iPad Pro Had a business meeting today, with some pretty big executives... iPad Pro was device of choice

[NastyMatt]

Exactly the same in mine. it doesn’t help though that Apple does very little to improve their business apps. In finance you really need them And Microsoft doesn’t have full feature parity with Windows, especially for Excel.

That said, I enjoy using Teams, Outlook, SharePoint, onedrive, Microsoft todo a lot on my iPad.

I actually prefer the MS apps on my iPad over my MBA, on the MBA I have to restart Teams every day as it just randomly decides it no longer wants to open and when it is open when I enter a meeting it’s pot luck what audio device it wants to use regardless of what the OS is using.

We were GSuite users previously and that was effortless on a MBA/P in Chrome. Everything worked as it should, sharing files was 100% easier (than Office) and collaboration was very smooth (versioning is great - I know Office has that now).

Hardware wise we rarely got an issue with an Apple device over the life of it but Dell laptops… expanding batteries, broken hinges, broken ports etc Yes they are cheaper to buy but TCO I’d wager is not less.

 

[LeeW]

I’m a COO and use IPP and MBA. The CEO uses just a MBA. I am also a founder of a company, I only use my IPP in that.

The whole company used to be Apple for non developers. Unfortunately, (once we grew substantially) a large majority of people coming into the company have not used Apple laptops/IPP previously and it just got boring people unwilling to learn something new, so we transitioned to Windows laptops for most people now (unless they specifically ask for Apple).

A shame really that the vocal minority who lacked professional curiosity ruined it for others, as starting at our company getting a MBP/A was seen as a real treat for people as they got to keep their devices after 3 years.

When people come into a company and are given a choice they pick what works for them, to get the job done. That is the key for anyone, getting the job done. To call them boring people unwilling to learn something new is an odd perspective. As is suggesting they ruin it for others and that they lack professional curiosity just because they use the tools that are proven to work for them.

Yet you also say that your company transitioned to Windows for most people. So really what you are saying is that your company is itself not committed to that professional curiosity or wants to move towards Apple as a main solution. So easier to blame and label people for not wanting what the minority want.

Maybe you as the COO and your CEO want to have a meeting with your iPads and think about that.

 

[shadowboi]

No, I mean it IS. But sure it would be perfect device of choice for managers and CEOs. Yet for regular poors who do all the dirty job regular Macbook would be better🤣

I mean, there is a difference in tasks of say, a PR manager/Marketing director and a regular SMM soldier or designer/illustrator. Manager would almost never bother with making or searching post illustrations, writing up posts, uploading large podcasts to YouTube or scheduling them in Facebook.

His or her tasks generally includes taking notes at large meetings (✅), videoconferencing with other staff members (✅), pitching to large media and editors (✅) and scrolling thru messages/emails (✅). So yeah, iPad would definitely do all of this better than small iPhone. But to me, Mac would still be better device of choice, considering those pack 16+ battery life nowadays

 

[one more]

I am a company of one and use an iPad Air 5 when I am with clients or need to work on documents or spreadsheets, just because it has a larger screen than my iPhone.

I do not need an iPad Pro for my work, however, and could have also been fine with a regular iPad, which I suppose is also the case for most of those executives.

 

[cheesygrin]

Depends what you mean by “work”. Top bosses may not have to do much in the way of practical office work, they just have to take notes and make decisions, which typically just involves emailing people.
Trying to get practical office work done on an iPad is much frustrating than a typical computer.

 

[Sami13496]

I guess the point of thread is the iPad Pro can be used for an organizer at meetings.

I completely agree. But isn't that super obvious I mean that's probably one of the most common use cases for iPads.

 

[RichHI]

As a consultant I have the ultimate say on which equipment I use. Yes, I have to have a PC which is only used for teams and Office 365 for 1 client but all my computing is MacBook. 2 Pros (1 intel 1 silicone) and an Air. Getting anew App 13" OLED. In my experience, those people in an organization that can dictate what computer they use choose Mac and the ones who do as they are told choose PC. I would never go back to Windows, Apple is just so much more reliable and easy to use.

 

[iPadified]

Why on earth would you prefer to work on an 11-13" touchscreen (or even a laptop), than a desktop with multiple screens, a proper keyboard and mouse? I get it if you need to get *some* work done on a train, but otherwise it's about 10% as efficient, for the ergonomics alone.

Plus an iPad wouldn't be my first choice for 3D rendering, even if Octane technically exists on it.

I think you misunderstand. The post was meant to say that for most tasks iPad is fine but more advanced stuff it could perhaps still work even if it is still suboptimal.

I do not make animation for Hollywood but sometime needs a nice render of very simple low poly 3D models that subsequently are 3D printed. I use perhaps 0.5% of my work time on rendering. It would be foolish to buy a desktop computer for that.

If iPad was my only device I would hook it up to an external monitor, keyboard and trackpad and run stage manager.

 

[NastyMatt]

When people come into a company and are given a choice they pick what works for them, to get the job done. That is the key for anyone, getting the job done. To call them boring people unwilling to learn something new is an odd perspective. As is suggesting they ruin it for others and that they lack professional curiosity just because they use the tools that are proven to work for them.

Yet you also say that your company transitioned to Windows for most people. So really what you are saying is that your company is itself not committed to that professional curiosity or wants to move towards Apple as a main solution. So easier to blame and label people for not wanting what the minority want.

Maybe you as the COO and your CEO want to have a meeting with your iPads and think about that.

I think you must have misread my post as you got quite a lot wrong, I never called anyone boring, we HAD Apple as a solution - not we did not want to move TO it, the CEO does not have an iPad. Ruin it for others was not a suggestion but feedback from employees.

By your naive answer I am guessing you have never worked at C level, if you had you would understand some battles are worth fighting and others are a waste of energy.

 

[LeeW]

I think you must have misread my post as you got quite a lot wrong, I never called anyone boring, we HAD Apple as a solution - not we did not want to move TO it, the CEO does not have an iPad. Ruin it for others was not a suggestion but feedback from employees.

By your naive answer I am guessing you have never worked at C level, if you had you would understand some battles are worth fighting and others are a waste of energy.

Yeah, your answer is what i expected. A good/competent COO of anything wouldn’t have taken the bait and would responded in an entirely different way. You live up to your username by the sounds of it.

 

[Mainsail]

When I go to the coffee shop, remote workers are almost 100% on laptops. Lots of MBAs and MBPs. Very few iPads. The laptop is just more productive when multitasking with numerous documents, spreadsheets, and corporate databases. If you need more screen real estate, go back to home or office and plug into a big monitor(s).

I am not knocking the iPad. It is fine for meetings and notes, but I suspect most of the executives in these meetings go back to an office with a well furnished desktop computer with plenty of screen real estate. Even execs need to pull up multiple documents to review (contracts, spreadsheets, memos, presentations, etc…) prior to making a decision.

 

[Circa1984]

My company is 99.9% Windows laptops/desktops (yet nearly all iPhone users), I am one of two MacOS users, I cannot tell you how many issues the HP Windows laptops have, all of my team members have had various — serious issues, corrupt files, lost data, and the latest being that Windows can not open certain office documents!?!! WTF. I have not had a single issue in 2 years … and I love to remind my IT guys of that.

 

[Circa1984]

I would love to use a Mac for work but it isn't super compatible with my environment. We use iPads for a few limited purposes. But mostly we are constrained to Windows based hardware.

Kinda makes sense that hotshots in your meetings just use iPads since business execs mostly talk a lot and delegate the actual work to others. They just need text, email, and a good set of golf clubs. Maybe an expensive guitar they can barely play on the wall.

Curious, What specifically is not compatible?

 

[zkap]

In my experience, meetings are a ritual to determine who actually has to do the work. It's almost always a pointless exercise, and the ones who don't come out of the meeting with tasks to do are either bosses or those who play office politics and for whom it is well-known that they shouldn't be counted on to do actual real work.

Which brings me to

So many posts about how you can't do real work, actual work, proper work on an iPad.
Mostly without definition what that real, actual, proper work is.

I would say it's pretty obvious. In a meeting between a boss and a subordinate, something will be determined at the end of the meeting and then someone will have to do the thing that was decided on - create a document or edit it, by having multiple files open in different formats, multiple sources, browser tabs etc. I can't imagine a workflow where anyone in their right mind would choose an iPad over a Mac for this type of work.

 

[BanjoDudeAhoy]

I dunno, having to work with two+ documents at once?

I don’t work with multiple documents most of my work days. In fact, most of the time I have exactly one program open.
I guess I must not be doing real work 😂

For the record: no, that program does no run on an iPad.

 

[EugW]

I am not knocking the iPad. It is fine for meetings and notes, but I suspect most of the executives in these meetings go back to an office with a well furnished desktop computer with plenty of screen real estate. Even execs need to pull up multiple documents to review (contracts, spreadsheets, memos, presentations, etc…) prior to making a decision.

Indeed, which makes the argument against iPads even more ridiculous. People with iPads often already have a Windows or Mac setup but the advantage of an iPad is simplicity and portability on the road. In some cases a MacBook Air would do as well but in some cases it would not be the preferred option. They’re still doing “work” on the road but the nature of the work may be different.

I can tell you that my main machine at home is a 16 GB / 1 TB M1 Mac mini with 28” screen and additional external SSDs. I also have a 16 GB MacBook for mobile use but I rarely use it anymore. My next purchase (next week) is an iPad Pro because I found in the recent past I used my old iPad Pro roughly 95% and my MacBook 5% of the time. I don’t need to duplicate my desktop with a laptop. My desktop and mobile device serve different purposes and for me an iPad Pro is preferred for mobile.

BTW, the iPad Pro isn’t just for show over a regular iPad. The iPad Pro is just nicer and more pleasant to use in general, but one nice advantage is the Magic Keyboard with trackpad. In that context an iPad Air would also work but the iPad Pro is still nicer. Most execs I know couldn’t care less about what others think about their mobile computing device and just get whatever they need and want. The few hundred dollars of savings by going with the iPad Air is not worth it, esp. if you’re writing off the cost as a business expense.

tl;dr:

A lot of people don’t need to duplicate their office computer while on the road or in meetings. In my case I have a Mac desktop, a MacBook, and an iPad, and my combo of choice is the Mac desktop plus iPad Pro with keyboard. My MacBook goes largely unused.

Also, people get iPad Pros not for bragging rights, but because they’re actually nicer to use, and spending a few hundred bucks more isn’t a huge concern when you can just write it off.

 

[BanjoDudeAhoy]

I would say it's pretty obvious. In a meeting between a boss and a subordinate, something will be determined at the end of the meeting and then someone will have to do the thing that was decided on - create a document or edit it, by having multiple files open in different formats, multiple sources, browser tabs etc. I can't imagine a workflow where anyone in their right mind would choose an iPad over a Mac for this type of work.

I wouldn't choose an iPad for that. It's not the right tool for the job.
That's something I said before, though. An iPad is not the right tool for every job.

My point was and is: just because something can be done entirely on an iPad doesn't mean it's not "real work."

 

[realdangerdan]

1,000 person company here. Exclusively on MacOS.

 

[snak-atak]

At my company, 90% of executives bring their iPads as their sole computing device to meetings. Maybe even 100%, I'm struggling to recall the last time I've seen any of them use a Windows laptop. Ours are always the cellular models, and once you get used to grabbing a single device to take with you from the desk, to the meeting room to your kids soccer practice, everything else feels a bit compromised.

I’ve known a few executives who use or prefer the iPad mini. They may be less powerful but they are light and fit nicely in a suit pocket.

 

[EugW]

I’ve known a few executives who use or prefer the iPad mini. They may be less powerful but they are light and fit nicely in a suit pocket.

Nah, it’s not about the portability and size, but just for show and bragging rights.

/s

 

[HobeSoundDarryl]

Love these minuscule sample sizes being spun to try to imply broad meaning.

I was in TWO meetings and a third zoom session yesterday and all 3 were anttended by only male adults. Obviously, the conclusion can only be that there are no females & children in the world.

Last week, I had 4 luncheons and nobody- not one person- ordered Coca Cola. Not sure why they make stuff that nobody drinks.

I’ve never been to China so I doubt that it exists. A few friends haven’t either, so that confirms there is no China. Oh and no Russia, no Antarctica, no space station and no Idaho: all that potato messaging is as bad as that “made in China” nonsense.

All that news about dual broods of cicadas hatching now and I’ve not seen a single one- in South Florida- so clearly that was a big lie. There are no cicadas.

On the other hand, large iguanas are everywhere: how are northerners & Canadians dealing with them all? Last time I was in NYC, it was roaches & rats. I wonder where all of their iguanas congregate? Central Park must look like a mass baby Dino nursery.

OP was at a meeting with several iPad users. If they had all shown up with Amigas, Androids, or paper pads, I wonder if the proclamation would have been that nobody wants iPads or Apple? Tiny sample sizes tell us nothing. But they are a great way to see what we want to see and then imagine it’s the same everywhere.

I suspect so many of the “99% do/don’t want…” posts here are based on either the user themselves as sample or perhaps the user and a few friends or family. How do I know this? 99% confirm it. 😉

*posted as someone who thinks my iPad mini and AppleTV are regularly in the running for most-used, "best" (IMO) tech products (and I'm towards Apple everything here).

 

[Wanted797]

Most “big executives” don’t actually do work (I mean that nicely). They spend most their day on and in meetings overseeing their teams.

 

[snak-atak]

Nah, it’s not about the portability and size, but just for show and bragging rights.

/s

Sad to say but there’s a lot of truth to that. I work in the medical field and I see a lot of physicians drive to work in six figure imports. And then there’s a few (not a lot) who drive their hooptie to work. I’m sure there’s a correlation to what people drive and what devices they use daily, whether they can afford it or need it.

 

[ericwn]

Try doing some actual work like writing a paper on it, rather than some pointless notes that often happen in ‘meetings’.

Ah here we go again with the tribalism of actual work or “pro” work vs what those are doing that we want to dismiss from being counted as using an iPad for their job.

 

[bluegt]

Ah here we go again with the tribalism of actual work or “pro” work vs what those are doing that we want to dismiss from being counted as using an iPad for their job.

My “actual” “pro” work is commenting on these forums…which I am currently doing on an 11” iPad Pro M4.

Like-minded executives like me do the same, using at least an M1 device, as the forums load too slowly otherwise thus requiring a “pro” device.