“TABLET FIGHT: Surface v. iPad” event.
Haha, a single iPad up against what, 13 Surfaces? Doesn’t seem fair. 
Or perhaps based upon general iPad vs Surface new sales it is fair?
Interesting these Apple recerts seem to keep showing up here. Perhaps shows that iPad Pro owners are more eager to trade up to the latest comparable Pro model (iPad Pro 11 in this case) vs. more mainstream iPad owners who likely keep their iPads until the tablet either dies or becomes too old and sluggish to use.
Apple recert pricing on their site seems to be set so as not to hurt new unit sales (that is, not much of a discount). Perhaps too many of these being traded in to sell on their site at a price that would move them without impacting new unit sales.
Yeah, curious about that too. I have one of these bought new from another seller at a good discount (since it was 2017 and not the “new” 2018 model); I like it very much as a replacement for an iPad Air (original).
Honestly I liked that it still uses Apple Pencil 1 which I already had for a different system. Lightning connector was OK with me. The new one has a nicer display and different look but honestly this one was good for me.
I agree that people really using them for “Pro” uses probably are justified in doing an Apple trade-in and getting the latest one with USB-C and Pencil 2 support, which I have to admit is very nice the way they have integrated it.
But if you want to upgrade from an iPad original or Air 1/2, this is a good option, assuming that “Apple Refurbished” means as “mostly-like-new” condition and not some of the scratch-and-DENT-and-DENT stuff that unfortunately sometimes comes out of the 3rd-party refurbishers.