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c14nhl

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 30, 2008
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Edinburgh
I use my current 9.7" Pro for work all the time for taking notes with Apple Pencil.

I will be upgrading to 1 of the 2 new Pro's, currently thinking 10.5 due to portability with the bigger screen.

I have seen a 12.9 around the office and the size looks great for my use of note taking, with how close the size is to A4.

Does anyone currently drag their 12.9 with them back and forward from the office each day? If so, how do you find that experience?
 
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I use my current 9.7" Pro for work all the time for taking notes with Apple Pencil.

I will be upgrading to 1 of the 2 new Pro's, currently thinking 10.5 due to portability with the bigger screen.

I have seen a 12.9 around the office and the size looks great for my use of note taking, with how close the size is to A4.

Does anyone currently drag their 12.9 with them back and forward from the office each day? If so, how do you find that experience?

When I bring it alone, it's great. When I have to bring along my MacBook as well, it's a little bit too much. In my opinion, the problem is not the size, it's the OS: at that size, it should be more capable of being independent from a laptop.
But if what it does is enough for you, then I see no problem, it's great
 
I bought the 12.9 when they first came out but returned it within a week for an additional 9.7, just to big to deal with.

If you need the extra screen the 12.9 might be for you but for my purposes my 9.7 units are perfect
 
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I bought my 128GB LTE 12.9 in November 2015 and have carried it back and forth between home and work ever since. I use a leather satchel for transport, which also holds the Pencil and charger (as well as a few personal effects). I keep the Smart Keyboard on it about 95% of the time. At work it sits on my desk and is carried to meetings for note-taking and reference. I occasionally use the Epson iProjector app to wirelessly project PDFs to conference room projectors, and use Printer Pro to print to the work printers.

I do not have a problem with the size from a portability perspective; it is still smaller and lighter than my MBP, and I never worry about battery life in all-day use (I literally use it all day long at work and then continue to use it for an hour or two once I get home without plugging in once). I love the size from a usability perspective -- split screen, Pencil, and media playback are all fantastic with 12.9". The ASK is roomy and comfortable to type lengthy emails/docs on.
 
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I use my current 9.7" Pro for work all the time for taking notes with Apple Pencil.

I will be upgrading to 1 of the 2 new Pro's, currently thinking 10.5 due to portability with the bigger screen.

I have seen a 12.9 around the office and the size looks great for my use of note taking, with how close the size is to A4.

Does anyone currently drag their 12.9 with them back and forward from the office each day? If so, how do you find that experience?
I take my 12.9 Pro every day with me to the office. I use the felt "ProCase" to transport it. It even has a loop on the inside to hold the Apple Pencil. There are a few pockets to hold earbuds, paper, and similar thin items.

I use a clear thin skin on the back to protect against scratches (and improve grip) and switch off between the smart cover and smart keyboard. This keeps the 12.9 as lean and mean as possible.

Not only does it travel well to and from the office, but also during the day, going from office to meeting.

The ONLY issue that I have with its size is when attempting to use it in flight. It takes up the entire tray table and very awkward to use.
 
Bringing it daily to the office should be fine. It's carrying and using it everywhere - doctor's appointments, at airports (when one also has a purse, carry on luggage and neck pillow) where it can get unwieldy. :p
[doublepost=1496854355][/doublepost]
The ONLY issue that I have with its size is when attempting to use it in flight. It takes up the entire tray table and very awkward to use.
Lol, for me, trying to get it in and out of the bag from the underseat storage for take off/landing when you have no leg room to speak of is also annoying. Meanwhile, the 9.7 iPad and 7.9 iPad mini fit in the front seat pocket. :p
 
I've been taking my gen one 12.9 with me daily since launch day. I went from an iPad 3 to the 12.9 so it took me a week or two to adjust to the size. But after that I've been fine with it. From planes, trains and autos. From the office to coffee shops to lectures. For me the extra screen space and the ASK has worked very well.

I will admit that when I first opened the box and saw the size of the 12.9 I thought it looked crazy big. It was a little more difficult to just throw in a backpack. For me the "pros" outweigh the "cons".
 
In my opinion, when iOS 11 is released the 12.9 will start to sing. iOS 11 is going to allow the iPad to cover all of the computing needs for the average normal everyday user and the larger screen will really start to shine. I think we’ll start to see the larger size take off in popularity.

How does this apply to the question of portability? I think people will become far more tolerant of the size once they realize its full potential with iOS 11.
 
I took my 12.9 everywhere. Super portable.

I do find my 9.7 a bit more practical for reading in bed, but I miss the size of the 12.9

Reading these post in here, I think it really defines on how much travel you do to appreciate a smaller or larger iPad. For me, the 12.9 iPad would stay at home, as where my 9.7 iPad would be my portable.
 
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The 12.9" inch iPad by itself is very easy to carry around at 1.5 lbs. I also carry around a Smart Keyboard, and this combo isn't that heavy. I used to also have a cover, but I ditched that due to weight

The issue is when you also need to carry a MacBook, because you can't accomplish all tasks on an iPad. In that situation, carrying a MacBook (or any other laptop) with an iPad Pro can get heavy. I have a 2015 MacBook Pro, and I don't enjoy carrying around the iPad Pro and MacBook Pro together. In fact, due to this issue, I am looking to replace the MacBook Pro - I may get the new MacBook that was just released.

I'm someone that uses my iPad Pro more than my MacBook, especially at home (I go days, even weeks without opening a MacBook), so I want to invest in the best iPad Pro, which has been the 12.9". If the new 10.5" is as good performance wise and looks as good I'm split screen, I'll consider it
 
Really appreciate all the responses, thanks all.

I have a Kindle for reading in bed so no issue there.


EMy iPad is my main device. I use it primarily at work for note taking although occasion emails and WebEx when traveling.

When home, I spend a lot of my time on the iPad. I use it a lot for content consumption e.g. Watching movies and YouTube, surfing the web etc. I also enjoy basic photo editing via Pixelmator & now Affinity Photo. Some basic home video editing via iMovie.

I use public transport to and from my place of work but never pull out the 9.7". If I want to read it's the Kindle and if I'm watching an episode or YouTube video I do it on my 7 Plus.

A couple of other questions I have regarding the 12.9 (which I'm swaying more and more towards). Is there still an issue with apps being optimised for the larger screen? If they're not, what do they look like? Split keyboard...I'm positive I seen somewhere it isn't enabled on the 12.9. It wouldn't be the deal breaker although when home, my phone is kept on a table and my iPad is my primary device for contacting friends and family. Currently, using the iPad and split keyboard, it's nice and easy to reply to messages. If split keyboard isn't available, it would make that task more cumbersome and don't seeing it being simple while holding the device in my hands.
 
In my opinion, when iOS 11 is released the 12.9 will start to sing. iOS 11 is going to allow the iPad to cover all of the computing needs for the average normal everyday user and the larger screen will really start to shine. I think we’ll start to see the larger size take off in popularity.

This. Everybody is talking about how great iOS 11 is for the iPad, but, truly, the multitasking goodness applies mainly to the 12.9 size (which I love). Multi tasking on a 10" display is ultimately limited by the display size, not the software. Sure, you'll be able to have two apps open, plus one floating, plus a video playing picture-in-picture all at once on a 9.7" tablet. But when you see how small that all looks, you'll wish you had bought the bigger tablet...
 
I use my 12.9 all the time at work.

The new version is about the same size as an A4 notepad and actually lighter in weight nude, comparable with a slim case.

It's totally fine for taking to meetings, in my opinion and experience.
 
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Carrying my 12.9 iPad around is perfectly fine. Much more so than the 3kg 17" laptop which I pretty much always have on me during the week. In fact it's positively light, but I don't generally need the iPad but need the laptop.
 
I would be carrying the 12.9" along with a laptop due to work restrictions. Weight isn't an issue really as currently do the same with my 9.7" in a rucksack type bag.

Can anyone comment on app compatibility & split keyboard?
 
Can anyone comment on app compatibility & split keyboard?
There's no split keyboard in iOS 10 on the 12.9, which is a real shame as it would be perfect for the Pro. Presumably Apple want to dissuade people from typing whilst carrying it around.

App compatibility is, naturally, down to individual developers. The apps I use most often after Apple's apps are GoodReader and iThoughts and both of them were updated to support the larger screen some time ago now. Maybe if you tell us your most used apps we can comment? Or if you look back through the update history of an app if will often say if it has been updated for the 12.9 Pro.

It isn't a deal-breaker if the app hasn't been updated. Mainly you just get a bigger version of the standard iPad keyboard when typing. And bigger controls, I suppose. Personally I really haven't had this issue for some time, now.
 
Before 12.9 iPP, I always take 9.7 Air 2 AND 15" rMBP with me everyday but now I got 12.9 iPP last November I stopped taking my rMBP and havent touch it that much. 12.9 iPP with Logitech keyboard in the thin Neoprene bag and helped my back feel better. :)
 
I've carried the 12.9 with me since launch. The best part for me is when I travel, duet display gives me a A BUNCH of extra screen real estate. I use it for that more than anything. As for lugging it around, it's not much on top of a 15 inch MBP that's already in my backpack.

The one thing that really annoys me is that more and more I'm being told by airlines that it's too big to not stow during takeoff and landing despite being WELL within their own 1kg guidelines for handheld devices (Cough cough Singapore Air and EVA Air, I'm looking at you primarily...). Obviously arguing with a flight crew is not advisable, so I sit there tremendously unentertained for takeoffs and landings (I know, first world problems...).

That said, I just ordered a 10.5, as the 128gb of the original 12.9 was getting cramped and I really just don't like holding it (in bed for example). It's just too big for me.
 
Really appreciate all the responses, thanks all.

A couple of other questions I have regarding the 12.9 (which I'm swaying more and more towards). Is there still an issue with apps being optimised for the larger screen? If they're not, what do they look like? Split keyboard...I'm positive I seen somewhere it isn't enabled on the 12.9. It wouldn't be the deal breaker although when home, my phone is kept on a table and my iPad is my primary device for contacting friends and family. Currently, using the iPad and split keyboard, it's nice and easy to reply to messages. If split keyboard isn't available, it would make that task more cumbersome and don't seeing it being simple while holding the device in my hands.

Check out this article that delves into how apps render on the 10.5 and 12.9 displays. This was the article that essentially sold me on the 12.9. There was another factor as well: I have an Air now and it does a good job, but I want pencil. The 12.9 is a complete contrast to what I already have. Also, if I use it as an additional display using Duet, it's bigger.
 
I had the 12.9 and the 9.7 original pros. It was silly to have both so back went the 12.9. That was a mistake and every day I used my 9.7 there was regret. Now that they have updated the 12.9 I'm going to jump on it. I miss the much bigger size. My 9.7 pro is already sold so i'm ready.
 
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