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iPad Pro Using the iPad Pro as my main device?

I

iphonefreak450

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 14, 2014
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Just thinking through this and was hoping for your thoughts and advice on this.

Currently I’m running a MBP PRO and love it. Since I’m using for only basic stuff like internet, emails, and saving files, and that’s pretty much it.

I even rarely use Office apps.

I even don’t type much, in other words, I don’t write blogs or anything like that jut just mainly surfing the web and emails. Just the basics.

I don’t even do any video editing either.

If I ditch my MBP PRO in place of an iPad Pro, will I regret it?

Now, if anyone who has tried this move, I would really appreciate on your experience.
 
iPad Pro not even necessary I’d say. Air is plenty good enough, unless you want the big 12.9” screen.
That said, there are plenty of annoyances even when just browsing on iOS, especially if you plan on downloading files and managing those.
If your browsing habits include a lot of tabs that you keep open and don’t want refreshed or getting wiped from ram, or ample extension use, or can’t live without ad-blocking…. Etc. then you may find the iPad less than ideal.
On my pc I use a lot of keyboard shortcuts, and extensions and so forth. Then when I travel I only take my iPad…. It’s enough. But I’m constantly annoyed by little things and by how slow it is to use, then I give up entirely on trying to be productive on it.
If you can borrow one or buy one from somewhere with a good return policy, just force yourself to use it only for a week or so.
 
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Well, as a matter of fact, I mostly use my iPhone even when I am home. I usually use the MBP at least one or two times a week.
 
iphonefreak450 said:
Just thinking through this and was hoping for your thoughts and advice on this.

Currently I’m running a MBP PRO and love it. Since I’m using for only basic stuff like internet, emails, and saving files, and that’s pretty much it.

I even rarely use Office apps.

I even don’t type much, in other words, I don’t write blogs or anything like that jut just mainly surfing the web and emails. Just the basics.

I don’t even do any video editing either.

If I ditch my MBP PRO in place of an iPad Pro, will I regret it?

Now, if anyone who has tried this move, I would really appreciate on your experience.
Click to expand...
My iPad is my most used Apple device, more than even my iPhone. If something happened to my iPad it would be replaced the same day. I still will not do without my iMac and a Windows laptop but they, without a doubt, see much less use after getting an iPad.
 
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I tried to use an iPad Pro 12.9” M1 with Magic Keyboard as primary for about 18 months - it replaced a MacBook Air & iPad Air. Ultimately I sold it and went back to a MacBook Pro, with an iPad mini. Some of the reasons:
  • Weight - the iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard weighs more than the MacBook Air it replaced.
  • Ergonomics - too difficult to use as a book reader (which is why I got the iPad mini)
  • Multitasking - too difficult to work with multiple apps; e.g. Reminders has my grocery list and trying to enter an order on the Walmart app, or pulling up a calculator while writing in Pages. Just too much fiddling to get them side-by-side, it’s dirt-simple on a Mac.
  • Mac apps - sounds like you won’t run into this issue but there are specific Mac apps that I use, that there’s no iPad substitute for. I don’t use them a lot, but when I need them I need them. I had Screens set up to remote into my Mac mini but it was just a hassle dealing with the latency, etc.
  • Screen size - once I got the iPad mini, most uses that are easy on an iPad (like, writing this post) are just as easy on the mini as the 12.9” Pro. But certain uses, I just wanted a bigger display.
  • Price - the iPad Pro and keyboard is expensive! You can easily get a MacBook Air for less.
I sold the iPad Pro, kept the iPad mini, and got a 16” MacBook Pro. Yes, it cost more - but it’s SO much more flexible & capable. This was right before the 15” MacBook Air was released; I’d probably have gone that route if it were an option.
 
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I should also point out - there are legit use cases where an iPad Pro offers distinct advantages over a Mac. Photography is one - the XDR display is truly phenomenal. There are probably certain uses for the TrueDepth camera system where an iPad is a benefit versus just using an iPhone. Stylus use is great for artists, and perhaps for people who like hand-written notes. Cellular connectivity for on-the-go use without fiddling with hotspot. The ability to use it as a touch-screen slab device held in one hand.

For me, it was not an ideal Mac replacement for the reasons I listed above. I'm quite sure that for some people, it'll do a terrific job! But I listed my reasons for going back to Mac, in case they strike a chord with someone else.
 
I decided. I’m still going to use my MBP despite being too heavy, I just need to have a mouse and complete keyboard and extra ports.

And I heard that the battery life is not all that great on the iPads.
 
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FreakinEurekan said:
I tried to use an iPad Pro 12.9” M1 with Magic Keyboard as primary for about 18 months - it replaced a MacBook Air & iPad Air. Ultimately I sold it and went back to a MacBook Pro, with an iPad mini. Some of the reasons:
  • Weight - the iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard weighs more than the MacBook Air it replaced.
  • Ergonomics - too difficult to use as a book reader (which is why I got the iPad mini)
  • Multitasking - too difficult to work with multiple apps; e.g. Reminders has my grocery list and trying to enter an order on the Walmart app, or pulling up a calculator while writing in Pages. Just too much fiddling to get them side-by-side, it’s dirt-simple on a Mac.
  • Mac apps - sounds like you won’t run into this issue but there are specific Mac apps that I use, that there’s no iPad substitute for. I don’t use them a lot, but when I need them I need them. I had Screens set up to remote into my Mac mini but it was just a hassle dealing with the latency, etc.
  • Screen size - once I got the iPad mini, most uses that are easy on an iPad (like, writing this post) are just as easy on the mini as the 12.9” Pro. But certain uses, I just wanted a bigger display.
  • Price - the iPad Pro and keyboard is expensive! You can easily get a MacBook Air for less.
I sold the iPad Pro, kept the iPad mini, and got a 16” MacBook Pro. Yes, it cost more - but it’s SO much more flexible & capable. This was right before the 15” MacBook Air was released; I’d probably have gone that route if it were an option.
Click to expand...
Lesson learned from your experience:
  • iPad is not suitable for people with complex needs (multitasking, or like mine, need to open big excel files and do the analysis on it)
  • Also it’s not suitable for people with price sensitive. I knew that iPad + MK price is quite expensive compared to MacBook Air
  • Big iPad may be less useful than laptop especially due to its not practical to use it as tablet reader and weight more than laptop

I have 11” iPad with MK, and share some of your experience, but when I am on holiday or light traveling I always (and proven to be very effective) bring my iPad with me.
 
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prospervic said:
But why would someone be buying a Magic Keyboard to go along with their MacBook Air?
Click to expand...
In my case, I got Magic Keyboard for 11” and I have 15” MBA to do serious work. From my experience, iPad + MK didn’t make it feasible solution for serious / complex tasks. I still need full laptop for that.
 
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The only red flag I see about using an iPad as a main device is this:

>saving files

What does "saving files" mean? What do you do with the saved files? Do you have to archive them (and if so, where?). Do you use those saved files as inputs to other content that's generated? Do you have a complex folder system set up? *IF* you are not using these saved files as input to other content that's generated, and the folder system is not complex, then I think an iPad will fit your needs.

Let's talk about the different types of iPads.

The iPad Pro (the one you mentioned) is an extremely niche device, and should be viewed as a single use tool. It's a device where if you know you need it, then you need it, otherwise, look for another device.

The iPad Air is the device you probably should be looking at (assuming you don't need the iPad Pro 12"). This is $200 USD cheaper, the battery is the same, it's slightly lighter and you won't be doing anything that requires the M2 chip.
 
iphonefreak450 said:
I decided. I’m still going to use my MBP despite being too heavy, I just need to have a mouse and complete keyboard and extra ports.

And I heard that the battery life is not all that great on the iPads.
Click to expand...

‘The battery on my iPad last all day long and more. power has never been a problem.
 
iphonefreak450 said:
I decided. I’m still going to use my MBP despite being too heavy, I just need to have a mouse and complete keyboard and extra ports.

And I heard that the battery life is not all that great on the iPads.
Click to expand...

Since you keeping your MBP, if you still interesting at iPads, for your basic usage iPad Air, Mini or even iPad 10 would be nice addition.

As for battery life, the Mini 6 battery easily hold the all day.
 
prospervic said:
But why would someone be buying a Magic Keyboard to go along with their MacBook Air?
Click to expand...
You misunderstood the post. You said that the 12.9 Ipad air would rectify the imbalance, which makes the iPad pro with Magic keyboard more expensive than the MacBook air and the person replied we'll see, since with a rumored price of $799 and $350 (which is roughly a third of a MacBook air price) we are above MacBook air price...
Hope it's clear now
 
Digitalguy said:
You misunderstood the post. You said that the 12.9 Ipad air would rectify the imbalance, which makes the iPad pro with Magic keyboard more expensive than the MacBook air and the person replied we'll see, since with a rumored price of $799 and $350 (which is roughly a third of a MacBook air price) we are above MacBook air price...
Hope it's clear now
Click to expand...
Got it. Funny how punctuation (or lack thereof) can totally change the meaning of a sentence.
Actually, this mental math makes you reconsider even buying a Magic Keyboard when Apple is selling M1 MacBook Airs through Walmart for only $699. Why pay $350 for only a keyboard when for just 2x the price you can get a whole MacBook that’s lighter and slimmer than the IPP + MKB combo, and just let your iPad be the tablet it was born to be?
 
Ask yourself if there are any apps you might one day miss. Whilst its true that you don't us your MBP for much, are there apps like disk utility you use or do you use Finder to manage external storage or memory cards for something else (eg Games Console)? If the answer is yes then keep your MBP or buy a Macbook Air if you want something lighter.

If you can do without them however then an iPad might be right up your street. Skip the Pro though and buy the Air model.

I would recommend going to a store and having a play around with iPadOS. Try doing a few things you do on your laptop and see how you feel :)
 
I've used an iPad as my "laptop" for many years (original 10.5 iPP and then a 2018 12.9 and now an M1 12.9). I've tried a MacBook Air twice (13" and then the 15") and returned them after a week. For me the iPad is a much more versatile device and for the few times I've needed Office, Word and Excell have been perfectly fine. One of the biggest reasons is Safari on the iPad is so much easier to browse on than a MacBook. The biggest reason is as you scroll down, the top part (URL, tabs and Bookmarks) of Safari disappear and you get just the page and more content. Using the 15" MacBook Air the scaling wasn't that much better to allow more content. Plus I get the advantage of taking the iPad off the keyboard and using it in Portrait mode for even more content. iPad specific apps like eBay and Reddit, are better than using them in a browser.

My file management is done via iCloud Drive and Files. New documents are scanned to files, emails saved to Files and anything I need to download all saved to Files.

Window management is normally done with Slide Over. I usually have Mail, Messages, Calendar, and Reminders all in Slide Over so easily to quickly access them and with a gesture with the Trackpad cycle through them). if I need a quick side by side, that's easily done.
 
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While I use my iPad Pro + MK a lot on a daily basis, it can never really fully replace my MBP. While I really only use my MBP for photo editing in LR + PS, I can do most tasks with my IPP. I should also state that my MK stays exclusively on my office desk when I work from home. When I travel, I only bring my iPad Pro. I don’t bother bringing my MBP because usually when I get home, I just transfer RAW files from my camera to my MBP to start reviewing and processing. But the iPad is used for streaming (music/video) and light web browsing.
 
Don't know if this applies to you but one thing that iPad simply can't do is manage a music library (add music from outside iTunes Store, edit tags, etc.) if you don't use Apple Music subscription. Apple claims "music is in their DNA" but there have been no investments/improvements in anything other than Apple Music subscription.
 
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