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If you lot're in a bustle and don't have time to read the article, and then the best iPad for drawing is the 2021 iPad Pro 11-inch , every bit it has a better screen than the 12.9-inch version.
With the vast array of models of iPads on the marketplace, it's difficult to know which is the best Apple tree iPad for drawing specifically, as nearly reviews focus on aspects of the iPads that are just non relevant for artists.
In this article, I embrace all of the most recent versions of each type of iPad, and show y'all what makes the the all-time iPad for artists, as well as give yous an choice for the best upkeep iPad for cartoon.
The Best iPad for Drawing [2022 ]
2021 iPad Pro 11-inch
The Best Drawing iPad
- Super-fast M1 chip noticeably speeds upwardly your workflow
- 120Hz refresh rate ways no lag when drawing
- Compatible with the Apple Pencil ii with magnetic storage and wireless charging
- Fantastic battery life and low weight makes this easily portable
- Beautiful colors on the high res screen
- The Best iPad for Procreate
With peerless performance from the M1 fleck, 16GB of RAM in the larger capacity models, and a 120Hz refresh rate which ways about no lag from the Apple Pencil 2, along with the ability to utilize Photoshop and Procreate, the 11-inch iPad Pro is my pick if you lot want an iPad Pro for drawing.
Equally an creative person reviewing the iPad Pro models, the 11-inch model beats the 12.9-inch, not only considering it is cheaper and lighter and therefore better value for money, but likewise because it doesn't suffer from the low-cal blossom of the larger model that you lot see on a night screen, acquired by the XDR technology.
Colors look beautiful, and the dissimilarity and brightness are perfect. When combined with the low weight of but over 1lb, and the thirteen and a half hours of battery life, you get a device that is near impossible to fault if you lot want an iPad for a cartoon tablet.
What is the Cheapest iPad for Drawing?
2020 Apple iPad
The All-time Budget iPad for Drawing
- Excellent value for coin
- 10.ii-inch screen is in the sugariness spot for portability and usability for nigh
- The original iPad, with a tried-and-tested design
- The cheapest tablet for Procreate
- No wide colour display
If you are on a strict budget and are looking for the best cheap iPad for drawing, then you can't go wrong with the latest iteration of the original iPad.
It lacks the broad color display and storage options of the iPad Pro, and is more often than not slower to utilise, but with a 10.2-inch screen that is an ideal size if you care nigh both usability and portability, and a loftier-res screen that beats most Android competitors, the original iPad is ideally situated for those new to digital art, and is my pick for best iPad for beginner artists.
The Best iPad for Artists Comparison Table
Compare the iPad Pro for artists along with the other iPads in the below table.
| iPad | Bit & Storage | Screen Size & Resolution | Pros / Cons: | Cheque Price | |
| | 2021 iPad Pro xi-inch [The Best iPad for Cartoon ] | M1 Fleck 128GB - 2TB Storage | eleven" 2388 x 1668 | Pros: 120Hz refresh rate; Supports Apple tree Pencil 2; Super fast M1 chip Cons:Quite Expensive | |
| | 2021 iPad Pro 12.9-inch | M1 Fleck 128GB - 2TB Storage | 12.nine" 2732 10 2048 | Pros:Very large screen; M1 chip; 2D backlighting Cons:Expensive; Light flower | |
| | 2020 iPad Air | A14 Chip 64GB / 256GB Storage | 10.9" 2360 x 1640 | Pros:Good trade-off price to functioning; Wide color display; Lite Cons:Low RAM; Limited storage | |
| | 2019 iPad Mini | A12 Chip 64GB / 256GB Storage | 7.9" 2048 x 1536 | Pros:Pretty inexpensive; Extremely portable; Wide color brandish Cons:Sometime chip & less RAM; Pocket-sized screen | |
| | 2020 iPad [The All-time Budget iPad for Drawing] | A12 Chip 32GB / 128GB Storage | 10.two" 2160 x 1620 | Pros: Very inexpensive; x.2-inch screen is ideal size for many Cons:Depression RAM & limited storage; No wide color display |
Is iPad Pro Good for Cartoon?
Many beginner artists accept questions nearly whether the iPad Pro is good for drawing, is the iPad Air proficient for drawing, or even enquire, "tin you draw on an iPad?"
The simple answer is that the iPads are skillful for drawing, whether iPad Pro, Air or any other model, particularly when using the Apple Pencil, as they have beautiful high resolution displays, with well-baked, clean colors and a most lag-free tactile feel to using the Pencil, that is very much like using pen and paper.
Painting on the iPad is possibly less natural, as the Apple Pencil has a hard tip that most closely replicates existent pencils and non brushes. If you are specially interested in digital art painting, then a drawing tablet like the Wacom Intuos Pro would exist better suited to y'all, as these come with changeable nibs, including felt nibs which are very much similar using a brush. This drawing tablet is non standalone though, unlike the iPad.
All of the iPads featured in this article are good iPads for drawing and work well with Procreate. My pick of the best iPad for Procreate is the iPad Pro, with the 11-inch model specifically the best iPad Pro for Procreate.
What to Look for in the Best iPad for Illustrators and for Cartoon?
When you are specifically looking for an iPad for illustrating or for cartoon, your requirements volition exist different from those looking for an iPad for all-circular domicile employ.
From my feel, I have come upwards with the below listing of criteria that I feel are the most relevant when comparing iPads for artists. These are the criteria that I have used to score the iPads, to sort them from all-time to worst.
Full explanations of each of these follow, and so that you tin be certain that my criteria fully cover the uses that you have for your iPad.
- Screen Size & Resolution
- Screen Color Accurateness and Gamut
- Internal Storage & Memory
- Apple Pencil Compatibility
- Processor
- Value for Money
1. Screen Size & Resolution in Good iPads for Drawing
Screen size is often a compromise between weight and portability, and usability.
It helps to have a larger screen for cartoon, as you can more conspicuously run across your artwork, and gain the power to make more precise drawing strokes, but if the screen is as well big, the iPad becomes too heavy and cumbersome to use and behave for long periods of time.
After using many tablets, my preference for screen size is in the range of eleven to twelve inches as measured on the diagonal axis, as this is the sweet spot that gets you the all-time of both worlds.
For screen resolution, you generally want the highest than you tin can get. Although all iPads accept very high resolutions compared to Android cartoon tablets, the iPad Pro series take noticeably sharper, higher res displays. This means that they can meliorate brandish the fine details of your work without you having to zoom in, saving y'all an extra step than can disrupt your workflow.
2. Color Accurateness in iPads for Digital Art
The display screens in iPads are not manufactured by Apple straight, merely are third party panels, ofttimes manufactured by LG or Samsung, who are well known for producing very loftier-quality color-accurate displays.
Apple do not provide details on color accuracy of their screens, or the per centum of the sRGB color gamut that they cover, but do take a proprietary 'P3 wide color display' signifier for those panels that can display a particularly big corporeality of colors, above 100% of sRGB.
All iPads are color accurate, and virtually share substantially the same display characteristics. The but exceptions are the original iPad, which does not take a broad color brandish, and the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, which has an XDR display with mini LEDs acting every bit the backlight. This dramatically increases dissimilarity and gives amend black levels, just at the expense of calorie-free 'bloom' and bleed betwixt calorie-free and dark areas.
iii. Internal Storage & Memory
When you are dealing with large image files, internal storage tin can go a pressing issue. It might seem that 32GB is enough retention initially, simply you lot will find that this quickly gets used upwardly, and then you are reliant on the cloud, as unlike with near Android devices, you can't upgrade iPad storage with SD cards.
Don't forget that any programs you lot install will also employ internal storage – something like Procreate tin can easily take 30GB as you add brushes and image files over time.
If yous are dealing with circuitous palettes or lots of layers, then RAM can get an issue, as if this runs out, yous are left with a much slower iPad until RAM can exist freed up.
I've included the amount of RAM in each tablet in the full reviews below. Using the iPad Pro, you are unlikely to hit a state of affairs while drawing that y'all run out of RAM, but using the original iPad, yous will have to exist more conscientious with the number and complication of prototype files that you lot have open.
four. Apple Pencil Compatibility in the Best iPad for Sketching
Information technology goes without maxim that cartoon requires a stylus. Although you can use your finger on the iPad, you get a far superior experience using the Apple Pencil, which allows you to make far more accurate cartoon strokes and add together frail details with precision.
There are two generations of the Apple Pencil, with any iPad that tin can utilize the second generation also able to employ the first, although the reverse is non the example.
The Apple Pencil 1 and 2 both accept very similar cartoon performance, although the second generation feels more than like a real pencil than a plastic pointer, and too has a clever magnetic storage and wireless charging solution with the iPad Pro models.
The Apple Pencil 1, past contrast, cannot natively be stored with the iPads, and must be charged through a lightning connector.
This makes a huge difference to usability in do, and means that the Apple Pencil 2 is a real stride-upward, offering a far more than premium feel and experience over the Apple Pencil ane.
5. Processor in the Best iPad for Art
With Apple'southward latest range of processors for iPads, the iPad Pro's now sport the M1 chip, which is the same processor found in recent MacBooks. This makes a huge difference for general performance when using the iPad Pro over the standard iPad, although Adobe programs like Illustrator are not yet setup to be optimized to this new chip.
Older models of processor backside the M1 bit include the A14 plant in the iPad Air and the older models of iPad Pro, which is itself about 30% faster in graphics processing than the A12 constitute in the iPad and iPad Mini.
But overall, if you really desire to optimize your workflow for speed, and then the M1 in the iPad Pro is the elevation choice, and is office of the reason I consider this model to exist the best iPad for art.
6. Value for Money and the Best Upkeep iPad for Drawing
If upkeep is not an outcome, then you lot can become direct to the top iPad for drawing, the iPad Pro, only this is quite an expensive proposition for nigh.
You lot demand to carefully weigh upwardly what features really matter to you, as you might detect that the speedier processor and extra RAM of the iPad Pro is not something that y'all will accept advantage of with your art.
In this instance, you can save some money, and get a cheaper model that from your perspective volition still offer the same performance, such every bit the iPad Air.
Ultimately, know that whichever iPad you go with, they are all fantastic devices that volition make a existent, positive difference to your drawings and to your art.
Reviews of the Best iPad for Artists and for Drawing
Total reviews of the best iPads for artists are below. I accept ordered them from what I consider the best to the worst for the average artist, only you might adopt a different ordering if your requirements are not shut to the average.
1. 2021 Apple iPad Pro 11-inch (3rd Generation)
The Best iPad for Drawing
Specifications:
- Bit: M1
- RAM: eight GB / 16 GB (1TB+ storage models)
- Storage: 128 GB – 2 TB
- Screen Size: 11″
- Max Resolution: 2388 x 1668
- Apple Pencil Compatibility: 2nd Generation
- Colors: Wide color display (P3)
- Battery Life: 13.five hours
- Weight: 1.03 lbs (466 grams)
- Pros:
- New M1 chip is very fast
- 120 Hz refresh rate is far superior than the Air / iPad for drawing with the Apple Pencil and screen looks not bad
- Outstanding battery life and depression weight
- 2nd Gen Apple tree Pencil can be magnetically fastened to the iPad Pro for storage and charging
- Cons:
- Quite expensive
- Not all apps make use of the M1 chip however
Display
The screen doesn't quite match the Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 Pro in terms of sheer colorfulness, but looks much more natural every bit a result, with the P3 wide color display giving color accurateness that is very hard to trounce – this is well over 100% of the sRGB gamut.
The 120Hz refresh rate of the iPad Pro'southward means that there is about no discernible pen lag when, especially when compared to the 60Hz refresh rate of the cheaper models. Information technology's nearly like the on-screen cursor is magnetically attached to the neb of the Apple Pencil 2.
Speed
The M1 chip gives super fast execution of whatever commands and complex transforms or other computationally intense piece of work in Photoshop or Procreate. The 8 or 16 GB of RAM (depending on storage chapters) means that in that location is rarely any slowdown, even when yous load upwardly the tablet with browser tabs, image files, and anything you lot can recall of.
Non every program makes use of the M1 chip'due south speed advantage yet – Adobe take notably not developed their apps for it nevertheless – just this is sure to come, and in the meanwhile, all native programs are markedly faster than sometime models of the iPad Pro.
Overall
If you wanted to know which iPad is the best, then for me it would be the eleven-inch iPad Pro. I would consider this the best iPad Pro as although information technology does not have the slightly larger screen of the 12.9-inch model, it comes in at half a pound lower, and doesn't show the light bloom of the XDR display of the latter. Information technology too saves you a meaning amount of money, which makes information technology the all-time value for money out of all the iPad range.
ii. 2021 Apple iPad Pro 12.9-inch (5th Generation)
The Largest iPad for Drawing
Specifications:
- Fleck: M1
- RAM: 8 GB / xvi GB (1TB+ storage models)
- Storage: 128 GB – 2 TB
- Screen Size: 12.9″
- Max Resolution: 2732 x 2048
- Apple Pencil Compatibility: 2d Generation
- Colors: Wide color display (P3)
- Battery Life: 10.5 hours
- Weight: i.5 lbs (682 grams)
- Pros:
- Very large screen
- 120 Hz refresh rate is ideal for drawing
- 1600 nits tiptop brightness using HDR actually helps boost contrast
- Unique second backlighting brandish with 2596 local dimming zones to create much deeper and more realistic blacks
- Cons:
- Light flower around the edges of shapes is particularly noticeable
- Expensive
Display
Those looking for the best iPad for drawing and blitheness might retrieve that the larger, more than expensive version of the iPad Pro, the 12.nine-inch version, would be the all-time, just this is non the instance.
Although the screen size is excellent, the other specifications largely match the cheaper 11-inch iPad Pro. The problem is that the XDR screen of this 12.ix-inch model suffers from a meaning problem of light bloom. This is acquired by the blacks beingness much deeper, which is a positive, but results in lighter areas bleeding into the blacks in areas of high contrast.
As many employ a dark background when cartoon, this means that lite bloom is particularly noticeable for artists, and can be quite distracting.
Speed
Both the M1 fleck and the large amount of RAM mean that this iPad Pro is as fast as the cheaper 11-inch model. You will accept no memory issues, and are very unlikely to run out of storage infinite if you go for one of the college capacity models.
Overall
Although the 12.nine-inch iPad Pro and Apple tree Pencil 2 makes an excellent Apple drawing pad and pen in most respects, the calorie-free bloom of the screen, plus the extra weight and cost puts in behind the 11-inch version in my reckoning.
If yous want the larger 12.nine-inch screen, but not the light blossom, then you can endeavour to find the older 2020 iPad Pro, although bear in heed that this lacks the M1 bit and is noticeably slower than the current iPad Pro's.
3. 2020 Apple iPad (8th Generation)
The All-time iPad for Drawing on a Upkeep
Specifications:
- Chip: A12
- RAM: 3GB
- Storage: 32GB / 128GB
- Screen Size: 10.2″
- Max Resolution: 2160 x 1620
- Apple Pencil Compatibility: 1st Generation
- Colors: Normal color display
- Battery Life: ten hours
- Weight: ane.08 lbs (490 grams)
- Pros:
- Fantabulous value for money
- Original iPad with tried-and-tested pattern
- 10.ii-inch screen tin can be the sugariness spot for size
- The cheapest iPad available
- Cons:
- Only start gen Apple Pencil support
- No wide colour P3 display
- Low internal storage
Display
As an affordable iPad for drawing, you miss out on some of the perks of the more expensive models, similar the P3 broad color display. But the color accuracy, resolution and dissimilarity are however superior to most Android tablets with which this directly competes on price.
Side-by-side you can see the departure with the brandish of the iPad Pro, but on its own, the iPad tin still accident yous away with Apple's usual sharp, clear display, with natural, brilliant colors.
Speed
With only 3GB of RAM and the older A12 chip, this iPad for digital fine art tin have a few seconds longer to process computational heavy tasks in Procreate, but information technology always gets at that place, and is able to do anything y'all inquire of it from a drawing perspective.
You just get first generation Apple Pencil support, which means charging via the lightning port, merely the actual drawing functioning is largely on a par with the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil 2, albeit with a little more lag.
Overall
The original iPad may non reach the heights of the iPad Pro, but when you lot take price into account, it is excellent value for coin, and my pick for the best iPad for drawing on a upkeep.
4. 2020 Apple iPad Air (4th Generation)
Excellent value for coin
Specifications:
- Chip: A14
- RAM: 4GB
- Storage: 64GB / 256GB
- Screen Size: 10.9″
- Max Resolution: 2360 10 1640
- Apple tree Pencil Compatibility: 2nd Generation
- Colors: Broad colour display (P3)
- Battery Life: 10.5 hours
- Weight: ane lb (458 grams)
- Pros:
- Very good trade-off between price & performance with the A14 processor 30% faster in graphics processing than the A12 in the standard iPad
- Wide colour display nearly matches the iPad Pro
- Lightweight, all the same with a nigh 11 inch screen
- Uniform with the Apple Pencil 2
- Cons:
- Depression amount of RAM is not ideal for photo editing
- Limited internal storage
Display
A high resolution 10.ix-inch panel with the P3 wide colour display is as skilful as you would wait, giving brilliant, natural colors in a screen with a good corporeality of contrast and sharp detail.
In fact, this brandish is the closest yous will get to the iPad Pro display, and is for me an excellent upkeep pick for those not quite able to beget the high price of the iPad Pro.
It doesn't have the loftier refresh rate of the iPad Pro, meaning slightly more lag when cartoon on the iPad Air using the Apple Pencil 2, but you take to look carefully to detect this.
Speed
In that location is no M1 chip, only the A14 flake in the iPad Air for cartoon is not that much slower in practice, although the 4GB of RAM tin crusade some slowdown if you lot have a lot of layers in your drawing file or want to do something particularly computationally circuitous.
Overall
With Apple tree Pencil 2 compatibility, a screen size in the sweet spot for almost people, and a price that is about half that of the comparable iPad Pro, the iPad Air for artists is the tablet for you if value for money is your primary criterion.
5. 2019 Apple iPad Mini (5th Generation)
Most Portable iPad
Specifications:
- Chip: A12
- RAM: 3GB
- Storage: 64GB / 256GB
- Screen Size: seven.9″
- Max Resolution: 2048 ten 1536
- Apple Pencil Compatibility: 1st Generation
- Colors: Wide color brandish (P3)
- Bombardment Life: 12.five hours
- Weight: 0.66 lbs (300 grams)
- Pros:
- I of the cheapest iPads
- Extremely portable with its pocket-size screen and light weight
- Excellent bombardment life
- Wide color display for lovely colors
- Cons:
- Older A12 chip and less RAM makes photo editing harder
- Small screen
- Doesn't use USB-C
Brandish
Although the iPad Mini comes with only a 7.nine-inch screen, not much larger than some phones these days, information technology still packs in the P3 wide color display, plus a high resolution, meaning that it is even so very usable for drawing.
Indeed, the depression weight and long battery life make it the most portable iPad, and ideal for those ever on the move.
Speed
The A12 chip matches that in the original iPad, and shows the same level of functioning – information technology can take a few seconds longer to perform circuitous actions, simply always gets there in the finish.
Drawing on the iPad Mini has some lag, but is by and large very good, although retrieve that the starting time generation Apple Pencil must be charged via a lightning connector, non wirelessly as with the second generation Pencil.
Overall
If maximum portability is your most important metric, so the small size and very light weight (this is the lightest iPad) mean that the iPad Mini is exceptionally like shooting fish in a barrel to carry around, and the long battery life should go along you cartoon all mean solar day.
Last Thoughts: What'south the Best Drawing iPad?
There's a lot of models of iPad available right now. I've merely included the most recent in my roundup, but if you wanted to salvage some money, then the previous versions of each model broadly follow the same ranking every bit you see above.
But if you want the ultimate in drawing experience, so nothing beats the iPad Pro.
2021 iPad Pro 11-inch
The All-time Drawing iPad
- Super-fast M1 chip noticeably speeds upwards your workflow
- 120Hz refresh rate means no lag when cartoon
- Compatible with the Apple Pencil 2 with magnetic storage and wireless charging
- Fantastic battery life and low weight makes this easily portable
- Beautiful colors on the high res screen
- The Best iPad for Procreate
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