Digital artist > Mac Mini / macbook pro / iPad pro combination?

[Roykor]

Hi All,

5 years ago i switched to an PC. I was not happy with the system configurations Apple sold at that time. So i created an custom PC filled with my needs. W10 served me well and i never had any trouble. I use the PC to power my 34" wide Dell screen and a 27" Wacom Cintiq drawing monitor. A huge amount of display. Sometimes this irritates me.

With the M1 things changed for me and i am following the news with interest. The M1X around the corner is even more powerfull. Interesting times.


Few years ago i bought an iPad pro 12". And that made me think.

What if i go for a Mac Mini M1(x), and use Sidecar or Duet to add the iPad pro as an seccond monitor, acting just like a Cintiq?

And what if i buy an Macbook pro M1(x) and do the same with the iPad pro? This sounds like an awesome powerfull triangle of hardware working together. Right?

But does this really work as good as i think? Or am i day dreaming.

What bugs me is input lag. I dont know if this is an issue. And is the iPad pro not an Cintiq replacer in this moment of time.

Is there any digital painter in the house with some experience in this area?

 

[phrehdd]

Hi All,

5 years ago i switched to an PC. I was not happy with the system configurations Apple sold at that time. So i created an custom PC filled with my needs. W10 served me well and i never had any trouble. I use the PC to power my 34" wide Dell screen and a 27" Wacom Cintiq drawing monitor. A huge amount of display. Sometimes this irritates me.

With the M1 things changed for me and i am following the news with interest. The M1X around the corner is even more powerfull. Interesting times.


Few years ago i bought an iPad pro 12". And that made me think.

What if i go for a Mac Mini M1(x), and use Sidecar or Duet to add the iPad pro as an seccond monitor, acting just like a Cintiq?

And what if i buy an Macbook pro M1(x) and do the same with the iPad pro? This sounds like an awesome powerfull triangle of hardware working together. Right?

But does this really work as good as i think? Or am i day dreaming.

What bugs me is input lag. I dont know if this is an issue. And is the iPad pro not an Cintiq replacer in this moment of time.

Is there any digital painter in the house with some experience in this area?

Perhaps you might want to check out https://astropad.com/ and look up Luna Display. I know these folks will also answer your questions if you write to them. In the near future, I may do the same with a 2020 iPad Pro and M1 Mini.

 

[hobowankenobi]

Hard to argue with the iPad/Sidecar option.

While not an artist, I do support artists, and the iPad+Pencil option is compelling. It is superior to the low and mid-grade Wacom offerings. I can't speak to the high-end Cintiq options.

I would suggest you go to an Apple store and draw on an iPad for while, as you have a good level of expectation and experience with a Cintiq. I would imagine you would have a good opinion about the feel and sensitivity in about 15 min of use.

One thing that some folks don't love about drawing on an iPad is the smooth glass. Depending on what tools one is used to, the smoothness can take some getting used to...compared to say pencil or charcoal on paper.

There are options for screen covers to add some drag to feel more like paper...but they may also increase the wear of the nib. Just an FYI.

One of the biggest bonuses of an iPad would be that, well, it's an iPad. Not just a monitor to draw on, but a full-fledged useful device, including the option to draw on it without any other device needed.

Another bonus is much less cabling leads to a clean and flexible work area. Dedicated tablets usually need 3 cables: Power, USB, and video.

And yes, if you don't love Sidecar, you still have options with AstroPad and other third-party apps.

 

[Roykor]

Hard to argue with the iPad/Sidecar option.

While not an artist, I do support artists, and the iPad+Pencil option is compelling. It is superior to the low and mid-grade Wacom offerings. I can't speak to the high-end Cintiq options.

I would suggest you go to an Apple store and draw on an iPad for while, as you have a good level of expectation and experience with a Cintiq. I would imagine you would have a good opinion about the feel and sensitivity in about 15 min of use.

One thing that some folks don't love about drawing on an iPad is the smooth glass. Depending on what tools one is used to, the smoothness can take some getting used to...compared to say pencil or charcoal on paper.

There are options for screen covers to add some drag to feel more like paper...but they may also increase the wear of the nib. Just an FYI.

One of the biggest bonuses of an iPad would be that, well, it's an iPad. Not just a monitor to draw on, but a full-fledged useful device, including the option to draw on it without any other device needed.

Another bonus is much less cabling leads to a clean and flexible work area. Dedicated tablets usually need 3 cables: Power, USB, and video.

And yes, if you don't love Sidecar, you still have options with AstroPad and other third-party apps.

Thank you for your reply. Maybe i gave you the wrong impression. I own a iPad pro12" and use it (with grainy cover) for professional work. My 27" Cintiq beast is my daily driver for illustration.

I get the impresstion that Sidecar is a nice to have gadget. But working in Photoshop (on the Mac mini or laptop) using Sidecar on the iPad is not a great experience. Right now. That can change off course.

 

[Successful Sorcerer]

Even though I think the iPad Pro + Procreate (for example) is more than capable to deliver professional work, a 27" display really is something different than an 12.9 one. The movement of your hands and arm are different. I also believe in software designed for the tools and desktop photoshop isn't designed for small screens but works great on a cintiq. Mobile Photoshop or Procreate is designed for the iPad and is a far superior experience than sidecar in my opinion. Sidecar is fun to have but isn't designed for the iPad user experience. I don't think an iPad can replace a 27" cintiq but they both can be used to deliver professional work.

 

[Kartwheel]

I bought the 2020 12.9" ipad pro about a year ago after being used to drawing on a 6.5" x 11" wacom intuos 3 medium. I also own a 12" x 19" intuos 3 extra large. When I started to draw on the ipad, it felt too small, it also didn't give me anywhere to rest my arm. I found the sketchboard pro, found it too expensive (after forking over $1300 for the ipad) and made my own out of some scrap materials laying around. This did help a lot with drawing from different angles, but unfortunately, the ipad just wasn't up to the task of opening large photoshop files in Procreate, and I found it hard to get use to the touch interface of Procreate having to constantly worry about accidentally touching the screen. If you work best with your 27" Wacom Cintiq + another computer then I say hold on to it. You can always swap out your PC or Mac, but being stuck with a small screen on a limited tablet running ipadOS might bring you more frustration than joy. For reference, the PSD file that failed to open was 5,000px x 8,000 and 200mb in size, the ipad had 6gb of RAM.

 

[Roykor]

thank you @Successful Sorcerer and @Kartwheel for your comments and sharing thoughts.

I do illustrate in Procreate, an awesome drawing tool. Yet my daily driver for drawing is Photoshop, like it is for 10+ years for many reasons. The Photoshop and Illustrator apps designed for the iPad are 'okay' but lacking a lot still. I am looking forward to Adobe MAX 2021 with what comes around the corner for the mobile products.

I need to rethink my dreams haha. Replacing my 27" Cintiq with an iPad acting like a Cintiq. I also learned from other places that there is a tiny bit of input lag with Sidecar as well. Not an disaster, but while drawing, it could be an anoying little thing.

Cant wait for the M1X updates and for some reason it feels nice to 'come home' or something when my main computer is a mac again.