Wasn't your previous thread about getting rid of your Mac for something more portable a 12.9 Pro requires just as much care to get around with than a Mac now an LTE 9.7 Pro gets thrown in a purse and no one is the wiser
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
So I've had my 12.9 pro for a week now, and...
- Thread starter ssledoux
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I had the same dilemma and have kept my MacBook Pro alongside my iPad Pro for 5 months now. Over that period of time, I seem to be using the iPad more and more, and the MacBook less and less. Then about a month ago I got the Smart Keyboard, and now I haven't even touched my MacBook in the past 3 weeks, so in the next couple of weeks I will be selling it.
It definitely takes a period of adjustment. During the first couple of months, I kept wondering if I had made a mistake in buying the iPad Pro instead of the iPad Air 2. Now I'm so happy I took a chance and got the iPad Pro. My sister visited this weekend, and when she saw me working on it, she started asking me questions and was very intrigued. She wanted to know if she could manage to use one instead of her MacBook Air.
It definitely takes a period of adjustment. During the first couple of months, I kept wondering if I had made a mistake in buying the iPad Pro instead of the iPad Air 2. Now I'm so happy I took a chance and got the iPad Pro. My sister visited this weekend, and when she saw me working on it, she started asking me questions and was very intrigued. She wanted to know if she could manage to use one instead of her MacBook Air.
I think the 12.9 is actually helping me realize what I use a tablet for and what I. Need my laptop for.
The 9.7 provides the best mobility I like for tablets and my MacBook provides "access" to the desktop applications not available on a tablet.
I'm still deciding but as of now for the weight of a 12.9 + keyboard I'd almost rather just fire up my MacBook.
The 9.7 provides the best mobility I like for tablets and my MacBook provides "access" to the desktop applications not available on a tablet.
I'm still deciding but as of now for the weight of a 12.9 + keyboard I'd almost rather just fire up my MacBook.
That's the conclusion I came to. My MacBook and 12.9 where to close. 9.7 and Mac are the perfect combo.
When people say you can't do anything on an iPad but browse and Mail they must never have gone beyond the apps that come with it, have never even looked in the App Store! Even with just the Apple apps I can do more than that.
Whether an iPad can replace desktop/laptop depends on your uses and whether it has all the software you need. Although I use iPads mostly, for work and play, especially the 12.9, I still need my MBPr for Scrivener and a few other things.
Whether an iPad can replace desktop/laptop depends on your uses and whether it has all the software you need. Although I use iPads mostly, for work and play, especially the 12.9, I still need my MBPr for Scrivener and a few other things.
you post is exactly why the 12.9" tablet is flawed. You have the added weight and size, lose mobility and still don't have the productivity of a laptop
The Staples sale got me to give this some serious thought this weekend and, in short, that is where I landed.
The 12.9 is a fantastic consumption machine, and the screen, really nice for reading.
At the same time, some apps are limited, some don't exist and if you need to write code, or mess with a real database, it's not going to happen. The bigger problem is that I couldn't find a case, keyboard and pencil holder combination. I could find two of three but nothing that did all three. I think maybe in a year or two when there are more keyboards we might get somewhere but it's not there yet and they all take a nice lightweight device and basically more than double, even triple, it's weight and size and/or are awkward to use.
And now there's this 12" device, with some added horsepower, that is a very interesting alternative.
and that's what the iPad has always been, the 12.9" fundamentally changes nothing because iOS is still....... iOS
Well, I don't write code, or work with databases. All I need in my line of work is word processing, and a spreadsheet for keeping track of my billing. For that, the iPad is plenty. I could have done all my work on an iPad since around iPad 2 or 3. However, the 9.7 screen was a little cramped, so it wasn't very comfortable when editing documents. The 12.9 size solves that problem. I now work almost exclusively from my iPad.
I know the iPad doesn't have enough functionality to be a productivity device for everyone, but for me, it certainly is.
It, actually, gets really close for me too. If I had a different job I could probably even get all the way there.
Well, it would still need a better case/keyboard/pencil holder solution than I've seen.
I've recently found a deal on a zagg slim book keyboard for my iPad pro which visually resembles the macbook's keyboard and can't help but think that physically the user experience will be similar minus a trackpad and lot of functionality.
If I hadn't got a killer steal deal on this 12.9 this decision of keeping it would be a lot easier.
Speak for yourself and don't pretend everybody is the same. There is a tool for every job and the iPad Pro might not be the tool for your job, but it might be for others. I do understand that coding on an iPad/iOS isn't practical. I also understand change is hard and a lot of people don't want to change to a different OS, different routine, different workflow. But for those who have an open mind and are willing to try something new, an iPad can be a revelation. Less distraction, hand writing notes and less multitasking (the human brain isn't suited for multitasking, at best it can do rapid serial changes between tasks)
The iPad Pro 12.9" 128/256/LTE isn't much cheaper then a MacBook Pro, iOS has it's own advantages, strengths, annoying things and weaknesses. There is a tool for every job and this happen to be my tool. Certainly not the only tool, working in large excel sheets is a pain in the proverbial place, but it's one of the tools I have at my disposal.
So please respect the idiosyncrasies of others and let them have useful discussions about the use of their iPads.
Apple case, Apple Smart Keyboard and Moxiware. (Or use one of the many bags or sleeves).
That's understandable. My journey has taken me on a different path that has ended with the 12.9 iPad Pro.
I love using iPads for casual things, and things where direct interaction with the screen is important. But I also have needs for a more "traditional" computing workflow which is where my 11" Macbook Air came in. Ever since, I've been on the elusive hunt for the ideal (for me) converged device. I've owned a Surface RT (still own a Surface 2), and owned other Windows 2-in-1 hybrids. They all fell heavily on the "notebook-end" of the divide. Android tablets and 9.7 iPads fell too heavily on the "tablet-end" of the divide.
But the 12.9 iPP comes far closer to that optimal mid-point for me than anything else. It's not perfect, but relative to everything else that I've tried, it is the closest. If Apple were to provide support in iOS for mice and trackpads, I'd say it will be nearly exactly what I'm looking for. (an option for a unified file system/storage area would the another thing)
Mouse support would be very, very handy for remotely connecting to my iMac from my iPP.
My 12.9 iPP + thin, clear skin on the back + ASK is super light and super portable for me... allowing me to replace my iPad Air 2 + (and almost) 11" MBA combo. When I want to use the iPP strictly as a tablet, I pop off the ASK and pop on the Smart Cover. I'm still impressed that a tablet that large can be that thin.
The first two I've pretty much written off but I didn't know about Moxiware. Zagg Slimbook or BrydgePro, when it gets here, but that price, might be viable cases.
My iPad Pro 12.9 will never replace my desktop, which thanks to the IPP is now a shiny new iMac 27".
What the IPP is to me is an art tablet that is what I have wished for for years, it is simply a wonderful sketchbook and painting canvas for me.
I was a dedicated Windows user until I got the IPP and it's beauty completely won me over to Apple. I use a Wacom Intuos 5 on the desktop and I now prefer to work on the iPad with the Pencil. I still need the power of a desktop for Corel Painter and Photoshop, but Paintstorm Studio is wonderful on both IPP and iMac, and as Astropad improves and I get used to it I may not even need the Intuos much longer.
IPP may well be able to replace my laptop at some point but never my dekstop.
What the IPP is to me is an art tablet that is what I have wished for for years, it is simply a wonderful sketchbook and painting canvas for me.
I was a dedicated Windows user until I got the IPP and it's beauty completely won me over to Apple. I use a Wacom Intuos 5 on the desktop and I now prefer to work on the iPad with the Pencil. I still need the power of a desktop for Corel Painter and Photoshop, but Paintstorm Studio is wonderful on both IPP and iMac, and as Astropad improves and I get used to it I may not even need the Intuos much longer.
IPP may well be able to replace my laptop at some point but never my dekstop.
Well as of now I'm not making any decisions. With my Smart Keyboard though, I am finding I need to use my iMac less and less. I am in LOVE with this Smart Keyboard. It is so easy to type on! My daughter was over yesterday and, once she got her hands on it, I had to fight her to get it back.
I truly didn't expect to like it as much as I do. I'm funny about keyboards.
Now if I could just get with the program, move into this decade, and get my air print going on, all would be grand!
I truly didn't expect to like it as much as I do. I'm funny about keyboards.
Now if I could just get with the program, move into this decade, and get my air print going on, all would be grand!
The greatest hurdle for me with the ASK was the... *hard-swallow*... price. I was a big fan of the TypeCover for the Surface (even though the trackpad is worse than useless), and I find the ASK even better than that. Very pleasurable to type on.
Exact same for me. The ASK completely changes the dynamic of the iPad Pro. It goes from a nice device that you can do some typing on, to a device that I can do everything on.
It is grossly overpriced, yet worth every penny, if that makes any sense.
Last edited:
It makes total sense to me. I cringed at the thought of spending what I was spending on it, and I got it through AT&T with the 20% off if you bought 3 accessories. I got my keyboard, Apple Pencil and some random $5 screen protector for my Air 2 (which I sold to my sister so I gave that to her). It was still expensive, but so worth it; well, to me anyway.
Last edited by a moderator:
Jump desktop supports the Citrix X1 and the Swiftpoint GT mouse. I switched to this app just for this feature alone.