current models will be reduced.

[David_D]

My A1670 - iPad 12.9 2nd gen - is still going strong. That model was apparently brought out in 2017. I can’t remember but may have got from the Apple refurbed section of their site. I don’t make huge demands but it handles all the streaming apps amd browsing without any drama.

As others have suggested, the newer models will become obsolete later than newer ones so buying a newish just superseded model might give best long-term value.

There’s some comparison functionality here:

https://www.apple.com/ipad/compare/

[xxnick1975]

I'd go with the cheapest option and see how it goes. I'd actually go for the smaller one if using for commuting, but my trains rammed of a morning.

Paid £150 for a gen 6 9.7.last year and it's does everything you need. If I lose it, drop it, etc not a huge deal

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