I use the Affinity Suite for my graphic design work (Photo, Designer, and Publisher), Nomad Sculpt, Valence 3D, Davinci Resolve (though considering moving to something else like Final Cut Pro), Apple Notes, Apple Pages, Safari, Apple Mail, and several other apps. I do graphic design work, 3D modeling/sculpting, writing (I write a Substack dedicated to tech/app reviews and tips and tricks for an iPad workflow), and some light video editing, and I default to my iPad for all of it. 👍🏻
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iPad as a laptop replacement
- Thread starter Omar Comin' Yo
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Have you considered alternative office apps like Soft Maker, WPS or any Open Office/Libre Office apps?
Hi!Do you use both PDF Expert and PDFelement? If so, is it both as backup to each other (in case of crash for example) or because they have unique features (one has while the other does not)?
I have both of them, but mainly use PDF Expert. I have the paid version of PDFexpert and have been using it for about 4 years. PDFelement is the free version and is used as a backup if I Just need to something quick. Either one of them do what I need from a PDF editor.
Yeah, I wouldn’t wait around forever for Microsoft to get their act together with the Office apps on iPadOS. They begrudgingly support it and macOS, but just barely. Word doesn’t even support custom document templates on iPadOS. I get the feeling that Microsoft is happy with where the Office apps are feature-wise on the iPad, barely enough for basic use, but gimped enough to sell the Surface Pro as the “real Office tablet”. I used to primarily use Word for my word processing, but I’ve moved over to Apple’s iWork Suite (Pages, Numbers, and Keynote) because they have much more desktop-class functionality on the iPad, and I like the format. But I’ve heard great things about Open Office and Libre Office as well. Eventually I may give those a try just for fun. 👍🏻
Apps for my non-professional work on the iPad Pro? Goodnotes, Zoom, FaceTime (though I hate the side camera when in landscape), Dropbox, Notes, Files (heavy iCloud usage), Google Docs, Google Drive, Pages, Affinity Design and volunteer org-specific apps.
Plus Apple Pencil.
Into my fifth week now not touching the laptop, just using the M4 13" Pro as my mobile device. Still also use a desktop at home but the laptop has become a dust gatherer.
Give it time. The ”iPad is my laptop” honeymoon usually end after a few months.
Not in my case. I sold my 2019 16” MBP in Nov. 2021 and have been using my M1 iPad Pro 11 for my mobile needs ever since. The honeymoon has never ended. If anything, I enjoy using my iPad more than ever today, and can only see the experience getting better. In it for the long run with iPad.
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So you no longer own a laptop or desktop?Not in my case. I sold my 2019 16” in Nov. 2021 and have been using my M1 iPad Pro 11 for my mobile needs ever since. The honeymoon has never ended. If anything, I enjoy using my iPad even more today.
You can read my story about my iPad replacing my MBP at the link in my signature.
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I don't see that happening.
Me neither…. unless they mean sometime after 52 months and 2 iPads in!
Agreed. People acting like everyone should agree with their opinions (hint: laugh reacting at people for simply saying their experience that they have continued to replace their laptop with an iPad beyond a couple months) are ignoring that different people have different preferences and needs. For me, though I did like my MacBook, I haven’t missed it since moving to my iPad Pro. I’ve now been using my iPad Pro as a laptop replacement for 3-4 years, 18-24x the alleged “2-month honeymoon period”…Not in my case. I sold my 2019 16” MBP in Nov. 2021 and have been using my M1 iPad Pro 11 for my mobile needs ever since. The honeymoon has never ended. If anything, I enjoy using my iPad more than ever today.
Fair enough. Out of my 15 Pro, m1 macbook pro and iPad with logi combo touch, the ipad is the last device that I would give up for an non apple product. I consider it my main machine.
People have different needs and preferences. For me, my M2 MBA + iPhone are my core/essential devices. If I had to get rid of everything else, I would be fine with just these two. I suspect most (not all) people would be ok with just these two devices.
In addition, I have an Apple Watch SE and an iPad 10. The watch is good for tracking physical activity, but it isn't essential. The iPad is good for sofa computing, reading, and vacation, but again, not essential
There are situations when the iPad boosts productivity. For me, it would be secondary screen, hand off, markups, and notes. Of course, I can get a cheap 24in 1080p monitor for like $100 to use with my laptop. I can do document markups on my MBA. I can take notes with pad and paper.
I don’t think I’m enough of an iPad evangelist that I would consider it the last apple device to replace - I would give it up before I gave up using an iPhone - but if you told me I had to replace one of (phone, tablet, computer) with a non-Apple device I would sacrifice the Mac for a Windows box.
I’ve been meaning to ask this question for a while now but do people not get given a laptop from their workplace? Every place I’ve worked a laptop has been issued to me. So the Do you need a laptop argument never made sense to me. There’s no reason to have anything other than an iPad surely?
I know some people are self employed which is fine. I’m fine with my phone and iPad and the work laptop can be used for anything more. It doesnt make sense to buy a 2nd laptop.
I know some people are self employed which is fine. I’m fine with my phone and iPad and the work laptop can be used for anything more. It doesnt make sense to buy a 2nd laptop.
I'm retired now but I always was given a laptop for work use but I never used it for anything other than work tasks, absolutely nothing personal on it all. Flip side, I never did any work-associated tasks on my personal laptop - I always kept the two environments entirely separate.
Same with me. However, I think the question was if your heavy lifting is done on your work issued computer, why do you need anything more than an iPad for personal stuff?
The reason I continue to own a MBA after retirement is that my personal stuff requires spreadsheets and productivity apps, and I find the MBA much better for these purposes than an iPad.
Many industries do not allow personal use of work equipment. I work in banking, and it’s completely prohibited.
I work in - I hate this word - “cybersecurity” and my personal and work systems are kept very firmly separate from each other. I do not want to be the next “LastPass guy”.
LastPass Employee Could've Prevented Hack With a Software Update
The hacker exploited a vulnerability in the Plex Media Server software that was patched in May 2020. 'The version that addressed this exploit was roughly 75 versions ago,' Plex says.
Edit: hit reply to the wrong post. Sorry sparks 😄
Exactly - for their protection and yours. Where I worked, the policy had been pretty loose wrt personal devices. Then some classified data was accidentally distributed in an email and anyone on the program who got that email on a personal device had to turn it over to security for "cleaning". Some people balked at doing that - "I'll clean it myself" - until that got visits at home from the feds. That was the formal end of any use of personal devices. There are a lot of good reasons why a company won't allow personal device usage - data security, system protection, etc.
In the advent of generative AI, you can assume that your work laptop will be monitored. Downloading personal files on it can compromise your employer and their customer data. Furthermore if you were to be laid off, your employer can remote lock or freeze your laptop without notice.