Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Replacing my older MBP/iPad with the new iPad Pro for school/casual music production

macnewbie86

macnewbie86

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 3, 2014
34
6
Hi everyone. So I have a MacBook Pro 2013 (128gb) and an iPad Air 1 (16gb). They’re both getting a little old and memory is too small. I held onto my MBP over the years because I was in computer science and needed it for coding, but I recently switched to English and now I only need to type essays.

I am also a musician and record demos with Logic. It was fun playing around with logic, but I think it’s overkill for what I need. I recently started using my iPhone 6s plus for recording songs with garage band, and although it’s not as feature rich and I occasionally miss the keyboard shortcuts and mouse, I like the iOS garage band a lot.

In short, the new IPP (256gb) 10.5 or 12.9 is tempting to replace BOTH my MacBook Pro and iPad Air 1, but I’m worried I will regret the switch. Here is a list I’ve made to help me make the decision.

Reasons NOT TO upgrade and switch to the iPad Pro 10.5/12.9
  • I won’t have my 25” external screen when typing essays
  • I may have issues with Blackboard software/website on the IPP (concerned about uploading/downloading my essays and power points from professors)
Reasons FOR getting an iPad Pro 10.5/12.9
  • mac OS code is getting sloppy and less secure (i.e. signing in as “root”. I know it’s been patched, but It just doesn’t seem like apple care about Macs as much anymore)
  • Updates to the Mac OS operating system just don’t seem as significant and feature rich compared to the ipads
  • I can focus better on what I’m doing when working(yes there is now multtasking on iPads but it’s not as distracting as the macbook”)
  • want to start learning how to draw down the road (apple pencil)
  • It was nice fooling around with Logic on my MacBook pro but ultimately it’s overkill for what I need. I’ve recorded some songs with GarageBand on my iphone. I can’t manipulate audio files the same way, but I only make rough demos anyway.
  • more portable
***I know it looks like I have more points for getting the iPad pro 10.5/12.9 BUT those two reasons for not getting it are significant.

So I’m just wondering if any of you students out there were in the same situation as me. Do you miss having an external display and MBP? Anyone have issues with blackboard software with the new iPad pros? What do you guys think?

Thanks for you're help.
 
macnewbie86 said:
Hi everyone. So I have a MacBook Pro 2013 (128gb) and an iPad Air 1 (16gb). They’re both getting a little old and memory is too small. I held onto my MBP over the years because I was in computer science and needed it for coding, but I recently switched to English and now I only need to type essays.

I am also a musician and record demos with Logic. It was fun playing around with logic, but I think it’s overkill for what I need. I recently started using my iPhone 6s plus for recording songs with garage band, and although it’s not as feature rich and I occasionally miss the keyboard shortcuts and mouse, I like the iOS garage band a lot.

In short, the new IPP (256gb) 10.5 or 12.9 is tempting to replace BOTH my MacBook Pro and iPad Air 1, but I’m worried I will regret the switch. Here is a list I’ve made to help me make the decision.

Reasons NOT TO upgrade and switch to the iPad Pro 10.5/12.9
  • I won’t have my 25” external screen when typing essays
  • I may have issues with Blackboard software/website on the IPP (concerned about uploading/downloading my essays and power points from professors)
Reasons FOR getting an iPad Pro 10.5/12.9
  • mac OS code is getting sloppy and less secure (i.e. signing in as “root”. I know it’s been patched, but It just doesn’t seem like apple care about Macs as much anymore)
  • Updates to the Mac OS operating system just don’t seem as significant and feature rich compared to the ipads
  • I can focus better on what I’m doing when working(yes there is now multtasking on iPads but it’s not as distracting as the macbook”)
  • want to start learning how to draw down the road (apple pencil)
  • It was nice fooling around with Logic on my MacBook pro but ultimately it’s overkill for what I need. I’ve recorded some songs with GarageBand on my iphone. I can’t manipulate audio files the same way, but I only make rough demos anyway.
  • more portable
***I know it looks like I have more points for getting the iPad pro 10.5/12.9 BUT those two reasons for not getting it are significant.

So I’m just wondering if any of you students out there were in the same situation as me. Do you miss having an external display and MBP? Anyone have issues with blackboard software with the new iPad pros? What do you guys think?

Thanks for you're help.
Click to expand...

Why do you think you can't use external display? You can easily connect your iPad to a monitor via HDMI connector and trype your essays on an external bluetooth keyboard, if you want to. I mirror my iPP display to the TV via Apple TV most of the time.
 
Precursor said:
Why do you think you can't use external display? You can easily connect your iPad to a monitor via HDMI connector and trype your essays on an external bluetooth keyboard, if you want to. I mirror my iPP display to the TV via Apple TV most of the time.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply. I didn’t know that there was an HDMI adapter. So I guess the only thing holding me back is the blackboard software compatibility.
 
If it were me, I'd try using the iPad you currently have (put the MacBook away completely so you can't use it) & see how that works for your needs. If it works, then upgrade the iPad. If not, you'll know pretty quickly. I used an iPad as my main computer when I was getting my MBA, but there were some real limitations that I had to work around (Word formatting, tables of contents, etc). If you can handle your day to day tasks/schoolwork on your iPad, then you should be good to go. You should be able to figure out Blackboard on it as well. I used it back in the day, and it was only mostly-iPad compliant. I had some issues with uploading papers, but they've upgraded the app several times since then. I would not be surprised if those issues were resolved by now.
 
My wife went back to school this past semester and her computer is eight years old. I took the opportunity to upgrade her iPad to an iPad Pro for her to use in school. We were not going to buy another computer for just a couple semesters of classes and thought an iPad could fill the gap. While it is able to do so for many things, there were some issues. 1. The school still used flash player to allow students to access certain projects and lectures online. We downloaded multiple apps and while we were able to sometimes get certain classes accessed on the iPad, it was extremely difficult. 2. I don’t know if this was fixed on one of the more recent updates, but twice my wife used the Apple Pencil to mark up some PDFs that were sent out as homework. Look up the Apple support community, and you will see that unless you follow a certain set of steps (and sometimes that doesn’t even work), those mark ups are not always saved. She spent four or five hours completing a large project and when she went back to flip between pages to doublecheck them, they had all been deleted. It could have been a disaster for her grade if she had not completed half of them on hard copy paper forms before attempting to switch to the iPad per my suggestion. In summary, at least through her institution, she has spent more than 3/4 of her schooling on her eight-year-old laptop instead of her iPad. Most things can be completed on her iPad, but since not all things can be, it’s pretty much a moot point. And I was the one who pushed her to try and use it.

If your school is technologically forward, I would give it a try. However I would not get rid of any laptop or desktop that you may already have just in case. Also, make sure you know what you’re doing if you think you are going to do your homework on your iPad by using the Apple Pencil to mark up a PDF. I have never been more disappointed in Apple as a company than when my wife completed that project and the iPad had deleted hours of work just two hours before her project was due. Apple products are supposed to simply work, and in most cases they do, but schoolwork is complicated and different from school to school. After watching her, I know I could not simply switch to an iPad for my only computing device.

For the record, I do think the iPad Pro can handle just about anything The average student does in school, it’s the software, formats, And programs that the school requires you use that makes it difficult. While you may technically be able to figure things out, it’s an inordinate amount of work just to be able to do something your computer could pull up in less than 30 seconds.
 
Precursor said:
I use the Apple Lightning Digital AV Adapter to hook to monitors, and Lightning to VGA Adapter for projectors at work, both work perfect.
You can pair your ipad with a magic keyboard and type as fast as you can.
There is also a Blackboard app in iTunes, never used it though, and dunno what it does.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the links. Blackboard is software used by universities for grading/assignments/quizzes/lecture notes. It’s news to me that they actually have an app. I’ve just been using the website through safari. Ill check it out with my air and if it works, I’ll be getting the new iPad Pro 10.5 256gb and replace everything with just that. Thanks again for helping. Looking forward to consolidating my mbp/air to just one iPad Pro...if this software passes my test. It doesn’t have the greatest reviews so I’ll have to see for myself.
[doublepost=1512674387][/doublepost]Rain shadow thank you very much for posting this. I’m sure I wouldn’t encounter flash in the English department but I do remember a prof using it for a elective astronomy class. Definitely some things to think about.

I have an Adonit dash 2 that I’ve used mostly with Microsoft one note. It wasn’t that great but I never tried it with marking up PDFs. I’ll try it out. I will seriously consider what you have told me about your wife’s experience. Thank you.
 
Here are some suggestions I have:

Make sure to get a keyboard of some sort. I use the Apple Magic Keyboard, but if you need a keyboard in class then perhaps the Apple Smart Keyboard or one of the other keyboard cases would be better.

Which case you get is very important to how well you will enjoy your iPad experience. Unlike a laptop or regular computer, you hold the iPad in your hands so the type of case, and whether it has any sort of stands, covers, a pencil holder or other features built-in will be VERY important. Chose your case carefully. Also, you may go through several types of cases before you decide what is best for you.

For music, make sure to get an app called AudioShare. It is wonderful and works as a good central Audio File manager that plays well with just about all other audio production apps.

Get an Office 365 subscription (if you don't already have one) so you can use Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.

Get the Documents by Readdle app -- it's an excellent file manager that is much more capable than the standard iOS Files app. It will allow you to manipulate files, upload/download files from cloud services or FTP sites, etc.

And for whatever unusual needs you may have, you can almost always find apps that are perfect for the situation. Remember there are more than 1 million apps in the App Store!
 
I’m thinking the same change for me. Just checked out the 12.9 and 10.5 and really leaning toward the 10.5. Going to sell my 2015 MBP and 2017 iPad and go for one device.

I totally agree with the multitasking distractions of modern computers. Find myself doing that all the time (getting distracted) instead of writing, lol.

I’m also much more minimalistic lately and the single device really appeals to me. I find myself looking at all the ports and capability of my MPB that I have “just in case” but never use. Like a garage full of things that I think I’ll need someday.

I just think the 10.5 iPad is such a compelling device. With Smart Keyboard of course. Portable, powerful, simple.
 
I’m actually in the process of selling my MBP right now, because I haven’t used it since I got the 12.9 MBP. I use my old Air 2 in conjunction with the 12.9 for online video teaching... My students and my whiteboard are on the 12.9, and any books or PDFs I need to look at are on the Air 2. I’m really loving this setup.

Thanks to the poster who mentioned the lightning to VGA adapter— that makes me feel a little less nervous about my plan to sell the MBP. (Plus, last night I realized that if I really need to, I can get a Mac mini for half of what I can sell the MBP for.)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back