Hahaha. Ipad is a tablet not a computer. It has ram, cpu, storage but its not a real computer
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Anyone Using iPad Pro as Main Device?
- Thread starter Mr_Killjoy
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Hahaha. Ipad is a tablet not a computer. It has ram, cpu, storage but its not a real computer
I must have missed when the definition of "computer" changed to exclude the iPad.
Please point me to a generally accepted definition of the term computer that the iPad doesn't meet. Sure, it's no PC, but there are input, output and calculation capabilities which define a computer, at least roughly.
My usage is approximately:
I love my iPad. I use it for browsing, games, annotating PDFs (oh such PDFs must I annotated daily), I take it to class with an ASK to take notes, I teach from it*, read the news, doodle, write in Scrivener (though this still primarily a Mac activity) etc.
My MacBook Pro stays docked at home 6 out of 7 days a week to multiple displays. Though I love my iPad, it could never replace my MacBook Pro for doing heaving research and work to just get things done. I did take my IPP and ASK in the car the other day and hammered out a lot of work, but it would have been more comfortable on my Mac. Plus, my Mac is still my favorite device to listen to my music library. The Mac handles my heavy work and full data organizations, my iPad is an easy extension of it, but I still come back to "home base" often.
*my handwritten solutions with Apple Pencil on one side and textbook problem on the other in Split View so that I don't have to keep walking to the desk to look at the textbook.
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Technically, a computer is any device that has storage and can perform operations according to most Computers in Business classes. A thermostat is a computer, so an iPad is absolutely a computer. It's just nontraditional.
- 65% iPad Pro
- 25% MacBook Pro
- 10% iPhone
I love my iPad. I use it for browsing, games, annotating PDFs (oh such PDFs must I annotated daily), I take it to class with an ASK to take notes, I teach from it*, read the news, doodle, write in Scrivener (though this still primarily a Mac activity) etc.
My MacBook Pro stays docked at home 6 out of 7 days a week to multiple displays. Though I love my iPad, it could never replace my MacBook Pro for doing heaving research and work to just get things done. I did take my IPP and ASK in the car the other day and hammered out a lot of work, but it would have been more comfortable on my Mac. Plus, my Mac is still my favorite device to listen to my music library. The Mac handles my heavy work and full data organizations, my iPad is an easy extension of it, but I still come back to "home base" often.
*my handwritten solutions with Apple Pencil on one side and textbook problem on the other in Split View so that I don't have to keep walking to the desk to look at the textbook.
[doublepost=1477145444][/doublepost]
Technically, a computer is any device that has storage and can perform operations according to most Computers in Business classes. A thermostat is a computer, so an iPad is absolutely a computer. It's just nontraditional.
This has been a really interesting read, as in a month or two I'm planning on replacing my rMBP with a Mac mini + iPad Pro combination. I've realized over the last year that 90% of my work is done on iOS as it is. Most of what I do on my Mac can be done either just as well or more easily on iOS, and the few things I absolutely need macOS for can be better handled on a desktop. In other words, I really don't think I need macOS to be mobile at this point.
Plus, with an iPad as my mobile device I could get things like greater portability, pencil support, and cellular data. At the same time, if my Mac goes the desktop route, I could get things like more local storage for serving files. Just seems like the best option for me overall.
I'll have to see what the next MBP version looks like, but either way I'm like 99% sure I'm gonna go this route. Thanks everyone for your insight...I'll definitely post back once I make the switch.
Question for the 12.9 iPad Pro users - does anyone here use a magic keyboard with it, and if so, how do you like it? I'm thinking of using that at my desk as I already own one. I'm wondering how well it works with iOS and integrates with that device.
Plus, with an iPad as my mobile device I could get things like greater portability, pencil support, and cellular data. At the same time, if my Mac goes the desktop route, I could get things like more local storage for serving files. Just seems like the best option for me overall.
I'll have to see what the next MBP version looks like, but either way I'm like 99% sure I'm gonna go this route. Thanks everyone for your insight...I'll definitely post back once I make the switch.
Question for the 12.9 iPad Pro users - does anyone here use a magic keyboard with it, and if so, how do you like it? I'm thinking of using that at my desk as I already own one. I'm wondering how well it works with iOS and integrates with that device.
I think it's interesting and encouraging to see so many people that use their iPad as a daily driver - it has come so far from the original. Personally, I'm about 50% iPad and 50% Mac and the reason for that is simply because I love both devices dearly. There are a lot of things that I prefer to do on my iPad and others I prefer to do on my Mac, but about 90% of those things could be done on just one device. If I were to illustrate my usage with a Venn diagram, there would be a lot of overlap between Mac and iPad...sometimes it just depends on which device I feel like using at the moment.
One person in this thread said that it's not a revolution, but an evolution and I think that's really true for the iPad. It's awesome to see so many people opening their minds to the idea of the iPad being worthy of using it as their sole computer, and I think that's really what it takes to get the full potential out of it. Sure, there are some things that are just plain easier to do on a Mac or PC, but with a little creativity and a broadened perspective you can really achieve a lot more than you'd think with an iPad.
I'm young, so I've always wondered what it would've been like to be there at the beginning of personal computers. To see everything come to life and watch as the reach of what they could accomplish got more and more vast would've truly been amazing. But, truth is, I feel like we're getting to do that right now as the iPad transforms more and more with every update. It's like watching Apple create the computer all over again.
We're all very used to a certain way of doing things, what we've come to learn from years of using the "desktop" computer. But using the iPad to its fullest potential means opening yourself up to a new way of doing whatever it is that you want to do. Gaming, for one example, is almost a completely different experience on the iPad than it is on a desktop computer. It's not that it's lacking, but it's just a different world. I personally think that gaming is at one of its greatest heights in the iPad universe. I feel with console gaming and even PC gaming to a certain extent, games have become sort of stagnant and unimaginative. But iPad has seen the release of some of the most fun and exciting games in years. A lot of those have been born on iOS and others are classics that we all know, but reimagined for iPad. It has been a huge revitalization that I feel a lot of people don't really know exists because they don't explore it.
All in all, some of us may not be completely ready to let go of our Macs for a plethora of reasons, but you cannot say that the iPad does not have the chops to do just about everything they can do and in some ways...better.
One person in this thread said that it's not a revolution, but an evolution and I think that's really true for the iPad. It's awesome to see so many people opening their minds to the idea of the iPad being worthy of using it as their sole computer, and I think that's really what it takes to get the full potential out of it. Sure, there are some things that are just plain easier to do on a Mac or PC, but with a little creativity and a broadened perspective you can really achieve a lot more than you'd think with an iPad.
I'm young, so I've always wondered what it would've been like to be there at the beginning of personal computers. To see everything come to life and watch as the reach of what they could accomplish got more and more vast would've truly been amazing. But, truth is, I feel like we're getting to do that right now as the iPad transforms more and more with every update. It's like watching Apple create the computer all over again.
We're all very used to a certain way of doing things, what we've come to learn from years of using the "desktop" computer. But using the iPad to its fullest potential means opening yourself up to a new way of doing whatever it is that you want to do. Gaming, for one example, is almost a completely different experience on the iPad than it is on a desktop computer. It's not that it's lacking, but it's just a different world. I personally think that gaming is at one of its greatest heights in the iPad universe. I feel with console gaming and even PC gaming to a certain extent, games have become sort of stagnant and unimaginative. But iPad has seen the release of some of the most fun and exciting games in years. A lot of those have been born on iOS and others are classics that we all know, but reimagined for iPad. It has been a huge revitalization that I feel a lot of people don't really know exists because they don't explore it.
All in all, some of us may not be completely ready to let go of our Macs for a plethora of reasons, but you cannot say that the iPad does not have the chops to do just about everything they can do and in some ways...better.
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This is exactly how I feel. My MacBook Air is from 2010, and have gotten very slow with the latest macOS updates. But I don't plan on buying another MacBook, because my iMac + iPad fits my needs.
I tried this combination, and it worked great. Most of the keyboard shortcuts you use in macOS works with magic keyboard + iPad, and there are a few iPad specific shortcuts as well, like one for going to the home screen. Ultimately, I decided I didn't need a physical keyboard, but if I wanted a physical keyboard, I might pick magic keyboard over the Apple keyboard cover.
I have to add, the magic keyboard and the 12.9 iPad keyboard cover feel like they weigh about the same. I haven't weighed them on the scale or anything, but once you have iPad + magic keyboard in a bag, it doesn't feel heavier than having iPad with keyboard cover in a bag.
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Good to know! Thanks @Night Spring. Yeah, I'm not super interested in the Smart Keyboard - it's cool but I just don't think it's for me. Plus I already know that when I'm traveling with the iPad I likely will want to travel without a physical keyboard to keep things lightweight, but even if I did need to bring it from time to time, the Magic keyboard is so light anyway. Since I already have one I was hoping it'd work well with the iPad, and am glad to hear that it does.
My comment was technical, but even beside that, what constitutes a traditional computer? What makes the Surface tablet a computer but not the iPad? Is it a certain feature? Ports?
I would absolutely call the iPad a computer at this point. It lacks a few features that some people may need, but overall it can do all the same things most people need from a Windows or Mac device.
I view traditional as a computer designed for mouse and keyboard input. Tables represent a more modern form of computer with new interaction. The surface is a hybrid because it attempts to merge the two.
It's kind of why I felt I didn't have a need for my 12.9 pro and my macbook pro. So I decided to go with 9.7 pro and have my macbook.
I couldn't replace my macbook for my ipad.
I'm just reading through this thread and the sass in this reply was real! I laughed so hard.
Lol, I still harken to my first computer science class and the first computer was the abacus. To me, even a simple calculator is a computer so the iPad definitely is one. It just doesn't happen to work exactly the same way as a traditional PC.
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I feel it's a meaningless distinction at this point. There are things I do on my iPad which I can't do (or do as well) on my Macs, just as there are things I still end up doing on my Macs because my iPad just isn't there yet. This is why I am very happy that my iPad doesn't try to hard to emulate my Mac (and vice versa).
Just get the right device for your needs. That's really all that matters, IMO, not arbitrary definitions of what constitutes a computer and what doesn't.
While it is true that the iPad doesn't some pro software now, that isn't to say it won't have it in the future. Not having a specific program isn't really a strong enough argument for the iPad not being a "real" computer - it is a real computer. It's a different type of computer, and you absolutely need to change how you interact with it to use it to its full potential.
Having said that, I've used an iPad Air 2 as my only computer for about two years now. The only issues I've had are setting up an old wireless printer. My solution- get a newer printer. They're cheap, and it's better than buying a computer.
I tried a MacBook recently and returned it after a week. Besides the awful keyboard, it just didn't do enough to warrent it's price. iPads are fine for average computer users. If you have a specific need for specific desktop software, yeah, stick with yr mac. However, if you get used to it, it makes way more sense to compute with a touch screen device. The mouse is an abstraction and inelegant. The iPad, for me, just works.
Having said that, I've used an iPad Air 2 as my only computer for about two years now. The only issues I've had are setting up an old wireless printer. My solution- get a newer printer. They're cheap, and it's better than buying a computer.
I tried a MacBook recently and returned it after a week. Besides the awful keyboard, it just didn't do enough to warrent it's price. iPads are fine for average computer users. If you have a specific need for specific desktop software, yeah, stick with yr mac. However, if you get used to it, it makes way more sense to compute with a touch screen device. The mouse is an abstraction and inelegant. The iPad, for me, just works.
I had a MacBook Pro, and used it for Internet, YouTube, Music, Pages, Email, Photos, Movies, some games, it's lighter and less bulky than a computer, etc. Sold it for the iPad Pro, and use it for the exact same thing, but I paid approximately $1000 for the iPad Pro and close to to $2000 dollars for the MacBook Pro. I will never be dumb enough to buy high-end computer that I can use the iPad Pro for. Yes, it is a computer.
Interesting reading. One area not discussed is printing. For those of you who have gone to the iPad as your main computer, how has it affected your ability to print documents and other things? I have a networked printer that I sometimes use with my iPad, but I've found that the printer only works with some apps and the print drivers, in general, don't seem to offer the same flexibility as those on my iMac. Any thoughts?
may I ask you how you archive the documents you created?
For example you have done some sort of contract, a word document, a excelsheet for a customer - where do you keep it after you're done?
For me it feels kinda weird to have all the files flying around on a device or in icloud.
i.e.:
Filemanagement:
Folder-Customer1
-Numbers spreadsheet
-word contract
-mp3 file
Folder-Customer2
-numbers spreadsheet
-word contract
-mp3 file
how Apple handles it:
Numbers
-spreadsheet customer1
-spreadsheet customer2
pages
-document customer1
-document customer2
...
...
Could you use an external USB drive to store customer data? I'm not sure how easy it is to directly save to external drive and which apps would support it, but if it works like saving to GDrive then sub folders would not be an issue.
iPad is
There are uses which require real computers that an iPad is not capable of doing. iPad is technically a computer though it is a very crippled one in terms of hardware and software/operating system. Therefore when someone uses the term "real computer" they are most likely referring to a device that is not limited as such and not really implying an iPad is not a computer.
There are uses which require real computers that an iPad is not capable of doing. iPad is technically a computer though it is a very crippled one in terms of hardware and software/operating system. Therefore when someone uses the term "real computer" they are most likely referring to a device that is not limited as such and not really implying an iPad is not a computer.
That's based entirely on how you look at it. The iPad Pro is more capable than most 'real' computers which existed say 5 years ago. In terms of hardware. Those computers ran full versions of photoshop etc. There is no reason why iPad can't run full versions now. The only limitation is the developers.
Yes. I had a damned time getting my printer to print labels from my iPad. My old MacBook 2009 printed them fine, but my iPad prints were always askew. I tried printing from a newer printer, and boom. No issues whatsoever. I also have printer pro, which is a great app that has more custom options. Sold the MacBook and moved on with my life.
