Well at the end of the day the processors are bottlenecked by its OS. What real value does an iPad bring that a typical iPhone + Mac combo misses? (Other than being a digital notebook…)
I wound up getting a 2019 iPad Pro for 50% off, so $500 or so. Thought I would use it as a work/play hybrid.
Surprisingly (at least to me) I feel that I've more than gotten my money's worth out of it despite it being almost entirely strictly a consumption device.
I tote it around the house so I can watch or listen to things while I'm doing other things. It's also nice to keep on the dining room table so I can read the news or watch something while we're eating. I could do every single one of these things with my laptop, but... that laptop is my primary work tool. I don't like to carry it all over the place, exposing it to spills and dust, etc.
The only real work-related task is serving as a secondary monitor (via AirPlay) for my laptop when I travel.
$500 isn't pocket change, but I've gotten 48 months of enjoyment and would expect at least another 24 to 36 months. That's about $6 a month, or possibly more like $3-4 per month if I resell it eventually.
Yeah I had the same experience and ultimately got rid of an M1 iPad Pro for an M3 MacBook Air. I still have the ease and portability for watching videos while doing the dishes or on an airplane, with the added benefit of a keyboard and OS for productivity in case the muse visits.
My wife has a new iPad for grad school, and I'm convinced it's mainly an extra category for some customers to spend more money on if they already have a Mac and iPhone. The school supplied it, then she spent $400+ on the keyboard and other damn dongles to bring the hardware sorta up to par with a laptop, hoping to replace her 2013 MBP.
In the end, she still has to rely on the MBP daily because there's always something the iPad can't do. Usually something small like a website not fully working on it.
This.
If you’re anything other than a digital artist/someone who genuinely prefers writing over typing, an iPad is just an extra tool for you to waste your money on.
I had one of the earlier versions and this was pretty much its only use case…
