Apple iPad Apple 2022 iPad 10.9-inch, Wi-Fi + Cellular, 64GB Review

The 2022 iPad is a weird one. It's got a great screen and a surprisingly fast chip, but Apple made some baffling choices that hold it back. The one thing you need to know is this: it's a fantastic media machine that completely falls apart if you try to do real work on it.

The A14 Bionic chip is the star here. It lands in the 79th percentile for CPU power, which is frankly overkill for a tablet that scores a dismal 38.6 for productivity. It breezes through streaming, games, and web browsing. But that 4GB of RAM? It's in the bottom third of all tablets. Try multitasking with more than a couple of apps and you'll feel the pinch immediately.

At $289, it's a solid deal if your needs are simple. You're getting a premium Apple screen and a powerful chip for a budget price. But you're also buying into serious compromises. For pure entertainment, it's worth it. For anything else, think twice.

Don't even look at the iPad Pro here; that's a different league. The real competition is the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ and the Microsoft Surface Pro 11. The Tab S10+ gives you more RAM, expandable storage, and a better aspect ratio for media, often for a similar price. The Surface Pro 11 runs full Windows, making it an actual laptop replacement, while this iPad struggles with basic productivity. This iPad wins on app polish and that slick Apple ecosystem, but loses on flexibility.

Buy this iPad if you want a beautiful screen for watching Netflix, browsing the web, and FaceTiming family. It excels as a couch companion. But if you need to write documents, edit photos, or juggle multiple apps regularly, the limited RAM and awkward Apple Pencil support will frustrate you. For those users, the Samsung Galaxy Tab S10+ or a used iPad Air is a smarter buy.