iPad Pro Superconsumers: If Apple Charged Double for the iPad Pro, What Features Would it Need?

[sunapple]

For me personally, a 2000$ iPad should ideally be... a MacBook Pro.

The iPad is a nice product for media consumption (as long as you don't have to hold it, which is, ermm, not a lot of times), but for it to be truly Pro it should run a better operating system. Not iOS, certainly not macOS. Heck, look beyond keyboards and touch screens and give me the future, dammit!

 

[masotime]

We don't really need macOS, but we do need an OS and app ecosystem that matches what can be done on macOS to justify charging double.

Otherwise it needs some really radical new feature(s), like 1 hour solar charging 0-100%, foldable / VR display, 1 week always-on battery life, DCI-P eInk display, 10K resolution etc., etc. to justify such an enormous jump. And even then, it has to fulfill some kind of actual need in the market.

 

[RudySnow]

No couldn't flip the argued. iOS is a limited operating system. Adding Mac OS would be an upgrade for iPad. Adding iOS to a MacBook would be a downgrade.

I once set up a home "jukebox" system to run iTunes through my AirPlay speakers. I used a Mac Mini, and mounted a touchscreen Planar monitor to my wall. The experience was HORRENDOUS. The menu bar is not optimized for touch input, and most applications aren't either, and aren't meant to be. From experience, I can tell you you do NOT want macOS on an iPad. Anyone who thinks this is some sort of "perk" or "need" has never actually tried using macOS in a touch environment.

 

[richinaus]

I will chime in

It took me a while to get used to using my 12"ipadpro as a sort of laptop replacement [as my main portable device] and always felt I needed a laptop too. This is still the case, now I have a new 13"mbp but to be honest there is not that much I would want changing to make it 100% useful. Maybe in the next year or 2 I could see myself just having an iPad pro and one computer, and I am a 'power' user. For me it is the following :

1. reduce bezels and get in the 10" range. It is quite heavy once the keyboard is attached and mayaswell have a MacBook
2. better keyboard solution with trackpad [so I dont have to touch the screen when keyboard attached]
3. would love better clipping in Safari [for evernote and pinterest]
4. some apps just need a little more polish, and be targeted at a pro user.
5. matt black like the iPhone 7 - love this finish and goes very well with the silver macs.
6. less glossy screen for better pencil feel

Here is what I love on the iPad pro 12"

1. great for image searching and filing [pinterest, curator etc]
2. love the pencil with Adobe apps - my no.1 usage
3. great for reading and consuming [too big for books though]

In a lot of ways the iPad 10" will be a fantastic compliment to the 13" TB MBP. Best of everything in a portable pack.

I have a feeling a lot of my wishes will be met over the next few years, except the trackpad.

Edit - I feel iOS does need a lot of time to really get the workflow right for you. For me it is perfect when working with a computer. I use iCloud, airdrop and copy and paste a lot now - works really well and fluid. I don't believe MacOS on an iPad is the right solution now - I once did but it just needs that adjustment in attitude towards it and use it for what it was designed for. It compliments not replaces.

 

[ucfgrad93]

An iPad at $2000? It would have to be able to drive me to work, cook my food, and get me a beer from the fridge.

Oh... and have USB-C.

Agreed, I'd never buy one at double the current price.

 

[capathy21]

I once set up a home "jukebox" system to run iTunes through my AirPlay speakers. I used a Mac Mini, and mounted a touchscreen Planar monitor to my wall. The experience was HORRENDOUS. The menu bar is not optimized for touch input, and most applications aren't either, and aren't meant to be. From experience, I can tell you you do NOT want macOS on an iPad. Anyone who thinks this is some sort of "perk" or "need" has never actually tried using macOS in a touch environment.

If it had the ability to run Mac OS, it would also have mouse support when using Mac OS.

 

[RudySnow]

If it had the ability to run Mac OS, it would also have mouse support when using Mac OS.

True, it did. But, then, what is the point of touch input if you still need an intricate pointer (cursor) to navigate?

 

[Naaaaak]

Yeah. As much as I enjoy my 12.9 iPP, if I didn't get it at $150 off, I would not have bought it.

Staples deal from last year?
[doublepost=1483676630][/doublepost]My biggest problems with the iPad are iOS and the lack of a built-in keyboard. The Surface is closer to what i want hardware-wise (iPad should include a case with a real keyboard minus the dumb kickstand), but Windows is awful.

They need to make an iOS Tablet fork that actually caters to producers. Complete UI refresh (app switching and side-by-siding in particular sucks on a huge tablet screen), allow anything to run in the background (real multitasking), speed up all animations and allow them to be interrupted, a tab-first browser, a file browser instead of just an image/video picker, etc. iOS is still a consumer-first OS they have tried to adapt for producers and it just doesn't work - the sales stall and lack of enthusiasm shows it.

TLDR: Give me an OS that is built for the size of the device, not a bigger phone OS with the same restrictive design decisions made in the mid 2000s. But that might take real courage, not just eliminating the headphone jack so they can sell some new wireless headsets to justify wasting 3 billion or whatever on Beats.

 

[Eric5273]

I'm currently using my 12.9 Pro with the Brydge keyboard. Together the two work very nicely. However, not perfect.

I don't think I would be paying $2k for a tablet. But I would be another $200-400 if they were to make an iOS laptop with a removable screen that acted as a regular iPad.

Something like my 12.9 Pro/Brydge keyboard combination, except for these changes:

1) It would use the smart connector instead of bluetooth to connect the keyboard and tablet.

2) It would not require the keyboard to be charged separately. Instead, the keyboard would contain an extended battery that would recharge the iPad Pro as needed when they are connected. You could then charge only the keyboard when they are connected, and they will both charge. But the iPad part itself would also have a charging port in case you leave the keyboard at home.

3) matte black color like my new iPhone 7.

4) Overall form factor similar in size to the new MacBook Pro 13" (with keyboard included)

Come to think of it, they could just market the keyboard part as an accessory and I'd be willing to pay $200-400 for it.

 

[pika2000]

Assuming price is $2000. At that price, I can buy a lightweight 12" MacBook plus some accessories.
I'll gladly pay $2000 for iPad Pro if:
- Its performance can be sustained for at least 5 years. I just clean installed iOS 10.2 on my mini 2, and I wasn't too amazed on the experience with iOS10. It's still usable, but the hiccups are more noticeable, and considering this was a clean install, it was not a positive experience. In contrast, I still find my 2012 MacBook Air to perform as fast as it used to be on day 1 (other than perceived UI slowdowns on Sierra). For $2k, I expect laptop-like longevity.
- State of the art Siri. I want the iPad to still be productive without the keyboard, and that can mean a souped up Siri. Right now, Siri is not there yet. And if I am paying $2k and want to be productive with a keyboard, I might as well get a MacBook.
- Include the Pencil in the box. Surface Pro and all its clones include styluses, so for $2k, I don't think it's such an unreasonable expectation to have the pencil included.
- 128GB high performing storage standard (at MacBook level)
- Cellular radio standard.
- Part of the profit should be used to push developers into taking advantage of the advancement iOS is offering. I wouldn't expect a traditional file system on my iPad, nor want it. But all the apps have to take advantage of any seamless user experience Apple offers through the latest APIs on iOS. For example, create incentives for devs that create apps that play seamlessly with iCloud so we can have alternatives from the big named players like Adobe that are forcing people into their own cloud storage offerings.
- Part of the profit should also cover more tiers for iCloud storage. With more margins on the hardware, Apple can probably offer better pricing or more options.

To be honest, the iPad is almost there to be a completely standalone device. I have a friend that is using iPad only for his work from 2 years ago. Heck, I can already do powerpoint ppts on my iPad mini2. The trick is the software/apps side. I believe one can have an equally productive application on iOS without the need to resort to mouse/keyboard, if an app is designed properly (not a desktop version ported into iOS).

 

[JeffyTheQuik]

Point being, you can do that already for $2000--it's called a laptop.

I could flip this argument just as easily—if Apple doubles the price of a MacBook Pro, I want it to run iOS. Just silly.

As a pilot in training, I can't mount a MacBook on my lap, or in a Cessna 172. the detachable keyboard on the iPad makes it ideal. OK, I can.. but there will be no room for passengers.

As for turning the argument around, you're right, however, iOS is designed for fingers to touch since the iPhone 1, and MacOS has been designed for mouse usage since day 1. The breadth of macOS applications makes it a place to go to get more powerful apps that have already been purchased, and since there is not touchscreen for a Mac, how does someone aim those birds on iOS Angry Birds on a Mac with no touch screen? Those same birds can be aimed on an iPad with macOS Angry birds by treating the screen as a touchpad.

The one thing that bugs the snot out of me on the iPad is the full screen and half screen use of the applications. It goes against how I work. At work, I don't clear off my desk, work on something, then, when the phone rings, clear off my desk, answer the phone, clear off the desk to take notes on the phone call, then set everything back how it was to continue my work. It would be helpful to shrink the window (a la 1984...) pull up a note taking app, take the notes while seeing what I had out, so I could quickly answer the questions from the caller, then minimize those notes and get back to my work. On my iPad, the simple act of copying and pasting makes me feel like I am in kindergarten using those fat pencils.

Using iOS on a mac is kind of mimicked in Control Center, however, there is a translation between the trackpad and the icons. One does not simply push the icon for the thing you want to run, like the iOS devices, but you have to maneuver over to them. If the iMac/MacBook had a touchscreen, then the iOS argument makes sense.

So, yes, having mouse support and macOS support makes sense on an iPad, but not on an iMac.

I do write this as a learning exercise, not as a "you're wrong! do it my way!" type creation.

 

[sracer]

Staples deal from last year?

correct.

Obviously there was more to my purchase than, "oooh look! a sale!". I bought the Pro BEFORE iOS 10 was released. I saw the design of the Pro, ASK, and Pencil and concluded that those could serve my purposes... but not at MSRP. If I knew that iOS 10 would be little more than iOS 9 with emoji packs bundled in, it would've taken a $200+ discount to get me to buy.

My biggest problems with the iPad are iOS and the lack of a built-in keyboard. The Surface is closer to what i want hardware-wise (iPad should include a case with a real keyboard minus the dumb kickstand), but Windows is awful.

They need to make an iOS Tablet fork that actually caters to producers. Complete UI refresh (app switching and side-by-siding in particular sucks on a huge tablet screen), allow anything to run in the background (real multitasking), speed up all animations and allow them to be interrupted, a tab-first browser, a file browser instead of just an image/video picker, etc. iOS is still a consumer-first OS they have tried to adapt for producers and it just doesn't work - the sales stall and lack of enthusiasm shows it.

TLDR: Give me an OS that is built for the size of the device, not a bigger phone OS with the same restrictive design decisions made in the mid 2000s. But that might take real courage, not just eliminating the headphone jack so they can sell some new wireless headsets to justify wasting 3 billion or whatever on Beats.

I agree with the sentiment you express but not the specifics. An iPad-optimized version of iOS would go a long way in untapping the potential implied by the 12.9 Pro.

Life is short. I use what I have now to get things done, as soon as something better comes along, I'll be "on it". I'd like that to be an Apple product, but if not, I won't wait.

 

[bensisko]

If the iMac/MacBook had a touchscreen, then the iOS argument makes sense.

So, yes, having mouse support and macOS support makes sense on an iPad, but not on an iMac.

I do write this as a learning exercise, not as a "you're wrong! do it my way!" type creation.

A macOS tablet does exist - it's called a Modbook. No, it's not directly from Apple, but if you REALLY want an OS X tablet, then check it out.

 

[The Game 161]

Double? No iPad is worth that as you are only going to end up using it for the same things you do now

 

[cynics]

Double? It would need to be a touch screen MacBook Pro for me to even consider paying double.
[doublepost=1483811393][/doublepost]

Double? No iPad is worth that as you are only going to end up using it for the same things you do now

But what if it had two Apple logos on the back so everyone at star bucks knew how rich and important you were?

 

[AlexH]

It'd have to legitimately replace my MBP in terms of CPU/GPU performance, ship with iOS and MacOS (and MacOS would need to be overhauled for touch), and it'd need to come with an Apple made dock that I could use at my desk that'd give me USB-C, Thunderbolt, SD card slot. I need to be able to dock it, plug in a 4-5k display, and do work.

 

[Night Spring]

For $2000, I want 10 terabyte storage. And the Smart Keyboard and Pencil included.