iPad Help me decide!

[markm49uk]

Hi,

I'm an IT guy who primarily develops business solutions using the FileMaker product from Apple. Most of my development happens on my desk based Mac but I do occasionally like to do a little work when relaxing on the sofa as well as occasional work on client sites.

For the work away from the desk I have used my MacBook Air 2014 i7 - this is still working fine but is 3 years old so well out of warranty.

I love my iPad 2017 for mainly consumption based activities although with iOS 11 I have started to use it to VNC into my desk based Mac (using the Screens app) and carry out some basic development work remotely. Problem is the screen size tends to lead to frustration as I am continually zooming in and out due to the resolution differences between my desktop and the iPad.

My plan is to sell my MacBook and iPad 2017 and get either the 10.5" or 12.9" iPad Pro. Really like the appeal of the 12.9 screen estate and the ability to have two full size iPad apps open in landscape mode but the portability of the 10.5" also appeals as this will be also used for consumption based activity like reading in bed etc.

Is the 12.9" too large to use for activities like browsing/reading in bed etc?

Help!

 

[Jinkst]

I use a 12.9" and have no issues with browsing and reading whether in bed, on the couch, at the office, on the plane.

Understanding it's 33% bigger than the 9.7", I wasn't even noticing the size difference after a few weeks as it just becomes normal. To each their own of course, but I think the 12.9" is a great size/device.

 

[s2mikey]

The 12.9 Pro probably just takes some getting used to. When I tried one out in the Apple Store last year I did feel it was a tad large but thats likely because Im used to the 9.7" form factor. The extra screen real estate makes shows and such that much better. IMO, if portability was a top priority Id probably say the 10.5" is the better choice but sans that, the 12.9" should do ya fine.

 

[nnoble]

Hi,
Is the 12.9" too large to use for activities like browsing/reading in bed etc?

The smaller iPad Pro is a nice size for portability. At home I can even tuck it into the back of my trousers and walk around listening to audio with BT headphones. In education I use it much more than I ever envisaged, so much so that I wonder if the larger pro model would have been even better for my purposes. I can say that this has been the best Apple purchase I have ever made, mostly because I appreciate being able to write and edit documents long-hand using the pencil.

 

[ougum]

The size inconvenience of the 12.9 is grossly exaggerated. I carry mine everywhere with no problem at all. No heavier than the few text books I carried in elementary school. Reading in bed on my 12.9 is a pleasure.

 

[TinyChip]

The size inconvenience of the 12.9 is grossly exaggerated.

It’s not grossly exaggerated.

 

[sracer]

Hi,

I'm an IT guy who primarily develops business solutions using the FileMaker product from Apple. Most of my development happens on my desk based Mac but I do occasionally like to do a little work when relaxing on the sofa as well as occasional work on client sites.

For the work away from the desk I have used my MacBook Air 2014 i7 - this is still working fine but is 3 years old so well out of warranty.

I love my iPad 2017 for mainly consumption based activities although with iOS 11 I have started to use it to VNC into my desk based Mac (using the Screens app) and carry out some basic development work remotely. Problem is the screen size tends to lead to frustration as I am continually zooming in and out due to the resolution differences between my desktop and the iPad.

My plan is to sell my MacBook and iPad 2017 and get either the 10.5" or 12.9" iPad Pro. Really like the appeal of the 12.9 screen estate and the ability to have two full size iPad apps open in landscape mode but the portability of the 10.5" also appeals as this will be also used for consumption based activity like reading in bed etc.

Is the 12.9" too large to use for activities like browsing/reading in bed etc?

Help!

I use my 12.9 Pro for all of those things. It's not too large for browsing and reading, in bed or elsewhere. I also use it heavily for remote desktop. When I need to do mac-like stuff, I'll remote into my iMac at my home office, and because I use Jump Desktop, I use the Citrix X1 mouse on my iPad Pro. It cannot be overstated how terrific this combination works.

It's to a point that I regularly leave my 11" Macbook Air at home, and just take the Pro with me. Excellent tablet experience and excellent (remote) desktop experience when needed.

I would advise against getting the 10.5 Pro simply because there's not enough of a screen size difference from the iPad 2017 to make remote desktop more enjoyable.

 

[markm49uk]

I use my 12.9 Pro for all of those things. It's not too large for browsing and reading, in bed or elsewhere. I also use it heavily for remote desktop. When I need to do mac-like stuff, I'll remote into my iMac at my home office, and because I use Jump Desktop, I use the Citrix X1 mouse on my iPad Pro. It cannot be overstated how terrific this combination works.

It's to a point that I regularly leave my 11" Macbook Air at home, and just take the Pro with me. Excellent tablet experience and excellent (remote) desktop experience when needed.

I would advise against getting the 10.5 Pro simply because there's not enough of a screen size difference from the iPad 2017 to make remote desktop more enjoyable.

That’s a great help to me - I was under the mistaken belief that the X1 could only be used when remoting into a Citrix virtualised environment. Are you saying I can use it with Jump Desktop to mouse control my home Mac using VNC ?
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I use a 12.9" and have no issues with browsing and reading whether in bed, on the couch, at the office, on the plane.

Understanding it's 33% bigger than the 9.7", I wasn't even noticing the size difference after a few weeks as it just becomes normal. To each their own of course, but I think the 12.9" is a great size/device.

Thanks - good to know.

 

[sracer]

That’s a great help to me - I was under the mistaken belief that the X1 could only be used when remoting into a Citrix virtualised environment. Are you saying I can use it with Jump Desktop to mouse control my home Mac using VNC ?

Yes. I have iOS Jump Desktop installed on my iPad Pro and Jump Desktop installed on my iMac. I remote in to my iMac using my iPad Pro and the X1 mouse is fully operational on my iPad to interact with my iMac. When doing this, it is like using a mouse on a 13" macbook.

The size inconvenience of the 12.9 is grossly exaggerated. I carry mine everywhere with no problem at all. No heavier than the few text books I carried in elementary school. Reading in bed on my 12.9 is a pleasure.

Since the discussion on size inconvenience of the 12.9 varies by person, I don't know how you can declare it to be grossly exaggerated. I'm glad to hear that it isn't a problem for you and while the WEIGHT of it may not be an issue (comparing it to "a few text books"), the overall dimensions can be.

I've brought my 12.9 Pro on flights with me and it is way too large to use on a plane in coach. I know that there are those who disagree, but there are just as many who initially disagreed until they actually brought one on a plane only to discover that it is true (for them).

 

[ougum]

Yes. I have iOS Jump Desktop installed on my iPad Pro and Jump Desktop installed on my iMac. I remote in to my iMac using my iPad Pro and the X1 mouse is fully operational on my iPad to interact with my iMac. When doing this, it is like using a mouse on a 13" macbook.



Since the discussion on size inconvenience of the 12.9 varies by person, I don't know how you can declare it to be grossly exaggerated. I'm glad to hear that it isn't a problem for you and while the WEIGHT of it may not be an issue (comparing it to "a few text books"), the overall dimensions can be.

I've brought my 12.9 Pro on flights with me and it is way too large to use on a plane in coach. I know that there are those who disagree, but there are just as many who initially disagreed until they actually brought one on a plane only to discover that it is true (for them).

Just telling the OP what I think. "To each his own." I've owned both the 10.5 and the 12.9. I call the 10.5 the Mini Pro.

 

[Jinkst]

I've brought my 12.9 Pro on flights with me and it is way too large to use on a plane in coach. I know that there are those who disagree, but there are just as many who initially disagreed until they actually brought one on a plane only to discover that it is true (for them).

I’ve taken my 12.9” on internal flights through Europe where everything is economy (cabin) class and never had a problem with size. Neither has anyone sitting next to me shown the slightest objection to it.

 

[markm49uk]

Yes. I have iOS Jump Desktop installed on my iPad Pro and Jump Desktop installed on my iMac. I remote in to my iMac using my iPad Pro and the X1 mouse is fully operational on my iPad to interact with my iMac. When doing this, it is like using a mouse on a 13" macbook.

Sounds perfect - only issue is finding an X1 in the UK!

 

[sracer]

I’ve taken my 12.9” on internal flights through Europe where everything is economy (cabin) class and never had a problem with size. Neither has anyone sitting next to me shown the slightest objection to it.

You would fall into the category of those who disagree with me.
Things are so tight on the flights that I've been on that when the person puts their seat back fully back, there isn't enough room to hold the iPad at a proper angle when in portrait. Landscape is obviously slightly better, emphasis on slightly.

 

[sparksd]

You would fall into the category of those who disagree with me.
Things are so tight on the flights that I've been on that when the person puts their seat back fully back, there isn't enough room to hold the iPad at a proper angle when in portrait. Landscape is obviously slightly better, emphasis on slightly.

I found on recent flights that I even preferred my 8" Galaxy Tab S2 over my Air 2. Larger is possible but I found it just too much of a pain and the smaller form factor was preferable for my own comfort.

 

[ikenstein]

Yes. I have iOS Jump Desktop installed on my iPad Pro and Jump Desktop installed on my iMac. I remote in to my iMac using my iPad Pro and the X1 mouse is fully operational on my iPad to interact with my iMac. When doing this, it is like using a mouse on a 13" macbook.



Since the discussion on size inconvenience of the 12.9 varies by person, I don't know how you can declare it to be grossly exaggerated. I'm glad to hear that it isn't a problem for you and while the WEIGHT of it may not be an issue (comparing it to "a few text books"), the overall dimensions can be.

I've brought my 12.9 Pro on flights with me and it is way too large to use on a plane in coach. I know that there are those who disagree, but there are just as many who initially disagreed until they actually brought one on a plane only to discover that it is true (for them).

Put me down in the disagree column. On a flight from Florida to NYC last week in coach on Delta, wathcing Stranger Things 2 on the 12.9 was AMAZING!! Even had room to put my drink on the tray table too

 

[sracer]

Put me down in the disagree column. On a flight from Florida to NYC last week in coach on Delta, wathcing Stranger Things 2 on the 12.9 was AMAZING!! Even had room to put my drink on the tray table too

I don't doubt you are being truthful. I'v never been on a plane that had a tray table large enough for that to be possible.

 

[TinyChip]

The OP didn’t mention so much that he would travel with it. OP describes “a little” work on iPad while on the sofa and “occasional” work at clients site. So I think the 12.9 would best suit the OP’s needs—to be able to fully view two apps side by side, an efficient setup that allows one to get more work done.

 

[emembee]

The obvious truth unfortunately is that you will only know how usable it is till you use it! After nearly 2 years use of my 12.9, I have only taken it out the house once (on holiday, and it was brilliant) and do not find it really portable, and would not use it in a coffee house either. BY contrast my mini is SO easy to pick up and use but it is now feeling a tad slow. A friend showed me his new 10.5, a real powerhouse for the size and much more portable, I would upgrade to it from 12.9 but am undecided if worth the cost. In summary, the 12.9 is really great in its own way but I do not see it as a portable alternative to a MacBook which has all the added features of MacOS too.

 

[Jinkst]

You would fall into the category of those who disagree with me.
Things are so tight on the flights that I've been on that when the person puts their seat back fully back, there isn't enough room to hold the iPad at a proper angle when in portrait. Landscape is obviously slightly better, emphasis on slightly.

You do make a good point, a lot of the internal European flights don't have seats that recline. I have taken it on international flights and not had an issue, however the space is generally a little more generous on long haul (thankfully) in economy. I find it much, much easier to use my iPad than my MBP, that's basically a write-off as soon as someone in front drops a seat back!

 

[markm49uk]

The obvious truth unfortunately is that you will only know how usable it is till you use it! After nearly 2 years use of my 12.9, I have only taken it out the house once (on holiday, and it was brilliant) and do not find it really portable, and would not use it in a coffee house either. BY contrast my mini is SO easy to pick up and use but it is now feeling a tad slow. A friend showed me his new 10.5, a real powerhouse for the size and much more portable, I would upgrade to it from 12.9 but am undecided if worth the cost. In summary, the 12.9 is really great in its own way but I do not see it as a portable alternative to a MacBook which has all the added features of MacOS too.

True. The majority of my time is spent developing in my home office with trips to client sites for project scoping and deployment typically. I do this development primarily on my Mac Mini which is more than capable for my needs - the MacBook was used more when I was consulting in IT and residing on customers premises for extended periods of time ie months. The larger iPad would allow me to easily remote in to my home Mac/clients servers without having to keep resizing the screen as the zoomed out full view is a tad too small on my iPad 2017.

Decisions decisions !

 

[emembee]

I am a big fan of the iPad but for your use case, isn't a new MacBook or MBA if you can still get it a better fit? The cost would be similar to 12.9 IPP with pencil or keyboard added, even cheaper.

Unless you want to mark up lots of documents where the Apple pencil works great, why would you need an iPad or do you just prefer using iOS with its limitations at present, I am referring here to development type activities which would work better on the mac if not as enjoyable perhaps

Judt realised you are looking to sell the iPad too, so in that case you would be better to go with the 12.9!