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Missing from this article: why is he traveling with his iPad at all? He loudly asserts "I’m not leaving my iPad at home" but does not explain why. From where I

Missing from this article: why is he traveling with his iPad at all? He loudly asserts "I’m not leaving my iPad at home" but does not explain why. From where I'm standing, the iPad is a crappy platform that has no reason to exist. It's a worse Mac. I can maybe see artists using an iPad for the touch screen, but that use case only exists because Apple refuses to give the Mac a touch screen.

TheHappyOddish 3y ago
I can't speak for him, but I find m iPad incredibly useful. I sign and review documents quickly, tap out emails on the go, watch movies or TV shows, use it as a reference screen if I'm in a rack and need diagrams, manuals etc. Like most modern computing devices (laptops, phones, smart watches, etc) it has crossover functionality with some devices but not in all cases, and in some it is the superior device for varying reasons.
- Wowfunhappy 3y ago
  But you can do all of those things very well on a laptop. Especially if you're trying to travel light, and you know you need a laptop, I don't understand why you'd pack the iPad as well.
  - lanstin 3y ago
    Because I use it to read hacker news, can sprawl out across the couch, holding it in one hand, and peacefully enjoy my time till my son wakes up.
  - TheHappyOddish 3y ago
    I can, but just like I can make calls from my laptop, it's not the preferred form factor or operating system to do so. The iPad is a great bridge between the phone and laptop. It's not for everyone, but it's not a huge extra effort or weight to travel with (slides into the laptop bag I'm taking anyway) and it fits my use case. If I was travelling and I forgot it, it also wouldn't be a huge deal and I would use my laptop. It's also handy as a second monitor when coding (keep a terminal up on it) or to watch a show while sending emails or doing something else on the laptop. Again, not a big deal if I don't have it, but useful if I do.
wanda 3y ago
It exists for casual, potentially older users, outside of dev/IT profession, to do grocery shopping and simple games on a couch while they watch TV after work. I've never bought an iPad or found use for the one I was once given as a present, I have seen older people transition from using cheap crappy laptops to iPads with only positive feedback, probably because it's easier for them to use. It's largely the same UI as their smartphone which they'll be familiar with by now, it's easier to pick up and put down, smaller form factor but not so small that they'd be pinch-zooming frequently as they would on a phone, etc. Anecdotal but it makes sense. Also marginally easier for a layperson to hold an iPad up and show a partner what they're buying, than a laptop. Personally, I'm in the industry, and I've been playing with computers for 27 years. I have a phone for reading stuff like this on the go, and a laptop for working on things home or at the office. I have no professional or recreational use for a tablet. I have a laptop and I'm very glad it doesn't have a touchscreen. But I can understand why non-laptop products exist. Couple of other developers I know have iPads, but they have them in the same way they have an electric toothbrush — they didn't need it, but they bought it anyway. Mostly see them use it for browsing the web or shopping after work. I suppose if your stuff's at the office and you just want to cruise the web, an iPad is lighter than a personal laptop, but I just use my phone /shrug emoji. Some illustrators I know have iPads but I'm pretty sure they'd survive without them. For actual work they have a proper setup (wacom, magic trackpad), and if you need to sketch something on the fly, pen and paper is still a functional and low-cost solution, as is a phone since you have one already for a dozen other reasons. Designers don't need an iPad at all, mouse is sufficient.
gherkinnn 3y ago
Outside of work I use my iPad. I don’t work on holidays, I pack my iPad. I just prefer it. Why is a preference so hard to accept? Are we going to argue about favourite colours next?
- lanstin 3y ago
  What would the OP be for that? Apple default colors don’t allow my favorites?
biztos 3y ago
For art of the digital drawing/painting sort, the iPad absolutely dominates the scene now and has for a while, mostly thanks to the Procreate app in combination with the Apple Pencil. A Mac with a touch screen would be worse than useless for this, because it still wouldn’t be a tablet form factor, and you need that for the right feel. So while I too would like to have a touch screen on my MacBook, there’s no way I’d ever use it for drawing the way I use my iPad.
NiloCK 3y ago
At the time of my first daughter's birth, my local government gifted me an ipad mini. Three use cases: 1. I find it extremely useful for one specific thing: chess. I can't effectively play blitz timed games with a mouse, and with a smartphone I get way more off-by-one mistaken taps than with the ipad mini. 2. Almost five years later, my daughter enjoys making animations on it with Scratch Jr. 3. It is a comfy form factor for just plain reading content from the web. When I come across something specific that I'd like to put more than, say, 40 minutes of directed attention to, I sometimes pull up the resource on the ipad and hit the couch. It's a lot easier for me to focus on long form content (especially if it's dense or boring) with the ipad because it isn't my computer. I can't instantly call up other interesting and ongoing tasks with a meticulously programmed hotkey. Also, touchscreen laptops felt like an upgrade to me until I tried to use one. IMO, the geometry just isn't there. If the screen is close enough to be touched as part of the general workflow, then it's too close for your eyes or else the keyboard itself is too close.
- walteweiss 3y ago
  Have you tried Kindle (or other e-reader) instead of iPad? Works very well for me.
  - _s 3y ago
    A kindle is excellent to read eBooks, and that's about it. An iPad (or tablet form factor) is excellent for consuming content on the internet, which includes eBooks amongst movies, reels, articles, blogs, news etc. I've got a paper white and while the browser on it is decent, and you can email yourself PDF's to view on there - it's still a subpar experience for anything that isn't formatted to display as an eBook on an e-ink display. Don't get me wrong, I love reading on my kindle and it's far easier on the eyes, but it doesn't do what an iPad does in the same way reading a book on the iPad is more tiresome than on a kindle.
  - lying4fun 3y ago
    I bought a used iPad 7 for ~$200 the other day, main reason being reading textbooks at a retail store where I work. What I found surprisngly enjoyable is what the parent mentions - reading HN threads, twitter, blogs. Even watching youtube is a different experience. All of those activities just feel easier and more relaxed than they do on my 14” Thinkpad or iPhone 12. Have you tried reading content on the web on the kindle, as the ones I mention above?
walteweiss 3y ago
Currently, I have two iPads: relatively modern mini and the 3rd (first model with retina, iOS 9). Mini collects dust for years, I never use it (yet unwilling to sell). The 3rd one still rocks YouTube in Safari, its basically a TV with batteries. I use it at kitchen, e.g. when I cook. Both of my iPads never leave my home. I am an avid traveller (before the pandemic) and even then I never took my iPad out of my house. I do travel with my MacBook Pro (with Linux these days), Kindle and a couple of smartphones (I use both iPhone and Android). I don’t see any need in an iPad at all.
leokennis 3y ago
The iPad is great for reading and great for video: - ebooks - web articles - RSS - newspaper - tv series and films

TheHappyOddish 3y ago

I can't speak for him, but I find m iPad incredibly useful. I sign and review documents quickly, tap out emails on the go, watch movies or TV shows, use it as a reference screen if I'm in a rack and need diagrams, manuals etc. Like most modern computing devices (laptops, phones, smart watches, etc) it has crossover functionality with some devices but not in all cases, and in some it is the superior device for varying reasons.

Wowfunhappy 3y ago
But you can do all of those things very well on a laptop. Especially if you're trying to travel light, and you know you need a laptop, I don't understand why you'd pack the iPad as well.
- lanstin 3y ago
  Because I use it to read hacker news, can sprawl out across the couch, holding it in one hand, and peacefully enjoy my time till my son wakes up.
- TheHappyOddish 3y ago
  I can, but just like I can make calls from my laptop, it's not the preferred form factor or operating system to do so. The iPad is a great bridge between the phone and laptop. It's not for everyone, but it's not a huge extra effort or weight to travel with (slides into the laptop bag I'm taking anyway) and it fits my use case. If I was travelling and I forgot it, it also wouldn't be a huge deal and I would use my laptop. It's also handy as a second monitor when coding (keep a terminal up on it) or to watch a show while sending emails or doing something else on the laptop. Again, not a big deal if I don't have it, but useful if I do.

wanda 3y ago

It exists for casual, potentially older users, outside of dev/IT profession, to do grocery shopping and simple games on a couch while they watch TV after work. I've never bought an iPad or found use for the one I was once given as a present, I have seen older people transition from using cheap crappy laptops to iPads with only positive feedback, probably because it's easier for them to use. It's largely the same UI as their smartphone which they'll be familiar with by now, it's easier to pick up and put down, smaller form factor but not so small that they'd be pinch-zooming frequently as they would on a phone, etc. Anecdotal but it makes sense. Also marginally easier for a layperson to hold an iPad up and show a partner what they're buying, than a laptop. Personally, I'm in the industry, and I've been playing with computers for 27 years. I have a phone for reading stuff like this on the go, and a laptop for working on things home or at the office. I have no professional or recreational use for a tablet. I have a laptop and I'm very glad it doesn't have a touchscreen. But I can understand why non-laptop products exist. Couple of other developers I know have iPads, but they have them in the same way they have an electric toothbrush — they didn't need it, but they bought it anyway. Mostly see them use it for browsing the web or shopping after work. I suppose if your stuff's at the office and you just want to cruise the web, an iPad is lighter than a personal laptop, but I just use my phone /shrug emoji. Some illustrators I know have iPads but I'm pretty sure they'd survive without them. For actual work they have a proper setup (wacom, magic trackpad), and if you need to sketch something on the fly, pen and paper is still a functional and low-cost solution, as is a phone since you have one already for a dozen other reasons. Designers don't need an iPad at all, mouse is sufficient.

gherkinnn 3y ago

Outside of work I use my iPad. I don’t work on holidays, I pack my iPad. I just prefer it. Why is a preference so hard to accept? Are we going to argue about favourite colours next?

lanstin 3y ago
What would the OP be for that? Apple default colors don’t allow my favorites?

biztos 3y ago

For art of the digital drawing/painting sort, the iPad absolutely dominates the scene now and has for a while, mostly thanks to the Procreate app in combination with the Apple Pencil. A Mac with a touch screen would be worse than useless for this, because it still wouldn’t be a tablet form factor, and you need that for the right feel. So while I too would like to have a touch screen on my MacBook, there’s no way I’d ever use it for drawing the way I use my iPad.

NiloCK 3y ago

At the time of my first daughter's birth, my local government gifted me an ipad mini. Three use cases: 1. I find it extremely useful for one specific thing: chess. I can't effectively play blitz timed games with a mouse, and with a smartphone I get way more off-by-one mistaken taps than with the ipad mini. 2. Almost five years later, my daughter enjoys making animations on it with Scratch Jr. 3. It is a comfy form factor for just plain reading content from the web. When I come across something specific that I'd like to put more than, say, 40 minutes of directed attention to, I sometimes pull up the resource on the ipad and hit the couch. It's a lot easier for me to focus on long form content (especially if it's dense or boring) with the ipad because it isn't my computer. I can't instantly call up other interesting and ongoing tasks with a meticulously programmed hotkey. Also, touchscreen laptops felt like an upgrade to me until I tried to use one. IMO, the geometry just isn't there. If the screen is close enough to be touched as part of the general workflow, then it's too close for your eyes or else the keyboard itself is too close.

walteweiss 3y ago
Have you tried Kindle (or other e-reader) instead of iPad? Works very well for me.
- _s 3y ago
  A kindle is excellent to read eBooks, and that's about it. An iPad (or tablet form factor) is excellent for consuming content on the internet, which includes eBooks amongst movies, reels, articles, blogs, news etc. I've got a paper white and while the browser on it is decent, and you can email yourself PDF's to view on there - it's still a subpar experience for anything that isn't formatted to display as an eBook on an e-ink display. Don't get me wrong, I love reading on my kindle and it's far easier on the eyes, but it doesn't do what an iPad does in the same way reading a book on the iPad is more tiresome than on a kindle.
- lying4fun 3y ago
  I bought a used iPad 7 for ~$200 the other day, main reason being reading textbooks at a retail store where I work. What I found surprisngly enjoyable is what the parent mentions - reading HN threads, twitter, blogs. Even watching youtube is a different experience. All of those activities just feel easier and more relaxed than they do on my 14” Thinkpad or iPhone 12. Have you tried reading content on the web on the kindle, as the ones I mention above?

walteweiss 3y ago

Currently, I have two iPads: relatively modern mini and the 3rd (first model with retina, iOS 9). Mini collects dust for years, I never use it (yet unwilling to sell). The 3rd one still rocks YouTube in Safari, its basically a TV with batteries. I use it at kitchen, e.g. when I cook. Both of my iPads never leave my home. I am an avid traveller (before the pandemic) and even then I never took my iPad out of my house. I do travel with my MacBook Pro (with Linux these days), Kindle and a couple of smartphones (I use both iPhone and Android). I don’t see any need in an iPad at all.

leokennis 3y ago

The iPad is great for reading and great for video: - ebooks - web articles - RSS - newspaper - tv series and films