All iPads What Do YOU Use Your iPad for When You Have an iPhone and Mac?

I have a windows pc laptop , android phone the Samsung Galaxy note 4 and iPad Air 2 . I use my laptop for websites that aren't mobile friendly or I prefer to use it , I use my iPad because it's a bigger screen and for games and video and texting since I have Verizon and use its texting app and use my phone for basically the same but smaller lol. I do use my iPad more though

Games mostly. Movies, facebook, but mostly games.

It's a different experience compared to my iPhone 5, 5s, and 6.

I prefer use my iPad when I am sitting on my couch or bed. Trackpad on MacBook makes my arm sore. I use my iPhone mostly when I am out of my house.

I do a ton of writing.
I have an iPhone 5s, and an iMac.
I used to have a laptop that I used for my writing projects.
But now I've switched to the iPad (with a Bluetooth keyboard that I use when I'm writing something very long, and a stylus for when I'm taking handwritten notes, or marking up a PDF) because it's just a lot easier to use, lighter and frankly, pretty powerful. Not having the full blown computer in front of me when I'm talking with someone and writing breaks down some of the barriers. And I use the cloud as a de-facto file system which works reasonably well for me. I recognize that not everyone has the type of work I have, but it's a good alternative for me...

Photos, videos, browsing.

I use it when I want to look at a bigger screen than my phone has but don't want to get up to sit at my desk.

I also use it for games and my kids use it for games and Netflix.

My iPhone is the device I take everywhere, which is why I chose the 6 over the 6 plus. For me it's just a more convienient size to carry around.

But for everything apart from actual phone calls I prefer bigger screens. If I'm sitting at my desk I use the Mac Pro with 3 screens, for Photoshop, office apps, moderate gaming, email and web browsing.

If I'm away from my desk and have the iPad with me, I use that - in bed, on the couch watching TV, or commuting to and from work. Of the 3, my iPad probably gets the most use.

Unfortunately I am forced to use a Windows Laptop at work though

They all have their strengths and weaknesses. Most tasks can be done on any of my devices, but for any given task one or the other device will be more efficient or enjoyable than the others.

- Casual web browsing
- Watching movies and TV shows at home and when traveling
- Use of some apps which only exist on iPad

The final reason is the main reason I still have an iPad and not some cheap Android tablet (the other reason is the 4:3 screen is not available with most tablets). Given my limited use of it, the relatively high price of iPad is frustrating.

Sermons and Sunday school lessons. A lot easier to handle than a mbp

ActionsApp for iPad integrates seamlessly into all my workflows on my MBP, as an essential tool for virtually everything I do.

Work wise, I use Notability extensively for meetings - it then syncs with my Mac.

Do plenty of annotating in Goodreader etc. on my Air, far better user experience than anything on a desktop/laptop. Also prefer reading articles etc on the iPad.

Simple answer; I use my iPad mini to:
1) Read magazines (Zinio)
2) Read iBooks
3) Play games (Angry Birds etc)
4) Do casual surfing and quick checking of emails.
5) For short travels, rather than taking my MacBook Air along, I prefer to take my iPad with me.

With the exception of item #4 on my list, I never use my MacBook (11 Air) for the first 3. Sometimes I read iBooks on my iPhone 6 (say waiting at a doctor's office or commuting), but for a better reading experience I always prefer to read books on my iPad.

Reading Zinio magazines however with the iPhone (even if it is a 6+) is not a pleasant experience in my opinion.

I originally purchased an iPad mini because I had a number of technical books and documents in pdf format I wanted to read. Using a laptop with a mouse didn't feel very natural, and using a phone, even a phablet, was impractical. I tried printing them out and putting them in 3 ring binders, but that was a pain. The iPad mini has worked perfectly for this purpose; I now carry my library around with me in my suit jacket pocket.

While that is the main justification for the purchase, it is convenient for other things as well. It's useful for anything done while away from a desk where a larger screen is useful. GPS is nicer on a screen that can display a larger part of a map, and I use it for impromptu note taking, texting, and Internet (again when I'm some place where a laptop would be a bit large to carry around).

RickTaylor said:

I originally purchased an iPad mini because I had a number of technical books and documents in pdf format I wanted to read. Using a laptop with a mouse didn't feel very natural, and using a phone, even a phablet, was impractical. I tried printing them out and putting them in 3 ring binders, but that was a pain. The iPad mini has worked perfectly for this purpose; I now carry my library around with me in my suit jacket pocket.

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Am a bit surprised you are happy with iPad mini for reading technical books and documents. I would have thought the screen is too small for this. Aren't you constantly zooming in and out?

Aside from the screen size, I find reading technical books and documents unsatisfying on tablets in general because of the common need to jump backwards and forwards between figures/tables and the main text. On a large screen computer monitor it's ok because I can have two pdf windows side by side. In one window I keep the focus on the main text. In the other window I navigate figures/tables, and references.

ozaz said:

- Casual web browsing
- Watching movies and TV shows at home and when traveling
- Use of some apps which only exist on iPad

The final reason is the main reason I still have an iPad and not some cheap Android tablet (the other reason is the 4:3 screen is not available with most tablets). Given my limited use of it, the relatively high price of iPad is frustrating.

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I hear you on the price vs limited use. I have an iPad mini retina, an iPhone 6+ and now a Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 (which I am testing out to see if I like and can live with). Picked it up for $199 during the Black Friday sales and already had a 64GB MicroSD card.

I wanted to see if I could live with switching to Android and a cheaper tablet for my limited needs for the tablet now that I have my iP6+ and use that way more than I used to use my iP5. So far I good with it. It is a learning curve with a new OS but it is coming a long nicely. Found a lot of the same apps or alternatives in the Playstore which seem to work well enough for my needs.

Mainly I use my iPad Mini for watching movies, TV shows, some light internet browsing, email, Skype, and sometimes homework for online college courses, remoting into my Mac Mini upstairs to setup downloads or reboot the computer if I need to, kindle books and use it as a netbook/laptop replacement for trips. If I need a full computer and have access to wifi I can remote into my computer at home and do something there if needed and then place it in Google Drive or One Drive and then access it on my ipad.

So far I've been able to do most of that fairly easily on the Tab Pro so I am not disappointed yet. I wish it had 3 GB of RAM instead of 2 (1.82 GB total available) but the Tab S 8.4 is too expensive for what I do daily. I am looking for a cheaper alternative to the iPad with a MicroSD slot. I considered the Nexus line of tablets but you cannot add on storage to them so that killed that as an option.

I also tried the Tab 4 7" and while I like the smaller size, it just didn't have enough RAM and processing power for stuff like remoting into my computer. I had to keep going back to my ipad or iphone to do it, which is why I figured I would take a chance with the Tab Pro 8.4. About the same size as my ipad mini, battery last decently long, screen is much better than the Tab 4 7".

Overall I still love my ipad and my iphone (definitely my iP6+), but wanted something cheaper than my ipad. My iPad Mini retina (16GB, Verizon LTE) will either get sold to pay for a first gen iPad mini (16GB, wifi only) and pay for some of Galaxy Tab Pro so mostly nothing will come out of my pocket. the rMini or the new 1st gen mini will go to one of my kids to watch in the car for trips or play learning games.

For me it's:

- iPhone: out-of-home device, Whatsapp
- iPad: at-home device, expecially when on the couch or at bed
- iMac: work, image editing, games, stuff that require a lot of time and attention in general

ozaz said:

Am a bit surprised you are happy with iPad mini for reading technical books and documents. I would have thought the screen is too small for this. Aren't you constantly zooming in and out?

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While I wouldn't want it to be any smaller, the mini retina works great for me for reading pdfs. The 4:3 aspect ratio helps. When I begin reading a document in portrait mode, I'll typically narrow the margins to make the text a little bigger, and then I'll scroll through the document vertically (the software I use supports this). Typically after the initial adjustment no further fiddling is necessary, and while the Air might be a little more convenient in this regard, for me the portability of the mini more than makes up for this.

Apple got the form factor of the mini just perfect for the way I use it. It's just large enough to read pdf documents comfortably, and just small enough to fit in my suit jacket pocket where it goes just about everywhere with me.

I have all 3 and my iPad gets the most use at home.

MBP: When I need to do some proper work stuff, but as I don't take my work home with me...its not heavily used, but its the hub for all my content.

iPhone: Its the device that's always with me, mainly calls, social apps and messaging. Use to be my go to for gaming, but since the iPad

iPad: This predominantly stays at home, and gets heavy usage..couch, in bed, small room. I just prefer surfing and gaming on my iPad.

scotttnz said:

If I'm away from my desk and have the iPad with me, I use that - in bed, on the couch watching TV, or commuting to and from work. Of the 3, my iPad probably gets the most use.

They all have their strengths and weaknesses. Most tasks can be done on any of my devices, but for any given task one or the other device will be more efficient or enjoyable than the others.

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Same here. I have an iPad with cellular which greatly enhances its use when out and about since there's no need to hunt for a free wifi hotspot or tether. I find the larger, 4:3 aspect ratio display is just nicer for browsing websites, reading PDFs, magazines and comics, etc. I tried the iPhone 6 Plus for a month but I really missed having the extra vertical resolution while web browsing and I found it pretty hard to maneuver. To me, the 6 Plus either felt like it was too big or too small. I'd rather carry both an iPhone and iPad.

After I got an iPad retina with cellular (March 2012), I've used the iPhone less and less. I practically never used my iPhone aside from calls, traditional SMS and as camera. Now that iOS 8 has introduced Cellular Call Forwarding and Text Message Forwarding, even the client side of those functions have been relegated to the iPad. For something I bought primarily for the purpose of reading comics and technical PDFs, the iPad is surprisingly versatile and has become my single most used internet-connected device.

It's pretty much my HearthPad now...

Once hearthstone comes out on the iPhone I don't know what i'll use it for.

I use my iPad quite a bit actually. Casual surfing at home, occasional games and video taking are some of the features I use randomly but still use heavily depending on the day. The major functions of my iPad are as a presentation device (classrooms) and to contain notes for speaking (which I do daily). I also constantly use it for note taking or recording ideas for various things (but i admit that i have often resorted to using my 5s to take a quick note rather than go get my iPad). I've even thought of getting rid of my macbook air because the iPad has replaced so many of it's functions, but there are still a few things I want it for (big presentation's, writing papers, creating slide shows etc.)

Overall I still love my iPad and wouldn't want to think of getting rid of it.

I have an iPhone 6, a nice Thinkpad ultrabook for work, an iMac, and an iPad. For personal, non-work use, the iPad sees the majority of my use. It's my main web browsing device, my journal and notepad, my newspapers and magazines, my music library (either to headphones or to speakers around the house), my reference manual, my e-reader. Laptops and desktops have become, for me, the 'mainframes' of today - they perform a lot of the heavy lifting, but I'd often prefer to interact via my iPad.

I keep the "computer" kind of stuff on my iPad - Photo editing, writing, surfing, researching, whatever. I use a ClamCase Pro with it.

The Mac is used when I'm at home and I do similar stuff, except I use a Wacom tablet with it. Because the keyboard stopped working, I have to use it in clamshell mode.

On my iPhone, I balance my spending, have bill notifications setup in Chronicle, take photos, a few of my calculators, my health stuff, news apps, quick note taking, and manage my calendar and todos. When I'm at home, it's docked and is only used when I'm out and about.

I'm still in the process of trying to make the iPad my main device, so there will always be a use for me. I prefer the screen real-estate of the iPad for general browsing and media consumption, believe it or not, I think the 6+ is still too small of a screen for my liking. I don't think I will ever be able to find that medium where one device could be both, that is, unless the iPad could natively handle phone calls, and texts without having to have my phone around. But all I use my phone for now is for when wifi isn't available and for its superior camera (main reason).

I still use my MacBook for productivity. Boot camp to run windows for my solidworks usage, iTunes to sync all my media to the iPad, scanning documents and combining them into PDFs with metadata and placing them in iBooks to sync to my idevices, music manipulation in audacity, and adding iPhoto for adding faces and sorting events to sync to all of my devices. I don't see the iPad anywhere near fully replacing my MacBook though.

But yeah for me, the 6+ Size is not a good of enough excuse to replace my iPad yet, especially because it still runs the iPhone versions of the apps. I've alway been more drawn to the iPad versions that have more information at a glance.

iPad mostly for reading books via Kindle app and watching Amazon Instant video.

When I travel I tend to just take the iPad.