iPad Pro Is it just me that prefers macOS? I cannot justify owning an iPad Pro

[Abazigal]

Makes sense to edit them . Any sources for shortcuts that you can share?

https://www.macstories.net/shortcuts/

I get a couple my shortcuts from macstories, some from the shortcuts gallery, a few from the shortcuts subreddit, maybe one or two from the web. I am also subscribed to Macstories, and Federicco does custom workflows on request. The majority are extremely specialised and generally irrelevant to me, but useful ones do surface from time to time.

I have this YouTube download video shortcut app but I can't seem to make it work. I have to test it again.

Try this one.

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/03a0ac7d1da84ef7bd9d3a306f5c8745

 

[bluespark]

Agree overall. There are some things the iPad is absolutely great at -- basically, anything that involves drawing on a screen. I use it for reading and marking up PDFs and it's amazing for that, and it's even better for artistic drawing and related activities. But for general office-type productivity, any Mac or Windows computer works far better.

Once upon a time, that may not have been a big deal, because the iPad didn't really seem to have "pro" ambitions (when using "pro" to describe office-type productivity (and yes, I'll be the first to acknowledge that professional needs vary)). But when you look at how good some of the 2-in-one laptops are becoming on the Windows side, this seems like a serious problem for the iPad. That market isn't quite the same, but I think it will increasingly cut into the iPad Pro market (and MacBook market) if Apple doesn't focus more on productivity solutions.

 

[secretk]

https://www.macstories.net/shortcuts/

I get a couple my shortcuts from macstories, some from the shortcuts gallery, a few from the shortcuts subreddit, maybe one or two from the web. I am also subscribed to Macstories, and Federicco does custom workflows on request. The majority are extremely specialised and generally irrelevant to me, but useful ones do surface from time to time.

Thanks! I will check them out. There are two things that I want to make as a shortcut but I did not find a way to do it currently. One would be to add reminders based on emails (like followup on an email for specific day/time). The other one is to set Do not disturb mode when I am at work (based on location basically).

I hope that with iOS 13 I will have more options for scripting. I do not mind doing my own Shortcuts and using the meta language there. I kind dig that stuff. Problem is I can't find the actions that I want/need.

Try this one.

https://www.icloud.com/shortcuts/03a0ac7d1da84ef7bd9d3a306f5c8745

Thanks! I will test it.

 

[Mainsail]

I certainly understand the use case for both a laptop and a tablet, so there really is no right or wrong approach.....just what works best for the individual.

If I look at the trend, it seems like the iPad hardware is advancing pretty rapidly, and we will see what improvements iOS 13 brings to productivity and the overall experience. Meanwhile, the Mac is basically still a Mac. Desktops/laptops are pretty mature in their evolution, so progress has slowed as one might expect.

 

[secretk]

I certainly understand the use case for both a laptop and a tablet, so there really is no right or wrong approach.....just what works best for the individual.

If I look at the trend, it seems like the iPad hardware is advancing pretty rapidly, and we will see what improvements iOS 13 brings to productivity and the overall experience. Meanwhile, the Mac is basically still a Mac. Desktops/laptops are pretty mature in their evolution, so progress has slowed as one might expect.

In general I agree with you though I have to admit I like the concept of the new Asus Zenbook pros. They have second display on the part where the keyboard is and you can use the Asus Pencil to draw and write there. You can even snap 3 apps on it (within the width of the keyboard/screen). You can also switch apps between the two displays. The trackpad is a trackpad and numeric pad in one. And it has quite good video card. The price is a "good" one too though. Definitely a lot.

I guess some companies do try to shake up a bit things in the laptops area. We will see if this will succeed or it would stale and make it same old same old.

 

[petvas]

My experience so far with devices that try to be both a laptop and a tablet hasn't been good. The Surface Book 2 is a great laptop, but a bad tablet with low battery life when used as a tablet only. Also, Windows is not very good as a tablet OS. Now, going to the Surface Pro you see a great design, but as a laptop it falls short. The Surface Pro will sit on your lap, but it will not be very stable. (but it works)
Other devices have their own issues. Nothing is perfect. Currently I believe that as long as the technology constraints are there, I prefer to have separate devices and not devices combining two form factors. The iPad is a great tablet, but as a laptop it is not as good (for various reasons we are discussing in this thread). The Microsoft Surface line of computers is for me the best product that tries to combine two form factors, but still it is far from perfect. I don't know about the Asus Zenbook, but I am almost sure that it will have its own fair share of issues.

Now, going back to the main topic. I am now sitting on my couch and I have been using my iPad, when suddenly I wanted to visit a website to order food for my dog. Somehow and without thinking about it, I put the iPad aside and used my MacBook Pro to proceed with the order. Somehow I trust the desktop Safari much more than the mobile version. I think that if the iPad gets a full featured Internet browser, things will be much better. Another reason I think I switched to my MacBook for placing the order is, that it is easier to navigate the online shop compared to using an iPad. Selecting from drop down boxes is easier when using a precision based navigation method (trackpad). Using the iPad even for this simple task is not an option for me, even if I know it would work ok. I just prefer macOS much better.

Maybe tomorrow WWDC will change a lot of things, but somehow I believe that Apple is not known for delivering major updates, that completely change a platform, so I believe that Apple will offer an evolutionary update to the iPad, nothing more. We will see tomorrow.

 

[secretk]

My experience so far with devices that try to be both a laptop and a tablet hasn't been good. The Surface Book 2 is a great laptop, but a bad tablet with low battery life when used as a tablet only. Also, Windows is not very good as a tablet OS. Now, going to the Surface Pro you see a great design, but as a laptop it falls short. The Surface Pro will sit on your lap, but it will not be very stable. (but it works)
Other devices have their own issues. Nothing is perfect. Currently I believe that as long as the technology constraints are there, I prefer to have separate devices and not devices combining two form factors. The iPad is a great tablet, but as a laptop it is not as good (for various reasons we are discussing in this thread). The Microsoft Surface line of computers is for me the best product that tries to combine two form factors, but still it is far from perfect. I don't know about the Asus Zenbook, but I am almost sure that it will have its own fair share of issues.

I agree with that. Ultimately I would like to merge them and have one device but I don't think that this device exists for me currently.

Now, going back to the main topic. I am not sitting on my couch and I have been using my iPad, when suddenly I wanted to visit a website to order food for my dog. Somehow and without thinking about it, I put the iPad aside and used my MacBook Pro to proceed with the order. Somehow I trust the desktop Safari much more than the mobile version. I think that if the iPad gets a full featured Internet browser, things will be much better. Another reason I think I switched to my MacBook for placing the order is, that it is easier to navigate the online shop compared to using an iPad. Selecting from drop down boxes is easier when using a precision based navigation method (trackpad). Using the iPad even for this simple task is not an option for me, even if I know it would work ok. I just prefer macOS much better.

This is interesting. I have to think for such examples from my usage.

Maybe tomorrow WWDC will change a lot of things, but somehow I believe that Apple is now known for delivering major updates, that completely change a platform, so I believe that Apple will offer an evolutionary update to the iPad, nothing more. We will see tomorrow.

Yeah we will see. I will be interested to hear what they will offer with iOS 13.

 

[kazmac]

Nope, OP: you’re not alone.

I love Procreate on the iPads, but prefer macOS for creating content. For me, I am used to creating all other content on Macs.

 

[petvas]

I have posted this on another thread too, but I wanted to post my opinion about today's announcements here too:

• The enhanced Files app is a welcome change and adds some flexibility
• I still don't think that each app will be able to access the same files and folder structure on the iPad (a showstopper for me)
• iPadOS remains an app centric OS and not a window centric. I prefer the Mac approach
• Apps still need to be installed, just to make extra functionality available (via extensions)
• I haven't seen any improvements to the Mail.app (across all platforms)
• The new Safari is a step in the right direction. We will see how well it compares to its desktop counterpart.
• The new multitasking gestures are interesting and add more refinement to the existing gestures, which do not work very well
• Using the iPad as a secondary display to my Macs is a nice feature
• The new floating keyboard is a great change
• The new reminders app is irrelevant to me since I am using Things anyway..
• I am curious to see how the mouse support has been implemented

Overall I am happy with the direction the iPad is taking, but it still has a long way to go. The iPad with iPadOS 13 might make me feel a bit more comfortable to use it more, but I think I will still stick with my Macs as my primary computing devices.

I will not sell my iPad, but I guess I will have to accept that I will be using it just a little and on specific situations. I still prefer my Macs. I guess I am a Mac guy. I prefer the window centric approach of macOS. I believe it to be much more powerful..

 

[Abazigal]

I will not sell my iPad, but I guess I will have to accept that I will be using it just a little and on specific situations. I still prefer my Macs. I guess I am a Mac guy. I prefer the window centric approach of macOS. I believe it to be much more powerful..

To each their own, I guess.

 

[richpjr]

This release just made my iPad infinitely more useful to me. Can't wait to install the beta tonight when I get a little time.

 

[throAU]

The question arises (at least for me), why should I go through all the extra steps the iPad requires and not use a Mac instead

If a mac is easier to do the job, then use a mac.

For me, the types of things i need to use a mac for the macbooks don't do a great job of either, but my use case is somewhat niche amongst the mac crowd.

I'm not a major video editor, etc. I mostly run a mac for the unix command line tools, the integration with my other devices, and because it isn't Windows.

The iPad makes a better dumb terminal than a Macbook, and a Macbook is a poor example of a decent compute device, in 2019.

So i find my macbook becoming more and more marginalised. My heavy work is now done on a desktop; i'd love to use a Mac in that space but bang for buck, for what i need it isn't even close. Which is why i'm running an 8 core Ryzen with some decent GPUs and a decent amount of RAM and SSD in it. To buy a mac with lower spec would have cost me about 2x as much money.
[doublepost=1559616099][/doublepost]

I don’t have a Mac or an iPad Pro but I couldn’t justify the top end iPads knowing they’re not much cheaper than a Mac.

Reason for that is that the top end ipads are faster than a low end Mac.

Even the 9.7" baseline ipad 6th gen is faster than an entry level Macbook Air in the real world. The 10.5" beats an entry level quad core 15" from 2-3 years ago at some tasks. The newer ipad Pros are significantly faster than that.

If anything in Apple's lineup is overpriced, it's the mac side at the moment. The processing power in their mobile devices (including the ipads) is insane.

 

[hancuriang]

Hmmm i don’t know, i don’t think you can use macbook and ipad the same way... and it depends on what you actually do in your macbook and ipad, your job, your needs, etc. ipad arent suited for some people...

About safari, yes safari is annoying because all the sites you visit is the mobile version and it’s very limited even if you turn on the desktop version because you have to do that for every tabs and google drive apps don’t work on mobile version. But for ordering things online, about it’s being safer in desktop, i think it’s just your perception? I ordered things from my phone before so i don’t really see how it’s a problem. If the problem is you feel it’s safer or you trust macbook more, then the problem is you...

I have never touched my macbook for a month, last i turned it on, i used to listen to songs in a different pitch.. though like i said it depends on what you do in macbook. Though im pretty sure i abandoned macbook also partly because it’s very slow (8 year old mbp). Before getting an ipad, i thought i wanted a new mbp too but after getting the ipad, i changed my mind, i think a cheap windows laptop will suffice so you are right most people probably don’t need both a powerful macbook and a powerful ipad together.

My problem with ipad is i can’t download videos from most websites... in macbook, I can download via terminal from almost every sites. With ipad i can only download from youtube and twitter :/ though if you think about it, isn’t it because less people use and code for ipads... but that is also a compelling reason to not use an ipad yet.

 

[throAU]

Hmmm i don’t know, i don’t think you can use macbook and ipad the same way... and it depends on what you actually do in your macbook and ipad, your job, your needs, etc. ipad arent suited for some people...

Not saying i use them the same way. I'm saying that the things i can't do on the iPad are very much sub-optimal on the Macbook anyway. They're either better done on my desktop, or if i HAVE to do them remote (i.e., away from my desktop) in a pinch - via RDP/VNC from my iPad to my desktop, because the iPad is far more portable and if i'm going to carry one device, it can do things my Macbook can't (e.g., handwriting, quick sketch diagrams, etc.).

So - i have mostly replaced my Macbook with

• iPad Pro for the mostly mobile stuff
• Desktop computer running the stuff the ipad cant run

Macbook gets far less use than before - only for the specific niche things I can't do on an iPad that i also can't do on my desktop. Which is becoming less.

If mouse support works decently well in ipadOS, then VNC/RDP to the desktop will be less painful to use.

 

[cics]

iPadOS news are exciting, but I have to say I am far more excited about project catalyst as I prefer macOS more. Having such apps on my Mac, synced content and notifications, and maybe, one day, an ARM version with all the benefits (battery life first) it's a dream.

Maybe it's just because I have an office job and I use my MacBook for my daily work, I need, want and prefer mouse/trackpad interactions and apps in window mode. My iPhone Max has been my primary personal device.

I think macOs and iPadOS will get closer and closer in terms of functionalities and "look & feel" year after year. Who knows, maybe one day iPadOS will have apps in windows (maybe only when docked to a station) and I will consider as my primary work device... but until that moment I just prefer the desktop approach.

 

[petvas]

Hmmm i don’t know, i don’t think you can use macbook and ipad the same way... and it depends on what you actually do in your macbook and ipad, your job, your needs, etc. ipad arent suited for some people...

About safari, yes safari is annoying because all the sites you visit is the mobile version and it’s very limited even if you turn on the desktop version because you have to do that for every tabs and google drive apps don’t work on mobile version. But for ordering things online, about it’s being safer in desktop, i think it’s just your perception? I ordered things from my phone before so i don’t really see how it’s a problem. If the problem is you feel it’s safer or you trust macbook more, then the problem is you...

I have never touched my macbook for a month, last i turned it on, i used to listen to songs in a different pitch.. though like i said it depends on what you do in macbook. Though im pretty sure i abandoned macbook also partly because it’s very slow (8 year old mbp). Before getting an ipad, i thought i wanted a new mbp too but after getting the ipad, i changed my mind, i think a cheap windows laptop will suffice so you are right most people probably don’t need both a powerful macbook and a powerful ipad together.

My problem with ipad is i can’t download videos from most websites... in macbook, I can download via terminal from almost every sites. With ipad i can only download from youtube and twitter :/ though if you think about it, isn’t it because less people use and code for ipads... but that is also a compelling reason to not use an ipad yet.

I didn’t say that I don’t trust my iPad from a security perspective. I just feel that the browser might not work well and when placing orders I prefer to use my Macs. They always work. This is not always the case on the iPad. Maybe with ipadOS 13 this will change.

 

[petvas]

So, after reading a lot about the new OS versions and watching the keynote and many YouTube hands-on videos, I think that nothing really will change for me. Yes, the iPad will become more powerful and this is good news, but my impression is that macOS was the winner of this WWDC. macOS will be getting (probably) most iPad apps that do not exist on the Mac. Also, in the future it will be much more easier to develop apps for the Mac and iOS at the same time. The Mac isn't going anywhere and this was the best news for me. The iPad is getting better, but the Mac also. This is a great time to be alive and enjoy all the technology we have.

Anyway, I think that if I accept that the iPad will never replace my Macs, that I can find a place for it in my life, even if it is just a very small one. After all, I love technology and the iPad is full of it. I think that after iPadOS 13 I will have three major issues with the platform though:

• The lack of productivity apps that are on par with their desktop counterparts. This is a big issue for me and I cannot ignore it. Especially Microsoft Office and all available Mail clients are just not good for advanced users.
• Safari is still not on par with Desktop Safari (but it is improving)
• No way to use the iPad for extended periods of time with no mouse. Mouse support is now there, but as an accessibility feature only, which means that Apple doesn't really want us to use it..

 

[Isamilis]

deleted

 

[gdeusthewhizkid]

I think a Mac desktop (iMac or Mac Mini) plus iPad is a great combination. The iPad is great for mobile productivity and consumption. A desktop is great for complex tasks and large content creation.

It seems like "content consumption" gets a bad wrap....like you can't be productive when consuming content. This is ridiculous.

• Reviewing and replying to emails/messages
• Referencing and Updating Contacts, Calendars, and reminders
• Reviewing and Annotating PDFs
• Reviewing and writing Handwritten and Typed Notes
• Reviewing, drafting, and editing other documents (tables, charts, slides, etc..)
• Reading Books and professional Journals
• Reviewing and marking up sketches and photos

If your mobile productivity is primarily this type of stuff, an iPad is a great device and schlepping around a laptop would seem to be excessive. Also, cloud storage has made it pretty seamless to move between devices, so you don't need to carry around a laptop everywhere just to access your files and documents.

It is really not about cost: MacBook Air 2018 = $1,200. Mac Mini + iPad Air 3 = $800 + $500 = $1,300. Almost everyone has a monitor, keyboard and mouse laying around. If not, they are often on sale at electronic stores.

I agree.. I stopped liking laptops a long time ago.. For me as a power user they have never been that powerful to me or to my liking.. Ive always enjoyed using IPads. And with this new iPadOS I’m even more excited to use iPad.. It’s always fun to use...

 

[Mainsail]

My

I agree.. I stopped liking laptops a long time ago.. For me as a power user they have never been that powerful to me or to my liking.. Ive always enjoyed using IPads. And with this new iPadOS I’m even more excited to use iPad.. It’s always fun to use...

My wife is the same. She hates using laptops. She loves her iPad and Mac Mini. For mobile, its iPad. For home office, its Mac desktop. She really does not like being hunched over a laptop.

I agree that iPadOS is really going to take this combination to the next level. With side car and catalyst plus all of the new features in iPadOS, the iPad plus Desktop Mac is a tough combination to beat. Also, with the new gestures, text selection, and swipe keyboard, you may see more people being productive with their iPads without using a bunch of accessories. Kind of a resurgence of touch first on the tablet.

 

[petvas]

My


My wife is the same. She hates using laptops. She loves her iPad and Mac Mini. For mobile, its iPad. For home office, its Mac desktop. She really does not like being hunched over a laptop.

I agree that iPadOS is really going to take this combination to the next level. With side car and catalyst plus all of the new features in iPadOS, the iPad plus Desktop Mac is a tough combination to beat. Also, with the new gestures, text selection, and swipe keyboard, you may see more people being productive with their iPads without using a bunch of accessories. Kind of a resurgence of touch first on the tablet.

I think that the combination iMac + MacBook Pro is unbeatable. Of course its to their own.
My iPad is my travel device, when I am on vacation. Nothing more than that. It's nice to have an iPad, but I cannot forget the "old" way of doing things, simply because it allows me to accomplish more, privately and professionally. When I get the feeling that the iPad can help me accomplish more, then I will use it more. I have nothing against the iPad. If I had I wouldn't buy it in the first place.

 

[petvas]

One of my upcoming tasks is the creation of a design document for one of my customers, so I tried the iPad to see what it can do for me. In the business where I am everybody is using Microsoft Office, so I started it on my iPad and tried to create the design document. I wanted to begin with a cover page and then add the headings and create a table of contents. Guess what? It's not possible with the Microsoft Office version that is available on the iPad. It doesn't allow me to create an outline and then based on the document structure I want, create a table of contents. I am sorry, but this is ridiculous. I am not blaming the iPad for this, but the fact is that with it I cannot do my job, even if I wanted. I could blame Microsoft, but I don't think that this is a simple topic. There are many apps limited like that on the iPad. Now, there are might be man apps that work great on the iPad, but Office productivity is a big failure. iPadOS 13 will not change anything, unless Microsoft suddenly decides to create a full featured Microsoft Office for the iPad, which I very much doubt. At the end of the day it doesn't matter what everybody is saying in this matter. If the iPad cannot do the task you want it too, then there is no point of keeping it. For people that have found apps that do the job, great. I am happy for all of you. Unfortunately I do not count among these people. I am on the other side and I am very happy with my Macs.

 

[Shirasaki]

as if we were idiots that don't know how to use a computer. If this is the new thinking, then no thank you, I will stay with my old ways.

By making a task simpler and easier to complete, we take away the ability for human to solve a complex problem. I am not saying simplifying payment process is bad for efficiency, but at the same time, more dirtier stuff can be hidden from the user. Think of some system cleaning software that provide a huge “clean now” or “start now” to entice people using default setting to “clean their computer”. Suddenly, bugs are all over the place and system won’t run properly.

Certainly, when Apple designed the iOS, one critical concept is to assume all users are illiterate fools knowing nothing about computer. Surprisingly, it works, at the cost of more literate and advanced user unable to complete their sophisticated tasks, while pushing the simplification of those tasks. I like to use iOS, but at the same time I wish I can control iOS in depth and make the system the way I want. Do you guys know some iPhone and iPod in the Apple store are so locked down, user cannot do anything but checking the price of the product? I want that.

Talking about this, one beautiful thing about old 8-bit computer is that a user can precisely instruct the computer to do a task in a specific way and computer will do that as expected. With all modern computers and programming languages, after reaching a certain level, precise control is impossible.

Sorry for the illogical and random response. Didn’t expect to post that much. In short, I love to complete a task In a specific way. I would love to optimise it or change it, but not until I am sure i have enough control of that process.

The Mail.app on my iPad and iPhone displays only mails that are on the inbox folder. How lame is that? Would the new thinking be here to just use one folder for everything?

I use folders too, but for me this sort of declutter my inbox allowing me to concentrate on More impressing matters rather than routine “xxx has updated his Facebook status” thing.

 

[Abazigal]

It’s always funny how upset certain computer users get when they see people enjoying something they don’t understand. Without a hint of self-realization, these Mac users look down on iPad users the exact same way Windows users did to them and the Mac back in the 90s. ‘Just a toy’

 

[petvas]

It’s always funny how upset certain computer users get when they see people enjoying something they don’t understand. Without a hint of self-realization, these Mac users look down on iPad users the exact same way Windows users did to them and the Mac back in the 90s. ‘Just a toy’

I am not upset, I am frustrated, but only when I try to make the iPad be something it isn't, namely a computer. This analogy is not accurate. I have mentioned concrete reasons why the iPad is nothing but a toy for me. You can choose to accept them or ignore them. If you see your needs covered by an iPad, then fine. Everybody can do whatever they like.