Has Your iPad Pro Replaced Your Primary Computer?

[EBenjaminkw]

I can do 85-90% of things I need. for work & personal on my iPad Pro ..... My laptop is getting minimal use these days .....BUT I do still need it for certain things

 

[OZsMac]

I'm 70% iPad focused now, up from about 30-40% with my original iPad Air. It's mainly advanced work type stuff that drags me back to my MacBook Pro (mind you I still love my MBP so not exactly a hassle).

 

[Andrw]

The iPad Pro will never replace my "primary" computer, be it a desktop or laptop. Much of it has to do with iOS and what it is not capable of doing.

 

[rdmartin1]

The iPad Pro will never replace my "primary" computer, be it a desktop or laptop. Much of it has to do with iOS and what it is not capable of doing.

Very True.

 

[Honey Beagle]

Ipad Pro is BOSS

 

[Algus]

Not at all. My primary is a 2012 Mac Mini running dual 1440p monitors. It is a little long in the teeth and I am thinking of upgrading to an iMac but it still does a lot of stuff that my iPad can't dream of doing.

My Pro has, however, replaced my Macbook as my go to portable device. I rarely take the Macbook out of the house unless I am working on a project that I don't have a relevant app for on my iPad.

 

[TripleOne]

No, but it has become my portable notebook. I no longer need to carry textbooks, notebooks, etc... I have all the lecture notes and tutorial stuff on my Pro

 

[suitedandbooted]

Definitely not, and I'm not sure it ever could. Well, not until the OS is the same anyway. The mobile OS is far too limiting currently to be a genuine alternative.

 

[Williams_810]

I don't have an iPad Pro; I only have an iMac (late '09), a Macbook Air and a first generation iPad mini (to be sold). However, I am thinking about replacing not just my iPad mini, but that and my Macbook Air with an iPad Pro. I do a lot of writing and web browsing (i.e. YouTube vids, browsing different websites, news reading, online shopping, etc.), and I don't truly feel as though I would miss out on anything by letting my Macbook go (save for macOS Sierra). I also appreciated how I didn't have much room for distraction with Pages, Numbers, or Keynote for iOS on my former iPad, compared with attempting to do the same on my Macbook or iMac.

 

[anon(4757114)]

Yep. It works just fine.

 

[RoCutler]

my iPad Air 1 is my primary device working well with a bluetooth keyboard.
The Mac Mini has been resorted to a Server and Home Theatre machine.

 

[StraightlineBoy]

It's fair to say that my MBA got used less once I got my 9.7 Pro and further still once I got a Logitech Create Keyboard for it. It takes care of my browsing, email, Twitter, podcasts, reading, note taking etc. That said there's tasks that only my MBA can do and so I'll have a "traditional" computer of some kind for the foreseeable future. I'd say the 3 main things that I do that need a computer are:
1) Play Rocksmith 2014 via Steam (it's a guitar tutor that my maxed out 2012 MBA just about copes with this but it does run hot, might need to upgrade before it cooks)
2) Run a Windows VM so I can use MS Visual Studio
3) Run Photoshop (The iPad is catching up here quickly, it's not beyond the realms that in a couple of years that a tablet could replace/stand in for a computer here).
It's funny when I look at that list that I'd possibly be better served with a Windows PC for my non-iPad tasks but I just don't want to go down that path.

 

[roystreet]

I have an iPhone 6S+, iPad Pro 9.7, & Surface Pro 3.

I use them all, but my iPad has pretty much become my main computer. There's certain heavy duty work that I must pull out my Surface for. Plus, one of my printers neither the iPhone, nor iPad will connect to, but the other printer it will connect & works perfectly. That being said, sometimes that's the only reason I fire up my Surface, so that I can print something with that specific printer. I use the Apple Pencil all of the time.
.
I love using iOS, you can tell it is designed "touch first" MS Office is pretty powerful on my iPad, usually my needs are taken care of. The battery life is amazing & I love how I can pretty stop using it in the middle of something, throw it on the sofa...Then come right back to it later & it's ready run perfectly.

I would definitely recommend the iPad Pro. I'm confident Apple will support it, the hardware is good, & it will retain it's value. There's even things I used to do on my iPhone that now I do on the iPad.

So, yes , I use my iPad as my main computer, visiting my Surface Pro 3 maybe once a week or less...With the exception of printing which is maybe 5 minutes of work. Fix that printer issue & I would use my Surface even less!! There's no question of which is more powerful, but I don't need that extra power all the time anymore.

Unfortunately, I still have to do my back ups on my PC. It does make my Surface almost feel like a brand new machine when I do use it because it's not very often now.

**I no longer have to visit my Surface to print regular documents, the iPad (and iPhone) are now able to print to both of my printers**

 

[Abu Khadija]

There is an app on iOS called "printer pro". I have it on my 9.7" pro & it works with my Lexmark printer.

 

[roystreet]

Thanks, Abu Khadija, I'm going to try it. I have tried the HP app, it still only prints to one of them...Maybe this one will work!!

 

[Abu Khadija]

My printer is a HP Officejet 4630. Sorry for the mistake.

 

[roystreet]

Thanks, but it only worked a couple times and then it no longer saw my printer again. After I disconnected from my network and then later reconnected it, it no longer saw that printer, even if I told it what the ip address was

 

[kelton]

I'm trying to find the best option, too. Although I resist the Apple world, I am finding that perhaps the iPad Pro fits my use best of all. I have to stand and sit while taking notes.
I'm mobile. I need it to be light, with long battery life, allow for a stylus/pencil, and it MUST BE A STABLE and non-fiddly OS.

So far, even with no worries about the price of anything, the iPad Pro seems like it could 90% replace the computer.

I have watched reviews on the various Windows tablets.... including Samsung's beautiful Tabpro S (256gig with 8gig RAM).
They are nice, but are all either very fiddly and/or have compromised battery life issues.
Fiddly example: Windows: using a stylus but even with palm rejection, it is easy to hit menu keys which dump you into a whole new world! The extra functions of a full Windows OS is certainly nice, but often.....when you are moving around and NEED reliability, you don't have the luxury of fooling around.
My experience with iPads is somewhat limited, but they certainly give a sense of confidence when I do use them... they seem very stable and reliable....and stand up to use.
Honestly, one key element that has always confused me and prevented my purchase of an iPad has been the lack of a file/folder system. To heck with it, I think I can manage without it.

 

[roystreet]

Honestly, I use FileExplorer as my Windows File Explorer replacement and takes care of most of my needs. I can access pictures, networked hard drives, ftp sites, and cloud storage like Box.com or OneDrive.

I can open PDFs or MS word docs from it (Although it doesn't always show MS docs with correct formatting, etc) I can still "open in another app" and will be able to store files in there, even zips.

It is NOT a 100% replacement, but does a pretty good job. Partly it's just getting used to a different way of doing things.

The iPad is made for touch, so it truly does beat Windows 10 for that...It just does! I use the stylus very often and I wanted something with great writing capabilities ? This has it.

I still have a MS Surface Pro 3 & I still end up firing it up sometimes, but for the most part I don't. Nothing beats the light weight and battery life of the iPad. I'm only comparing iOS and iPad Windows. iOS has nice eye candy and yes, that's important to me!!

I'm confident that Apple is going to do more, adding more capabilities to the Pro series.

 

[xTmX Korrupt]

For me it has replaced just about everything I did with my broke Surface 3 and my desktop. I originally purchased one just to do things on the go since my Surface broke. But now I go to for everything from work, documents, gaming and art. I rarely turn my desktop on now and if I do it's usually to play a steam game.