iPad Pro Screens for the iPad Pro - how effective is it?

[cman-uk]

Seriously considering picking up an iMac and iPad Pro combo given the MBP farce (which would be my ideal choice).

The iPad Pro would tick most boxes, apart from file management and access when on the go. Enter Screens.... I'm thinking this may help bridge that gap, and still allow me to access files/apps on the iMac for those occasions where the iPad Pro may fall short.

Conceptually, the ideas behind Screens (https://edovia.com) is brilliant, and the execution looks spot on.

However, in practice, is it actually useful and has it lived up to your expectations? I'm well aware that navigating OSX/MacOS via a touchscreen/iPad still isn't ideal, so I'm interested to know how well it's worked for you..... thoughts welcome!

 

[Newtons Apple]

I would not give up my 10.5 iPad Pro for anything. It is tried and proven hardware.

I bought the latest MBPro15 and the keyboard was defective. After two more replacements, I went to Windows so I could have a dependable device.

 

[cman-uk]

I would not give up my 10.5 iPad Pro for anything. It is tried and proven hardware.

I bought the latest MBPro15 and the keyboard was defective. After two more replacements, I went to Windows so I could have a dependable device.

Thanks, do you use Screens, and what are your thoughts on it?

 

[sparksd]

Looks interesting. I've been using Splashtop after giving Teamviewer a try. Problem I had with Teamviewer was it wouldn't transmit audio from the remote PC. But Screens is a one-time $19.99 for anywhere access while Splashtop is $16.99/year for the same. After my year runs out, I may give Screens a try - it certainly has a lot of good reviews while the negative ones all appear to be old.

 

[ericwn]

I have used Screens for basic tasks locally when I need to get something done on my iMac but am on a different floor. I really appreciate having the opportunity to access my Mac like this every once in a while.

 

[wrkngclasshero]

I never really post however this is one area I feel pretty strongly on.

I don’t have an iPad Pro but use my iPad 3 with screens as the main interface for my iMac. Including using it away from my local network.

I’ve been very satisfied with the program. It’s a touch laggy but my iMac is just as laggy with a keyboard/mouse. With an iPad 3 and an early-2009 iMac my expectations a

I would highly recommend Screens, and i have zero affiliation with Edovia. That being said I do think an external keyboard makes a huge difference in terms of usability.

Hope this helps.

 

[cman-uk]

I never really post however this is one area I feel pretty strongly on.

I don’t have an iPad Pro but use my iPad 3 with screens as the main interface for my iMac. Including using it away from my local network.

I’ve been very satisfied with the program. It’s a touch laggy but my iMac is just as laggy with a keyboard/mouse. With an iPad 3 and an early-2009 iMac my expectations a

I would highly recommend Screens, and i have zero affiliation with Edovia. That being said I do think an external keyboard makes a huge difference in terms of usability.

Hope this helps.

It really does help - thanks for posting! Your positive comments are consistent with reviews online.

1. To your final comment, the plan would be to use a Smart Keyboard with the iPad Pro, so hopefully that would ensure the full display of the iPad Pro would be reserved for viewing the iMac environment.

2. May I ask you to elaborate on your typical use cases? i.e. what do you use Screens for? grabbing files from your iMac? Executing heavy duty tasks on your iMac for prolonged periods? Trying to understand where the line can be drawn in terms of usability.

3. Silly question - I assume the iMac must be on/running 24/7 for Screens to work? Not ideal, but I suppose I can leave the machine running with the display to 'sleep'. Would this work well?

 

[sparksd]

I never really post however this is one area I feel pretty strongly on.

I don’t have an iPad Pro but use my iPad 3 with screens as the main interface for my iMac. Including using it away from my local network.

I’ve been very satisfied with the program. It’s a touch laggy but my iMac is just as laggy with a keyboard/mouse. With an iPad 3 and an early-2009 iMac my expectations a

I would highly recommend Screens, and i have zero affiliation with Edovia. That being said I do think an external keyboard makes a huge difference in terms of usability.

Hope this helps.

Have you tried video through Screens? Any audio or synch issues?

 

[TheralSadurns]

It really does help - thanks for posting! Your positive comments are consistent with reviews online.

1. To your final comment, the plan would be to use a Smart Keyboard with the iPad Pro, so hopefully that would ensure the full display of the iPad Pro would be reserved for viewing the iMac environment.

2. May I ask you to elaborate on your typical use cases? i.e. what do you use Screens for? grabbing files from your iMac? Executing heavy duty tasks on your iMac for prolonged periods? Trying to understand where the line can be drawn in terms of usability.

3. Silly question - I assume the iMac must be on/running 24/7 for Screens to work? Not ideal, but I suppose I can leave the machine running with the display to 'sleep'. Would this work well?

Much in the same boat as you are. Considering the MBP debacle. Running a 17" early 2011 MBP with a quad core i7 and 16GB... don't wanna upgrade to basically the same specs. 64GB RAM or bust! Enter iMac Pro + iPad Pro combo.


I used Screens with a 9.7" iPad (non pro) remote with my MBP connected to a 2560x1600 resolution screen. This was NOT ideal scaling-wise. A 10.5" or 12.9" iPad or a lower computer resolution would work a lot better!

Other than that... Screens is BRILLIANT. I especially like how the touchscreen works. Yes macOS is NOT meant for touchscreens. But that does NOT MATTER AT ALL. Screens offers the option to use trackpad mode. Here you can slide your finger across the entire screen and thus move the mouse cursor! It's brilliant and works really well! Direct "touch" is also an option... but, like I said... macOS is not meant for this and makes it a bit tedious.

 

[wrkngclasshero]

It really does help - thanks for posting! Your positive comments are consistent with reviews online.

1. To your final comment, the plan would be to use a Smart Keyboard with the iPad Pro, so hopefully that would ensure the full display of the iPad Pro would be reserved for viewing the iMac environment.

2. May I ask you to elaborate on your typical use cases? i.e. what do you use Screens for? grabbing files from your iMac? Executing heavy duty tasks on your iMac for prolonged periods? Trying to understand where the line can be drawn in terms of usability.

3. Silly question - I assume the iMac must be on/running 24/7 for Screens to work? Not ideal, but I suppose I can leave the machine running with the display to 'sleep'. Would this work well?

1) Sounds perfect. The full display is exactly why I suggested it.

2) My iMac is basically used to support a Plex server; including running Plex, as well as, MakeMKV and Handbrake. I also use Subler and MetaZ for tagging. If I want to transfer files I will typically use Dropbox which I suspect would be even more seamless on ios11 (the iPad 3 is tops out at iOS9). If you wanted to play games or something that requires no lag I suspect this setup may not work for you. Also there is no sound shared between the iPad and the computer, but my understand that is not a Screens but related to the process by which the screen is shared (VNC protocol I think).

3) Yes my iMac is always on. In the power mgmt setting I have the screen sleep after 1 minute of inactivity but the actual computer never sleeps. Screens also supports hot corners, which you can use to force the monitor to sleep.

When Apple gets around to updating the Mac Mini and the 12.9 iPad Pro, I plan on upgrading my ancient setup. But for now it works good enough.

Let me know if I can answer any other questions for you.

 

[cman-uk]

Much in the same boat as you are. Considering the MBP debacle. Enter iMac Pro + iPad Pro combo.

(off topic) I'll be interested to know what you decide on doing. Personally I've been waiting since March, frustratingly. Either I go for a MBP with Apple Care, or buy an iMac and iPad Pro, both of which could be refreshed later this year. Neither option ideal.
[doublepost=1528640075][/doublepost]

Let me know if I can answer any other questions for you.

That's super helpful, thanks so much. Interesting comment re: audio - - I don't think I require it but never really considered it not being shared.

 

[sparksd]

(off topic) I'll be interested to know what you decide on doing. Personally I've been waiting since March, frustratingly. Either I go for a MBP with Apple Care, or buy an iMac and iPad Pro, both of which could be refreshed later this year. Neither option ideal.
[doublepost=1528640075][/doublepost]
That's super helpful, thanks so much. Interesting comment re: audio - - I don't think I require it but never really considered it not being shared.

I asked on the audio because it doesn't work on Teamviewer (at least for me and a number of other users), a major competitor to Screens.

 

[TheralSadurns]

(off topic) I'll be interested to know what you decide on doing. Personally I've been waiting since March, frustratingly. Either I go for a MBP with Apple Care, or buy an iMac and iPad Pro, both of which could be refreshed later this year. Neither option ideal.
[doublepost=1528640075][/doublepost]
That's super helpful, thanks so much. Interesting comment re: audio - - I don't think I require it but never really considered it not being shared.

I've been waiting since... mhhh... at least 2015. Waiting for Sky Lake hoping for an epic redesign akin to the XPS 15. But it never came.

Now... well... I guess I'm holding on to my 2011 MBP. And wait for Ice Lake to drop, aka the next major redesign. I simply refuse to upgrade to another 16GB machine, as RAM is the main bottleneck with my current computer.

 

[TheralSadurns]

Oh and... I'll definitely go for an iPad Pro this year... either way. But I'll wait for the update that'll come in September or October. Same as the MBP. Which will drop around the same time. Right right now is REALLY a bad time to buy anything.

 

[cman-uk]

3) Yes my iMac is always on. In the power mgmt setting I have the screen sleep after 1 minute of inactivity but the actual computer never sleeps. Screens also supports hot corners, which you can use to force the monitor to sleep.

Let me know if I can answer any other questions for you.

Some further thoughts related to point 3 above, if you don't mind...

a) Cool - so the computer never sleeps, and the display is off. If you then use Screens to connect, does the display turn on? Or can you go about your screens connection with the iMac display still off? I'm aware there is the curtains feature, but just wondering if it's actually needed if the display is off to start with...

b) Presumably when your iMac display is off, you're also logged out of your account? If so, how does Screens deal with that? I'd prefer not to leave my iMac logged in if I've stepped away from it...

 

[ericwn]

Some further thoughts related to point 3 above, if you don't mind...

a) Cool - so the computer never sleeps, and the display is off. If you then use Screens to connect, does the display turn on? Or can you go about your screens connection with the iMac display still off? I'm aware there is the curtains feature, but just wondering if it's actually needed if the display is off to start with...

b) Presumably when your iMac display is off, you're also logged out of your account? If so, how does Screens deal with that? I'd prefer not to leave my iMac logged in if I've stepped away from it...

A) when the screen is off, Screens will turn the screen on my Mac on as soon as I start using it.

B) In macOS you can have the screen turned off but the current user will still be logged into their account. It really just deactivates the screen.

 

[cman-uk]

A) when the screen is off, Screens will turn the screen on my Mac on as soon as I start using it.

B) In macOS you can have the screen turned off but the current user will still be logged into their account. It really just deactivates the screen.

a) thanks - that's clear!

b) I'm familiar with OSX/MacOS... are you saying you stayed logged in to your iMac but simply with the display off, when you leave your iMac and go out and about with the iPad? If so, doesn't that mean if someone just hits spacebar on your keyboard whist you're out, they will have full access to your files on the iMac? I was rather hoping, to be able to lock my screen/session and then let the display turn off (either via time or hot corner) and THEN go out and about with the iPad. So much question was, if your iMac session/screen is locked, can you still use Screens to access the iMac? so the first task is to log back into your locked session. Hope that makes sense..?!

 

[ericwn]

a) thanks - that's clear!

b) I'm familiar with OSX/MacOS... are you saying you stayed logged in to your iMac but simply with the display off, when you leave your iMac and go out and about with the iPad? If so, doesn't that mean if someone just hits spacebar on your keyboard whist you're out, they will have full access to your files on the iMac? I was rather hoping, to be able to lock my screen/session and then let the display turn off (either via time or hot corner) and THEN go out and about with the iPad. So much question was, if your iMac session/screen is locked, can you still use Screens to access the iMac? so the first task is to log back into your locked session. Hope that makes sense..?!

I don’t think Screens can accomplish that the local screen stays of while you log in remotely.

When I step away from my iMac I move the mouse to a hot corner that switches the display off and anybody who wants to work on the computer will have to put in the password.

 

[cman-uk]

When I step away from my iMac I move the mouse to a hot corner that switches the display off and anybody who wants to work on the computer will have to put in the password.

Great, .....and lets forget the status of the iMac display for a minute....... so with your iMac in a 'locked session' state, and at the log-in screen, Screens can still successfully connect to the machine and then allow you to log in to your iMac account.

I hope my understanding is correct .