Tim Cook Says 'Exciting Things' Coming to iPad as Tablet Sales Continue to Drop

[Machead2012]

My 2013 iPad mini is on point as long as I don't upgrade to the latest 2016-17 builds.
My experience with MacBook airs (2 of them) have been disastrous after upgrading to the new builds.
Constant lagging and within a few months the motherboard and battery goes bye bye.
Looking forward to a newer and more innovative iPad Pro. Then Apple will get my $$$'s.

 

[ds2000]

I'm quite excited to be getting a google pixel c or another android tablet later this year. First none Apple product I've bought in years but given how great the Chromecasts are and the messing about to stream some content to it from my iPad I fancied a change

 

[Abazigal]

I just don't understand this obsession with having the iPad replace the PC. For me, I do things on my iPad which I can't do (or do as well) on my Macs, just as I use my Macs to perform tasks I can't get done as readily on my iPad.

Neither replaces the other or renders them obsolete. They complement one another very well and that's just the way I like it.

 

[MacBH928]

Unless its revamped iOS that is made for the future of tablets being post-pc era then no... its not exciting.

When Steve Jobs said he was excited about something it was really exciting, not colorful watchbands

 

[ryanwarsaw]

And make the screen a touch screen that is detachable. And when detached, switch from OS X to iOS. Now there would be no need for a separate iPad purchase. Now that's innovation. Get to it Apple. You have more money than anyone else, so no excuses.

i thought the exact same thing many times. Should be you can buy a headless laptop of your choice. Pro or regular and then choose from an array of iPads that match. So you can upgrade either part of it separately when you want to. for this the iPad would need to be a little thinner.

To achieve that the battery life would take a hit but it would be charging when it is plugged into it's kb and logic board. I am sitting here typing this on my 12" rmb and see no reason why you couldn't just hook this to an iPad. Obviously right now it would have to be redesigned but there is no reason the idea wouldn't work.

The iPad would only run OSX when attached to the chassis. When it is detached it would only run IOS. Not sure that the idea would make sense from a profits stand point though.

 

[341328]

Bluetooth mouse support!! I only bought a surface (as my travel computer) because of this!

 

[niun]

Unless its revamped iOS that is made for the future of tablets being post-pc era then no... its not exciting.

When Steve Jobs said he was excited about something it was really exciting, not colorful watchbands

Heh, true..

When Jobs said something exciting was coming, said device changed the world.
When Cook spouts that line it generally means releasing a Rose Gold version.

 

[gnipgnop]

(Note: Andy Ihntatko had a review of the Mac version of Affinity this week's MacBreak Weekly and I was thinking about buying it. If they do add a Pencil input version of the app on the iPad, it would be easier to move back and forth from one OS to another. He said it could be used as a stand alone app or as a plug in for Photoshop, so it could eventually make its way into my workflow. I use NIK tools now and they seem to have issues running certain modules in the newest versions of Photoshop CC, so maybe Affinity will replace some of those dying features)

Another option is to use iPad apps like Astro Pad or Duet that allow you to mirror your desktop display or use the iPad as a second screen with the desktop display. That does allow you to use Photoshop with the Apple Pencil, for example. Just keep in mind that it does introduce some lag into the equation for some types of things, unlike using native iOS apps.

 

[iSimx]

Absolutely love my iPad - and now is my primary computer. Although at work still need mac can't completely switch. I do think there is so much more potential Apple can do with it. I agree they need to optimise ios further for the iPad. Some parts are frustrating and can be easily solved with software. As for the hardware, it's excellent but the software needs to catch up.

 

[JeffyTheQuik]

I'm thinking that there is a clog in the "pipeline".

Mr. Cook, I can't buy anything in your "pipeline," and while we're out there saving the world from people that you politically disagree with, I prefer that you have more great stuff at the stores.

 

[jhudgins]

They need better quality control for launch products. My iPad Pro 9.7 was visibly curved upon arrival.

I'm on my fourth iPad Pro in 5 months. First one had a loose volume button that rattled. I made a stink and Apple replaced it. Then the lightning connector failed on my new replacement, after just one month. Apple replaced it. At this point I wanted to add AppleCare because I no longer had confidence in the longevity of the device. They wouldn't let me do it b/c I was past the two months of the original purchase date. I went out and bought a FOURTH iPad Pro, same configuration with AppleCare, and will sell iPad #3. It's a really great device and I seem to have finally gotten a winner, but yes Apple needs to crack the whip on those qc folks at Foxconn.

Oh and btw, in case no one else has noticed, the silicone Back Cover is defective when paired with the SmartKeyboard. The wedge from the keyboard leaves a permanent line imprint on the silicone back case when docked. This happens almost immediately so I would not consider this normal wear and tear. The line actually appears on the naked iPad too, but since it's metal it wipes off.

 

[MistrSynistr]

Tim Cook's responses remind me of when you ask a girl if you're hooking up and they respond "maybe". Which can mean anything, and can mean no indefinitely. "In the pipeline".

 

[psac]

iPad 2 and Mini (assume 4) dominate the sales... so let's drop the mini. Ridiculous. Gimme my Mini 5/Pro please.

 

[UltimaKilo]

Unfortunately, the reason the software is lacking is due to the hardware. The A10X won't be enough to open up iOS on iPad.

I'd also like to see more from iPad. I have an LG tablet I got for free from T-Mobile and it fully replaced my aging iPad 3. Apple hasn't given me a reason to drop serious cash on one of their tablets, and that's sad.

 

[Veinticinco]

Tim Cook Says 'Exciting Things' Coming...

 

[Uofmtiger]

Another option is to use iPad apps like Astro Pad or Duet that allow you to mirror your desktop display or use the iPad as a second screen with the desktop display. That does allow you to use Photoshop with the Apple Pencil, for example. Just keep in mind that it does introduce some lag into the equation for some types of things, unlike using native iOS apps.

I mentioned Astropad in my post as something I would live with for now (it was easy to miss in the long post). It seems clunky to me, to be honest, but it does help with pen input when I want to edit on Photoshop from the couch. They introduced a "Studio" version that will cost $65 a year rather than the $30 or so one time cost of the "standard" version. Not sure I want to put another $65 into it, but I may try it out. It is still a lot cheaper in the short run than buying an Surface.

 

[kdarling]

I think they need to find some new adjectives.

"Incredible", "exciting", "magical", "awesome" and others have been used and abused so often, that they have become virtually meaningless when coming from Apple.

--

Hmm. OTOH, "incredible" does mean "too extraordinary and improbable to be believed", so perhaps Cook is simply telling us in his own way, to not believe anything he says

 

[gnipgnop]

I mentioned Astropad in my post as something I would live with for now (it was easy to miss in the long post). It seems clunky to me, to be honest, but it does help with pen input when I want to edit on Photoshop from the couch. They introduced a "Studio" version that will cost $65 a year rather than the $30 or so one time cost of the "standard" version. Not sure I want to put another $65 into it, but I may try it out. It is still a lot cheaper in the short run than buying an Surface.

You might want to try Duet. It's similar in terms of a 'standard' flat rate version and then a 'pro' subscription version, but the sub is $20 a year instead of $65. It's advertised as 'zero lag', but I don't think that's really accurate for applications like Photoshop, at least for the non-sub version. I haven't paid for a sub on either Astropad or Duet yet. I think the main drawback for Duet right now is that there isn't wireless support.

 

[Uofmtiger]

You might want to try Duet. It's similar in terms of a 'standard' flat rate version and then a 'pro' subscription version, but the sub is $20 a year instead of $65. It's advertised as 'zero lag', but I don't think that's really accurate for applications like Photoshop, at least for the non-sub version.

I have the old version that allowed me to use my iPad as second display, but I have never used it with Photoshop. I will check that out.

I want to mention that this is why I want a version of Photoshop on my iPad. It can be a mobile version for all I care. As long as it had the clone and healing brush, it would accomplish a large chunk of my Pencil editing. Having to pay a subscription to some other program to use the Creative "Cloud" I am already subscribed to is a bummer. Not sure Apple can do much about it, other than pressuring Adobe to make a mobile version or asking them to add Pencil input to Lightroom Mobile, but it is a shortfall in the platform if you want to get people to buy new iPads to replace the one that currently works just fine for their web-centric tasks.

 

[Radon87000]

The PC market in general is also declining. So according to your logic, they're useless too. Also, stop ignoring that a larger screen has an effect on you being able to do a job.

PCs usually last for years longer than tablets and are upgradeable.My XPS 8100 from 2009 has a GTX 970 and is kicking along just fine and runs Windows 10,almost 8 years later.An iPad Mini from 2011 kicked the bucket in 2013.Because of upgradeabilty no surprise sales will decline

Larger screen will only show more items on the screen. It doesnt make the iPad DO more than an Iphone

 

[bjet767]

This whole thread is silly and is just news for the bored. The whole "pad" market is now what's known by every business and MBA student as "mature" and unless something really new comes out why should one buy a new pad?

My iPad Air2 is now close to two years old and works great, additionally the "pro" version has nothing in it worth the upgrade (including the pencil).

So when you all see stats like this thread just yawn and say, "show me something new." That's what a mature market is all about.

 

[Uofmtiger]

PCs usually last for years longer than tablets and are upgradeable.My XPS 8100 from 2009 has a GTX 970 is kicking along just fine.Because of upgradeabilty no surprise sales wil ldecline

The iPad has a long shelf life, as well. The iPad 3 was the first with the retina screen and I still have mine. It works fine for common media tasks. It isn't as light or fast and doesn't work with the Pencil, but it still can be used for web surfing, email, twitter, facebook, reading magazines, comics, reviewing photos, etc....which is what most people use their iPads for.

 

[Bacillus]

This whole thread is silly and is just news for the bored. The whole "pad" market is now what's known by every business and MBA student as "mature" and unless something really new comes out why should one buy a new pad?
My iPad Air2 is now close to two years old and works great, additionally the "pro" version has nothing in it worth the upgrade (including the pencil).
So when you all see stats like this thread just yawn and say, "show me something new." That's what a mature market is all about.

Got my iPad Pro 12.9 September 2016...
Im kind of disappointed with the lack of work I am able to accomplish on it.
I find myself always having to turn on my iMac.
Would this have happened if I had purchased the Surface Pro 4?
Nope.
Really hoping apple will reimagine the iPad Pro 12.9 with iOS 11

Apple must launch the Next Device: an iPad/MacBook convert, if it wants to stay relevant.
Why ?
Apple is completely ignoring the new generation, the 15....25 yr. olds that grew up with the iPad. They now need a file system, multi-windowing, peripherals, and more things impossible with an iOS device. Things that obviously go beyond the read-only habits at the Apple Board. Every schoolteacher and stud can imagine this device, but apparently not Apple Board members.
The Post-PC era hasn't come, nor will, but the PC needs some out-of-the-box rethinking, and the failure to do so just shows how disconnected Apple has become. This end-of-PC statement denies the whole IT-industry and therefore is a omission of Balmeric proportions.
That generation will never give up touchscreens anymore. So why even look @macbook ? It doesn't care about Cook, Apple's legacy or it's inflated Pro label. It urges for a modern convolute: MacBook functionality without giving up iPad multi-touch. And yes, that device will initially compete with current MacBook and iPad. But it will open a new market that is soo many times bigger.
And yes, it requires a convolute iOS/MacOS or whatever serves the goal.
So that takes courage. And a vision beyond removing a headphone port or MagSafe adapter.
As nice as the TouchBar can be for some tasks, it is a sad compromise. A 4th interface element (next to keyboard, screen, mouse) competing for user attention only adds to complexity. It doesn't solve the elementary lack of a multi-touchscreen. It was an escape to avoid tough decisions from the current navel-gazing Apple Board members with the marketing butt-talk that real tech savvy companies don't need. Symptom of a lamentary Apple, unable to see evolution - unable to react to stagnating sales that they never experienced before - leaving the future to Microsoft and the Taiwanese IT industry.

 

[Srtlewis]

Well, you can, but only one at a time.

Just tape 2 iPads back to back and you are sorted. even makes that cool effect of switching when you turn 'em. If tape can't fix it it is unfixable

 

[Uofmtiger]

...

As others posted the larger phones easily take over for an iPad.

Speaking from my own use case, the bigger phone does not take over for the iPad. Not even close. I have the 7 plus, yet when I want to read a magazine, look at a book with photos (photography/food/landscape/art), look at or edit my own photos, look at photos on Flickr/Facebook, watch a video, read a comic, browse the web, multitask with two apps, use the Pencil to take some notes or touch up a photo on Pixelmator, I much prefer the iPad. If you are talking about the iPad Mini, then maybe your statement makes more sense, but the 9.7 inch or 12.9 inch screens > than a 5.5 inch screen for a lot of tasks.

Most people prefer larger screens. It makes it easier to see detail or fit more on the screen. Even reading a Kindle book on the 9.7 iPad feels like a better experience without page flipping nearly as often. That being said, a lot of what I mentioned can be done on an iPad 3.

They need to find a differentiating feature from the old iPads to get more people on board and to upgrade. As I mentioned, adding a Pencil isn't enough if the iPad is unable to run the Pro apps that people want to use the Pencil with. I am not sure that means a hybrid device, though I would buy one, but they have to at least give us more uses for the differentiating features.