i have a macbook and just dont think i would use an ipad that much? i have my iphone as well....
You bring up an interesting point, and I don't think it stops at just MacBooks or iPhones. Definitely something to consider before spending that kind of money on a rather limited device. Short answer - yes, I use mine a lot. When I travel I bring both, though throughout the day I'll have one or the other with me, mission-dependent. I think a lot of people forget what Steve Jobs himself said was the very reason for an iPad even existing: apps, watching movies, reading emails, surfing the web, books/magazines, and games. That's basically its strong points - media consumption. So if you find yourself doing MOSTLY THIS on a laptop of any kind, the iPad is probably a good fit, as it can serve as a more personal and efficient means to accomplish these. I use mine all the time for these reasons. And yes, it offers a "better" and more intimate experience doing any of these than on a computer (with a far superior battery), while being more capable than a phone with regards to screen size. But it will never be as portable and communication-friendly as your phone; NEVER as powerful as your laptop. Think of all the times you've been out and seen others (or you yourself) with power chords stretched out, hunting for sockets at an airport or school... just to be on Facebook or look at YouTube, etc. An iPad works brilliantly here. Need to do some extensive document working, spreadsheets, graphical work with precision, or anything else that needs a bit of muscle behind it? Bring the MacBook.
I'm all for people finding new ways to use their products and justifying their purchases, but let's be real... the iPad is not, nor was it ever intended to be, a replacement for a MacBook. The iPad does what it does well. Whether that's worth $500-800+ is up to the individual. The whole "it's just a big iPod Touch" thing, yelled by blindly-loyal fans and bitter haters alike, has had people rushing since the original iPad to find other uses for them, resulting in expensive peripherals and dozens of apps, turning the iPad into a similarly-priced (and woefully underpowered) version of a MacBook Air - the product Apple has to fill the niche I think some erroneously try to fit tablets of any kind in. Those people are often unimpressed with iPads. Those who use them a bit more realistically are often highly satisfied.