Hands-On With the iPad Pro's Nano-Texture Glass - Is It Worth the Upgrade?

[MacRumors]

The M4 iPad Pro models that Apple released earlier this year have a display upgrade option that allows you to purchase nano-texture display glass, which is supposed to cut down on glare.

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We've already reviewed the iPad Pro, but we thought we'd revisit the nano-texture glass upgrade to see if it's worth the purchase price.

First introduced with the Pro Display XDR, nano-texture glass is etched at a nanometer scale, which is meant to preserve image quality while scattering ambient light to cut down on glare. It is the most matte display type that Apple makes, and Apple claims that it is useful for high-end, color-managed workflows or demanding ambient lighting environments.

The iPad Pro is the first iPad with nano-texture as an option, and it's previously been reserved for the Studio Display and Pro Display XDR. Nano-texture is a premium feature, so it costs an additional $100 over the standard glass. It's also only available on 1TB or 2TB iPad Pro models, so you do need to shell out at least $1,600 to get it on the 1TB 11-inch iPad Pro.

Nano-texture on the larger iPad Pro will cost at least $1,999, which is the price of the 1TB model plus an extra $100 for the glass upgrade. It is an upgrade targeted at pro users and those with specific needs, and not everyone is going to want to opt for the matte design. The grippier texture of the nano-glass does feel better for writing on with an Apple Pencil, but if that's a factor for you, you're better off checking out something like Astropad's Rock Paper Pencil.

While nano-texture does a good job cutting down on glare, it does impact the contrast and crispness of the display, so it is serving a specific purpose for select workflows where mitigating light is important.

As with the nano-texture versions of Apple's displays, the nano-texture iPad Pro requires some special care. Apple recommends only cleaning it with the polishing cloth that's included in the box as other cleaning cloths can cause damage.

Given the caveats and the high price tag, the nano-texture display isn't for everyone, but it is a good option for those who know they need extra help addressing glare.

Article Link: Hands-On With the iPad Pro's Nano-Texture Glass - Is It Worth the Upgrade?

 

[furqan8421]

I will say I agree it’s not for everyone but it’s been great for me

I get lots of glare and the screen does a fantastic job of addressing it. I can see how people feel it washes out the blacks some but I’d rather that than not seeing much of anything at all

Colors etc all look great and at night without glare it still looks fantastic

 

[ghanwani]

I guess they have to figure how to charge $100 for disabling temporal dithering before we see any progress there.

I tried it in store and while it does reduce glare, it does nothing for temporal dithering. The edges of letters still look like they are moving and cause eye strain for me.

 

[HouseLannister]

I bought both the 11" and 13" in the regular display. Saw the nano at the Apple store and was unimpressed. The glare is less, but the text was harder to read at small fonts and I had to crank the brightness higher, which would eat more battery. Plus I am never going to remember to carry around the magic Apple hanky.

 

[NoSoup4U]

A friend of mine looked all the options in store, then bought the nano-texture glass just for the anti-glare effect. She's a professional musician, has her "sheet" music on an iPad, bluetooth pedals to "turn" the page, and just used it for the first time to play a gig outside.

Thrilled. No pages flopping in the wind, clear view of the music the entire time. No glare. Outstanding in that situation.

 

[spaxxedout]

I would think oils and residues would diminish the effect of the nano texture. In my mind, I would get that option if I was mostly using the iPad as an external display.

 

[PassiveSmoking]

What about in conjunction with the Pencil? How does that affect the drawing experience. Previously I've found the Pencil to feel like it's skating over a sheet of glass, because... it's skating over a sheet of glass. Would be nice to get a bit more than a single sentence on that.

 

[sdsalsersmith]

I've been buying non-glare screen protectors for previous models so for me this is a good thing. I agree, most will find it unimpressive, but for me it has been great so far. I have OCD about cleanliness and fingerprints, so I bought the 13-inch pro model with the nano-textured glass and I love it! My studio displays also have the nano-textured glass and I love them. It's a subjective choice.

 

[PsykX]

There's been so many issues with the nano texture on Apple Pro Display, a device that's not touch screen, that I would never put it on a device you have to touch often. It seems to peel after some time for whatever reason.

 

[sdsalsersmith]

What about in conjunction with the Pencil? How does that affect the drawing experience. Previously I've found the Pencil to feel like it's skating over a sheet of glass, because... it's skating over a sheet of glass. Would be nice to get a bit more than a single sentence on that.

I have the iPad Pro with nano-textured glass and I find that there's not much difference. The paper-like screen protectors have much more texture to them and feel like paper. The nano-textured glass, to me, feels pretty much the same as smooth glass. Maybe just the tiniest feeling of more drag, but not much at all. The new Pro Pencil is really great though. The squeeze the pencil to bring up options is great. Saves so much time and frustration.

 

[alecgold]

Coming from a 13” I went for the 111”. And even though I did get the 1Tb, I would not take the matte option. You can’t use any screen protector. A glass one will be weird and you can’t write on them, and a matte screen protector is a bit weird and possibly looking really funky with two matte layers on top.
So the 11” 1Tb with 5G, MKB and pencil pro. Got my paperlike in today and it is awesome!

 

[nathan_reilly]

I absolutely love my nano screen. It is incredible to have essentially zero reflection and totally worth the tradeoffs. I would take it on my MacBook Pro if I could.

 

[alecgold]

I have the iPad Pro with nano-textured glass and I find that there's not much difference. The paper-like screen protectors have much more texture to them and feel like paper. The nano-textured glass, to me, feels pretty much the same as smooth glass. Maybe just the tiniest feeling of more drag, but not much at all. The new Pro Pencil is really great though. The squeeze the pencil to bring up options is great. Saves so much time and frustration.

I was wondering about this as I write a lot and daily on it. And writing on glass or cheap matte screen protectors is not a funny thing to do.
Good to read I made the right choice, many thanks for this!

 

[alecgold]

I absolutely love my nano screen. It is incredible to have essentially zero reflection and totally worth the tradeoffs. I would take it on my MacBook Pro if I could.

Is it different in reflections compared to a good matte screen protector?

 

[Analog Kid]

I've had the nano texture for about a week now, and I'm really happy with it. I honestly don't see the artifacts people keep describing, but I also don't look at my 13" iPad through a microscope. Using it just as I'd used my M1, I see only upside.

There is something much more natural to me about how the display looks. When displays were dimmer, and matte displays were easily washed out by ambient light, I was a strong proponent of high gloss. Bright lights would wipe out small areas of the screen, but wouldn't get diffused to blow out everything. With this display, I think the combination of low reflectance overall and a brighter panel make the textured glass much more usable than the high gloss-- and even in lower ambient environments it looks more natural to me.

I think the high gloss highlights the display, I think the nano-texture better displays the content.

The other thing I'm finding is that I don't run the display at 100% brightness anymore. I used to keep my iPad at 100% except in dark rooms, now I'm more likely to have it at 50%. I find that easier on the eyes, and I get longer run times as well.

I think having the brightness dialed back is also why I get mixed impressions of fingerprints. The visibility of a finger print on the screen depends on how much light the fingerprint reflects versus how much light the display is putting out. When I start to notice fingerprints, I find I also have my display brightness down. When I bring the brightness up, the fingerprints disappear. On the my previous iPad, which I've kept for a couple weeks to compare against, the display is always at full brightness so I notice the fingerprints less. When I bring the brightness down to comparable levels, I notice the fingerprints just as much.

In the dark, the nanotexture has no noticeable effect for me-- blacks are black, the image is crisp.

 

[crobcary]

I love the look of the nano glass. I had a Pen.tips glass protector on my M1, and it was nice, but to me this is the perfect outcome of just merging the protector and display. To me, it’s also easier to read.

 

[bhall110]

I am happy with the nano glass. Went back and forth a few times on getting it but in the end happy I did. For those that have asked the pencil feels more like it is writing on paper with the nano. It isn’t quite there but it is better.

 

[CarAnalogy]

A friend of mine looked all the options in store, then bought the nano-texture glass just for the anti-glare effect. She's a professional musician, has her "sheet" music on an iPad, bluetooth pedals to "turn" the page, and just used it for the first time to play a gig outside.

Thrilled. No pages flopping in the wind, clear view of the music the entire time. No glare. Outstanding in that situation.

I love it but I would always be worried about that extremely expensive iPad and display outside.

I guess that's what AppleCare is for.

I wish this was an option for every model. I would definitely pay an up-charge to get this on a base model iPad.

 

[Digitalweddings]

Apple sell “premium” products. This should come standard and not as an optional extra.

 

[iSaul]

One thing I liked about the nano texture I tried in the store was that the experience with the apple pencil was much better than the standard glass. I find the standard glass to be almost un-usable without a specialized screen protector when doing art on the ipad. Would have to do a longer test, but might not need that with the nano texture.

 

[iSaul]

I would think oils and residues would diminish the effect of the nano texture. In my mind, I would get that option if I was mostly using the iPad as an external display.

In my limited time testing it out, I actually found that this mitigated issues around oil and residue creating inconcistencies in dispaly performance when using an apple pencil. No idea what that would look like over a longer time-period though.

 

[iSaul]

I am happy with the nano glass. Went back and forth a few times on getting it but in the end happy I did. For those that have asked the pencil feels more like it is writing on paper with the nano. It isn’t quite there but it is better.

This x 1000. No one talks about this, but IMO the standard glass is almost un-usable with a pencil for any serious tasks. Nano glass gets you part of the way there.

 

[newton4000]

I have the iPad Pro with nano-textured glass and I find that there's not much difference. The paper-like screen protectors have much more texture to them and feel like paper. The nano-textured glass, to me, feels pretty much the same as smooth glass. Maybe just the tiniest feeling of more drag, but not much at all. The new Pro Pencil is really great though. The squeeze the pencil to bring up options is great. Saves so much time and frustration.

Yes I can concur. A small but an almost negligible difference In drag. Wish it was stronger but I suppose this was not apples goal.

 

[msackey]

This video has made me think that when I do need to get a new iPad Pro, I probably will opt for the nano texture. I don't spend a lot of money day-to-day, and I could justify this as a major splurge. I guess you could say the benefits of being frugal is when you want to splurge, you can, because you haven't done it in like over 5 years! I splurged on an iPad Pro right at the beginning of the pandemic when I passed a major licensing exam ;-)

 

[Remy149]

Apple sell “premium” products. This should come standard and not as an optional extra.

This should not be a standard option the nano texture effects color and brightness of the screen. It’s why I use a magnetic paper like screen protector for writing that I remove when using the iPad to consume media. Not everyone will want this feature