It has been an interesting thread. My only problem with the discourse is the concept of "real work". It's something I've came across often in my many discussions all over the Internet about this.
Like, the foundation of the idea of "the iPad is a toy" is that the iPad is incapable of "real work". When most people say this I understand it to be something like video editing or programming, although I have seen valid complaints that have been addressed as iPadOS continues to mature. I'm not much of a fan of saying the iPad can't do "real work" because I feel like that's gatekeeping a little bit. For example, I think writing can be a lot of work. I think having documents of a power tool and reading it can be work.
True, I think certain things might be better on a Mac, like writing several paragraphs. But I disagree so much with the idea that the iPad is a "toy". As I said before, I think it's important to acknowledge that the iPad's form factor allows it to do different (but equally valid) work. Just like it's fair to say that some people may never truly "click" with an iPad.
I’d like to adress this as well.
I thing the basis of this is - ipad really USED to be a toy. It really did. I think I had the first ipad back 10 yeras ago, and it was basically an epub pdf reader and a web browser. I liked its calendar view, it reminded me of a paper organizer, and… I used it as a big remote for my itunes library on my mac. So thats all.
It was completely incapable of any ‘real work’ it was really not a computer but a tablet.
Today, I see things quite differently. First of all - the ipad I have now and the ipad I was talking about - are not comparable at all software wise. Even thou at the surface it looks like its the same OS, its actually a completely different OS, and today - ipad IS a computer. It is a computer.
It just, as a computer, still has a few quirks that need fixing, like the one I described. Its actually in a weird spot, and its history as a toy shows. Many ‘serious’ things that any ’real computer’ can do, iPad actually cant, or can - but in a very convoluted and inconvinient way. So its still drawing a bit from its ’toy’ background, even thou, its not a toy anymore.
I think thats why some people feel and call it a toy, since they remember it USED TO BE a toy. And theese are the people quoting certain things ipad cant do and a’real computer can’ and using that to shot that ipad is really ’just a toy’ but not a computer . Truth is, it used to be a toy, its not anynmore, but some of the toy aspects of it are still present, and need. to be addressed.
But no. Its not a toy.
##myopinion.
Btw. I do programming on iPad, its great for it.