The Mac owes much of its existence to the visual arts professionals who embraced it (Myself included). Similarly, the iPad Pro—and the featured apps that utilize the stylus—appear to be for those same professionals. Is the iPad Pro repeating the Mac's legacy? Otherwise, which professionals find the iPad useful for their occupation —excluding general office tasks?
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iPad Pro Poll: Which professions are using iPad Pros?
- Thread starter Defthand
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iPad Pros only? Because I'm a teacher who uses a non-pro iPad every day, as do many of my colleagues.
I'm actually holding my purchase of an iPP 12.9 just in case they soon release a new one. However, I am interested in Illustration and all the new approach that iPad brings to the Digital Art world. Even though I think it needs more to be fully adopted by this field (CMYK support, big print size files, )
Can't wait to use it!!!
Can't wait to use it!!!
same. I use an air 3 for my teaching. Mostly use pages and notability for lesson plans and meetings, files and mail for keeping in touch with other staff and for organizing lessons based on grade.
Sometimes i will use affinity photo and designer for worksheets but i tend to use pages if i do not need any artwork.
rather than using keynote, i just put a bunch of images into an album and show that instead. I teach english to people in japan so i do not need to flood them with words, its better to use images and lots of pointing to explain instead.
every class i mirror my ipad to a smartboard (basically a 55” touchscreen monitor) in the class to do my lessons.
very rarely i will use luma fusion to edit videos for the school, or use memos with a blue yeti mic to record them speaking for a test.
right now my ipad does everything i need it to for my work. Only issue is none of the schools printers work with my ipad so i have to buy one and set it on my desk. But hey if i can do all my work on 1 device then i am golden.
I just upgraded to an Air 3 this week from a 6th gen iPad.
have you tried the app iDoceo? It’s totally changed how I record and manage my student data.
I still depend on my laptop for a lot of the day to day stuff, but an iPad has been an important tool for me at work for a few years now.
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As I mentioned above, iDoceo has been a game changer for me. It allows you to easily import class rosters, record, calculate, and report grades, record attendance, record anecdotal notes and other data about students, generate seating plans, and more.
Since I teach science, there are also some specialized science apps I use.
I am what is known as an alt. Basically i teach there but i give all that info to the homeroom teacher. I do not have to input literally anything lol. The app sounds like a godsend though.
Same here, teaching. Replace the black board with Notability and a pencil. Save to pdf any upload - done. I also use it for making Keynote animation. Paper grading and feedback is much easier with iPad and Pencil compared to a Mac. So a new breed of professionals would be those who replace traditional pen and paper with iPad+pencil, just like the graphics industry needed a GUI rather than a command line.
It unclear if the OP think of us teacher as "professionals" or if we "only" have a professions. Sometime at MR, it is very difficult to know what a professional is.
Other professions on top of my mind from similar threads:
-Pilots
-Building constructors
-real estate agents
-Medical Doctors
-Lawyers
-Sports coaches
All, that may prefer a iPad-pencil interface rather than a traditional computer. A similarity is that all these people are out in the field. Even a class room provides field work compared to sitting in the cosy office.
It unclear if the OP think of us teacher as "professionals" or if we "only" have a professions. Sometime at MR, it is very difficult to know what a professional is.
Other professions on top of my mind from similar threads:
-Pilots
-Building constructors
-real estate agents
-Medical Doctors
-Lawyers
-Sports coaches
All, that may prefer a iPad-pencil interface rather than a traditional computer. A similarity is that all these people are out in the field. Even a class room provides field work compared to sitting in the cosy office.
I work in TV and use it in all of my meetings with notability - take notes on it, bring up any research I might need on the spot, etc- more intense work is done at my work station but my iPad is that perfect in between where I can write everything down, and pull anything up on the World Wide Web for demonstration.
This is why I've always insisted that "Pro" is just a marketing term. These are all professionals who have very different needs. Nothing about an iPad Pro, other than simply the fact that it has overall better specs, makes it better for my uses as a professional educator than a non-pro model like the Air 3, especially since all current iPads now support some version of the Pencil, and all but the Mini have a Smart Connector.
This. Same software running on better hardware, just like Mac pros vs regular.
I’m considering those persons who use an iPad to perform a job or service (paid or unpaid), rather than for lifestyle or recreational reasons. Naturally, teachers are professionals. As a side note, the academia community was another that endorsed Apple’s early tools.
Thanks for listing other examples, as many forum users are likely to ignore this post.
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Boot, that’s a surprising limitation. Is it that the printers don’t offer a wireless connection? Otherwise, there are third party apps that enable printing to non-AirPrint supported printers.
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To those of you using IPP teaching, how cumbersome is it when creating lesson plans? And multi-tasking?
I create some pretty complex lesson plans and Keynotes on a MBP but I’m considering switching to IPP. Multiple windows are a must for me, and I’ve had some difficulty in editing numbers/excel tables on my iPhone.The new iPadOS finally made an iPad usable for me, but I’m still worried about software limitations.
I create some pretty complex lesson plans and Keynotes on a MBP but I’m considering switching to IPP. Multiple windows are a must for me, and I’ve had some difficulty in editing numbers/excel tables on my iPhone.The new iPadOS finally made an iPad usable for me, but I’m still worried about software limitations.
Exactly. For the most part, the "Pro" models don't actually do anything that the non-pros don't. Especially with recent iPad models where previously Pro exclusive features like Pencil and Keyboard support have trickled down. They just have better specs so that they can do it faster and look better while they're at it. 😁
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This is why I still use my laptop for most actual work. I'm quite happy with my Surface Laptop 2 (thin, light, and powerful enough) and iPad Air 3 (also thin, light, and powerful enough) combo. They each fill a niche.
Niche is right. Each has pros/cons or strengths/weaknesses vs the other. iPadOS makes the IPP much more capable and offers some exciting possibilities for use, but other limitations worry me.
My iPad has become my companion device and “second screen” (literally, I downsized from multiple monitors to a single large one and use my iPad next to me all day.)
I use it to jot notes on, look things up, sketch out ideas, test layouts, look at plans in the field, take notes on during meetings and conferences.
It will never replace my main computer and frankly I don’t want it to. Been there done that with the Surface Pro.
I use it to jot notes on, look things up, sketch out ideas, test layouts, look at plans in the field, take notes on during meetings and conferences.
It will never replace my main computer and frankly I don’t want it to. Been there done that with the Surface Pro.
I am a university professor. I use 1st generation iPad Pro 12.9 extensively for preparing lectures and taking notes during talks. Also as scratchpad when I'm working on problems. I use Notability for that. This has changed my workflow considerably and I find my iPad+Pencil absolutely indispensable. I now have all my lectures organized and also all the talks I have attended. Really quite useful.
I use it occasionally for other things like marking up papers I am refereeing (also in Notability) or as a shared digital whiteboard for communicating with my long distance collaborators.
I use it occasionally for other things like marking up papers I am refereeing (also in Notability) or as a shared digital whiteboard for communicating with my long distance collaborators.
All of the printers are these super huge old school ones with no wireless capabilities. Right now i have to move the file from my ipad to a flash drive with a dongle and then go to the printing pc to print. Its such an annoyance that i am just going to buy a laser printer and set it on my desk
I have zero issues making lesson plans. I do have a keyboard and mouse that i sometimes use, but lately i have been using the digital keyboard. Split screen works well too. I use spreadsheets for basic tasks so i cannot vouch for that part
For me on the work side of my usage I use my iPad Pro to read and answer emails while away from my desk/laptop, to annotate PDFs when I review engineering plans or documents, to take handwritten notes during meetings and to use as a reference when going to meetings (having access to cloud storage and maps when needed). I’m a civil engineer/project manager in the transportation infrastructure field, highways specifically.
In general the iPad works fine for this stuff but sometimes the PDF plans that I review bring various PDF applications on iOS to their knees due to the amount of graphical data in them (tons of vectorized graphics). It’s times like that when I long for a surface device instead but I otherwise have a hard time justifying the cost given that 80% of the time I use my iPad for consumption rather than work.
In general the iPad works fine for this stuff but sometimes the PDF plans that I review bring various PDF applications on iOS to their knees due to the amount of graphical data in them (tons of vectorized graphics). It’s times like that when I long for a surface device instead but I otherwise have a hard time justifying the cost given that 80% of the time I use my iPad for consumption rather than work.
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For my school, you need to logged in to your work account to access the network printer, something I can’t access from my ipad.
I default to my 27” iMac for crafting documents such as lesson plans, mainly for the larger display. So the heavy lifting on my Mac at home, my ipad for convenience outside.
Thank you for having a broader view on professionals!
I am a teacher in academia and for teaching, iPad has value. Research - not so much. The typical tools we use are for Windows or Mac although brain storming and note taking at meetings is easier done on iPad (for me) than a a Mac/PC (keyboard centric input). The reasons is that the pencil input provides sufficient speed in the interactions, just like pen and paper does. That let me focus on the interactions with fellow researcher rather than computer inputs.
iPad can be useful : certain labs requires sterile techniques and note taking with iPad and pencil is far better than paper which essentially is not allowed in certain labs. The reason is that iPad can be wiped down with 70% ethanol for sterilisation although the long term effect on the oleophobic coating it probably not good. I know, I know, this is a "nerdy" case
If it is Pro iPad or not is without any meaning as long as it works.
I use my iPad Pro 12.9” as Director and owner of my own business, for all aspects of running my business mainly using Mail, Safari, Pages, Numbers, Notes and now Reminders (was previously Things). Such things as my accounts and sales software is online and works fine with the new desktop safari on iPad.
The iPad is perfect for me as I travel a lot for my business including to parts of the world where the WiFi is often bad, or restricted. So I mostly get online using 4G/LTE, a big advantage over a MacBook for me - as is the portability, ability to use on air flights with less restrictions and I love the touch interface and simpler interface which enables me to more concentrate on what I am doing. My main problem in the past was the difficulty of having two spreadsheets up side by side, but that is now fixed with iPadOS - a wish fulfilled!
I use the Smart Keyboard most of the time and the Apple Pencil occasionally, mainly for marking up and signing documents.
When not using for working, my iPad Pro is my entertainment center wherever I may be for which the excellent display and incredible speakers make it a pleasure.
I also use as tablet to play music (I am brass musician) for which it is ideal. I can carry my whole manuscript library with me wherever I go. The camera is also good to video concerts with the magnets on back securely holding iPad Pro on music stand.
The main advantages of the Pro over the regular iPad in my opinion are the larger screen, Face ID, full screen display for more compact carrying, better anti-reflective display and much better speakers. The 4-speaker set up alone I think makes worth getting the Pro if you can afford.
The iPad is perfect for me as I travel a lot for my business including to parts of the world where the WiFi is often bad, or restricted. So I mostly get online using 4G/LTE, a big advantage over a MacBook for me - as is the portability, ability to use on air flights with less restrictions and I love the touch interface and simpler interface which enables me to more concentrate on what I am doing. My main problem in the past was the difficulty of having two spreadsheets up side by side, but that is now fixed with iPadOS - a wish fulfilled!
I use the Smart Keyboard most of the time and the Apple Pencil occasionally, mainly for marking up and signing documents.
When not using for working, my iPad Pro is my entertainment center wherever I may be for which the excellent display and incredible speakers make it a pleasure.
I also use as tablet to play music (I am brass musician) for which it is ideal. I can carry my whole manuscript library with me wherever I go. The camera is also good to video concerts with the magnets on back securely holding iPad Pro on music stand.
The main advantages of the Pro over the regular iPad in my opinion are the larger screen, Face ID, full screen display for more compact carrying, better anti-reflective display and much better speakers. The 4-speaker set up alone I think makes worth getting the Pro if you can afford.
I am using it as a student, and particularly as a laptop replacement. I have only had a couple of instances where I needed to use an actual computer to do work due to the type of program needed, and in those cases my job allowed me to use my work computer at the office on my own time for those tasks. For writing papers, reading e-textbooks, taking notes, writing papers, and doing assignments, it has been amazing. Also, I use it as a personal consumption device, and it works great for watching videos, browsing the web, reading news and regular ebooks as well.
This is on my 3rd gen 12.9” iPad Pro. I used to think that the 12.9“ was too much iPad for me, but when they slimmed the bezels down and made it all screen, I fell in love with it.
This is on my 3rd gen 12.9” iPad Pro. I used to think that the 12.9“ was too much iPad for me, but when they slimmed the bezels down and made it all screen, I fell in love with it.
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