I do agree that I cannot do everything I need with just the iPad. But if I could only have one device, I think my choice will be the 11 inch MacBook Air. It can run both Windows and OS X, and it's okay for reading in bed, though not ideal. I'm not convinced that the Surface Pro 2 is a good enough tablet to make me forego having an excellent laptop. And I know I just can't get any work done unless the equipment is just right. That's my OCD talking,
Yeah, I know what you mean. When I bought my first Mac ever two years ago, I was a bit hesitant but have since grown very fond of my MBA. But one of the reasons I love it is because of how well it runs Windows. There are still a couple of Windows apps I cannot live without. But I am warming up to OS X. Two years ago, the status of thin/light Windows laptops is not what it is today.
For me, the killer app is Quicken for Windows. I've been using it for over 15 years, and it runs my personal finances. I can't and won't give it up. It connects directly to my bank to download/upload transactions, something none of the Mac alternatives does. Keeping my personal finances straight is one of my key uses of a computer. The other is nautical navigation. I have a lot on money into Garmin apps. Only just recently has Garmin started to offer competent Mac native apps. But for my older chartplotter, I can only use MapSource, a Garmin app that is Windows only. Their Mac version doesn't support the old card format I need.
So each person will have a "killer app" that they absolutely have to have. For some people that may be Facebook. Ugghh. So an iPad would be fine. For others, it has to be the Windows Office Suite. The Mac version won't do. For my use case, the Surface Pro 2 would work like a charm. But the version I want would cost as much as my MBA. And I just recently upgraded to the 2013 version. So it will be two years before I am in the market for another productivity device, and hopefully by then Quicken will release a competent Mac version, although I won't hold my breath....