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Apple could have made the iPad a convertible laptop long time ago. They just chose not to. It's not like Apple is waiting for some technology to emerge that w

Apple could have made the iPad a convertible laptop long time ago. They just chose not to. It's not like Apple is waiting for some technology to emerge that will enable the iPad to be more like a laptop. Apple straight up does not want people using iPads to do laptop things. They don't want people substituting their $999 Macbook Airs with $329 iPads.

wincy 4y ago
But why not substitute the $999 MacBook Air with the $999 iPad Pro 13”? That’s the one that bothers me. It’s very nearly the same device.
- iddan 4y ago
  It’s a MacBook Air with a touchscreen and Apple Pencil that you can detach the keyboard and mouse from it. Some examples for things I can do better with my iPad: drawing with Procreate and viewing sheet music for my piano. My iPad can do that and it is as powerful as a MacBook Air for computing tasks
westhom 4y ago
>Apple straight up does not want people using iPads to do laptop things Disagree. Just look at what they are releasing in iPadOS 16. Apps can now float over each other. Team iOS is coming for Team macOS, they are closing in fast. They are developing a UX & app architecture that can easily match consumer expectations around real physical laptops, and there will be further differentiation when it hits Macbooks in a few years time. With iPadOS 16, for 95% of non-pro users, with a keyboard attachment, there is very very little differentiation between a iPad purchase and a Air purchase. You pretty much own a laptop at that point. Yes, there are obvious performance differences, ports, form factor, battery, etc. But think through the mind of a consumer user, the OS capability differences are razor thin.
kstrauser 4y ago
A 12.9" iPad Pro starts at $1100, and can go up to $2400 for 2TB of storage + the cellular option. If they limited the pro software to the Pro hardware, the iPad vs MacBook prices would be nearly identical.
scarface74 4y ago
I have a Dell 2-1 with a touch screen. I never use it as a tablet. I tried. The 16x9 screen doesn’t work well with the onscreen keyboard. Even in tablet mode you are still forced to use a non touch interface for most things.

wincy 4y ago

But why not substitute the $999 MacBook Air with the $999 iPad Pro 13”? That’s the one that bothers me. It’s very nearly the same device.

iddan 4y ago
It’s a MacBook Air with a touchscreen and Apple Pencil that you can detach the keyboard and mouse from it. Some examples for things I can do better with my iPad: drawing with Procreate and viewing sheet music for my piano. My iPad can do that and it is as powerful as a MacBook Air for computing tasks

westhom 4y ago

>Apple straight up does not want people using iPads to do laptop things Disagree. Just look at what they are releasing in iPadOS 16. Apps can now float over each other. Team iOS is coming for Team macOS, they are closing in fast. They are developing a UX & app architecture that can easily match consumer expectations around real physical laptops, and there will be further differentiation when it hits Macbooks in a few years time. With iPadOS 16, for 95% of non-pro users, with a keyboard attachment, there is very very little differentiation between a iPad purchase and a Air purchase. You pretty much own a laptop at that point. Yes, there are obvious performance differences, ports, form factor, battery, etc. But think through the mind of a consumer user, the OS capability differences are razor thin.

kstrauser 4y ago

A 12.9" iPad Pro starts at $1100, and can go up to $2400 for 2TB of storage + the cellular option. If they limited the pro software to the Pro hardware, the iPad vs MacBook prices would be nearly identical.

scarface74 4y ago

I have a Dell 2-1 with a touch screen. I never use it as a tablet. I tried. The 16x9 screen doesn’t work well with the onscreen keyboard. Even in tablet mode you are still forced to use a non touch interface for most things.