The Alexa Tablet 12 Pro is hailed as Amazon’s most advanced tablet that the brand has built, but how does it compare to the flagship iPad Pro?
Ahead of our Alexa Tablet 12 Pro review, we’ve compared its specs to the iPad Pro (M5), which not only earned a 4.5-star rating from us but also has a spot on our best tablets round up. Read on to see what separates the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro from the iPad Pro, and decide which one will likely suit you better.
Price and Availability
There’s a pretty hefty price difference between the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro and the iPad Pro, which could be the sole reason why you choose one over the other. While the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro has a starting RRP of £449.99/$409.99, the iPad Pro starts at an eye-watering £1199/$1199.
Both, however, have optional add-ons and upgrade that significant bump their price up.
Both have two display options
Both the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro and iPad Pro come with two different display options that promise to reduce glare. Alongside its standard display, the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro has a Nanomatte alternative that promises a “first-of-its-kind cinematic viewing experience”.
To achieve this, Amazon partnered with Corning, the brand behind Gorilla Glass, on a process that etches pixel-aligned texture into the glass to help preserve detail and colour accuracy. This means the Nanomatte option should be glare-free and look great both indoors and outdoors too.
Similarly, the iPad Pro offers a nano-texture glass option on its 1TB and 2TB models, for an additional £/$150. This panel not only significantly reduces glare but the matte finish helps make it easier to look at for longer periods of time. It’s a shame that it costs the extra money, but it’s definitely a worthy upgrade.
iPad Pro comes as either an 11- or 13-inch model
As its name suggests, the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro comes as a 12-inch device. In comparison, the iPad Pro is available as either an 11- or 13-inch model.
Choosing between the two will mainly depend on your personal preference and what you plan on using the tablet for. For example, if you want a more portable and compact device then the 11-incher will likely suit you best, while the larger 13-inch iteration gives you more screen real estate to choose from.
Otherwise, both the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro and iPad Pro are impressively portable, though the iPad Pro is much thinner than Amazon’s alternative. While the 11-inch iPad Pro is 5.3mm, the 13-inch measures in at just 5.1mm thick. In comparison, the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro is 6.5mm.
Alexa+ vs Siri AI
Arguably one of the biggest selling points of the Amazon Alexa Tablet 12 Pro is that it’s fitted with Alexa+, the newest iteration of Amazon’s voice assistant that allows you hands-free control of the device. This means you’ll be able to ask Alexa questions and receive relevant and personalised responses too.
Not only that, but the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro also includes On-Screen Intelligence that allows Alexa to see what you’re doing on-screen and provide relevant support too.
Instead, the iPad Pro now supports Siri AI which is Apple’s own upgraded voice assistant. Although we’re yet to specifically review Siri AI within the iPad Pro, we’ve found it to be much more reliable than its predecessor.
Google Play Store vs App Store
Unlike the Fire Tab series which runs on Amazon’s own Fire OS, the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro is an Android tablet and comes with access to the full Google Play Store. That includes a plethora of apps like YouTube, Netflix and Google Docs too. It’s a seriously long-overdue upgrade for Amazon’s tablets, and one we’re glad to finally see.
In comparison, the iPad Pro runs Apple’s own App Store. We should note that although the iPad’s apps are great, and with the M5 chip at its core they run smoothly too, the iPad Pro doesn’t run macOS apps. Plenty of apps are optimised for the iPad Pro, however there are some Mac apps that haven’t received that treatment yet.
Both have respective accessories
You can choose to pair the Alexa Tablet 12 Pro with its dedicated Alexa Tablet Pro Pen and Pro Keyboard, with the former promises 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity, tilt detection, magnetic docking and wireless charging, for seamless handwriting and sketching. Otherwise, the Keyboard magnetically attaches to the Tablet 12 Pro without needing a Bluetooth connection either.
Similarly, the iPad Pro can be paired with either the Apple Pencil Pro or Pencil (USB-C) and the Magic Keyboard too. The Magic Keyboard, like the Alexa Tablet’s own, also magnetically attaches to the iPad Pro and sports a floating design for more viewing angles and a sleek finish too.
Of course, neither tablet comes with the accessories in the box. The Alexa Tablet Pro Pen has an RRP of £79.99 while the Pro Keyboard is £129.99. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Apple’s iPad Pro accessories are more expensive, with the Apple Pencil starting at £79 (USB-C) while the Magic Keyboard will set you back a whopping £299.
As we mentioned earlier, budget will play a major factor when choosing between the Amazon Alexa Tablet 12 Pro and iPad Pro. With a starting price of £1199, which is before factoring in accessories or the nano-texture display, the iPad Pro is undeniably a seriously hefty investment and is best suited for creatives and professionals who demand such power.
On the other hand, the Amazon Alexa Tablet 12 Pro is a more affordable option and will suit households, students and professionals on a tighter budget. We’ll update this versus once we review the new Alexa Tablet 12 Pro.