Update: Apple posted new info for the iPad Pro and it seems this feature is an extension of iOS 14.5 and doesn’t say haptic support like it was mentioned during the Livestream.
- iPadOS 14.5, which will be available to iPad customers starting next week, comes with new additions, including expanded language support for Apple Pencil features like Scribble and Smart Selection, new emoji, support for the latest gaming controllers, and the ability to share lyrics and see top songs in cities around the world with Apple Music.
We’re still waiting for Apple to reply back to our request for more information on this.
Original story below.
During Apple’s recent Livestream, the company announced its latest iPad Pro, which we all knew was coming. During the announcement, they focused on the tablet’s ability to play games at a higher fidelity, thanks to Apple’s M1 processor. Something to the tune of 1500x faster than the first-generation iPad, and will be able to games at “console-quality graphics”. I can’t believe that until I see it in action.
However, during this news drop, it was also mentioned that the newer iPad Pro will support haptic feedback support the new Xbox and PlayStation controllers. Wait, full stop. Haptic support on the new iPad Pro? As we already know, the Xbox controllers do include haptic feedback (Eccentric Rotating Mass Vibration Motor), just not on the level of the PlayStation DualSense (Linear Resonant Actuators). As of now, nothing short of the PS5 officially supports haptic feedback. So, is the M1 powered Apple iPad Pro going to change all that?
You can hear this being mentioned at the 43:29 mark in the video below.
I’ve scoured Apple’s website and newsroom but haven’t found any information regarding this. Not even the official listing for the device has any info. If the new Apple iPad Pro does indeed provide haptic support for the DualSense controller, that would be interesting. Why? As it stands, only the PS5 fully supports the controller. There have been attempts to get all the functions working on the PC / Windows, with the 3rd party application DS4Windows and Steam’s own attempts with its API. Both have done an amazing job, but they still lack haptic support for the DualSense.
Originally it was thought this was due to games not being programmed to support the controller. If Apple is managing this, how is this possible? Is this due to some arrangement with Sony? Are we going to see PlayStation games make their way to the Apple ecosystem now? Or is this an extension of the PlayStation 5 remote play?
We won’t know until more news is released regarding this, but I’m interested. Maybe to the point where I’ll need to pay a visit to my local Apple Store and see if they’ll let me do some testing. Meanwhile, we’ve reached out to Apple to see if they can provide a bit more content.
The new Apple iPad Pro will go up for sale on April 30th, shipping the second half of May 2021.
