Originally posted March 31st, 2016 by rob-ART morgan, mad scientist

There are key FEATURE differences between the two models of iPad Pro but this article we will document the PERFORMANCE differences.

GRAPH LEGEND

12.9-INCH IPAD PRO = 12.9-inch iPad Pro with 128G flash storage (4G RAM)

9.7-INCH IPAD PRO = 9.7-inch iPad Pro with 256G flash storage (2G RAM)

IPAD AIR 2 = 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 with 128G flash storage (2G RAM)

IPHONE 6S PLUS = iPhone 6s Plus with 128G flash storage (2G RAM)

All the benchmarks we ran are available on the Apple App Store for iOS devices except JetStream which is a browser benchmark. They are cross-platform so you can run them under Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Android devices as well.

GEEKBENCH OVERALL PROCESSOR PERFORMANCE

Geekbench 3 is Primate Labs' cross-platform processor benchmark, with a scoring system that separates single-core and multi-core performance and workloads that simulate real-world scenarios. The Overall Score combines Integer, Floating-Point, and Memory Performance. (LONGER graph bar means FASTER)

GEEKBENCH MEMORY PERFORMANCE

We separated the Memory performance score to show the clear advantage of 12.9 inch iPad Pro in both speed and capacity of RAM. (LONGER graph bar means FASTER)

GFXBENCH METAL T-REX

Apple Metal is used for this graphics intensive animation of a T-Rex chasing a motocross rider. We selected Offscreen 1080p (LONGER graph bar means FASTER)

FUTUREMARK SLING SHOT EXTREME

Sling Shot is an OpenGL ES 3.0 benchmark that tests the full range of API features including multiple render targets, instanced rendering, uniform buffers and transform feedback. The test also includes volumetric lighting, depth of field and bloom post-processing effects. We ran it Offscreen at 1920x1080. (LONGER graph bar means FASTER)

BASEMARK METAL U-BOAT SIMULATION

This Metal graphics benchmark measures Lighting, Compute, Instancing, and Post-Processing speed. The Overall Score combines all four. (LONGER graph bar means FASTER)

JETSTREAM JAVASCRIPT BENCHMARK

JetStream is a JavaScript benchmark suite focused on the most advanced web applications. (LONGER graph bar means FASTER)

ANALYSIS

Despite being upstaged by the NEW 9.7-inch iPad Pro's higher rez cameras and wide color gamut, true tone display, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is still the 'big dog' when it comes to CPU, memory, and GPU performance.

The 12.9-inch iPad Pro also imports photos faster with its USB 3.0 rated Lightning connector (which we will document in a separate article -- soon).

If you are choosing between the 9.7-inch iPad Air 2 and the 9.7-inch iPad Pro, the latter is worth the extra $$ based on performance and features.

KEY FEATURE DIFFERENCES IN IPAD PROS

Check out our earlier article for a summary of key feature differences between the 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro. To see a feature comparison of all models of iPad, go HERE.

All the benchmarks we ran are available on the Apple App Store for iOS devices except JetStream which is a browser benchmark. They are cross-platform so you can run them under Windows, Mac OS X, Linux, and Android devices as well.