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iPad iPad Pro Going Back to MacBook Pro
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After more than a decade with the iPad, I have sorta made peace with what the iPad is, and what it can do (and can't). Right now, the iPad is more of a companion device (I also have a Mac, and use both fairly extensively), and that's perfectly fine with me.
I don't regret the early experimentation years, because I feel I have learnt a lot about iOS, and it has allowed me to wring more functionality out of my devices. I know some of you will simply chuckle and say "just get an android and you won't have any of these problems", but I find there is this thrill and this satisfaction in slowly chipping away the limitations one by one, until you do hit a wall and go "okay, this is probably as far as I go". But looking back, I will say that the fun was not only in the end results, but the journey of experimentation and trial and error and those "ah-hah" moments.
For me, the main advantage of the iPad is that it is always this giant touchscreen which can become any app you want it to be. It really shone at a time when school laptops were slow, had poor battery life, crappy touchscreens and lacked the apps that I would use for teaching (like a way to annotate on pdfs). Cellular was handy to work around my school's weak wifi infrastructure (at the beginning).
I remember paying for dropbox to get around the non-existent file management on iOS (until the 2018 iPad Pro got a usb-c port), using copied to simulate a clipboard manager, learning shortcuts, and the nice thing is that this knowledge would also extend to my iPhone, so it's kinda like a 2-for-1 deal. This is actually why I prefer that the iPad runs iOS. I often have my iPhone and my iPad with me, and it's easier to keep these 2 devices in sync when they run the same apps, have the same settings etc.
I remember accompanying my students overseas and I blogged their experiences using my iPad (wordpress app + camera). So much more convenient than taking photos with your phone, than transferring them to your laptop.
I remember setting up my own router in the classroom just so I could mirror my iPad to the Apple TV (before it would get conference mode), and paying all those excess data charges (because my mobile data plan was extremely limited and connecting my iPhone and iPad to the same network would trigger iCloud photo syncing). Today, I get 400gb of cellular data a month.
I remember purchasing so many apps just to find out which ones clicked. I dunno, today, my app purchases feel more deliberate, and less impulsive and experimental in nature. And so many adaptors.
I remember recording screencasts for my students on my iPad and then editing them in lumafusion during the pandemic.
I still use the iPad extensively in the classroom, and at home as an entertainment hub. It has this special place in my heart and in my workflow. I need a PC, but I love using the iPad more. It's just this perfect mix of ease of use, convenience and "fun" that I just don't get from a conventional desktop setting. Like I admit that I can't get all my work done from an iPad, but the world would also be a lot of boring had the iPad not existed.
That's the thing about the iPad. It's more limited, and in the right hands and under the right circumstances, these limitations are what make the iPad shine (for me).
I remember, too. They've definitely been fun and interesting times. What made it extra special was how new everything was at the time. It was an unexplored landscape.
For me the novelty of all this has faded, and I'm now looking for functionality and simplicity. I'm looking to merge and replace things.
I'm stoked about my MacBook Pro because it fully replaced my desktop. That's made things simpler with no downside, and cheaper because I don't have to maintain two devices anymore, just one.
My iPad replaces nothing and occupies this awkward middle ground. It's awkward because the Mac can't be as nifty, but the iPad can't do what the Mac can. It's occupying a space that will be filled by something eventually, but in its current form it isn't what that thing will be.
iPad Pro is my most used device over MBP, but I don’t use it for spreadsheets. Certain workflows that involve extensive documentation and spreadsheets te just not worth on mobile devices. I returned MBA after trying it along with my iPad Pro. iPad Pro with MOB is more portable, and like it’s more top heavy compared to MBA
Interesting as I absolutely love terminal on iPad Pro, especially when I connect to cloud consoles and find it more intuitive than MBP. iPad Pro is my go to device for accessing my Linux workstation and I Remote in to my MBP when I am travelling or in hotels.
I recall my iPad-as-laptop experiment and quickly learned the limitations of iPadOS. Piss-poor file management, limited multi-window support, and dependency on "apps" versus full-fledged software just made things harder than it needed to be and I hated it. Quickly went back to Mac and PC. Zero interest in iPads after that experience.
I’ve done this and then gave my m1 iPad Pro to my wife.. then instantly started missing it.
For all my complaints about it I do think it has a certain charm that I miss when I don’t have it.
I now have the m5 iPad Pro and I just use it for what it is - which to me is viewing all my family photos, internet browising and you tube/netflix..
I think when you accept its limitations then you can truly start to enjoy it.
For all my complaints about it I do think it has a certain charm that I miss when I don’t have it.
I now have the m5 iPad Pro and I just use it for what it is - which to me is viewing all my family photos, internet browising and you tube/netflix..
I think when you accept its limitations then you can truly start to enjoy it.
I mean, my Mac can't exactly do what my iPad does either. I like to think that because the iPad is nothing like the Mac, that is what frees up the iPad to be its own unique experience rather than simply being a Mac with a touchscreen.
That's not saying the iPad has no more room for improvement, but I will say that the last few years of trying to shoehorn stage manager down our throats have been met with fairly mixed reactions. I don't know if it's because iOS / iPadOS is simply not meant for a traditional desktop UI with resizable, overlapping windows, I just haven't used the new multitasking paradigm as much as the older version (which I found easier to trigger and manage), and I want to believe that the future of the iPad lies in not trying to make it like a Mac.
The value of the iPad to me is mostly just the hardware.
iPadOS works well with a touch screen but beyond that I'm not seeing too much value in its iOS roots.
It would be a much better device if I could run the software I want to run on it, like my Steam games or even some cheeky World of Warcraft on occasion. Apple used to make an 11" MacBook after all, and these things make sense for that screen size.
The form factor is the magical thing to me. The specifics of iPadOS I wouldn't miss if they made it way more like a Mac.
The OS limitations are designed purposely by Apple and nothing more. One could ask the question why is an iPad unable to have basic and advance modes where one retains the consumption aspect of the device and OS while the other removes those limits.
Simple answer is Apple wants the customer to purchase two devices. You honestly believe that macOS is unable to have an iPadOS mode and incorporate a touchscreen while making the keyboard base flip over or even removable. Hardware imagination is not limited but in its purpose it reduces profits.
I can get by with my iPad as my primary computer, and in most ways, I prefer to use it that way.
So many small things add up though, maybe not entirely always Apple's fault, but enough to make me remote in to or grab my MacBook for some uses instead.
So many small things add up though, maybe not entirely always Apple's fault, but enough to make me remote in to or grab my MacBook for some uses instead.
Apple just doesn't make that distinction clear for your average consumer. Apple markets the Magic Keyboard and various accessories to suggest your M-chip iPad Pro can replace your laptop or MacBook. Nothing could be further from the truth unless your main uses are email and watching content. The iPad Pro has the processing power of a MacBook but is severely handicapped by iPadOS. iPads are just really big iPhones.
I use my 13" M% for RAW photo image and video processing, hardly something I'd do on a phone.
Like I said, iPad is just a bigger screen iPhone. iOS and iPadOS are synonymous and you can get Adobe Premier for iPhone/iPad. Whatever limitations that are inherit in iOS are also present in iPadOS. You just get a larger screen than an iPhone.
Apple made the design/cash choice to have to separate systems, requiring two or three purchases. To me a Lenovo, Asus, or HP 2 in 1 style, is the sweet spot for at least two of those purchases.
One could also view it as Apple introducing these accessories to gauge demand then make iPadOS more capable or possibly just another cash grab. However consumer may not want or need said accessories if the OS is limited.
Horse and cart situation here.
I my iPad Pro and I my Mac.
Task wise it depends what I’m doing which I prefer.
I never got my photo editing workflow to feel slick on iPad, so general use my Mac.
But I others who use iPad workflow and love it.
I suspect my issue is me!😂 Being a little older I’m probably biased towards a more traditional workflow.
I suspect different people will have different approaches.
Task wise it depends what I’m doing which I prefer.
I never got my photo editing workflow to feel slick on iPad, so general use my Mac.
But I others who use iPad workflow and love it.
I suspect my issue is me!😂 Being a little older I’m probably biased towards a more traditional workflow.
I suspect different people will have different approaches.
This thread isn’t supposed to be a debate. There is no single right answer. Use the device that has the least amount of friction with your day to day use. It really is that simple. It doesn’t matter if some here use the iPad exclusively while others can’t or refuse to experiment with the iPad Pro. What matters is individual use and nothing more.
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Long Story Short: Took me 10 years to find out the iPad is not the machine I wanted, rather the machine I needed.
Full Story: Not exactly switching from MacBook as I've sold my 1st generation 13-inch Retina Air some 3 years ago. However, I've fairly recently moved into a new house and it's safe to assume I feel old enough to have a proper use for the iPad now. Managed to snap one for a good price and basically I do there a lot of things. (Though it's the 2018 A12X model)
These include taxes, tracking monthly energy consumption via Numbers, using Reminders as an exhaustingly large all-in-one planner and wishlist both for Groceries and Home Improvement, listening to Podcasts while I'm falling asleep (as currently I'm the only one at the new house w/ wife living down the road with her parents), managing Apple Home app, and currently it also serves as a Wi-Fi Hotspot with infinite data plan (€23/month) due to waiting for the ISP to fix their crap. The hotspot also has another perk, basically enabling Voice-over-WiFi functionality. This is particularly helpful as we're talking a 1970 house with up to 50 cm wide brick/concrete walls, essentially blocking 5G/LTE signal on my iPhone. I suspect the significantly larger antennae on iPad allow for a better signal.
Also, that thing is great when I try to visualize planned rooms via Planner 5D and its' AR functionality, much more enjoyable on the 11-inch screen in comparison to the iPhone 15 Pro's 5.1-inch display. Also, working with Mail, using Preview to read documents, Calendar (now with integrated planned reminders!), using Notes. Also, since I work in the video games industry, I'm also using the iPad to do some document writing there.
The value of the iPad's iOS roots has, for me, been its simplicity. For the longest time, desktop software has always struck me as being overly bloated and complicated (because they sport way more functionality than I will likely ever need). Yes, maybe there are other people who do need that much complexity, but I don't. As such, I wasn't getting more of what I wanted, but instead being saddled with more issues to deal with.
The hardware incentivised developers to create apps optimised for touch and direct input. I can give a few examples of how the iPad has been better than a laptop (or even a laptop + smartphone combination), again, for me.
I remember when I tasked with blogging about my student's experiences overseas (this was about a decade ago). I brought my iPad 3 along with me. The Wordpress app made it easy to insert photos (courtesy of the iPad's camera), type some text and post to my school blog (which at the time was still hosted on Wordpress). All in between the pockets of free time in between. I could do so on my phone, but the 4s and 5s at the time had pretty poor battery life (they would die before noon). The iPad had ample juice to tank an entire day of usage. More convenient than going back the hotel, then having to export photos and writing your blog posts, while dead tired and wanting to just shower and sleep.
iOS apps are often criticised for being "baby apps". It's not inherently a bad thing for something like say, iWork's or Ms Office to have only 5% functionality of their desktop equivalent, if that 5% is all that I need there and then. I spend less time fighting the interface and fighting the idiosyncrasies of desktop Windows software, allowing me to just focus on say, taking meeting minutes on my iPad + Smart Keyboard. And when I am done, email to my manager directly via the share sheet extension.
I have been using Notability for well over a decade now, and still paying for it. It's can't do a bunch of stuff that PDF Expert can (like extracting pages or editing text), and that's fine by me. I need a tool to annotate on pdf documents in class, and I need it to work and for the interface to get out of my way so I don't waste time fiddling with the UI.
And if I need a bit more complexity (being having to increasingly work with massive spreadsheets and functions like mail merge and vlookup of late due to the nature of my work), well, that's what my work-issued windows laptop and my MBA are for. I don't really see it as overkill. My MBA stays on my desk, my iPad follows me around the house (yay for it finally getting WhatsApp), I am already bringing my work laptop and my ipad to work anyways, I even have a 5k iMac at home that's largely been commandeered by my dad, I will say that managing multiple devices is generally a nothingburger.
The counterpoint is that no other company seems to have made this goldilocks device that is both the perfect tablet and the ideal laptop computing experience either. Whether you are getting a Samsung Tab or a Windows Surface laptop, each comes with its own share of drawbacks and compromised. It ultimately comes down to the extent of which you are impacted (eg: some are happy to have the equivalent of a touchscreen laptop).
I will go back to my original point where I argue that the limitations of the OS are there in part to safeguard the experience that Apple wants their iPad users to have. That experience being convenience, ease of use and battery life.
To me, the iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard is simply an 11" Apple device. The niceness of being able to use touch and the fluidity of the OS is undeniable. But an 11" device with a keyboard and trackpad is an 11" device with a keyboard and trackpad, and the kind of software I want to run on such a form factor is either an inferior version, or absent entirely. And that is because of the iOS roots and locked down app ecosystem.
None of the software I frequently use on my Mac has a cleaner and nicer iPad version. My Steam games which would be perfect for the iPad's form factor are missing entirely. Things like Safari, Slack, Discord, Notes, iMessage, they are either the same, or worse on iPad.
Things feel less complicated when I can just do the thing I actually want to do with little friction. Having apps missing or worse is complexity and friction.
These days Macs have better battery anyway. And I'm not seeing what in this scenario is that much more convenient. You trade the annoyance of having to airdrop photos from the phone, for the annoyance of taking photos on a tablet in the first place.
For every "I could just share it from the share sheet" there is a "why can't I just highlight and copy text in Slack or Discord?".
If the iPad generally feels more neat to you, that's valid. It does have a uniquely great form factor. But I often find that in the same way iPad is touch first, it is mouse and keyboard last. With things like MS Office, you're not really dealing with an expertly cut down and simplified design that fits the iPad's spirit - you are dealing with a version that does not and will never get as much attention from Microsoft and is worse off for it.
I find exactly the same thing. The iPad does so many things seamlessly. I find MacOS frustrating as can be. I’ve run three businesses with iPad only and have only run into 1 issue that made me buy a Mac mini. That item was museum quality photography printing.
Prior to retiring, our company allowed us to bring our iPads and use them for company business. I was a program manager and the iPad, MS Office suite and SmartSheet were our daily tools. After retiring, my company asked me to continue as a consultant. I formed an LLC and ran that business for 3 years primarily as a SmartSheet developer.
Finally fully retired, I’ve started a business of photography. I fully use the iPad for everything including full edit process, book development, proposals, invoicing, etc. I use a second iPad as my relaxation and entertainment device. The only area where I needed a Mac was for the photography printing. That still remains a capability lacking mostly due to lack of application development (come on Canon). Right now, I deliver the print ready .tif file to the mini and all printing is done on Hahnemuehle papers with Canon Prograf 1000 printer.
I understand tools aren’t a universal fit for everyone. I was fortunate to be on the side pushing to get away from Windows and the iPad has been a fantastic tool for me throughout its development. I say, use whatever tool works best for you. Life is too short not to do so. I just know I have a trip of a lifetime coming up in Cuba. Traveling light will be essential. The iPad Pro will be with me all the way.
One of the things you probably need to do with the iPad way of working is stop thinking about what apps you use and start thinking about what you're trying to do and do it the iPad way.
I'm not saying there's no reason to have a laptop, but the iPad is pretty capable as a travel device if you fit your workflow to it, rather than try to fit it to your workflow.
Clearly this works for some people and not others.
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I can see a world where eventually, the iPad takes over from the laptop, while you run a desktop instead.
There are some things you need big screens (or AR/VR) for and the iPad will never be great at those things with the inbuilt screen. And if you're hooking up on a desk, then maybe just have a more powerful device there?
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