My wife still has the iPad 2 and she uses my old iPad Air. I'm rocking the IPP 12.9. I love iPad.
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Seven Years Ago Today: Steve Jobs Introduces the iPad
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I think the iPad is a great device. My wife uses her iPad everyday. Before recent retirement, I spent countless hours at work using MS Office on desktop and laptop computers. Also, working with in-house database systems etc. When I came home, the last thing I wanted to do is work on a computer...really. My employer bought my work computer (kind of a requirement these days for security reasons), so I just needed something simple for everyday life;
email & messaging
web
calendar & contacts
notes
simple documents and spreadsheets: Pages, Numbers, Keynote
PDF review/annotating: GoodReader
Photo
Video & iMovie
Finance: Banking Apps and Mint
Cloud storage
Games
etc.
For common personal computing needs, iOS is great precisely because it is so simple. I used to manage a team of financial analysts, so my work life was plenty complicated. At home, it is nice to take a break and have a more minimalist approach.
The iPad has come a long way from 1.0; Cloud storage, wireless updates, PC independence (don't need iTunes to setup), split screen, PP, Pencil, improved productivity apps (MS Office compatible), faster processors, more RAM, better speakers, keyboard connectivity, etc.. Can it go further? Sure.
As for me, things have flipped around a bit. I no longer have an employer purchased computer, but I am doing some business on my own...so I bought an MBA. I also bought the largest iPhone in hopes of getting some of the iPad experience without having to own three devices. It's a nice set-up, but I do miss my iPad.
email & messaging
web
calendar & contacts
notes
simple documents and spreadsheets: Pages, Numbers, Keynote
PDF review/annotating: GoodReader
Photo
Video & iMovie
Finance: Banking Apps and Mint
Cloud storage
Games
etc.
For common personal computing needs, iOS is great precisely because it is so simple. I used to manage a team of financial analysts, so my work life was plenty complicated. At home, it is nice to take a break and have a more minimalist approach.
The iPad has come a long way from 1.0; Cloud storage, wireless updates, PC independence (don't need iTunes to setup), split screen, PP, Pencil, improved productivity apps (MS Office compatible), faster processors, more RAM, better speakers, keyboard connectivity, etc.. Can it go further? Sure.
As for me, things have flipped around a bit. I no longer have an employer purchased computer, but I am doing some business on my own...so I bought an MBA. I also bought the largest iPhone in hopes of getting some of the iPad experience without having to own three devices. It's a nice set-up, but I do miss my iPad.
I used mine loads and it still (mostly) works. Other than the obvious things like performance, RAM, storage capacity and security updates there are numerous things I still prefer about the original iPad to the current iPads.
I was a bit annoyed that it didn't get updated past iOS 5.1.1 at the time; now I am grateful it's forever stuck on that version, which I consider the pinnacle of iOS before it went all flat (I know there was iOS6 as well, but that didn't offer much I was interested in other than slightly longer app compatibility at the time).
There's no doubt in my mind that the iPad 2 was (and probably still is) the biggest technical leap from one iPad generation to the next (just for how much thinner it was, how much longer it was supported by Apple etc). But I have a huge soft spot for my original iPad, and feel lucky to own it.
I was a bit annoyed that it didn't get updated past iOS 5.1.1 at the time; now I am grateful it's forever stuck on that version, which I consider the pinnacle of iOS before it went all flat (I know there was iOS6 as well, but that didn't offer much I was interested in other than slightly longer app compatibility at the time).
There's no doubt in my mind that the iPad 2 was (and probably still is) the biggest technical leap from one iPad generation to the next (just for how much thinner it was, how much longer it was supported by Apple etc). But I have a huge soft spot for my original iPad, and feel lucky to own it.
Mad Mac Maniac
macrumors 601
I suppose the Pro line with stylus and smart connect there has been some significant changes for iPad, but I would still argue that the 6 year old iPad 2 in every day use is more similar to the current iPads than the 6 year old iPhone 4 is to the iPhone 7 (or more appropriately comparing the iPhone 3G to the iPhone 6). True that the iPad has gone along for the ride with the hw/sw of iPhone, but... that is basically exactly what happened. The iPad has taken hw/sw capabilities that were primarily focused for a phone. When the iPad first came out I was really excited, even though I didn't know if I wanted one. Since it shared the same OS as the iPhone I was assuming that the full computer iPad would drive hw/sw innovation from the iPad to the iPhone, but my impression is that mostly the iPad has been dragged down by the needs of the iPhone.
It's true that there is beauty in the iPad's simplicity, but my mom has been using my old iPad 2 for years and I see no reason for her to upgrade. The same would not be true for any 6 year old iPhone at any point. I mean even my mom's 4 year old iPhone 5 is feeling a little long in the tooth.
Contracts may be gone. But that has been replaced by things like T-Mobile's Jump programme where you can upgrade every year.
I believe what I said was very clear. To each their own. I still use my iPad (now a 9.7" Pro) every day. And yes, as a 14 year old kid, having saved and waited for a large multi-touch tablet from Apple for years, it was MAGICAL.someone please share the funny photos of larger ipads
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magical experience?
a lot of us hardly use our ipads these days
Steve wanted the iPad to be a computer replacement, instead it became a giant iPod toy to play silly mobile games and watch youtube videos
That's what a majority of people use a computer for. They check social media and play some games, maybe look at some photos and occasionally do some word processing. Many people I know survive comfortably with just an iPad as their daily driver.
I still fondly recall my iPad 2, best thing I bought this decade and it was fine until I stupidly rendered it useless by upgrading to iOS 9. Regardless, it served me well for several years - however I never replaced it, I think I outgrew what tablets are typically used for and moved back to my laptop instead.
Feel bad for Steve. The iPad of today is not what he ambitioned back then... Steve wanted the iPad to be a computer replacement, instead it became a giant iPod toy to play silly mobile games and watch youtube videos
No. He said it was a third category between the PC and phone. He never said it would replace the PC.
You could only update the original iPad to 5.1, and it was plenty fast enough with it. The problem was apps, but the OP specifically states what he was using for
Indeed. In true form, the macrumors crowd piled on to complain about how underwhelming it was and predicted that it would be a huge flop. The only thing missing was blaming it on Tim Cook's lack of vision and comparing that to how everything Steve Jobs introduced was a smashing, universally-praised and instantaneous success. (Of course, you have this thread for that.)
Tried it for a while, couldn't stand it.
It makes the OS look so incredibly ugly and unpolished I begin to question the entire device I'm holding in my hands and whilst I know it makes buttons better, it doesn't make everything better.
Oh and it certainly doesn't make the design less flat either, buttons are highlighted, but not embossed.
Personally, I'm really just waiting for flat to die off and call it some dark times of GUI I had to go through.
Glassed Silver:win
This "explanation" becomes less and less credible with every year. Apple sold 58 million iPads in 2012 and 46 million in 2016. That's a substantial decrease. If you keep an iPad for 4+ years and don't replace it, it means you either don't want another iPad or you are just using yours very little. Battery life degrades over time. There is no way around that and the more you use and an iPad the more it will degrade. I have an iPad Air which I loved and used a lot and the battery degraded very seriously as a result. Last year I bought iPad Pro 12.9 because of the Pencil. I use that ever more than I used the Air and I am already at less than 80% of original battery life.
While the iPad saw strong early adoption, Apple has experienced sales declines in the past few years, with users replacing their iPads less frequently than iPhones. Most commonly, users update their iPhones every year or two, while finding their iPads remain serviceable for longer.
And of course, that does not even take into account that there ought to be serious growth from entirely new iPad buyers who are not replacing anything. Longer upgrade cycle might play a role in the declining iPad sales but it's certainly not the only reason and probably not the main reason. The honest reason is that there are problems with the product which depress sales.
I suspect that the main reason is that iPads are getting squeezed by laptops and phablets. Most people found out that iPads in their current form can't really replace laptops despite what Cook would like us to believe. For others who mostly used ipads for media consumption a phablet is enough. That's the main problem and not the long upgrade cycle.
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Wow, I totally remember that announcement like it was yesterday. Probably because it was just yesterday that I said the same thing I said 7 years ago: "what is the point of this?" And 7 years since, we still have laptops--no, they were never replaced by iPads as everyone predicted. They're still as limited and useless as they were 7 years ago and still equally unable to replace my laptop. No thank you, but congrats on the 7 years nonetheless. Obviously people have bought them...mainly to use as exhibit signs at museums.
I want to like the iPad. It's a good looking piece of hardware and could be quite a useful piece of kit. The problem for me is Apple's vision of computers and tablets as divergent technologies. iOS is way too limited for a device of that size. It's a good content consumption device but isn't very good as a creation device. Sometimes it would be nice to take just one device for both work and play.
I hate saying it but Microsoft got their strategy right. The surface makes a far better job of being a tablet and a computer.
I hate saying it but Microsoft got their strategy right. The surface makes a far better job of being a tablet and a computer.
People probably buy fewer iPads than iPhones because there isn't the same social component to ownership. iPads are almost entirely functional (used for browsing the web, video, etc) and used at home whereas people want the latest phone because it's a fashion statement. Or maybe I'm just really vein.
My iPad has become a 90% replacement for my mac. Browsing the web or watching YouTube, iPad is just more convenient.
I still need my mac for the other 10%, but the iPad has become more utilized. Plus, with the iPad now having 256GB of storage, I finally am no longer bumping up against capacity constantly. I feel I can store all the stuff I want and have room to spare.
What I want one day is an iPad with 4-8TB of storage so I can store my 800GB Photo library all in full res, and my 200GB music library, and my 1TB video library.
I guess I'm happy with my A9X based iPad Pro. Nice and compact and goes on all my trips. I haven't taken my MacBook Pro on my last 10 or so trips now.
Some people spend their time enjoying things and some people spend their time looking for things to complain about. I know which group I want to be a member of.
As for the iPad: it's the Mac I've always wanted. More adaptable to my workflow (writing) and my personal use (toilet reading) than a MacBook, though macOS always evokes warm nostalgia like the SNES games of my youth.
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First iPad, iPad 2, iPad 3, iPad Air
and now using iPad Pro 9.7 with the Apple Pencil everyday!
and now using iPad Pro 9.7 with the Apple Pencil everyday!