Well, this iPad 8th Generation review will be short and sweet. The new iPad (no, not the third one from 2012), correctly known as the iPad 8th Generation is dead set the same as the 7th Generation apart from one thing.
The Processor.
Check for yourself on the Apple Website, you can choose devices to compare – I’ve scrolled through the list. Here’s what’s different.
The 8th Generation iPad gets the A12 Bionic Chip. That’s a faster processor.
It also features the Neural Engine (I separate this out, but it’s just part of the A12 chip).
Somehow, that makes the 4G model 2 grams heavier than the 7th Generation, and the WiFi only model 7 Grams heavier.
That’s it. Given that, I feel it possible to claim this as an iPad 8th Generation Review – all I can tell you is how it performs.
Done.
I sat them side by side, staring, wondering – If I was to be the father of twins, could I ever tell them apart? Probably not.
But, the 8th Generation iPad ships with iOS 14, this means a different experience from the get go.
This is the first fresh device with iOS 14 I’ve seen, so the setup screens are different.
More colourful. Less bland – and that’s nice!
But once setup, not much to see here really.
So I ran some benchmarks.
Firstly, a HTML 5 rendering test on both in Safari.
A great result for the new guy. Scoring 5204, ahead of the 3339 on the 7th Generation.
For a better look under the hood, I tested with Geekbench. The iPad 7th Generation rated 774 single core and 1427 multi-core.
NKOTB the 8th Generation smashed it with 1117 single-core and 2675 mutli-core on the CPU tests.
For Compute, again, 7th Gen at 3197, 8th Generation iPad scored 5449.
And that ladies and gentlemen is as much as you’ll ever learn about the difference between iPad 7th Gen and the 2020 iPad 8th Gen.
Importantly, it’s cheaper, at $499 that’s a great price for a powerful device that when paired with iOS 14 will do almost everything you need, and when paired with a smart-keyboard is itself a compelling laptop replacement for those doing email, word processing and social media.
Web: Apple
Trev is a Technology Commentator, Dad, Speaker and Rev Head.
He produces and hosts several popular podcasts, EFTM, Two Blokes Talking Tech, Two Blokes Talking Electric Cars, The Best Movies You’ve Never Seen, and the Private Feed. He is the resident tech expert for Triple M on radio across Australia, and is the resident Tech Expert on Channel 9’s Today Show and appears regularly on 9 News, A Current Affair and Sky News Early Edition.
Father of three, he is often found in his Man Cave.
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