Used iPad Pro 12.9 1st

Why Buying a Used iPad Pro 12.9-inch 1st Generation Offers Great Value for Productivity and Entertainment

While newer iPad Pro models capture the spotlight, earlier generations still offer exceptional power and usability—often at a much more budget-friendly price point. One model that continues to stand out today is the iPad Pro 12.9-inch 1st Generation, and here's why it remains a practical purchase.

Launched in November 2015 as Apple's first true performance-focused tablet, the 12.9-inch iPad Pro introduced a laptop-like experience in a tablet form factor. Powered by the Apple A9X chipset with 4GB of RAM, it delivers impressive multitasking and graphics performance even years later. From productivity apps to photo editing and entertainment, this iPad still handles daily tasks with ease, and storage options of 32GB, 128GB, or 256GB mean there's a configuration to suit lighter or heavier use.

The biggest highlight—and the reason many users still seek this model—is its massive 12.9-inch Retina display, offering a 2732 x 2048 resolution at 264 ppi. It delivers exceptional brightness, accurate colors, and a cinematic viewing experience, perfect for creative users, media lovers, and professionals. This was also the very first iPad to support the Apple Pencil, and that original 1st Gen Pencil pairs beautifully with the large canvas here, making it ideal for digital art, design, architecture, journaling, note-taking, and business presentations.

Despite being an older model, the build quality remains top-tier. The premium aluminum body, four-speaker audio system (another first for iPad at the time), and massive screen size make it one of the most versatile entertainment and productivity tablets Apple has ever released. This was also the first iPad to introduce Apple's Smart Connector, which pairs with the Smart Keyboard for a laptop-style typing experience without needing Bluetooth pairing or a separate charge—a feature that's since become standard across the iPad Pro and iPad Air lines. Rounding out the hardware is an 8-megapixel rear camera, a 1.2-megapixel front camera for video calls, 802.11ac Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.2, and an optional LTE cellular model for connectivity on the go.

One thing worth knowing before you buy: software updates for this model have run their course. It shipped with iOS 9 and went on to receive updates all the way through iPadOS 16, a genuinely impressive seven-year run for 2015-era hardware, but it was dropped starting with iPadOS 17 and won't be moving on to newer iPadOS versions. It'll continue to run the apps and features it has today reliably, just without new feature updates going forward.

In short, the iPad Pro 12.9-inch 1st Generation remains a powerful big-screen device for both work and entertainment. With its expansive display, original Apple Pencil support, quad-speaker audio, and still-reliable performance, buying it used offers tremendous value for anyone who wants a large-canvas tablet for creative work or media without the premium price of a new Pro-series device.