iPad as a laptop replacement

[Kal Madda]

So, I got the 2TB SSD for the ASUS Ally and the enclosure in the mail a few days ago, and I did the upgrade! 👍🏻. The weird thing about the process was actually the software aspect of things. Apparently Windows doesn’t have a built-in system utility for cloning the native drive, so I had to use a 30 day free trial of a third-party drive management app to clone my previous drive to the new one. It’s so much simpler software-wise on the Mac. But with the weird software stuff out of the way, the process of swapping them was pretty simple, though I have experience swapping components and doing my own repairs on devices. But the new 2TB SSD is installed, and I installed it with a copper heat sink as well, which I heard was recommended for this upgrade.

As to the portable SSD enclosure I got, it’s been working great so far. The build quality is solid, it has an all-metal shell, with a silicon case that fits around it that includes the lanyard loop and such. And the included cable works great. I used it for the cloning process, and it only took about 30 minutes to clone about 500GB worth of data! It also came with spare hardware for everything and the required screwdrivers.

So now my ASUS Ally has more storage, and I have a portable 500GB SSD I can use with my iPad! 👍🏻

Hope you all are having a great day and a very merry Christmas season! 👍🏻 🎄

 

[Meedoss]

Managed to get a brand new 2TB Nano 11" M4 for $1195AUD here, retail was $3600 or something, $400 cheaper than a base 11" M5. To good to refuse.
I needed a iPad anyway, but going to see if can go iPad only with my Studio display over the holidays.
Got my doubts but you never know lol.
If doesn't work out will probs sell my 15" MBA M4 and get a Mac mini.
Not really a fan of the screen on the Air.

 

[Kal Madda]

Managed to get a brand new 2TB Nano 11" M4 for $1195AUD here, retail was $3600 or something, $400 cheaper than a base 11" M5. To good to refuse.
I needed a iPad anyway, but going to see if can go iPad only with my Studio display over the holidays.
Got my doubts but you never know lol.
If doesn't work out will probs sell my 15" MBA M4 and get a Mac mini.
Not really a fan of the screen on the Air.

Awesome, congratulations! Excited to hear if it works out for you! 👍🏻. I hope it does! 👍🏻

 

[Ludatyk]

So now my ASUS Ally has more storage, and I have a portable 500GB SSD I can use with my iPad! 👍🏻

Do you do any gaming on your iPad?

 

[Kal Madda]

Do you do any gaming on your iPad?

I actually have gotten into some gaming on the iPad in my spare time. So I kind of have a split game library. Stuff that runs on the iPad, I use my iPad for, and stuff that’s PC exclusive (like the Star Wars games), I run on my ASUS handheld. The iPad Pro’s display is really nice for gaming. And it is also nice running the games the iPad supports on a bigger screen. I tested streaming from my ASUS to my iPad via Apollo and Moonlight, but there was too much latency, my network speeds are probably not fully up to it.

I actually did get an inexpensive wrap-around controller kind of like the BackBone that fits my 13” iPad Pro, and it is pretty nice. I’ve been planning on writing a piece about that setup at some point. But it’s kind of like a jumbo handheld. It is actually more ergonomic than it sounds though. 😂👍🏻. And the new Games app is nice for more of a console-style experience for managing and accessing games on iPadOS. 👍🏻

 

[Kal Madda]

Oh, and btw, if I haven’t mentioned it before, thank you so much to everyone here who recommended going with the cellular configuration for the iPad! Cellular is revolutionary for me for productivity on the road! And it’s also been very inexpensive so far, I’ve been using Roamless, and just buying some cell data as I need it. 👍🏻

 

[PandaPunch]

Alright! I finally got my iPad Air M3! I got the 11" version. A lot has changed (and has stayed the same) when it comes to me and the iPad. It's still my favorite computer, even if the Mac Mini (and small desktops in general) is a very, very close second.

Once I get my case on it, since I'm not gonna throw it in my bag naked, I want to come back to this thread in full force and talk about the iPad. It just feels nice to have an iPad again after my 7th Gen bricked on me almost a year and a half ago, I think that's when it happened.

 

[Kal Madda]

Alright! I finally got my iPad Air M3! I got the 11" version. A lot has changed (and has stayed the same) when it comes to me and the iPad. It's still my favorite computer, even if the Mac Mini (and small desktops in general) is a very, very close second.

Once I get my case on it, since I'm not gonna throw it in my bag naked, I want to come back to this thread in full force and talk about the iPad. It just feels nice to have an iPad again after my 7th Gen bricked on me almost a year and a half ago, I think that's when it happened.

Awesome! Congratulations! The M3 iPad Air is a really solid option. 👍🏻 And I’m absolutely with you on the iPad being my favorite computer. 👍🏻. I hope you enjoy it and get a lot of use out of it! 👍🏻

 

[bondr006]

Alright! I finally got my iPad Air M3! I got the 11" version. A lot has changed (and has stayed the same) when it comes to me and the iPad. It's still my favorite computer, even if the Mac Mini (and small desktops in general) is a very, very close second.

Once I get my case on it, since I'm not gonna throw it in my bag naked, I want to come back to this thread in full force and talk about the iPad. It just feels nice to have an iPad again after my 7th Gen bricked on me almost a year and a half ago, I think that's when it happened.

Awesome! Congratulations! The M3 iPad Air is a really solid option. 👍🏻 And I’m absolutely with you on the iPad being my favorite computer. 👍🏻. I hope you enjoy it and get a lot of use out of it! 👍🏻

I am with both of you. My iPad Pro is absolutely my favorite computer. In fact, imho...the iPad is the most flexible and versatile multi use device that Apple has ever made. And like @PandaPunch, my Mac Mini and Mini PC's come in as favorite seconds.😊

 

[Meedoss]

I am with both of you. My iPad Pro is absolutely my favorite computer. In fact, imho...the iPad is the most flexible and versatile multi use device that Apple has ever made. And like @PandaPunch, my Mac Mini and Mini PC's come in as favorite seconds.😊

Which Mac mini do you have?

 

[Ludatyk]

Oh, and btw, if I haven’t mentioned it before, thank you so much to everyone here who recommended going with the cellular configuration for the iPad! Cellular is revolutionary for me for productivity on the road! And it’s also been very inexpensive so far, I’ve been using Roamless, and just buying some cell data as I need it. 👍🏻

Roamless? Never heard of that. But yeah... cellular has been my defacto choice ever since I decided that I like carrying the iPad everywhere. And I don't see myself ever changing from a non-cellular iPad model... the convenience factor is tough to give up.

 

[bondr006]

Which Mac mini do you have?

I have the M2 Pro but hoping to get an M4 Pro this coming year. Also looking to get an M5 ipad Pro. I have the M1 iPP now, and it has been the best iPad I've ever had.

 

[vanilla_prison]

Roamless? Never heard of that. But yeah... cellular has been my defacto choice ever since I decided that I like carrying the iPad everywhere. And I don't see myself ever changing from a non-cellular iPad model... the convenience factor is tough to give up.

I upgraded to the M5 Pro and got cellular for the first time in owning iPads for 15 years. Such a great thing to have

 

[Meedoss]

I used to get cellular iPads, before hotspot and now CarPlay. Also used to get a free data share sim.

 

[Kal Madda]

Roamless? Never heard of that. But yeah... cellular has been my defacto choice ever since I decided that I like carrying the iPad everywhere. And I don't see myself ever changing from a non-cellular iPad model... the convenience factor is tough to give up.

Roamless is a “pay-as-you-go” option for data with an eSIM. With the Flex option, which is the one I use, each GB of data is $2.45. And since I’m only using it when outside of WiFi, like on the road, so far, it’s been very manageable, my usage has been pretty low overall. And the data doesn’t expire, so I can just keep adding some as I go, and it will roll over. If anyone needs a suggestion for a “pay-as-you-go” style plan, I would definitely recommend giving it a try. 👍🏻

But yeah, I don’t think I’m ever going back to WiFi-only again. 👍🏻

 

[Apple_Robert]

T-Mobile has a plan 5GB for $10 and its good for 150 days. I pay $16 a month for unlimited data for my M5.

 

[Meedoss]

Managed to get a brand new 2TB Nano 11" M4 for $1195AUD here, retail was $3600 or something, $400 cheaper than a base 11" M5. To good to refuse.
I needed a iPad anyway, but going to see if can go iPad only with my Studio display over the holidays.
Got my doubts but you never know lol.
If doesn't work out will probs sell my 15" MBA M4 and get a Mac mini.
Not really a fan of the screen on the Air.

Think I will be getting a Mac mini might wait till M5, not really a fan of how iPad OS displays on bigger screen.
Nice iPad though huge v the mini 7 I have been using last 6 months.

 

[Kal Madda]

Think I will be getting a Mac mini might wait till M5, not really a fan of how iPad OS displays on bigger screen.
Nice iPad though huge v the mini 7 I have been using last 6 months.

Are you using the extended display functionality, or mirrored? I use the extended display option. Preferences are different, so totally understand why you’d prefer a Mac Mini for the big screen, just was curious. 👍🏻. I have a Mac Mini as well, still rocking the base spec M1 Mac Mini, and it’s still running strong! 👍🏻

And I’m glad to hear the iPad’s been working out well for you! 👍🏻

 

[DeepSix]

Base mac mini is a far better laptop replacement and it costs 5% of what a M5 iPad pro costs.

 

[sparksd]

Base mac mini is a far better laptop replacement and it costs 5% of what a M5 iPad pro costs.

That's great if all you want is a desktop device. It makes for a lousy tablet and is hard to travel with. I'll gladly stick with my 13" M5.

 

[Meedoss]

Are you using the extended display functionality, or mirrored? I use the extended display option. Preferences are different, so totally understand why you’d prefer a Mac Mini for the big screen, just was curious. 👍🏻. I have a Mac Mini as well, still rocking the base spec M1 Mac Mini, and it’s still running strong! 👍🏻

And I’m glad to hear the iPad’s been working out well for you! 👍🏻

Yes extended display.

 

[Meedoss]

Base mac mini is a far better laptop replacement and it costs 5% of what a M5 iPad pro costs.

Bs 5% let’s see?

 

[Kal Madda]

Base mac mini is a far better laptop replacement and it costs 5% of what a M5 iPad pro costs.

And it’s also not something you can readily take with you. If you want to do all of your computing at a desk, then that may work… But a “laptop replacement” that’s stuck at a desk doesn’t really seem that good of a laptop replacement… 🤷🏼‍♂️

The Mac Mini also lacks the versatility of the tablet form factor. While I like it as a desktop, it’s hardly something I could viably carry around for my day-to-day like I do with my iPad…

And the Mac Mini costs far more than 5% of what the iPad Pro costs. And many don’t need to go with the iPad Pro, and can go with the iPad Air or another cheaper model…

 

[Kal Madda]

Yes extended display.

Ok, yeah, I thought you probably were. 👍🏻. I use my desktop monitor with my iPad on occasion for projects where I want more screen real estate. Overall I’m pretty good with the extended display experience, but one of the main things I wish they would improve with it is showing Control Center on the desktop monitor. You can click it on the monitor just like on the iPad’s display, but then the Control Center opens on the iPad’s display instead of the desktop monitor. Which can be a bit jarring. I’m hoping they will add Control Center to the extended display, that would be so much nicer. But other than that, I’m pretty happy with it. 👍🏻

But I totally get that it’s a matter of personal preference. 👍🏻

 

[Ludatyk]

Ok, yeah, I thought you probably were. 👍🏻. I use my desktop monitor with my iPad on occasion for projects where I want more screen real estate. Overall I’m pretty good with the extended display experience, but one of the main things I wish they would improve with it is showing Control Center on the desktop monitor. You can click it on the monitor just like on the iPad’s display, but then the Control Center opens on the iPad’s display instead of the desktop monitor. Which can be a bit jarring. I’m hoping they will add Control Center to the extended display, that would be so much nicer. But other than that, I’m pretty happy with it. 👍🏻

But I totally get that it’s a matter of personal preference. 👍🏻

I'm into customization... we had a bug in beta process of iPadOS 26 where I could get a different wallpaper on the external monitor. I was hoping the bug didn't get fixed lol, because that's a feature I would like having.