With the release of Apple's iPad Pro, we can now buy into by far the biggest ever iOS device ever made, but is there actually any creative musical advantage to that massive screen and beefed up architecture? Apple would certainly have us believe so, but what about the developers making apps for it? We ask five of them for their take…
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Sinevibes
"iPad Pro is certainly a very promising device, as it has now made the final leap towards matching our laptops' power and screen size. But it is now up to app developers to make good use of all this. More tracks, more effects, longer timeline, etc - that's all a given. But will we be able to use two synth apps side by side with Split View in iOS 9? And will we have more precise editing abilities thanks to iPad Pro's greater multitouch tracking resolution and Apple Pencil? I certainly hope so."
Artemiy Pavlov
Auxy
"You could build a fantastic music-making experience for iPad Pro, and if a lot of people use the device, it makes sense for companies to invest in new apps for it.
"We believe the next big thing will happen on smaller screens, though. Phones are the primary computer for the next generation of creators. It's always in your pocket and will be the go-to device when creativity strikes. A lot of people will be making serious music on their iPhones only, and our mission at Auxy is to provide fantastic tools for this shift to happen."
Henrik Lenberg
Imaginando
"I think the main advantage of the new iPad Pro for musicians (besides the significant increase in the screen size and the computing power) is the ability to smoothly run two applications side by side. With the huge amount of powerful music apps on the market, having more than one on screen can make
all the difference.
"I was expecting that the screen would be able to detect pressure, but it seems to be limited to Pencil usage. That could finally give us the possibility of a true MPC-style experience on iPad."
Nuno Santos
Audulus
"The iPad Pro is great news for musicians. Music software workflows lend themselves to touch more than to a mouse. Existing iPads have been great for mobile music, but finally we're seeing an iPad large enough to replace the UI of a control surface, recording console, hardware synth, etc. Personally, I can't wait to see Audulus running on iPad Pro!"
Taylor Holliday
Olympia Noise Co
"We're seeing the iPad continue to grow in its utility for musicians, both as an instrument and as a studio device. One of the most obvious (but also under-appreciated) things about the large screen size [of the iPad Pro] is the potential for new workflows. Imagine MIDI or controller apps open side by side with a synth or sampler. It becomes a more modular system. But I think this is really a part of the bigger picture for iOS musicians - new abilities like inter-device audio and the new Audio Units format are also going to have a huge impact on the way we use the iPad to make music."
Ben Kamen
