Tech Experts: 3 Apple Devices That Are Overrated and Overpriced
Written by
Rebecca Neubauer
Edited by
Rebekah Evans
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Apple products seemingly have a chokehold over quite a devoted fan base, who love the company’s tech for its innovation, minimalist design and connected ecosystem. Despite this, the company has released some products — typically “pro” versions of standard tech — that aren’t worth the high price tags.
So, the Apple cult of personality might need to seek some tech experts’ advice who argue that certain Apple devices are overrated and overpriced, offering less value for your money compared to alternatives in the market. Here are three Apple products tech experts suggest passing up.
Apple Watch Ultra
The Apple Watch Ultra is a high-end smartwatch designed for extreme sports enthusiasts and adventurers. Priced significantly higher than the standard Apple Watch models, the Ultra has features such as enhanced durability, advanced health metrics and improved battery life. Tech experts argue that these additional features do not justify the substantial price difference.
Seth Geftic, vice president of product marketing at Huntress, said, “While it’s packed with impressive specs — durability, water resistance, GPS features for extreme sports and the likes — I really can’t get past the $799 [or higher] price tag.
“It’s more justifiable if you need those niche capabilities, but then you are probably better off with one of the outdoor watch brands. The standard Apple Watch models provide similar everyday health and fitness tracking at a much more reasonable cost and it’s all most users really need.”
Moreover, competitors like Garmin and Suunto offer specialized sports watches with similar — or better — features at lower prices. The Apple Watch Ultra seems like an extravagant choice for most people, even those looking for a high-end fitness watch, unless you’re willing to pay a pretty penny to stay in Apple’s ecosystem.
MacBook Pro M4 Pro
The 16-inch MacBook Pro is another Apple device that often comes under scrutiny for its high cost. While it is undeniably powerful, featuring the latest M1 Pro or M1 Max chips, a stunning Retina display and a robust build, its $2,500 price point can be prohibitive.
Sean Riley, writer at Laptop Mag, explained, “The 16-inch MacBook Pro M4 Pro is more laptop than most people need.” It could be worth the cost “if you’re a power user, a content creator or simply someone who never wants to see their laptop balk at any task.”
But if you’re an average user or a professional with mostly word processing and web-browsing needs, less powerful and cheaper MacBook models will work just fine and save you hundreds.
Additionally, Windows-based laptops with similar specifications, such as the Dell XPS 15 or the HP Spectre x360, provide strong competition at a more affordable price. The 16-inch MacBook Pro, while exceptional, would be overpriced overkill for most standard laptop users.
iPad Pro
The iPad Pro is marketed as a laptop replacement featuring powerful performance, a sleek design and high-quality display. However, its high price, especially when paired with (arguably necessary) accessories like the Magic Keyboard and Apple Pencil, may not be worth the hype.
Scott Stein, tech reviewer at CNET, said, “It’s technically the best iPad, but at its price it’s not the most logical iPad for you to buy unless you have the money to spend on luxury features that sometimes aren’t massively difference-making.”
Furthermore, the iPad Pro’s iPadOS, while powerful, still lacks some of the capabilities and software compatibility of a full-fledged laptop operating system. This limitation makes it difficult for the iPad Pro to fully replace a laptop for many users. Stein suggested that the iPad Pro won’t replace a computer everyone until it also runs MacOS.
“The iPad is a computer for tons of people now, my mom and kids included. It’s great. The iPad Pro, however, won’t be great for everyone until it’s more affordable — or when it’s also a Mac. Also, the new iPad Air, while not as fancy, can offer a ton of performance and Pencil Pro compatibility for considerably less.”
Caitlyn Moorhead contributed to the reporting for this article.
Editor’s note: Pricing and availability may vary depending on location.
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