Here we are now for our new battle of the gadgets: The iPad Pro vs Surface Pro for medical school. From the traditional hardbound medical bibles that students carry to school, the day transitioned when thousands of books could now be stored in one place and could be carried with you anytime, anywhere.
In this post, let me help you decide between iPad Pro Vs Surface Pro for medical school. I’ll share with you their spec differences and the pros and cons of each device.
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Surface Pro Vs iPad Pro Comparison Chart
| iPad Pro 2020 | Surface Pro 7 | |
| Starting price | $999 | $749 |
| Dimensions | 11 x 8.4 x 0.2 inches | 11.5 x 7.9 x 0.3 inches |
| Screen | 12.9 inches (2732 x 2048) | 12.3 inches (2736 x 1824) |
| Battery life | 10:16 | 7:52 |
| Processor | A12Z Bionic chip with Neural Engine | 10th-gen Intel Core i3, Core i5, Core i7 |
| Storage | 128GB to 1TB | 128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB SSD |
| Keyboard support | Magic Keyboard and Smart Keyboard Folio | Microsoft Type Cover keyboard |
| Pencil support | Apple Pencil (2nd generation) | Surface Pen |
| Weight | 1.4 pounds | 1.6 pounds |
iPad Pro For Medical School
The iPad Pro could be beneficial for medical students in several ways:
Notetaking
With iPad Pro, notetaking is now paperless. Set aside your pens and notebooks, because you can now jot down notes using your iPad Pro. What makes this feature superb than traditional paper notetaking is that you can easily incorporate photos, drawings, recordings, and other media. You may either choose to type or handwrite it.
View Lectures
Some professors upload lectures beforehand. When you have an iPad Pro, you gain a huge advantage by being able to follow along in the lecture. You could annotate the margins and type additional inputs of your professor.
Annotate Images
Since medicine requires you to visualize concepts, annotating images in your notes would be a helpful supplement in your review. Not to miss a thing, you can snap pictures of the board instead of frantically copying what has been written by your professor. This is useful for pathology, histology, anatomy, and other fields that require visualization.
Store and Carry Weight of Hundreds of Books in One
Ebooks nowadays exist and you can now access them through a PDF reader. You don’t have to strain your backs by carrying heavy loads of medical bibles. With your iPad Pro, you can carry them anytime, anywhere and accomplish your tasks in a jiffy.
Split screen
iPad Pro allows the medical student to multitask! You can now do two tasks at once—watch videos or view lectures on one side and take down notes on the other side.
Bonus: Want to learn how to study for your rotations and get honors on your rotations? Click here to get access to our free step-by-step guide!
Here are the pros that make iPad Pro the best tablet for medical school:
A new trackpad support
Compatible with iPadOS 13.4, the trackpad is built into a separate keyboard that is attached to the iPad Pro itself. It is also swift and fluid in which you could easily hover around the screen. The cursor appears as a circle so you could easily identify what you’re clicking on.
Stunning Display
The 12.9-inch iPad Pro comes in an edge-to-edge Liquid Retina display. It features P3 wide color support and a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz.
Faster Chipset
The iPad Pro is now built with an A12Z Bionic chip that works to handle some of the most consuming tasks like video editing, and designing 3D models. The chip has an eight-core GPU with an enhanced thermal architecture and modulated performance controllers. The 8-core GPU plus Apple’s Neural Engine allows apps to run much faster.
Improved Camera
The latest iPad Pro has a 12-MP wide camera and a 10-MP Ultra-Wide camera that could zoom twice as better as before for capturing a wider view. The camera could also shoot a 4K video.
LTE Support
The latest iPad Pro has the newest Gigabit-class LTE. It supports more LTE bands than any tablet in the universe.
Studio-Quality Microphones
As we live in a very unique situation during the pandemic, we face social restrictions that led classes now to be held online. Therefore, the studio-quality microphones offered by the latest iPad Pro provides an advantage by making your voice clear and audible during discussions. It captures clean audio along with the quietest details.
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Here are the cons you will encounter if you choose to buy iPad Pro vs Surface Pro for medical school:
Expensive
This news is not new. Apple has been known to manufacture devices with diamond prices. Buying an Apple “Pro” device signifies that it is of premium. The price of the 11-inch model starts at $799 for the Wi-Fi model and $949 for the Wi-Fi + Cellular model. Meanwhile, the 12-inch model comes at a more costly price. The Wi-Fi model costs $999, while the Wi-Fi + Cellular model is around $1,149. If you wish to purchase the Magic Keyboard, you need to pay an additional $299 to $349 depending on the iPad Pro device you desire.
Only Minor Upgrades From The Previous Models
The A12Z Bionic chipset is only a 1% upgrade from the performance of the iPad Pro predecessors.
If you also wish to check out other tablets that work as great as the iPad Pro, you could check my Youtube video. You could also drop by my article about the best tablets for medical school!
Surface Pro For Medical School
Here are the pros that make Surface Pro the best tablet for medical school:
Powerful Internal Components
The Surface Pro 7 has a 10th-generation Intel Core processor to provide a speedy experience. Microsoft was able to place a high-functioning and powerful Intel Core i7 processor in a device as small as a tablet. It is also built with 8GB RAM. These components could be also seen in a premium notebook. With its fascinating components, you could operate your tasks swiftly than before.
Excellent Display
Like iPad Pro, Surface is built with an astonishing display. With its 12.3-inch PixelSense display, you could use your Surface Pro all day with a brighter and sharper screen display to play your videos and lectures.
Impressive Battery Life
The latest Surface Pro model supports up to 13.4 hours of local video playback. With heavy usage, you could still use it for around eight hours before charging it up again. You could surely take it everywhere especially at places where you cannot easily find an outlet.
Bonus: Want to learn how to study for your rotations and get honors on your rotations? Click here to get access to our free step-by-step guide!
Here are the cons you will encounter if you choose to buy Surface Pro for medical school:
No USB-C Or ThunderBolt 3 Ports
USB-C ports are common elsewhere. However, Surface Pro still lacks this feature. Surface Pro doesn’t have ThunderBolt 3 support and you cannot connect an external GPU to it either. So, don’t expect that you could play games with intensive graphics on Surface Pro.
Increased Price
More expensive than its predecessors, Surface Pro 7’s price makes it a con for this device. But, I’m glad to say that the upgrade of its RAM from 4GB to 8GB, makes the inflation worth it.
Final Verdict: Which One Is Better?
Comparing iPad Pro vs Surface Pro for medical school you will realize that both are great in different aspects. If you want a better camera, choose iPad Pro. If you want a processor that runs like a premium notebook, choose Surface Pro. If you are up more to the design, well I think iPad Pro’s better. But in battery life, I think Surface Pro could last longer.
Choose wisely! If you also wish to check out other tablets that work as great as these two, you could check my Youtube video. You could also drop by my article about the best tablets for medical school!
Whatever you choose, make sure that it will help you massively in your medical school journey. Learn more about how to survive medical school here!
Bonus: Want a full library of free medical school eBooks, video courses, and training? Click here to get access to your free med school advice library!
If you have enjoyed this post, how about checking out some of our other blog posts for more great content?
- 20 Best Anatomy and Physiology Books For Medical Students
- Best Desk for Medical Students
- Top 12 Best Laptops for Medical School
- Top 30 Gifts for Med Students
- 16 Best Apps For Medical Students You Can’t Miss
- Top 10 Best Headphones For Medical School [Full Breakdown]
- 3 Best IPads For Medical Students
- What Does A First Year Med Student Need? [Supplies And Equipment]
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Until next time my friend…
