My experience with the new iPad Pro (9.7") coming from Surface Pro 4
- Thread starter Leo90
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rowspaxe
macrumors 68020
The hybrid concept seems to be lost on lot of posters here. The idea--imo--is that complex applications for audio and video editing will be handled in laptop mode as it is not efficient to work these types of applications in touch. Windows does suffer from a lack of touch app for simple tasks and social media, etc. For me the surface works great because it combines "pro" apps, an excellent pen solution, can be used with fullsize monitors and has a great a touch browser. I really dont need any apps.
then you just have a different workflow. Its not right or wrong; there is no 1 right way or method.
Many many people likely the simplicity of iOS and iOS apps. It's also a LOT quicker to hit the power button and tap the app icon than boot a windows tablet, login, wait for windows to finish booting and launch the program.
I have a 13.3" touchscreen Lenovo, larger screen than both the Surface Pro or big iPad, and certain parts of Windows on touch are INFURIATING. All the tiny "x" and minimize buttons, and the drop downs/right click menus. It's not even close to being optimized for touch- not even a start. It's simply the old mouse OS and touch slapped on.
sracer
macrumors G4
Are you saying that you don't need apps because you have a great touch browser? Or are those two not related?
A common belief among Windows tablet users is to equate apps with app-ified websites. They'll say that they don't need a twitter app because they can access the full site via the browser. That is true. But there are far more apps that don't access a website. For those apps, a browser is not going to be very helpful.
rowspaxe
macrumors 68020
Sounds like you are using the desktop with touch. As I noted above--its hybrid--use desktop apps with a pointer device and touch apps and browser with touch. Some desktop apps are very touch friendly--sketch book, itunes, Others are not. The desktop ui is not
Yoga Pro laptop. Tablet mode in Windows 10 is still joke; gives you metro UI and blows up some of the icons and adds a "back" button.
It doenst fix the major issues with touch in Windows. it doesn't resize the "x" "minimize" control in say Chrome or affect any programs.
It's a half-baked solution to touch overall still.
rowspaxe
macrumors 68020
If you are "app" centric--the surface will not work for you. I have just found apps add very little to my computing experience. Onenote, sketchbook pro, ableton live, zbrush, office, mathtype...what do i need apps for? There are a lot of cool ios apps and games. In a perfect world a hybrid machine would do it all. Its all about compromises
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You'll figure it out. Maybe Chrome isnt touch optimized, maybe you are using the desktop version?
The ie touchbrowser is fine; edge is still a work in progress
AlexJoda
macrumors 6502a
If you don't need apps why didn't you just use a laptop? A laptop is cheaper and better as a laptop than a hybrid....
ok, so again, whats the point of it all if only 1 in 10 programs works with it? And who seriously uses IE Explorer
As I said it's poorly implemented, and at the end of the day useless if its been out this long and no software makers care to adapt for it.
rowspaxe
macrumors 68020
I need a tablet for artwork and tablet browsing
Ah, was thinking consumer level and no server.That would be Citrix and the X1
iCloud stores all of your files on an ipad. Do you mean application level file system?
ahostmadsen
macrumors 65816
The question is how secure they are. It seems to me you let some unknown developer get access to your files. One thing is to store files on iCloud or DropBox -- for their business to be viable they want to secure their files (Apple has staged its reputation on it). But how do you know what some unknown developer does with your files? Share it with some third party?
SoyCapitanSoyCapitan
Suspended
It uses standard networking protocols but maybe an app developer can chime in here and let us know if Apple checks for security issues when developers submit to the App Store.
Andy847
macrumors regular
I had both the SP3 and SP4, both the low end processor and the midrange on the SP4. I hated it. They both heated up and considerable lag in certain apps/programs. Not to mention crashes. I came to realize I just needed a tablet. I first bought an IPad Pro 12.9 and returned it after 12 days, because I need a floating browser for a game I play with drawing. Nothing available for Ipads yet like that. Was waiting for a New Samsung Note tablet, but nothing this year.
I came to realize, the IPP does enough for me and although a bit of a hassle, I can just pull out a temporary side window and view an image to draw. It's not side by side view, it can only have one window open at a time, so time consuming to go from window to window, since the app is not Optimized for the Ipad Pro.
I bought it again and love it. Great app selection, great Drawing and graphic apps. Really loving it. I even started playing some games again on it. I think if you need a computer, get a laptop, if you need a tablet, get a tablet. This is the best out and I'm coming from many years an android guy. I still will never buy an IPhone, but this tablet is awesome with the Apple Pencil. Although, I still hate looking at all the icons and you can't customize it like androids, but I can live with that. I actually see no reason why I couldn't use it to replace my mac, at least on the go. All I need is a keyboard and that Zagg slim book looks so nice!
I came to realize, the IPP does enough for me and although a bit of a hassle, I can just pull out a temporary side window and view an image to draw. It's not side by side view, it can only have one window open at a time, so time consuming to go from window to window, since the app is not Optimized for the Ipad Pro.
I bought it again and love it. Great app selection, great Drawing and graphic apps. Really loving it. I even started playing some games again on it. I think if you need a computer, get a laptop, if you need a tablet, get a tablet. This is the best out and I'm coming from many years an android guy. I still will never buy an IPhone, but this tablet is awesome with the Apple Pencil. Although, I still hate looking at all the icons and you can't customize it like androids, but I can live with that. I actually see no reason why I couldn't use it to replace my mac, at least on the go. All I need is a keyboard and that Zagg slim book looks so nice!
Night Spring
macrumors P6
It's not like the developers of apps like FileBrowser and File Explorer (and Documents and Good Reader and countless other apps) ever get any access to your files. You are just using their app to move your files around over your own wifi network. They don't go anywhere out in the cloud. Well, you can hook these apps up to services like Dropbox, but then the files go to Dropbox, not to the developer of the file management app.
Booji
macrumors 6502a
This is a great thread. Keep it coming. Every time I see an SP4, I'm thinking I made the wrong choice with an IPP 9.7 (which I use along with an MBPr 13). Realizing what the IPP can do, along with its limitations, I can more understand the tradeoffs. There is still no one device that can do it all.
merkinmuffley
macrumors 6502a
We have both the 12 IPad and Surface Pro 4 here. My sole use for computers is photography. I can run Photoshop on one of these, I can't on the other. The SP4 is the one that I take with me. I don't like W10, but it's adequate and works, but I confess I don't much with it. When I need a browser, I open Chrome. In general, I believe the Apple software to be more mature than what Microsoft has to offer.
Same here. Had the Air 2. I like the Pro 9.7 better. It's better all around ....(got it pretty cheap BTW )
I have a trusty SP 4 also. I've had all the SP's, and will continue with them. I have a rugged case for it. It's like a tank. Sort of has the military thing going, (no not camo )
)I have a trusty SP 4 also. I've had all the SP's, and will continue with them. I have a rugged case for it. It's like a tank. Sort of has the military thing going, (no not camo
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masotime
macrumors 68030
Out of curiosity, why not get a MacBook Pro for photography work? Do you have a specific use case for a touchscreen + photography?
ilman92
macrumors newbie
I love my 9.7" Pro, I’m a student and I use it all the time for note-taking, studying, write-ups, presentations, designing posters as a hobby, etc. but I must say, spreadsheet work on the iPad still feels cumbersome, even with the keyboard. Although hardware might be the solution here, but I still think there’s more to be done om the software side to make working with spreadsheet on the iPad more pleasant.
Cptnodegard
macrumors 6502
Since writing this I found a Surface 3 (non-pro) extremely cheap at a local store, and grabbed it. 2GB Ram, 64GB eMMC, and Atom X5 processor puts it far away from the Pro line in terms of performance, but it's also 10", fanless, and lasts a while on the battery.
My original thoughts based on other Windows tablets stand, for the most part. What I like about the Surface 3 is the kickstand and type cover more than anything - much better than the Smart Keyboard on the iPad Pro. I've also found myself missing a good trackpad on the iPad after using the Surface, especially on the 12.9" when using the Smart Keyboard. Resting my hand on the table and navigating the OS easily is not something the iPad Pro 12.9 (or any iPad) is capable of outside of remote desktop, and it never bothered me until I tried a trackpad as good as the type cover one.
That being said, I have several hours worth of tinkering into the S3 now just to make it run properly - force removing all the crap that Microsoft shoves onto it, that constantly runs and uses system resources. For the price of a new Surface device, neither regedit, services.msc, powershell, cmd, group policy manager or any other such "powertool" should be on the list of features you need to know how to use...but they are. A more expensive, more capable Surface would probably negate some of it, but seeing the issues people on Surface forums have with their devices, I'm not so sure.
There's also the matter of me sitting there with the Surface 3 in my hand, staring at its desktop, thinking "this looks neat, but wtf do I use it for?". Other than being able to run full Office - something that isn't possible on iOS only because Microsoft isn't making it possible - and a few other desktop programs, it really falls very short of my iPad in terms of capability. Some software I use for work on the iPad outright doesn't exist, and some I can't use on a Surface due to performance issues.
At the end of the day, the reasons I kept the Surface are a combination of decent design and the ability to run what is for all intents and purposes legacy software at this point. There hasn't been a single time that I've picked up the surface to use software that has been released in the last few years, other than updates of older software. As such I think that what the world needs is a Macbook dock for an iPad - letting the screen and digitizer you're already paying for be used with an x86-based CPU and GPU dock for running macOS/Windows when you need it. People will disagree with me on this, but I feel Windows is becoming like a DVD drive at this point - not something you need to have permanently attached.
Agree for what is related to files, but I'm still reluctant to give some third party any access to my logon credentials to any services - so my use of the FileBrowser's functionality is quite limited. I'm trusting this info to Apple anyway and hope it's not their interest to abuse it - but I'm much less sure about other developers who are here today and elsewhere tomorrow.
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I see this request a lot and I'm really wondering what the advantage of this Mac base would be as opposed to having a MacBook and an iPad. Is it to save money? Considering you'd only be losing the cost of the display of the MacBook, and considering Apple would have to charge more money for the new design and manufacturing of this more complicated detachable system, I think you would probably break even. Best case scenario at MOST you might save a couple hundred, but definitely not the cost of a whole device. You're still buying two devices, only one of them is gimped because without your iPad it's a paper weight. Even assuming your iPad is ALWAYS with you, having to pull it out and attach it every time you want to do a simple quick Mac task is not exactly the kind of user experience that I think Apple is looking to give. Why not just spend a couple hundred more and have an actual functional MacBook that doesn't always require attaching an iPad, which will probably make for a clunky laptop experience anyway? I think that would be Apple's perspective.
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