1 External Drive support - use a WiFi Drive 2 Lack if mouse - use the Apple Pencil 3 Headphone jack - use a dongle or a device with a usb c jack. 3.5 headphone jacks have gone from mobile devices 4 Overpowered - come on, rendering a video in less than half the time is a problem. It will also future proof the iPad. 5 Storage - see 1
1. I agree. Or the cloud. 2. Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute I can imagine, as not only must one move their hands from the keyboard to touch the screen, but then they have to pick up and put down a pencil, with no support to stabilize it in mid-air.
But the mouse causes Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I haven’t heard of anyone getting carpal tunnel syndrome caused by the pencil usage.
Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute when playing Call of Duty. But on that, the mouse is not the best input device neither, there are game controllers for that. Yet I don't see people discussing "mouse or game controller" in gaming forums, why are we into such a pointless discussion here?
Pencil can do everything that a mouse can do and even more. The mouse is a mechanical pointing device of the 1960s. Pencil is a 21st century technology and there is state of the art engineering in it, encompassing both the display and the device. Pencil is not a stylus, a stylus is a stick compared to Pencil. What the mouse interface provided and the touch interface couldn't provide was the precision data selection. With Pencil, precision data selection is possible even better than the best mouse or trackpad can provide.
You’re taking my response out of context of the article to which we’ve all been replying. The Pencil is great for fine tuned selection and editing directly on an iPad laying flat on a table. It’s terrible for an iPad propped up on a keyboard stand. It’s terrible when using an external monitor. Heck, even if the iPad is laying flat and the user is merely typing on it, having to take their hands of the keyboard to pick up and put down a Pencil is still worse than using a mouse. And forget about using it while sitting on a couch as one might with a MacBook. That’s where a trackpad rules the day. Apple has added a virtual trackpad, but that’s far from ideal, even on native Apple apps, but still better than the Pencil which you’d have to pull off its magnetic docking perch, holding the iPad with one hand, and then reattaching it, before continuing with the typing. So in general I’d say a mouse or trackpad would still be better for most everything in daily computer use, aside from drawing, editing, and taking notes.
Besides, even putting all that aside, the iPad Pro's marketing includes using the keyboard stand and an external monitor. Both make touch a less effective control method than using a mouse.
If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K. The actual iPad page on Apple's site mentions only "USB-C for ... external display" and says nothing about that external display. There is no point to present it as the main "computer display" of iPad.
So the user has to continually shift his eyes back and forth from the iPad to the screen, as well as take their hands off the keyboard, to lift a Pencil to the vertical screen, and hover it unsupported in midair to make detailed selections, then put the pencil down to continue using the keyboard; all the while shifting their eyes from the iPad to the 4K monitor and back as they make the fine adjustments and make sure the Pencil is where they think it’s supposed to be on the iPad? Doesn’t really sound more efficient than a mouse ... in fact it sounds a lot worse, even if Apple only intended the external monitor to be used solely as a 4K reference display and not a workspace.
All your long anecdotal narration is irrelevant. The iPad is not for desktop usage. If you don't want to leave your comfy desk get a laptop. Neither the folding keyboard nor the 4K display are main components of iPad Pro. The monitor is there only to watch 4K iMovie edits. Besides that there is absolutely no point in buying a 4K monitor for the iPad Pro.
OK if your point is to get a trackpad on that foldable keyboard, then this is not possible: 1) How will you power it? 2) What if people with disabilities or long fingernails want to attach a mouse to that keyboard? How will you power both? 3) There is no pointer in iOS. Your request requires the whole UI to be re-written for the mouse interface. That won't happen, buy a Surface it has both touch and mouse. I am off that mouse discussion.
1) It's not anecdotal. Its reality. But it is true that the iPad is obviously not capable of desktop usage -- thus this discussion triggered by Apple's contention that it is a laptop/desktop replacement. Most agree that it COULD be, but isn't.
2) Your second paragraph is just throwing out objections that have no basis in reality.
- How will you power it? The same way bluetooth keyboards and mice are powered now. Or, via the smart connector. That problem was solved years ago.
- What about people with long fingernails? -- They will do the same as they do today
- The entire UI needs to be rewritten: That just isn't true. Not by a long shot. iOS already has a multiple pointers -- the finger is one, the two finger touch on the iPad works as another.
Do not hold your breath. Apple won't make a Surface clone, do not try to sell a Surface to the Mac community. TC is very resolute about that: no toaster-fridges.
With all the battery enclosed in that mouse-trackpad-keyboard with F keys combo, and the power supply required to recharge it, and the headphone/micro jack (you cannot omit that) and the associated DA converter, keyboard lights (otherwise how will you know Wi Fi is on or off?) palm rest (your wrists must get support from somewhere, you cannot hold them raised too long) you get half a netbook. Continue with your creative mind exercises but I am done with that.
More excuses? But getting weaker with each post.
And no, its not a creative mind exercise, its reality. You should try it.
macplusplus said: If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K.
I did watch the Keynote and I didn't get that impression. To me it looked like just using one possible application among many as an example. Assuming I misunderstood and that really is Apple's sole intent, it seems like a whole lotta tech, effort, and expense for not much payoff.
Your recollection is correct — @macplusplus is wrong as usual. This is from the keynote, an Apple marketing still which inadvertently demonstrates exactly what’s wrong with not having a pointing device. Notice where her eyes are looking. Her only choice is to keep shifting her eyes from the larger display where her attention should be, to the iPad to confirm her fingers are positioned correctly for what she wants to select, then back to the display to view it. That’s not a productive solution. Yet, Apple clearly intends this as a use case with an external display.
The only problem with the new iPad Pro’s (apart from their very high purchase price) is Apple’s current refusal to implement the software required to let them reach their full potential...a marketing decision taken to protect sales of their Macs, the laptops in particular...stating the obvious here. Just rename them the MacPads and take the plunge Apple
Ignorant nonsense, you must be new to Apple. They don’t worry about cannibalizing their own products and have said and demonstrated this numerous times. If you buy anything from them they’re happy about it. Nope, they sincerely believe the use case for tablets and notebooks is different.
If they actually believed that, they wouldn't have marketed it as a laptop/computer replacement.
A virtual trackpad or a small trackpad in the keyboard would make certain actions and navigations so much more efficient.
Apple does offer a virtual trackpad, but it needs some work. Here’s Apple’s actual marketing copy from their website about the keyboard:
It works like a computer. And in ways most computers can’t. iPad Pro works with a keyboard when you need one. The full‑size onscreen keyboard lets you respond to an email or write a paper, and it even acts as a trackpad. And if you want a full‑size physical keyboard, just attach the Smart Keyboard Folio for a great typing experience and front and back protection.
Notice they tout the importance of having a trackpad on the onscreen keyboard, yet don’t address it with the physical keyboard. Moreover, this bit of marketing speaks directly to the semantic debate being waged here about what constitutes a computer. This paragraph directly conflates the word computer, with the ability to type on a keyboard and use a trackpad.
That's the problem - Apple is pushing the iPad as a 'real' computer that is capable of replacing a laptop, and it is priced higher than many laptops, so people are expecting it to perform as such.
You’re too late as it already has. Both my parents have given up desktop and notebook computers in favor of iPads. Same use cases.
A computing device doesn’t need to be capable of all possible use cases to remain a computing device. Dunno why so many struggle with this simple fact.
That's the problem - Apple is pushing the iPad as a 'real' computer that is capable of replacing a laptop, and it is priced higher than many laptops, so people are expecting it to perform as such.
In what sense do you mean it isn’t capable of replacing a computer? It most definitely is a real computer and can replace a laptop for many tasks (I rarely travel with a laptop anymore unless I know I need a specific function the iPad can’t accomodate in any way). However, one of them is not using it as depicted in the Lack of Mouse Support section above. Without an ergonomic pointing/selection device, using it with an external keyboard and especially with an external monitor is a bit silly.
My wife has used her iPad Air 2 as her primary ‘computer’ for several years. It’s works perfectly for what she needs it for - surfing, light e-mail, blogging on wordpress. If that’s all you need an ipad for, it works fine. But then you have no need to pay $1500+ for an iPad Pro, Smart Keyboard and pencil, and the performance of the A12x is a huge amount of overkill.
When I say an ipad isn’t capable of replacing a laptop, I speak from my personal experience using a 12” iPad Pro, Logitech keyboard and pencil. I could do most things I needed to do, with enough effort, but frequently things took significantly more work than on my MacBook Pro. The main issue is the file system, or lack there of. A MacBook Pro stores everything on the hard drive. An ipad routinely dumps things from memory when it things you dont’ need them, assuming you can download them from web. I found this out the hard way at 30,000 feet when the e-mail attachments I though I had downloaded were unavailable.
Again, it doesn’t need to be serve all use cases for all people for it to be true that ipads can and have replaced more traditional computers for many people. And nobody said you need the top-tier iPP plus all accessories to do this. You don’t, of course.
A notebook is a lousy replacement for my desktop development environment, but that’s my use case, and not being a good replacement for my use case doesn’t make a notebook not a computer or not a desktop replacement for many, many other people.
See how that works?
Yes - my contention is with how Apple is marketing and pricing the iPad Pro, in combination with the current state of iOS.
As I read your post, one thing did come to me - Years (decades) ago, laptops were woefully underpowered, watered down versions of desktops that you could use to get by because the portability was worth it. Now, you can take a MacBook Pro, plug it into a dock with a larger monitor and decent keyboard and it's more powerful than 90% of the computers out there. Add an external graphics processor and you've got even more power.
In many ways, I think we're at that early stage with iPads (well, except the power; the A12x is not lacking there.) I fully expect that over the coming years my complaints will resolve.
lowededwookie said: [...] I can edit video on an iPhone just as easily as using iMovie on the Mac
"Easily," yes. Accurately, no. Fine adjustments are difficult using a finger on a small screen.
There is Pencil for that.
He said he can edit video on an IPHONE. Did you just overlook that or does the iPhone actually support the Pencil now?
macplusplus said: If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K.
I did watch the Keynote and I didn't get that impression. To me it looked like just using one possible application among many as an example. Assuming I misunderstood and that really is Apple's sole intent, it seems like a whole lotta tech, effort, and expense for not much payoff.
Your recollection is correct — @macplusplus is wrong as usual. This is from the keynote, an Apple marketing still which inadvertently demonstrates exactly what’s wrong with not having a pointing device. Notice where her eyes are looking. Her only choice is to keep shifting her eyes from the larger display where her attention should be, to the iPad to confirm her fingers are positioned correctly for what she wants to select, then back to the display to view it. That’s not a productive solution. Yet, Apple clearly intends this as a use case with an external display.
I understand some people cannot chew and walk at the same time but that person apparently is able to select the photo on her iPad and view the full photo on the attached monitor instantly. She absolutely does not need to look at the large monitor to swipe through photos and select the photo she needs, does she?
And you may have discovered recently with astonishment an iPad display on large screen but people do that since eight years on their TV monitors. It is called AirPlay.
lowededwookie said: [...] I can edit video on an iPhone just as easily as using iMovie on the Mac
"Easily," yes. Accurately, no. Fine adjustments are difficult using a finger on a small screen.
There is Pencil for that.
He said he can edit video on an IPHONE. Did you just overlook that or does the iPhone actually support the Pencil now?
macplusplus said: If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K.
I did watch the Keynote and I didn't get that impression. To me it looked like just using one possible application among many as an example. Assuming I misunderstood and that really is Apple's sole intent, it seems like a whole lotta tech, effort, and expense for not much payoff.
Your recollection is correct — @macplusplus is wrong as usual. This is from the keynote, an Apple marketing still which inadvertently demonstrates exactly what’s wrong with not having a pointing device. Notice where her eyes are looking. Her only choice is to keep shifting her eyes from the larger display where her attention should be, to the iPad to confirm her fingers are positioned correctly for what she wants to select, then back to the display to view it. That’s not a productive solution. Yet, Apple clearly intends this as a use case with an external display.
I understand some people cannot chew and walk at the same time but that person apparently is able to select the photo on her iPad and view the full photo on the attached monitor instantly. She absolutely does not need to look at the large monitor to swipe through photos and select the photo she needs, does she?
And you may have discovered recently with astonishment an iPad display on large screen but people do that since eight years on their TV monitors. It is called AirPlay.
Oh sure, there’s no need to look at the large, luxurious 4K display, which makes the thumbnail photos much easier to see and select — but sadly she has to look down, taking her eyes off the big beautiful display, and shift them to the much smaller iPad display, shifting her focus, reorienting her gaze, and relative position from that on the monitor, maybe even having to count the thumbnails to make sure she selects the correct one, adjusting her eyes to the different brightness of the displays, as she shifts back and forth. That’s not exactly instantaneous, far from it, and far from desirable. It’s a much less efficient way of doing that particular task. Now imagine doing it all day long if that’s your job.
But whatever fuels your narrative.
It may astonish you as well, just as your mind must be reeling from the fact that an iPad Pro still has a DA converter despite the lack of a headphone jack, that the iPad has always had the ability to output video in screen mirroring mode to a hardwired display since the original iPad, long before AirPlay was a thing. Did you have a point? I would no more expect a professional to do their job using that method than I would them streaming a compressed image to a TV.
lowededwookie said: [...] I can edit video on an iPhone just as easily as using iMovie on the Mac
"Easily," yes. Accurately, no. Fine adjustments are difficult using a finger on a small screen.
There is Pencil for that.
He said he can edit video on an IPHONE. Did you just overlook that or does the iPhone actually support the Pencil now?
macplusplus said: If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K.
I did watch the Keynote and I didn't get that impression. To me it looked like just using one possible application among many as an example. Assuming I misunderstood and that really is Apple's sole intent, it seems like a whole lotta tech, effort, and expense for not much payoff.
Your recollection is correct — @macplusplus is wrong as usual. This is from the keynote, an Apple marketing still which inadvertently demonstrates exactly what’s wrong with not having a pointing device. Notice where her eyes are looking. Her only choice is to keep shifting her eyes from the larger display where her attention should be, to the iPad to confirm her fingers are positioned correctly for what she wants to select, then back to the display to view it. That’s not a productive solution. Yet, Apple clearly intends this as a use case with an external display.
I understand some people cannot chew and walk at the same time but that person apparently is able to select the photo on her iPad and view the full photo on the attached monitor instantly. She absolutely does not need to look at the large monitor to swipe through photos and select the photo she needs, does she?
And you may have discovered recently with astonishment an iPad display on large screen but people do that since eight years on their TV monitors. It is called AirPlay.
Oh sure, there’s no need to look at the large, luxurious 4K display, which makes the thumbnail photos much easier to see and select — but sadly she has to look down, taking her eyes off the big beautiful display, and shift them to the much smaller iPad display, shifting her focus, reorienting her gaze, and relative position from that on the monitor, maybe even having to count the thumbnails to make sure she selects the correct one, adjusting her eyes to the different brightness of the displays, as she shifts back and forth. That’s not exactly instantaneous, far from it, and far from desirable. It’s a much less efficient way of doing that particular task.
But whatever fuels your narrative.
It may astonish you as well, just as your mind must be reeling from the fact that an iPad Pro still has a DA converter despite the lack of a headphone jack, that the iPad has always had the ability to output video in screen mirroring mode to a hardwired display since the original iPad, long before AirPlay was a thing. Did you have a point?
Did the iPad had that DA converter on the foldable keyboard? I was talking about headphone jack on that creative keyboard with trackpad and mouse someone most probably is thinking to patent and crowdsource on Kickstarter after so much publicity... HDMI and other display adapters exist since the release of the iPad but people mostly use AirPlay over their AppleTV and I mentioned that because it is more familiar than an adapter.
If I hear another “where’s the mouse” article, I’m going to scream, iOS should never have a mouse. I really don’t get the external screen, I just don’t.
If you don’t see the benefits of a mouse in precision and control or a large screen for viewing so much more, your family must be eating with their fingers whilst looking TV on their phones
We use a pencil in the cases where precision is required; mainly photo retouching. I rarely use a knife & fork to eat my breakfast or lunch. Unlike Windows, iOS is built for fingers so pointer precision is already appropriate across Apps/UI.
1 External Drive support - use a WiFi Drive 2 Lack if mouse - use the Apple Pencil 3 Headphone jack - use a dongle or a device with a usb c jack. 3.5 headphone jacks have gone from mobile devices 4 Overpowered - come on, rendering a video in less than half the time is a problem. It will also future proof the iPad. 5 Storage - see 1
1. I agree. Or the cloud. 2. Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute I can imagine, as not only must one move their hands from the keyboard to touch the screen, but then they have to pick up and put down a pencil, with no support to stabilize it in mid-air.
But the mouse causes Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I haven’t heard of anyone getting carpal tunnel syndrome caused by the pencil usage.
Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute when playing Call of Duty. But on that, the mouse is not the best input device neither, there are game controllers for that. Yet I don't see people discussing "mouse or game controller" in gaming forums, why are we into such a pointless discussion here?
Pencil can do everything that a mouse can do and even more. The mouse is a mechanical pointing device of the 1960s. Pencil is a 21st century technology and there is state of the art engineering in it, encompassing both the display and the device. Pencil is not a stylus, a stylus is a stick compared to Pencil. What the mouse interface provided and the touch interface couldn't provide was the precision data selection. With Pencil, precision data selection is possible even better than the best mouse or trackpad can provide.
You’re taking my response out of context of the article to which we’ve all been replying. The Pencil is great for fine tuned selection and editing directly on an iPad laying flat on a table. It’s terrible for an iPad propped up on a keyboard stand. It’s terrible when using an external monitor. Heck, even if the iPad is laying flat and the user is merely typing on it, having to take their hands of the keyboard to pick up and put down a Pencil is still worse than using a mouse. And forget about using it while sitting on a couch as one might with a MacBook. That’s where a trackpad rules the day. Apple has added a virtual trackpad, but that’s far from ideal, even on native Apple apps, but still better than the Pencil which you’d have to pull off its magnetic docking perch, holding the iPad with one hand, and then reattaching it, before continuing with the typing. So in general I’d say a mouse or trackpad would still be better for most everything in daily computer use, aside from drawing, editing, and taking notes.
Besides, even putting all that aside, the iPad Pro's marketing includes using the keyboard stand and an external monitor. Both make touch a less effective control method than using a mouse.
If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K. The actual iPad page on Apple's site mentions only "USB-C for ... external display" and says nothing about that external display. There is no point to present it as the main "computer display" of iPad.
So the user has to continually shift his eyes back and forth from the iPad to the screen, as well as take their hands off the keyboard, to lift a Pencil to the vertical screen, and hover it unsupported in midair to make detailed selections, then put the pencil down to continue using the keyboard; all the while shifting their eyes from the iPad to the 4K monitor and back as they make the fine adjustments and make sure the Pencil is where they think it’s supposed to be on the iPad? Doesn’t really sound more efficient than a mouse ... in fact it sounds a lot worse, even if Apple only intended the external monitor to be used solely as a 4K reference display and not a workspace.
All your long anecdotal narration is irrelevant. The iPad is not for desktop usage. If you don't want to leave your comfy desk get a laptop. Neither the folding keyboard nor the 4K display are main components of iPad Pro. The monitor is there only to watch 4K iMovie edits. Besides that there is absolutely no point in buying a 4K monitor for the iPad Pro.
OK if your point is to get a trackpad on that foldable keyboard, then this is not possible: 1) How will you power it? 2) What if people with disabilities or long fingernails want to attach a mouse to that keyboard? How will you power both? 3) There is no pointer in iOS. Your request requires the whole UI to be re-written for the mouse interface. That won't happen, buy a Surface it has both touch and mouse. I am off that mouse discussion.
1) It's not anecdotal. Its reality. But it is true that the iPad is obviously not capable of desktop usage -- thus this discussion triggered by Apple's contention that it is a laptop/desktop replacement. Most agree that it COULD be, but isn't.
2) Your second paragraph is just throwing out objections that have no basis in reality.
- How will you power it? The same way bluetooth keyboards and mice are powered now. Or, via the smart connector. That problem was solved years ago.
- What about people with long fingernails? -- They will do the same as they do today
- The entire UI needs to be rewritten: That just isn't true. Not by a long shot. iOS already has a multiple pointers -- the finger is one, the two finger touch on the iPad works as another.
On the UI "issue", the appleTV has a trackpad interface and no pointer.
The difference being the Apple TV has only specific targets. There's no such thing as a random placement of the tool. For something like editing a photos, you have to be able to see what the pen is going to touch. That means either looking at the iPad, which is fine but makes the external monitor superfluous, or Apple adding support for a mouse with a cursor to iOS. Even that won't work very well with the pencil, though. It's one of the reasons I got rid of my Wacom tablet -- you have to "hover" the tip of the stylus over the work area to move the cursor. It's not a deal-breaker (obviously, look at how many people use Wacom) but I found it unnatural and restrictive.
It should just work. If you have to do a work around, the concept is compromised. Then add the escalating prices on anyone wanting anything other than base config. Well, TBH the base config has no doubt impressive margins already, so it is galling. Like far too many Apple products, the iPad Pro has become too expensive to recommend.
i honestly can’t recommend the iPad Pro. Very regretfully. The basic iPad with the old pencil, with its stupid charging solution, is the iPad I have had my workplace switch to from iPad pros. The constant war I have with the Apple Hating IT department to have iPads at all, means I really don’t need the extra lead in the saddle bag of the iPad Pro price. Actually, rather than lead in the saddle bag, maybe it’s plutonium in the saddle bag. Apple product prices is always the first weapon IT use against my use case.
Then IT moves to file management arguments (I have no answer here), and connectivity to local printers and presentation hardware. The day Surface comes with built in GPS it’s game over.
Yeah, prices. IT depts hate Apple products because their practices (& so jobs) become largely redundant which actually reduces price per seat - those salaries/services contracts ain’t cheap.
All arguments (& most across the web on iPad Pro) are down to people not getting that you don’t employ the same practice to different products, not Windows PCS, not Macs, iPads. If you do, you either spend too much money or beak the service & productivity workflows built on it. You shouldn’t need to change these, just the practice-layer/people.
Files; I use iPad Pro with OneDrive for Business +SharePoint. Done. Printers; I use a modern, AirPrint compatible printer. Don. Presentations; I use AppleTV (the most robust wireless solution) for KeyNote, PowerPoint & best of all - iBooks (as the contain reference material which you can duck into professionally) Cost; no IT involvement means huge savings.
Good luck.
Work does not enable AirPrint, work does not purchase Apple tvs, I need a way to work around IT, I am seriously thinking of using my own money to beat them. One drive is an option. I will have to buy office 365 for iPad with my own coin though. IT only want MS stuff, but office 365 is not on the corporate list, just bog standard MS office, which of course doesn’t work on the iPad. I will nite that even though they pushed Surface as a replacement laptop for a while, they have gone back to HP and Dell. Nobody wanted Surface, not robust enough for field work and a crap tablet compared with the iPad, which I had pushed out quicker than IT could stop it. That everyone has iPhones helped screw IT’s plans.
You’ll need an exec/senior leadership sponsor to back a business case showing how IT is a bit stuck/staid and how it’s hurting productivity which is meant to be one of the key justifications for having IT in the first place
Luckily, IT know nothing about productivity (they think it’s Microsoft Office) but they won’t go down without a fight and a lot of plausible referencing. You could cite IBM as demonstrating lower cost per seat but create a more local case and ask IT why they specifically disallow Apple tech when it’s so prevalent. If you have a Digital team they’ll be useful allies.
You apparently believe that IT is some separate, unrelated entity or vendor.
In most large organizations, the CIO is part of the "exec/senior leadership" you suggest appealing to. And, that CIO, with support from that team, is charged with far more than making a single user happy. It is responsible for managing enterprise level demands such as: cost managment, shared resources, enterprise level applications, data security, etc, etc., etc.....
Having consulted to the IT industry for over 30 years I have a fair grasp of how enterprise IT works/doesn’t work. It’s disturbing how many C-suite positions exist with so little idea of what the business does and how it needs to do it successfully. The ‘support’ functions of IT & Finance dictate more than support, definitely the source of decision corruption and should be at the top of the Risk Mgt system.
The sponsor needs to be within core operations as corp services aren’t qualified to understand productivity. Admittedly if the user doesn’t represent the core focus of the business, they’re in for a rough ride.
1 External Drive support - use a WiFi Drive 2 Lack if mouse - use the Apple Pencil 3 Headphone jack - use a dongle or a device with a usb c jack. 3.5 headphone jacks have gone from mobile devices 4 Overpowered - come on, rendering a video in less than half the time is a problem. It will also future proof the iPad. 5 Storage - see 1
1. I agree. Or the cloud. 2. Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute I can imagine, as not only must one move their hands from the keyboard to touch the screen, but then they have to pick up and put down a pencil, with no support to stabilize it in mid-air. 3. Great if someone is using an Android Phone with USB-C, unfortunately with an iPhone, one needs to carry two dongles, and that’s a poor solution. BT is better, if latency and audio quality are not a concern. 4. Agreed
In the context of using a 20018 iPad Pro as a laptop replacement with convenience as a main factor. 1. While a WiFi Drive would work; I think that Apple should make the changes so a regular flash drive could be used. 2. The mouse / Pencil issue; Using the Pencil as a mouse substitute could work with a common laptop setup used in offices. Put the iPad flat on a desk connected to an external monitor with a detached Bluetooth keyboard. Adjust the tech for comfort. Then the viewer is looking at the monitor while using the Pencil on the iPad for UI control. - The effectiveness of the Pencil to replace finger touch (cursor control) could be improved by Apple as needed. After all the Newton had a stylus interface. 3. Headphones; Apple should add a second USB-C connector to the IPad Pro. A wired headphone connection should not require a dongle on a pro device. Then the free USB-C port can quickly be used for charging/external monitor, etc. ** Additions; multi floating window UI. Easier to use file system (like the Mac).
1 External Drive support - use a WiFi Drive 2 Lack if mouse - use the Apple Pencil 3 Headphone jack - use a dongle or a device with a usb c jack. 3.5 headphone jacks have gone from mobile devices 4 Overpowered - come on, rendering a video in less than half the time is a problem. It will also future proof the iPad. 5 Storage - see 1
1. I agree. Or the cloud. 2. Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute I can imagine, as not only must one move their hands from the keyboard to touch the screen, but then they have to pick up and put down a pencil, with no support to stabilize it in mid-air.
But the mouse causes Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I haven’t heard of anyone getting carpal tunnel syndrome caused by the pencil usage.
Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute when playing Call of Duty. But on that, the mouse is not the best input device neither, there are game controllers for that. Yet I don't see people discussing "mouse or game controller" in gaming forums, why are we into such a pointless discussion here?
Pencil can do everything that a mouse can do and even more. The mouse is a mechanical pointing device of the 1960s. Pencil is a 21st century technology and there is state of the art engineering in it, encompassing both the display and the device. Pencil is not a stylus, a stylus is a stick compared to Pencil. What the mouse interface provided and the touch interface couldn't provide was the precision data selection. With Pencil, precision data selection is possible even better than the best mouse or trackpad can provide.
You’re taking my response out of context of the article to which we’ve all been replying. The Pencil is great for fine tuned selection and editing directly on an iPad laying flat on a table. It’s terrible for an iPad propped up on a keyboard stand. It’s terrible when using an external monitor. Heck, even if the iPad is laying flat and the user is merely typing on it, having to take their hands of the keyboard to pick up and put down a Pencil is still worse than using a mouse. And forget about using it while sitting on a couch as one might with a MacBook. That’s where a trackpad rules the day. Apple has added a virtual trackpad, but that’s far from ideal, even on native Apple apps, but still better than the Pencil which you’d have to pull off its magnetic docking perch, holding the iPad with one hand, and then reattaching it, before continuing with the typing. So in general I’d say a mouse or trackpad would still be better for most everything in daily computer use, aside from drawing, editing, and taking notes.
Besides, even putting all that aside, the iPad Pro's marketing includes using the keyboard stand and an external monitor. Both make touch a less effective control method than using a mouse.
If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K. The actual iPad page on Apple's site mentions only "USB-C for ... external display" and says nothing about that external display. There is no point to present it as the main "computer display" of iPad.
So the user has to continually shift his eyes back and forth from the iPad to the screen, as well as take their hands off the keyboard, to lift a Pencil to the vertical screen, and hover it unsupported in midair to make detailed selections, then put the pencil down to continue using the keyboard; all the while shifting their eyes from the iPad to the 4K monitor and back as they make the fine adjustments and make sure the Pencil is where they think it’s supposed to be on the iPad? Doesn’t really sound more efficient than a mouse ... in fact it sounds a lot worse, even if Apple only intended the external monitor to be used solely as a 4K reference display and not a workspace.
All your long anecdotal narration is irrelevant. The iPad is not for desktop usage. If you don't want to leave your comfy desk get a laptop. Neither the folding keyboard nor the 4K display are main components of iPad Pro. The monitor is there only to watch 4K iMovie edits. Besides that there is absolutely no point in buying a 4K monitor for the iPad Pro.
OK if your point is to get a trackpad on that foldable keyboard, then this is not possible: 1) How will you power it? 2) What if people with disabilities or long fingernails want to attach a mouse to that keyboard? How will you power both? 3) There is no pointer in iOS. Your request requires the whole UI to be re-written for the mouse interface. That won't happen, buy a Surface it has both touch and mouse. I am off that mouse discussion.
"3) There is no pointer in iOS."
Not exactly true. tvOS, which is based off of iOS, does use a pointer UI. Nothing stopping Apple from adopting that on the iPad Pro
1 External Drive support - use a WiFi Drive 2 Lack if mouse - use the Apple Pencil 3 Headphone jack - use a dongle or a device with a usb c jack. 3.5 headphone jacks have gone from mobile devices 4 Overpowered - come on, rendering a video in less than half the time is a problem. It will also future proof the iPad. 5 Storage - see 1
1. I agree. Or the cloud. 2. Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute I can imagine, as not only must one move their hands from the keyboard to touch the screen, but then they have to pick up and put down a pencil, with no support to stabilize it in mid-air.
But the mouse causes Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I haven’t heard of anyone getting carpal tunnel syndrome caused by the pencil usage.
Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute when playing Call of Duty. But on that, the mouse is not the best input device neither, there are game controllers for that. Yet I don't see people discussing "mouse or game controller" in gaming forums, why are we into such a pointless discussion here?
Pencil can do everything that a mouse can do and even more. The mouse is a mechanical pointing device of the 1960s. Pencil is a 21st century technology and there is state of the art engineering in it, encompassing both the display and the device. Pencil is not a stylus, a stylus is a stick compared to Pencil. What the mouse interface provided and the touch interface couldn't provide was the precision data selection. With Pencil, precision data selection is possible even better than the best mouse or trackpad can provide.
You’re taking my response out of context of the article to which we’ve all been replying. The Pencil is great for fine tuned selection and editing directly on an iPad laying flat on a table. It’s terrible for an iPad propped up on a keyboard stand. It’s terrible when using an external monitor. Heck, even if the iPad is laying flat and the user is merely typing on it, having to take their hands of the keyboard to pick up and put down a Pencil is still worse than using a mouse. And forget about using it while sitting on a couch as one might with a MacBook. That’s where a trackpad rules the day. Apple has added a virtual trackpad, but that’s far from ideal, even on native Apple apps, but still better than the Pencil which you’d have to pull off its magnetic docking perch, holding the iPad with one hand, and then reattaching it, before continuing with the typing. So in general I’d say a mouse or trackpad would still be better for most everything in daily computer use, aside from drawing, editing, and taking notes.
Besides, even putting all that aside, the iPad Pro's marketing includes using the keyboard stand and an external monitor. Both make touch a less effective control method than using a mouse.
If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K. The actual iPad page on Apple's site mentions only "USB-C for ... external display" and says nothing about that external display. There is no point to present it as the main "computer display" of iPad.
So the user has to continually shift his eyes back and forth from the iPad to the screen, as well as take their hands off the keyboard, to lift a Pencil to the vertical screen, and hover it unsupported in midair to make detailed selections, then put the pencil down to continue using the keyboard; all the while shifting their eyes from the iPad to the 4K monitor and back as they make the fine adjustments and make sure the Pencil is where they think it’s supposed to be on the iPad? Doesn’t really sound more efficient than a mouse ... in fact it sounds a lot worse, even if Apple only intended the external monitor to be used solely as a 4K reference display and not a workspace.
All your long anecdotal narration is irrelevant. The iPad is not for desktop usage. If you don't want to leave your comfy desk get a laptop. Neither the folding keyboard nor the 4K display are main components of iPad Pro. The monitor is there only to watch 4K iMovie edits. Besides that there is absolutely no point in buying a 4K monitor for the iPad Pro.
OK if your point is to get a trackpad on that foldable keyboard, then this is not possible: 1) How will you power it? 2) What if people with disabilities or long fingernails want to attach a mouse to that keyboard? How will you power both? 3) There is no pointer in iOS. Your request requires the whole UI to be re-written for the mouse interface. That won't happen, buy a Surface it has both touch and mouse. I am off that mouse discussion.
"3) There is no pointer in iOS."
Not exactly true. tvOS, which is based off of iOS, does use a pointer UI. Nothing stopping Apple from adopting that on the iPad Pro
I don't understand what you mean. I'm looking at my Apple TV right now and I don't see a pointer. I have only a "sequential selection" system that allows me to move up/down/left/right between adjacent targets. I can't jump from any particular point to any other random point.
lowededwookie said: [...] I can edit video on an iPhone just as easily as using iMovie on the Mac
"Easily," yes. Accurately, no. Fine adjustments are difficult using a finger on a small screen. One's choices are endless re-zoom operations or accepting edits that are "in the ballpark."
The fact that a task is possible on a phone or tablet does not mean it's automatically equivalent to a laptop or desktop in terms of ease-of-use, speed, workflow (particularly within a facility where one's work is part of a chain), or any other productivity measure. iPads have opened up a new form of computing that is better than a laptop for some things. That's awesome in itself. It doesn't mean that it's better than -- or even equivalent to -- previously existing input and interaction methods for some kinds of work.
Besides, even putting all that aside, the iPad Pro's marketing includes using the keyboard stand and an external monitor. Both make touch a less effective control method than using a mouse.
I disagree for the simple reason that the pen is mightier than the sword/mouse. Ever tried drawing with a mouse? Ever tried to be precise with a trackpad? All they are good for is moving stuff around but you can do that with a touchscreen and get immense precision using the Pencil.
Just because you’ve done something all the time doesn’t make it the best option. In fact if you’re serious about video editing and precision on a Mac you’d use a jog control not a mouse or at the very least a trackball such as Logitech’s MX Ergo which I’ve used back when it was the TrackMan. It is far superior to a mouse or trackpad.
While my complaint is largely semantic I completely disagree that it’s the lack of the mouse that means that the iPad Pro can’t be used as a desktop/laptop replacement. If that’s so then why the hell is Adobe bringing over full Photoshop? Why is AutoDesk bringing over the full AutoCAD engine? The issue is not lack of mouse support but lack of software support and we are starting to see this changing now thanks to the original iPad Pro.
The iPad Pro combined with the Apple Pencil is a very precise device and those decrying its abilities just don’t understand how computing is going to evolve because they’re stuck in the past. It’s Final Cut Pro X all over again and that was a moronic debate back then as well.
1 External Drive support - use a WiFi Drive 2 Lack if mouse - use the Apple Pencil 3 Headphone jack - use a dongle or a device with a usb c jack. 3.5 headphone jacks have gone from mobile devices 4 Overpowered - come on, rendering a video in less than half the time is a problem. It will also future proof the iPad. 5 Storage - see 1
1. I agree. Or the cloud. 2. Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute I can imagine, as not only must one move their hands from the keyboard to touch the screen, but then they have to pick up and put down a pencil, with no support to stabilize it in mid-air.
But the mouse causes Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. I haven’t heard of anyone getting carpal tunnel syndrome caused by the pencil usage.
Pencil is the worst possible mouse substitute when playing Call of Duty. But on that, the mouse is not the best input device neither, there are game controllers for that. Yet I don't see people discussing "mouse or game controller" in gaming forums, why are we into such a pointless discussion here?
Pencil can do everything that a mouse can do and even more. The mouse is a mechanical pointing device of the 1960s. Pencil is a 21st century technology and there is state of the art engineering in it, encompassing both the display and the device. Pencil is not a stylus, a stylus is a stick compared to Pencil. What the mouse interface provided and the touch interface couldn't provide was the precision data selection. With Pencil, precision data selection is possible even better than the best mouse or trackpad can provide.
You’re taking my response out of context of the article to which we’ve all been replying. The Pencil is great for fine tuned selection and editing directly on an iPad laying flat on a table. It’s terrible for an iPad propped up on a keyboard stand. It’s terrible when using an external monitor. Heck, even if the iPad is laying flat and the user is merely typing on it, having to take their hands of the keyboard to pick up and put down a Pencil is still worse than using a mouse. And forget about using it while sitting on a couch as one might with a MacBook. That’s where a trackpad rules the day. Apple has added a virtual trackpad, but that’s far from ideal, even on native Apple apps, but still better than the Pencil which you’d have to pull off its magnetic docking perch, holding the iPad with one hand, and then reattaching it, before continuing with the typing. So in general I’d say a mouse or trackpad would still be better for most everything in daily computer use, aside from drawing, editing, and taking notes.
Besides, even putting all that aside, the iPad Pro's marketing includes using the keyboard stand and an external monitor. Both make touch a less effective control method than using a mouse.
If you'd watched the Keynote you'd know or you already know that the reason to attach a 4K monitor to iPad Pro is to follow iMovie edits in real time 4K, since the iPad's own display is not 4K. The actual iPad page on Apple's site mentions only "USB-C for ... external display" and says nothing about that external display. There is no point to present it as the main "computer display" of iPad.
So the user has to continually shift his eyes back and forth from the iPad to the screen, as well as take their hands off the keyboard, to lift a Pencil to the vertical screen, and hover it unsupported in midair to make detailed selections, then put the pencil down to continue using the keyboard; all the while shifting their eyes from the iPad to the 4K monitor and back as they make the fine adjustments and make sure the Pencil is where they think it’s supposed to be on the iPad? Doesn’t really sound more efficient than a mouse ... in fact it sounds a lot worse, even if Apple only intended the external monitor to be used solely as a 4K reference display and not a workspace.
All your long anecdotal narration is irrelevant. The iPad is not for desktop usage. If you don't want to leave your comfy desk get a laptop. Neither the folding keyboard nor the 4K display are main components of iPad Pro. The monitor is there only to watch 4K iMovie edits. Besides that there is absolutely no point in buying a 4K monitor for the iPad Pro.
OK if your point is to get a trackpad on that foldable keyboard, then this is not possible: 1) How will you power it? 2) What if people with disabilities or long fingernails want to attach a mouse to that keyboard? How will you power both? 3) There is no pointer in iOS. Your request requires the whole UI to be re-written for the mouse interface. That won't happen, buy a Surface it has both touch and mouse. I am off that mouse discussion.
1) It's not anecdotal. Its reality. But it is true that the iPad is obviously not capable of desktop usage -- thus this discussion triggered by Apple's contention that it is a laptop/desktop replacement. Most agree that it COULD be, but isn't.
2) Your second paragraph is just throwing out objections that have no basis in reality.
- How will you power it? The same way bluetooth keyboards and mice are powered now. Or, via the smart connector. That problem was solved years ago.
- What about people with long fingernails? -- They will do the same as they do today
- The entire UI needs to be rewritten: That just isn't true. Not by a long shot. iOS already has a multiple pointers -- the finger is one, the two finger touch on the iPad works as another.
On the UI "issue", the appleTV has a trackpad interface and no pointer.
Yes, just to move between buttons.
That'd probably be enough for a fair number of iOS apps without significant or any modification. The majority of apps are hardly complicated in UI.
Two fingers for scrolling, like with Mac, and one finger for browsing around buttons, like a faster version of tab. Apple touts accessibility, so it shouldn't be too much of a stretch.
I disagree for the simple reason that the pen is mightier than the sword/mouse. Ever tried drawing with a mouse? Ever tried to be precise with a trackpad? All they are good for is moving stuff around but you can do that with a touchscreen and get immense precision using the Pencil.
I used to work in a setting that provided mouse, keyboard, touch screen, and physical control surface as methods of interacting with various components of the system. While some input methods only worked for certain tasks, there was a lot of overlap so operators often had a choice. It didn't long to establish that certain tasks were best accomplished with the touch screen, others were better handled by the mouse, etc. I suspect that's what we're discovering with the iPad, too.
I think the Pencil is an excellent idea and appreciate its value. I just think there's benefit to be realized from a more traditional pointing device as well (not "instead"), particularly when one is typing, using an external monitor, or the iPad is positioned vertically.
Just because you’ve done something all the time doesn’t make it the best option. In fact if you’re serious about video editing and precision on a Mac you’d use a jog control not a mouse
Agreed, and I do. I have a keyboard in the middle, mouse to one side, and jog/shuttle on the other. Each is best at some aspect of interacting with the software, and each really sucks for certain operations. None is ideal on its own. It's the combination of various methods that makes it most efficient.
The Pencil adds a form of control that's better than the others in some respects but worse in others. It's not the best choice for every kind of input on its own, but making it a nutritious part of this complete breakfast improves productivity.
While my complaint is largely semantic I completely disagree that it’s the lack of the mouse that means that the iPad Pro can’t be used as a desktop/laptop replacement. If that’s so then why the hell is Adobe bringing over full Photoshop? Why is AutoDesk bringing over the full AutoCAD engine? The issue is not lack of mouse support but lack of software support and we are starting to see this changing now thanks to the original iPad Pro.
The whole "Is it or sin't it?" argument depends as much on preferred working methods as device capability. I continue to use a laptop for many tasks that could very easily be handled by an iPad. I dislike typing on the virtual keyboard and like to have the display propped up in front of me instead of flat on the desk. Neither is better or worse than the other, it's simply a matter of what I like.
There's also the question of what one is doing with it. Some tasks, like the site assessment examples cited elsewhere, are obviously much better handled by an iPad than a laptop. Others, like post-production, may impose requirements that make a more traditional computer a better choice. Different tools for different jobs. There's overlap in their capabilities, but each is going to excel at certain things while sucking at others.
The iPad Pro combined with the Apple Pencil is a very precise device and those decrying its abilities just don’t understand how computing is going to evolve because they’re stuck in the past.
I agree with you about the Pencil but not your conclusion about motives. It's not so much being stuck in the past as preferring not to automatically discard useful tools just because something new comes along unless the new thing covers what the old thing did, or at least provides a viable alternative. So far the Pencil augments other input methods very, very well, but doesn't yet replace them.
For me, the Pencil isn't a good alternative to a mouse, even though it offers greater precision and more intuitive selection capability. I realize that doesn't seem to make sense, but it comes back to workflow.
In my line of work, speed is essential. Keyboard shortcuts are much faster than menu operations with a pointer, so that's where my hands are most of the time. Of course, I need to navigate the project and make selections, but it's faster and easier to slide my hand a few inches to slide-drag-click than it would be to pick up a pencil and move my hand to the screen. Either method yields the same result, and neither is much better or worse than the other by itself, but one fits into the workflow better than the other. I certainly could use the Pencil instead of a mouse, but it would be a little slower and quite a bit less comfortable.
A locked down operating system like iOS is perfect for consumers but it is useless for professional users. Apple is all about telling users what they need. They are actually surprisingly good at it. Unfortunately that entire business model falls apart when you consider the professional market. Professionals are not interested in what Apple or any other company thinks is best for them. They need to do actual work and complete tasks. Let's say that one of those tasks is to scan the local network to determine what devices are attached. If iOS prevents apps from seeing the actual MAC addresses of those devices then the iPad Pro becomes useless to professionals that need to do that. This is just one example but iOS is full of limitations like that which are entirely created by Apple. Apple should either produce a professional version of iOS or allow any iOS device to be put into "pro" mode with fewer protections but no restrictions on how that device can be used. It should allow users to side load apps, access all of the hardware via the SDK without limitations and do anything the owners of those devices need to do. Only then can Apple call a device "Pro" and target professional users.
What the fuck are you talking about? I can see the MAC address of every device on my network right now in Fing on this very iPad. Why are you making shit up?
Left out the Biggest problem.
A core comprehensive, roubust file/folder management system with a consitant UI at the heart of ios.. accessible from every app for all types of files.
Lack of this is a massive handicap...
plus the restricted usb-c io from the above list...
I dont have a problem with any of the other issues brought up.
It should just work. If you have to do a work around, the concept is compromised. Then add the escalating prices on anyone wanting anything other than base config. Well, TBH the base config has no doubt impressive margins already, so it is galling. Like far too many Apple products, the iPad Pro has become too expensive to recommend.
i honestly can’t recommend the iPad Pro. Very regretfully. The basic iPad with the old pencil, with its stupid charging solution, is the iPad I have had my workplace switch to from iPad pros. The constant war I have with the Apple Hating IT department to have iPads at all, means I really don’t need the extra lead in the saddle bag of the iPad Pro price. Actually, rather than lead in the saddle bag, maybe it’s plutonium in the saddle bag. Apple product prices is always the first weapon IT use against my use case.
Then IT moves to file management arguments (I have no answer here), and connectivity to local printers and presentation hardware. The day Surface comes with built in GPS it’s game over.
Yeah, prices. IT depts hate Apple products because their practices (& so jobs) become largely redundant which actually reduces price per seat - those salaries/services contracts ain’t cheap.
All arguments (& most across the web on iPad Pro) are down to people not getting that you don’t employ the same practice to different products, not Windows PCS, not Macs, iPads. If you do, you either spend too much money or beak the service & productivity workflows built on it. You shouldn’t need to change these, just the practice-layer/people.
Files; I use iPad Pro with OneDrive for Business +SharePoint. Done. Printers; I use a modern, AirPrint compatible printer. Don. Presentations; I use AppleTV (the most robust wireless solution) for KeyNote, PowerPoint & best of all - iBooks (as the contain reference material which you can duck into professionally) Cost; no IT involvement means huge savings.
Good luck.
Work does not enable AirPrint, work does not purchase Apple tvs, I need a way to work around IT, I am seriously thinking of using my own money to beat them. One drive is an option. I will have to buy office 365 for iPad with my own coin though. IT only want MS stuff, but office 365 is not on the corporate list, just bog standard MS office, which of course doesn’t work on the iPad. I will nite that even though they pushed Surface as a replacement laptop for a while, they have gone back to HP and Dell. Nobody wanted Surface, not robust enough for field work and a crap tablet compared with the iPad, which I had pushed out quicker than IT could stop it. That everyone has iPhones helped screw IT’s plans.
You’ll need an exec/senior leadership sponsor to back a business case showing how IT is a bit stuck/staid and how it’s hurting productivity which is meant to be one of the key justifications for having IT in the first place
Luckily, IT know nothing about productivity (they think it’s Microsoft Office) but they won’t go down without a fight and a lot of plausible referencing. You could cite IBM as demonstrating lower cost per seat but create a more local case and ask IT why they specifically disallow Apple tech when it’s so prevalent. If you have a Digital team they’ll be useful allies.
You apparently believe that IT is some separate, unrelated entity or vendor.
In most large organizations, the CIO is part of the "exec/senior leadership" you suggest appealing to. And, that CIO, with support from that team, is charged with far more than making a single user happy. It is responsible for managing enterprise level demands such as: cost managment, shared resources, enterprise level applications, data security, etc, etc., etc.....
Having consulted to the IT industry for over 30 years I have a fair grasp of how enterprise IT works/doesn’t work. It’s disturbing how many C-suite positions exist with so little idea of what the business does and how it needs to do it successfully. The ‘support’ functions of IT & Finance dictate more than support, definitely the source of decision corruption and should be at the top of the Risk Mgt system.
The sponsor needs to be within core operations as corp services aren’t qualified to understand productivity. Admittedly if the user doesn’t represent the core focus of the business, they’re in for a rough ride.
Steve Jobs probably would have agreed with that -- at least before they fired him. He preferred unconstrained "get out of my way and let me do my job" too.
Comments
Notice they tout the importance of having a trackpad on the onscreen keyboard, yet don’t address it with the physical keyboard. Moreover, this bit of marketing speaks directly to the semantic debate being waged here about what constitutes a computer. This paragraph directly conflates the word computer, with the ability to type on a keyboard and use a trackpad.
As I read your post, one thing did come to me - Years (decades) ago, laptops were woefully underpowered, watered down versions of desktops that you could use to get by because the portability was worth it. Now, you can take a MacBook Pro, plug it into a dock with a larger monitor and decent keyboard and it's more powerful than 90% of the computers out there. Add an external graphics processor and you've got even more power.
In many ways, I think we're at that early stage with iPads (well, except the power; the A12x is not lacking there.) I fully expect that over the coming years my complaints will resolve.
And you may have discovered recently with astonishment an iPad display on large screen but people do that since eight years on their TV monitors. It is called AirPlay.
But whatever fuels your narrative.
It may astonish you as well, just as your mind must be reeling from the fact that an iPad Pro still has a DA converter despite the lack of a headphone jack, that the iPad has always had the ability to output video in screen mirroring mode to a hardwired display since the original iPad, long before AirPlay was a thing. Did you have a point? I would no more expect a professional to do their job using that method than I would them streaming a compressed image to a TV.
The sponsor needs to be within core operations as corp services aren’t qualified to understand productivity. Admittedly if the user doesn’t represent the core focus of the business, they’re in for a rough ride.
1. While a WiFi Drive would work; I think that Apple should make the changes so a regular flash drive could be used.
2. The mouse / Pencil issue; Using the Pencil as a mouse substitute could work with a common laptop setup used in offices.
Put the iPad flat on a desk connected to an external monitor with a detached Bluetooth keyboard. Adjust the tech for comfort.
Then the viewer is looking at the monitor while using the Pencil on the iPad for UI control.
- The effectiveness of the Pencil to replace finger touch (cursor control) could be improved by Apple as needed. After all the Newton had a stylus interface.
3. Headphones; Apple should add a second USB-C connector to the IPad Pro. A wired headphone connection should not require a dongle on a pro device. Then the free USB-C port can quickly be used for charging/external monitor, etc.
** Additions; multi floating window UI. Easier to use file system (like the Mac).
Not exactly true. tvOS, which is based off of iOS, does use a pointer UI. Nothing stopping Apple from adopting that on the iPad Pro
Just because you’ve done something all the time doesn’t make it the best option. In fact if you’re serious about video editing and precision on a Mac you’d use a jog control not a mouse or at the very least a trackball such as Logitech’s MX Ergo which I’ve used back when it was the TrackMan. It is far superior to a mouse or trackpad.
While my complaint is largely semantic I completely disagree that it’s the lack of the mouse that means that the iPad Pro can’t be used as a desktop/laptop replacement. If that’s so then why the hell is Adobe bringing over full Photoshop? Why is AutoDesk bringing over the full AutoCAD engine? The issue is not lack of mouse support but lack of software support and we are starting to see this changing now thanks to the original iPad Pro.
The iPad Pro combined with the Apple Pencil is a very precise device and those decrying its abilities just don’t understand how computing is going to evolve because they’re stuck in the past. It’s Final Cut Pro X all over again and that was a moronic debate back then as well.
Two fingers for scrolling, like with Mac, and one finger for browsing around buttons, like a faster version of tab. Apple touts accessibility, so it shouldn't be too much of a stretch.
I think the Pencil is an excellent idea and appreciate its value. I just think there's benefit to be realized from a more traditional pointing device as well (not "instead"), particularly when one is typing, using an external monitor, or the iPad is positioned vertically.
Agreed, and I do. I have a keyboard in the middle, mouse to one side, and jog/shuttle on the other. Each is best at some aspect of interacting with the software, and each really sucks for certain operations. None is ideal on its own. It's the combination of various methods that makes it most efficient.
The Pencil adds a form of control that's better than the others in some respects but worse in others. It's not the best choice for every kind of input on its own, but making it a nutritious part of this complete breakfast improves productivity.
The whole "Is it or sin't it?" argument depends as much on preferred working methods as device capability. I continue to use a laptop for many tasks that could very easily be handled by an iPad. I dislike typing on the virtual keyboard and like to have the display propped up in front of me instead of flat on the desk. Neither is better or worse than the other, it's simply a matter of what I like.
There's also the question of what one is doing with it. Some tasks, like the site assessment examples cited elsewhere, are obviously much better handled by an iPad than a laptop. Others, like post-production, may impose requirements that make a more traditional computer a better choice. Different tools for different jobs. There's overlap in their capabilities, but each is going to excel at certain things while sucking at others.
I agree with you about the Pencil but not your conclusion about motives. It's not so much being stuck in the past as preferring not to automatically discard useful tools just because something new comes along unless the new thing covers what the old thing did, or at least provides a viable alternative. So far the Pencil augments other input methods very, very well, but doesn't yet replace them.
For me, the Pencil isn't a good alternative to a mouse, even though it offers greater precision and more intuitive selection capability. I realize that doesn't seem to make sense, but it comes back to workflow.
In my line of work, speed is essential. Keyboard shortcuts are much faster than menu operations with a pointer, so that's where my hands are most of the time. Of course, I need to navigate the project and make selections, but it's faster and easier to slide my hand a few inches to slide-drag-click than it would be to pick up a pencil and move my hand to the screen. Either method yields the same result, and neither is much better or worse than the other by itself, but one fits into the workflow better than the other. I certainly could use the Pencil instead of a mouse, but it would be a little slower and quite a bit less comfortable.
Fing - Network Scanner by Fing Limited
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/fing-network-scanner/id430921107?mt=8