Honestly it's pretty weird to want a product to not evolve over 14 years. You could say the iPod touch was removed from the original iPod too, as it was touch screen and allowed apps etc.
The problem isn't that the iPad evolved. The problem is that it evolved into something it wasn't and still isn't very good at. The problem is that it veered away from its original mission statement which was something it was perfect at.
I suppose this is the crux of the issue, isn't it? What are 'Pro' features? As of now, iPad Pro has a lot to offer professional artists, photographers, writers, videographers, even less creative fields like educators.
That is NOT the crux of the issue in THIS thread. The crux of the issue in THIS thread is that the iPad's original purpose, which was solid, has been lost in what Apple is positioning this device to try to do (which, barring drawing capabilities, it doesn't do as well).
The iPad succeeded at being a consumption device. It's now trying to be a creative device (which, admittedly, it's not bad at, depending on the tasks) and a productivity device (which it's not great at being).
Not every job requires a complex file system, a command line, an IDE, etc. It's a different kind of machine for a different kind of professional. It's like how Adidas makes running shoes and tennis shoes - different features and design for different kinds of athletes.
Apple is relying almost solely on apps to provide purpose and capability. This is a perfect strategy for a consumption device. This is a poor strategy for creating a robust platform to get things done and the Mac is evidence of this.
Oh this tired trope again. Apple has long used Pro as a moniker for products that have something different or extra - AirPods Pro, MacBook Pro, iPhone pro. The iPad Pro is no different and certainly no slouch in earning the title.
The original poster isn't the one that steered this nonsensical conversation down this rabbit hole. Poor reading comprehension and really short attention spans interpreted the point to be this same trope (and to be fair, with this recent iPad Pro update, it is a hot topic). But he was talking about how the iPad has changed its intended purpose from what it was in 2010 to being different (again, more productivity focused than consumption focused without the built-in software features to accommodate those goals comfortably).
It’s like saying McLaren is no more a sports car than a KIA Sportsge because they’ve both got 4 wheels, a steering wheel and internal combustion engine. And the Kia would get around the race track too - just a lot slower.
Except Apple keeps marketing the iPad like it can replace a computer; both in terms of marketing verbiage and in terms of pricing. The average consumer is not going to be buying both a "13-inch" iPad Air and a 13-inch MacBook Air. They're most certainly not buying both a 13-inch iPad Pro and a 13-inch MacBook Air.
Except the iPad has plenty of use by professionals, so…
First off, please back that up with stats. Otherwise, I'm not sure how you expect me (or anyone else, for that matter) to take you seriously here.
Secondly, just because the iPad suffices in some professional contexts doesn't mean it justifies its price tag over devices that are arguably better suited for those purposes. At $5 per month, you're not going to have an easy time telling me that I ought to use Final Cut Pro on an iPad Pro or iPad Air over the flat $300 I spent on the macOS version. And that's just ONE example. Hell, the only example I know of where the iPad is the obvious choice is with ProCreate, where it's flat out not applicable to the Mac and obviously superior on a device designed for drawing.
People understand you fine, you’re just wrong.
No. Actually, you are missing the original poster's original point. You are making it about "Pro" and about higher-end iPads and what their purposes are when really the entire point of the thread is about how things are different in iPad-land and less suited purpose-wise than they were back then.
The only iPad that seems to have completely maintained Steve Jobs' original vision for the iPad is the iPad mini. The standard iPad does also, by virtue of not having pencil support; but even it is being marketed as something you could use to substitute a laptop with for productivity first and foremost.
Yes this is true. But for those who get hung up on it, the fact is they’re holding the iPad to a standard not expected of Apple’s other product lines.
No one is holding the iPad to standards that Apple themselves isn't also holding the iPad to. The difference is that Apple believes in their current solutions and those that don't...well, don't. Those keyboards (each costing a significant fraction of the cost of the iPads they go with) are evidence of this concept in action.
The iPad Pro is slimmer, faster, more powerful and with more tech (eg tandem OLED) than any other iPads, just like the iPhone Pro has ProMotion and better cameras and AirPods Pro have adaptive noise cancelling etc.
Yes. And as best as anyone can tell, the iPad Pro models are really only for (a) serious artistic professionals who need those features to create content and (b) people for whom money is no object and/or who want to splurge.
And mind you, the applications in the former camp are much more limited than that of...say, the MacBook Pro or Mac Studio (or for that matter, any other Mac) where you could have any number of creative applications and workflows.
I can't believe MacOS complexity on iPad is discussed in this thread. It was never the intent of iPad.
Umm...did you read the first post? People steered the conversation to this because reading is apparently not a thing.
Rather the complete opposite. It is a computer for IT non specialists doing tasks differently from the PC paradigm. So rather talking about PC replacement we should talk about if iPad has found ways into more professions than PC/Mac. I my opinion it have.
That's an entirely different topic better suited to an entirely different thread, honestly.
Exactly! All this talk about the iPad not matching a computer feature-for-feature misses the point that probably 95%+ of everyday users don't ever touch those features in the first place. The lack of Terminal and other very specific features is moot for most users, and that's the iPad's audience.
I love how you're coming to the point of the original post eight pages in, like it wasn't the original point of the thread to begin with...
It doesn't make it a worse device, its popularity demonstrates that it is ideal for most people. And for those who need more, that's what the computer is for.
No one ever said the iPad was a bad device. What WAS said is that the iPad doesn't serve well at what APPLE is targeting it to serve well at and that it better served its original design objectives. That said, at a $600 starting price, the iPad ought to do more than be a good consumption device. I can buy a 10th Generation iPad that does that perfectly well for a fraction of the cost of an iPad Pro, let alone a mid-range iPad Air.
But let's be honest that most people go home from work and use their PCs to check social media, browse the web, read emails etc.
Yes. And iPads are fine for that. And I can buy a 256GB 10th Generation iPad that does all of that perfectly. However, there's almost no justification to buy an iPad Air or iPad Pro for those same purposes, save for wanting luxury.
This idea that the iPad is "a consumption device" while most people aren't just using their Macs for "consumptions" anyway is ridiculous.
Incidentally, that idea was never on the table, nor was it ever relevant to this thread. This evolved out of the "iPad Pro is still a professional device" debate that was also never the original point of any of this.
