Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
I used to feel like my iPad(s) should have a single case that did everything I wanted and that I never needed to remove them from. Then in another thread, someone described the iPad as being a modular computer in a way that really appealed to me, and it totally reframed my thinking. Now I'm totally into the idea of switching back and forth between MK and the smart folio according to my usage. MK for docking at my desk and when I want to type, take it out as a laptop, etc. Smart folio for most of the time for my work (online whiteboard while Zoom teaching) and for sitting around playing Civ 6. :) Quick and easy to go back and forth.

It’s what I do. The magnetic design of both cases make it an ingenious system IMO.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Arran
As the week has passed and I’ve gotten more used to the 12.9, I’ve been just casually popping it off the magic keyboard and using it in my hands like a tablet to read or laying it down on a compass pro from twelve south for drawing and reading PDFs.
 
  • Like
Reactions: drkknte and Arran
As the week has passed and I’ve gotten more used to the 12.9, I’ve been just casually popping it off the magic keyboard and using it in my hands like a tablet to read or laying it down on a compass pro from twelve south for drawing and reading PDFs.
I’m finding the same. It’s a very capable laptop when I need it to be a laptop and then - suddenly - it’s piece of paper.

And it’s so natural and effortless switching between the two.

The experience feels unlike any computer that’s gone before. Apple’s onto something.
 
As a musician, I use it as a laptop most of the time but when I need to go to the piano I just pull it off and put it on the piano...really great!...never expected I would like it this much actually
 
  • Like
Reactions: kht410
I never used the iPP 11” previously as a tablet after I got it with the smart keyboard folio. It’s so easy to pop off the magic keyboard that I’m definitely using it now as a tablet (mainly editing PDFs with the pencil). Really wish my iPad mini had a similar setup, as it’s much easier to hold than the 11”, but I’m getting used to the latter.
 
I’m finding the same. It’s a very capable laptop when I need it to be a laptop and then - suddenly - it’s piece of paper.

And it’s so natural and effortless switching between the two.

The experience feels unlike any computer that’s gone before. Apple’s onto something.

Yes, this. I love taking notes on the 12.9". And I use it a lot for marking up documents for work. These are tablet tasks, but replying to emails or typing anything more than a sentence or two is so, so much faster with a keyboard, and being able to take the MKB on and off so easily is actually a game-changer.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Arran
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
Yeah, I purchased a dbrand skin for when I use mine in tablet mode now. Added some nice grip!
 
So when using it as a tablet, and if you want to lay it on a desk or something for writing, how does the camera bump affect that?

I have skins coming so I can pull it off to use sitting On the couch and stuff, but if I want to put it on the desk for writing, what’s the best way to do that without messing up the camera lenses?
 
I‘ve only had my 12.9” Magic Keyboard a few hours, but it‘s a hit with me! I think I will use it more in desktop mode than before. Probably on the AMK during the day, then tablet mode in the evening for consumption. It works for me.
 
Well, I believe that I'm still using it about as much as a tablet as I used to (sitting on the couch), but I'm more inclined to use it as a laptop now with this great keyboard and trackpad. In other words, for those times when I would have chosen the MacBook Pro, now I think to use the iPad since I've got it in my hand, and I can just pop it into the MK.
 
Well, I believe that I'm still using it about as much as a tablet as I used to (sitting on the couch), but I'm more inclined to use it as a laptop now with this great keyboard and trackpad. In other words, for those times when I would have chosen the MacBook Pro, now I think to use the iPad since I've got it in my hand, and I can just pop it into the MK.

hi @Pipper99

when you use it it tablet mode do you pop it off the MK? Do you use the MK as a dock?
 
I use it in tablet mode a good amount — for reviewing and marking long documents and books. I’m currently studying for a certification, and already had a Smart Folio, so I pop it into that if I’m going to be studying for a long time. Something quick and I want to lean back or relax, I just pull the iPad off and don’t mess with the Smart Folio.
 
After an initial adjustment period, I’m really enjoying using my new 12.9” Pro as a tablet. At first it felt a bit too large but now I would never go back to anything smaller. When I don’t need to type a lot I’m just popping it off the MK and using it with no case unless you count the protective dBrand skin I installed.

i do need a drawing stand and don’t like any of the ones I’ve seen on Amazon, so I sort of designed my own and asked my wife if she could come up with a way to craft it for me. If it doesn’t turn out the way I was hoping I might grab a folio from Apple, but I don’t think I’m going to need it.


Have you tried flipping the iPad in the MKB around so the keyboard is sticking straight up. It puts the iPad at a perfect drawing angle and is still pretty sturdy. It may look a little weird at first, but it does work.
 
  • Like
Reactions: spiderman0616
I told myself I wouldn’t get the Magic Keyboard. My reason? “The iPad is a tablet, not a laptop.”

I have a lot of writing to do. I caved and got the Magic Keyboard. My 12.9 hasn’t left it since.

And I was right. It’s a laptop now.

My son owns a 2018 MacBook Air. He taunts me because his 128 GB MBA weighs less and costs less than my 256 GB 2020 iPad Pro. Whenever he says that, I take the iPad off the Magic Keyboard and draw something on it with my Apple Pencil. I raise my eyebrows and ask, “But can your laptop do this?”

Then I put the iPad Pro back on the Magic Keyboard and don’t use the pencil again until the next time he taunts me.

It is a really good laptop.
 
hi @Pipper99

when you use it it tablet mode do you pop it off the MK? Do you use the MK as a dock?

I use my 12.9" iPP for handwriting a lot. I had been popping it out of the MKB, which is super-easy. But yesterday I did a bunch of writing with the MKB still attached. It actually worked quite well in my lap. Handheld, it would be a disaster, but in my lap it was fine, which was mildly surprising. FWIW...
 
I saw on a few video reviews that if you flip the iPad attached to the MK, as shown below, it is now at the perfect angle for drawing or handwriting. It is still sturdy as well. If I am at my desk I usually do this. May not look the prettiest, but it works. Sometimes I just pull it off the MK and use as a tablet. I like the options.

IMG_3018.jpeg
 
I saw on a few video reviews that if you flip the iPad attached to the MK, as shown below, it is now at the perfect angle for drawing or handwriting. It is still sturdy as well. If I am at my desk I usually do this. May not look the prettiest, but it works. Sometimes I just pull it off the MK and use as a tablet. I like the options.

View attachment 918557

Intresting idea. I use it in my lap in portrait mode that way when I'm too lazy (!!!) to pull the iPad off the MKB.
 
  • Like
Reactions: ScottNWDW
I was thinking this wouldn’t happen since one of the reasons I like the idea of the MK is how easy it is to pull the iPP off and use it separately, but after getting the keyboard just yesterday, I am already looking for ways I can use it more. This thing is awesome!
 
  • Like
Reactions: ScottNWDW
I use my iPad Pro 10.5 just as a tablet and used it extensively for note taking in undergrad. Now it’s a gaming and movie device. When I got my 12.9 iPad Pro several months ago I bought the Smart Folio Keyboard and almost never used it as a tablet even without iPadOS 13.4 mouse and trackpad support. Once that released, I used the Smart Folio Keyboard and a Logitech mouse as my laptop 99% of the time. Fast forward to now and with the Magic Keyboard it’s a full on laptop replacement for me. I rarely use my MacBook Pro, but there are a few times where I still have to use my MacBook Pro for school and for current software limitation in iPadOS vs MacOS. But the iPad Pro 12.9 and Magic Keyboard combo, while expensive, is such a powerful and versatile combination. I am very excited to see what iPadOS 14 brings this year.
 
I had the iPad for a almost month before the MK finally arrived. During that time I used it in tablet mode only.

since then, during the day it’s mostly on the MK but evenings when Im on the couch I tend to take my 11 inch off the MK and start using it in tablet mode.
also watching some Netflix/ prime or browsing in bed is usually do in tablet mode.

i love it
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.