Yeah, I was looking at the comparisons between them, I was thinking that @Slartibart was interested in FilesBrowser Business for the specific benefits that it provides. I don’t understand why they didn’t include one-time cost in the FilesBrowserGo app. Why separate it? And why offer 3 apps?
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iPad as a laptop replacement
- Thread starter Omar Comin' Yo
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The Basic version is quite a bit cheaper and the Go version may be attractive to someone who wants it just for a short time and/or doesn't want to shell out $13 for the Pro version (a guess). I use the app a lot so $13 is cheap.
Yeah, but I think they should just offer two apps. Basic version and the Go, I don't think 6.99 to drag and drop is worth the asking price.
Files app have that basic drag and drop functionality and offering a monthly, yearly and lifetime go into the Go subscription... along with all those features in the Business version. Offering 3 apps in unnecessary.
I have FilesExplorer and GoodReader as well... but I prefer the UI of FileBrowser, but their pricing model is odd.
The $6.99 version was actually well worth it for me as it provided support for external storage operations without the data corruption of the Files app. I upgraded to the Pro version for the additional features.
personally I didn't even know the one-time purchase version existed when I subscribed...
Im actually debating this very option now. I got the M1 air but rarely use it as I do most of my work from my iMac. I actually bought the M1 iPad the other day but got cold feet and cancelled.
I think that's understandable. But why the cold feet?
Why not try it? And if it doesn't work for you... return it. Especially if you don't use the M1 Air much... perhaps replace the device with something else. The iPad could fill that void in tandem with the iMac.
Good point. It seems these ipads are hard to come by right now. Should of kept my order. Ahh well.
Apple knows how to run a business and for that reason, the iPad Pro will never be a laptop replacement.
The iPad Pro will always be between the iPhone and the Mac, because of $$$$.
It makes no sense for Apple kill off their Mac lineup.
iPad OS 15 has confirmed this.
The iPad Pro will always be between the iPhone and the Mac, because of $$$$.
It makes no sense for Apple kill off their Mac lineup.
iPad OS 15 has confirmed this.
You’re right, it doesn’t make sense for Apple to kill off the Mac. (Also there hasn’t really been any indication that they were ever thinking about it.) Sure, it could be because of money. But it also could be because functionally Apple doesn’t see the Mac as replaceable. It’s already the best desktop/laptop they believe they can make. Therefore trying to replace it with anything else will, in their view, be worse—otherwise they would have already replaced it with that thing.
Apple makes Macs and iPads each with their unique focuses and unique sets of strengths and weaknesses. There is no one unicorn device that can have it all, otherwise Apple or other companies would have made it already. The Surface is an attempt, but it comes with its own compromises. It works for many people, but seeing as more people seem to stick to regular laptops than Surfaces, it seems most don’t agree with the Surface’s compromises. So Apple’s view also seems to be that for the vast majority, laptops and mobile OS tablets work better as separate devices.
I think some people are just frustrated that their iPads come very close to replacing their laptops. But the thing is, for many people the iPad already replaces their laptops (or can)—and no matter how much functionality Apple adds to the iPad, there will always be a fringe group that needs “just a little more” in order to replace their laptops. Unless Apple makes the iPad 1:1 as functional as the Mac, there will always be that fringe group. But if Apple made it 1:1, then the iPad would lose its identity as a simple, easy-to-use device. Robust functionality and ease-of-use are on opposite ends of a spectrum, which is why Macs and iPads each have their strengths and weaknesses.
I’m sure Apple would rather kill the Mac than their iPad business given the choice. They’ll probably sell way more iPad that Mac units already.
Used to. Mac outsells iPads since 2015 (rollover to see numbers as graph is difficult to delineate) -
https://www.statista.com/statistics/382260/segments-share-revenue-of-apple/
Technically, iPads outsell Macs in terms of unit sales. Macs just bring in higher revenue due to higher prices. Majority of iPad sales likely come from the $329 basic iPad.
True, but in the context of a discussion about killing off a product line (as this was), as a manager I am far more interested in revenue than units sold.
But that is an interesting topic…. If given the choice of killing off one product line (Mac vs iPad).
The Mac holds so much value in terms of an established base and the OS is much more mature. The iPad advantage is the fact is inexpensive compared to the Mac and the OS still have room to grow. If I were to take the argument and equate it to sports.
If I wanted to win an immediate championship I’ll favor the Mac, but if I’m building for the future… I’ll go with the iPad.
Looking at their overall revenue stream, they should kill off the Mac and iPad and focus on phones and services.
Yep, with every new release of iOS/iPadOS, I have attempted to go iPad only in the hopes that the new features would be a game changer. The experiment rarely lasts a few days. And every time, I go back to my MBA as the primary productivity tool. Don't get me wrong. I like my iPad, but it sure can be frustrating for some pretty basic tasks. In particular, I find building spreadsheets and working with multiple documents to be very frustrating on an iPad. The problem is that these are common office type activities that many people do routinely at work. So this year, it's a hard pass on putting myself through another annual ritual of agony. I'll just use the two devices for what they do best and enjoy them for what they are not what I wish they might someday be.
Except platforms like Macs don’t deteriorate like human bodies, but the opposite since they are continually upgraded. And iPads would only have more future revenue potential than Macs if the total segment of population (including businesses and organizations) that only needs iPad functionality is significantly greater than the segment that needs Mac functionality, but are willing to pay close to Mac prices. But both of those are far from certain. Also the iPad being a younger platform doesn’t guarantee that it will eventually become as functional as Macs. And actually because of its focus on simplicity and ease of use, and because of Apple’s expressed intention to keep it that way (separate product lines), it likely never will be as functional.
But if hypothetically Apple had to kill one product line, Macs would be a bad choice because since they are more functional than iPads, it would leave a gaping hole in the Apple ecosystem forcing people to escape to find that functionality. Forcing people out of the ecosystem would lead to much more revenue loss. Since iPads aren’t as functionally necessary as Macs but more about enjoyment and preference, and more importantly since iPads don’t really have competition from other companies, it would be much more affordable for Apple to kill the iPad.
But of course thankfully for us, Apple doesn’t have to kill either.
I sense your argument in keeping the Mac line is primarily due to functionality, which I agree… the Mac is a more effective product compared to the iPad.
I’m only looking at the potential aspect of the iPad, as you mention… there’s no guarantee that Apple will make the iPad just as functional as the Mac. But there’s no denying that the potential of so much is within the iPad platform. And with the growth of the iPhone being so touch centric; the iPad is an extension of that.
Just imagine… next year. Apple decides to allow virtualization to iPadOS… allowing apps like VMWare and Parallels to enter the AppStore. You don’t think that would add immediate functionality to the platform, however… I doubt Apple would so such a thing. I’m only trying to give you an idea that… potential is the leading factor in choosing the iPad.
Some people think the opposite, but I have said several times that Macs have much more room to grow than iPads. So Macs are overall more important to Apple than iPads. M chips, including the upcoming MX ones with performance and battery life never seen in compact and light laptops, will be eating into Windows territory. Macs could easily double their market share in a couple of years. iPads have very little competition as tablets, and little room to grow and it's not touch and pen that is going to eat into Windows territory that already has that. MacOS, native or virtualized, would mainly eat into Macbook territory, especially of people that already buy both Macbooks and iPad pro.
Fortunately for Apple they don't need to kill the iPad and people will continue to buy both and maximize Apple's revenues.
Fortunately for Apple they don't need to kill the iPad and people will continue to buy both and maximize Apple's revenues.
Many people want the iPad to be a replacement to the MacBook but if that were to happen, it would ruin the balance between the iPad and Mac. Plus we have to think about non tech savvy people who use the iPad because it is simple. If you really want to run pro apps on iPad, just use Sidecar it isn't going to hurt you or anything like that.
