iPad Still can’t use iPad Pro 11 as my daily computer

[FMRWin10Boy]

On several occasions I’ve tried to use my iPad as my daily computer. Despite Apple’s odd marketing efforts that it’s not a computer but is a computer, I find myself wondering if anyone out there uses the iPad for heavy lifting? I think it‘s the perfect device for answering emails, web browsing, watching videos, writing notes and studying, but not ideal for connecting to a 2nd monitor, advanced Excel projects, or any serious multi-tasking projects. However, Apple could make it a lot better by implementing the following:

1: Cmd + tab: Should display all open apps. It currently only gives the most recent apps. This would make multi-tasking better and more on par with Mac.

2. Loading apps after quickly switching to them should be faster with the M1 processor. Sometimes there’s a slight lag and the apps will refresh.

3. Better 2nd monitor support. Apple should fix this.

4. Enable some sort of desktop environment for saving files, resizing windows, etc.

I’m sure the last one is a long shot. I think Apple is content letting the iPad aspire to be desktop-class computing power. I think over time you could see Apple fix some of these issues. I had the first three above, I could probably do 95% of my job with an iPad.

 

[ericwn]

Have you had a look at the iPad as laptop replacement discussion on this board? Comes highly recommended for examples of both sides of users, those like yourself and others for whom the iPad is all they need.

 

[bondr006]

Have you had a look at the iPad as laptop replacement discussion on this board? Comes highly recommended for examples of both sides of users, those like yourself and others for whom the iPad is all they need.

Definitely a good read. I am one of the minority that has been able to replace my MBP with my iPP for my work and personal life.

iPad as a laptop replacement

I've have a MacBook Pro Retina for a year now, and quite frankly, it’s simply overkill for what I use the computer for on a daily basis. I would have been fine with a MacBook Air but elected to spend the extra cash for a nice screen. I use writing intensive programs (Final Draft, Pages, etc)...

forums.macrumors.com

 

[xxFoxtail]

At the moment the iPad can do 100% what I need a computer for, and its my only computer right now. I use it regularly connected to an external display, so I’d like better compatibility there. Otherwise, I like everything else about iPadOS.

I’m really waiting to see what iPadOS 16 brings to it. I may end up going back to a MacBook.

 

[James Godfrey]

I think a lot of people who were holding hope for iPadOS gave up on the whole concept of replacing their MacBooks with iPads after WWDC last year, when Apple announced M1 in the iPad Pro and then went on to just give iPadOS slightly better multi tasking, quick notes and widgets it was a massive kick in the teeth for many people, especially those who shelled out $2000+ for the higher RAM options.

Yeah Apple may have big plans for iPadOS in the future but I doubt anything major will come along anytime soon unfortunately, their perfect time to launch something big was last year, and I feel this year is just history repeating itself by them sticking M1 in the Air… but we know now it’s all just a cost cutting exercise, why would they create a separate chip for the higher end iPads when you can just use a chip which is already being mass produced.

It’s such a shame because the hardware is fantastic but the software is years behind.

 

[mikedude86]

I wish iPad could replace my laptop, and I’m just talking about for personal use and little bit of volunteer work. Unfortunately that few hours a week of volunteer work requires me to use Sales Force and it really only runs on Chrome desktop browsers (not even Safari for the most part).

 

[Apple_Robert]

I don't believe Apple has ever intended for the iPad to be a replacement for the Macbook. The fact that it is a replacement for some forum users simply means that said forum users never really needed a Macbook.

 

[bondr006]

I don't believe Apple has ever intended for the iPad to be a replacement for the Macbook. The fact that it is a replacement for some forum users simply means that said forum users never really needed a Macbook.

I don't know about others but I needed my MBP until the iPP and iPad OS evolved enough to replace my MBP for my real estate businesses. My MBP actually got used a lot until I got the iPP and realized I didn't need the MBP any more. I like my Mac Mini and liked my MBP but Mac OS and a full laptop were just overkill for what I needed. Besides, learning to use and adapt the iPad OS and iPP to my business needs was and still is fun.

 

[FMRWin10Boy]

I don't know about others but I needed my MBP until the iPP and iPad OS evolved enough to replace my MBP for my real estate businesses. My MBP actually got used a lot until I got the iPP and realized I didn't need the MBP any more. I like my Mac Mini and liked my MBP but Mac OS and a full laptop were just overkill for what I needed. Besides, learning to use and adapt the iPad OS and iPP to my business needs was and still is fun.

Yes, I agree with you that it was fun to learn. I feel that multitasking could be better with loading apps. For example, I use a password protected file and often switch between that and other apps. At times Excel requires me to reenter my password, which is annoying. I believe with time the iPad will be able to do most everything that a regular computer can do.

 

[SkiHound2]

I don't believe Apple has ever intended for the iPad to be a replacement for the Macbook. The fact that it is a replacement for some forum users simply means that said forum users never really needed a Macbook.

I agree. At least at this point I think Apple wants them to be two distinct product lines. Lots of folks purchase both a Macbook and an iPad. Like any corporation Apple's only real interest is maximizing profit. And having two distinct product lines is most likely more profitable than letting iPads run MacOs and making Macbooks and iPads redundant. Indeed, I think some Apple products are largely intended to steer folks towards buying higher end products. Ever notice how the "middle tier" product lines tend to have a significant limitation. The base iPad offers a lot of value and is capable of meeting the actual needs of most iPad users. Folks think it's ridiculous that in 2022 the base iPad Air only has 64gb and sells for $599; I don't disagree. I'm definitely not a power user but I do often want to store quite a bit of media locally on my iPad. Often copy protected movies. 64gb simply doesn't suffice for my simple needs. Apple also doesn't offer a reasonably priced upgrade to 128gb. Nope, you have to go to 256gb and now you're in iPad Pro territory. A 128gb iPad Air at $599 would offer too much value and would really compete with the 128gb 11" iPad Pro. Nope, instead they offer 64gb base with a hefty price increase to upgrade to 256gb. At that point the base Pro becomes much more attractive. Apple wins whether the customer upgrades the Air to 256gb, or opts for the 128gb base iPad Pro. It's not that the base iPad Air is a bad product, but it won't work for folks who need more than 64gb. I always noticed this with the 3 tiers of iMacs. The base model is solid but has some significant limitations. The middle tier is priced too high for the upgrades. Might as well just buy the top tier.

 

[FMRWin10Boy]

I agree. At least at this point I think Apple wants them to be two distinct product lines. Lots of folks purchase both a Macbook and an iPad. Like any corporation Apple's only real interest is maximizing profit. And having two distinct product lines is most likely more profitable than letting iPads run MacOs and making Macbooks and iPads redundant. Indeed, I think some Apple products are largely intended to steer folks towards buying higher end products. Ever notice how the "middle tier" product lines tend to have a significant limitation. The base iPad offers a lot of value and is capable of meeting the actual needs of most iPad users. Folks think it's ridiculous that in 2022 the base iPad Air only has 64gb and sells for $599; I don't disagree. I'm definitely not a power user but I do often want to store quite a bit of media locally on my iPad. Often copy protected movies. 64gb simply doesn't suffice for my simple needs. Apple also doesn't offer a reasonably priced upgrade to 128gb. Nope, you have to go to 256gb and now you're in iPad Pro territory. A 128gb iPad Air at $599 would offer too much value and would really compete with the 128gb 11" iPad Pro. Nope, instead they offer 64gb base with a hefty price increase to upgrade to 256gb. At that point the base Pro becomes much more attractive. Apple wins whether the customer upgrades the Air to 256gb, or opts for the 128gb base iPad Pro. It's not that the base iPad Air is a bad product, but it won't work for folks who need more than 64gb. I always noticed this with the 3 tiers of iMacs. The base model is solid but has some significant limitations. The middle tier is priced too high for the upgrades. Might as well just buy the top tier.

Coming over from Windows, Apple is definitely a lot more expensive. I have a MBP, iphone, and ipad. I could drop the ipad if I had to and just stick with the iphone and Mac. I enjoy using the iPad on the couch and sending client emails, surfing, reading articles, so definitely find it beneficial but it’s expensive owning all three devices.

 

[PrettyWings]

If you can do that, you never needed a computer to begin with.

 

[Cram]

Coming over from Windows, Apple is definitely a lot more expensive. I have a MBP, iphone, and ipad. I could drop the ipad if I had to and just stick with the iphone and Mac. I enjoy using the iPad on the couch and sending client emails, surfing, reading articles, so definitely find it beneficial but it’s expensive owning all three devices.

I have an iPhone, iMac & iPad. iPhone is too small for what I do, so I need the iPad otherwise I'd be permanently confined to my office. That said, I couldn't be without the iMac as the app I use the most doesn't have the full functionality of the desktop version on the iPad.

 

[cubeover]

Apple’s problem is they cannot “steal” a 2-in-1 because Microsoft is not yet given up.
And Apple won’t “copy” cause they are “great artists”.
Thank goodness hp has given up, so we have webOS’s carousel menu and TouchPad’s Beats quality speakers in Ipad Pro since 10.5 incher came out.

 

[bondr006]

Apple’s problem is they cannot “steal” a 2-in-1 because Microsoft is not yet given up.
And Apple won’t “copy” cause they are “great artists”.
Thank goodness hp has given up, so we have webOS’s carousel menu and TouchPad’s Beats quality speakers in Ipad Pro since 10.5 incher came out.

You must not know much about Apple's history. Most of their most famous products, iPod, iPhone, iPad, AirPods, Apple Watch, were all previously existing products that either sucked or were mediocre. They performed their Apple magic on those products and turned them into the wildly popular devices we all know and love today. If they wanted to make a 2 in 1 hybrid, even though MS, Samsung, HP or whoever is making one, they could and they would crush it. The only reason they haven't is they just don't want to cannibalize their own laptop line.

 

[bcortens]

On several occasions I’ve tried to use my iPad as my daily computer. Despite Apple’s odd marketing efforts that it’s not a computer but is a computer, I find myself wondering if anyone out there uses the iPad for heavy lifting? I think it‘s the perfect device for answering emails, web browsing, watching videos, writing notes and studying, but not ideal for connecting to a 2nd monitor, advanced Excel projects, or any serious multi-tasking projects. However, Apple could make it a lot better by implementing the following:

1: Cmd + tab: Should display all open apps. It currently only gives the most recent apps. This would make multi-tasking better and more on par with Mac.

2. Loading apps after quickly switching to them should be faster with the M1 processor. Sometimes there’s a slight lag and the apps will refresh.

3. Better 2nd monitor support. Apple should fix this.

4. Enable some sort of desktop environment for saving files, resizing windows, etc.

I’m sure the last one is a long shot. I think Apple is content letting the iPad aspire to be desktop-class computing power. I think over time you could see Apple fix some of these issues. I had the first three above, I could probably do 95% of my job with an iPad.

I think that multi-tasking and large monitor support is where the iPad really falls down.

iPad OS 15 made things much better for me since I can now drag and drop windows while in the multi-tasking view and this really makes things easier when I need to move windows in and out of different spaces.
However, I would love to be able to pin spaces so that there are some workspaces that don't rearrange automatically based on usage since I like that macOS does this.

When connected to an external monitor windows should rescale to use all available space which would allow us to plug in a large external monitor and use the iPad on a big screen with more of our content on screen. I actually have think the maximum of 2 windows in split screen makes sense since it ensures that window groups are stable across orientations and screen sizes (if supporting external monitor re-scale as I describe above). To improve multitasking for small quick tasks I think there should be a faster way to replace a secondary window or quickly flip between different slide-over windows.

I think that the iPad has the potential to be Apple's most flexible computing device with a variety of usage scenarios that it can take on depending on whether you're holding it in your hand, have it in a laptop style dock, or connected to a big external display with keyboard and mouse. It's so close already and just needs a few minor changes to get it over the edge.

 

[xraydoc]

Yes, I agree with you that it was fun to learn. I feel that multitasking could be better with loading apps. For example, I use a password protected file and often switch between that and other apps. At times Excel requires me to reenter my password, which is annoying. I believe with time the iPad will be able to do most everything that a regular computer can do.

I can do quite a bit of general computing work on my iPad, more than most maybe, but there are still a few things that require a full desktop operating system designed for multiple displays and multiple windows.

 

[darngooddesign]

Despite Apple’s odd marketing efforts that it’s not a computer but is a computer, I find myself wondering if anyone out there uses the iPad for heavy lifting? I think it‘s the perfect device for answering emails, web browsing, watching videos, writing notes and studying, but not ideal for connecting to a 2nd monitor, advanced Excel projects, or any serious multi-tasking projects.

So what you're saying is that the iPad functions perfectly well as a general-purpose computer, just not as your heavy-lifting computer.

1: Cmd + tab: Should display all open apps. It currently only gives the most recent apps. This would make multi-tasking better and more on par with Mac.

That's what happens on my iPad. It cycles through fewer apps that what I get when double pressing the home button, but those have quit due to lack of RAM; when relaunch an app which has quit it then appears in the CMD+Tab list because its now an open app.

 

[eyeseeyou]

1: Cmd + tab: Should display all open apps. It currently only gives the most recent apps. This would make multi-tasking better and more on par with Mac.

This is exactly how it works on desktop macs. Is it different from other OS's?

 

[sparksd]

This is exactly how it works on desktop macs. Is it different from other OS's?

On Windows, Cmd + Tab shows all open apps.