I do everything on a 2018 iPad Pro. They really are excellent and I've not used a laptop in nearly 9 months because of this iPad. When I say everything, I mean:
- I run a business including budgeting, presentation development and delivery, and all types of communication (email, voice, video chat)
- I work a full time job using the iPad for notes, e-mails, scheduling, process mapping, filing, etc.
- I do filming on my iPad
- I edit all my films
- I play games
- I watch TV
- I plan routes
- I navigate
- I work on my vehicles using it as a resource
- So, so much more.
In the past, the above list would be 3 devices. The iPad Pros, especially with the Pencil, have made it a full-time laptop replacement for me. I should also mention that the iPad is NOT a compromise in any of the above list -- it does all of those things better than my laptop used to. For around $1400 CAD, it was way cheaper than a comparable laptop too. It did mean that I had to adjust my workflow a bit, and that adjustment took some getting used to, but once that adjustment was made the workflow is a lot more efficient. I compare it to driving an Auto over a Manual -- when I went to an auto from a manual, for the first few days my foot would hit the floor boards hunting for the clutch before triggering the starter, but I soon got used to skipping that step. That's the iPad, in a nutshell.
If you've not looked at the iPad Pros, take a look. I've had several iPads over the years, but they always seemed like a bit of a toy that were good for content consumption and that's it. These new Pros are good for content consumption, creation, and manipulation.
As far as the Apple vs Android debate, as other posters have said, Apple stuff just works and there's tons of aftermarket accessories, but something I have not seen folks mention is the privacy aspect.
Apple has been on a run lately of focusing on privacy as a human right, whereas you will find no such assertion from Google/Samsung/Windows. And the business models are very different; my technical language may be incorrect, but as it was explained to me, Android is an open source or 'free' mobile OS, which is why it's used by Samsung, Nokia, Blackberry, etc. with slight variations to each manufacturer as they customize the OS. However, in order to use it, you have to link it to your google account. Google makes it's money by collecting data about you, and using that data to sell targeted advertising space. Apple makes its money off its devices. While Google gives the user a lot of controls, I would wager that most people don't take advantage of them, and those that do will find (like I did on my old beloved Blackberry) that if you lock down Android too much for privacy reasons, you lose a ton of the features that make a smart phone smart. I'll pick on Google for a moment because that is the platform I have the most experience with, but to be clear, I have nothing against the company or their products. I simply chose to stop using them because their priorities did not match mine, mainly around the data use/privacy issue.
If you go into your google account, you can see what information Google has on you. I did, and I was pretty shocked. Youtube viewing history, location history, anything I've said to OK google, and more. While Google has been generally trustworthy with private information (
except for that whole thing where even if you had location history turned off, they still tracked it), the business model is fundamentally about knowing you as well or better than you know yourself, and tailoring advertising to match. While I'm OK with tailored advertising about the next best winch or traction mat, I'm less comfortable with that tailoring when it's about politics or ideas. Google's Algorithms might have me correctly identified as as a supporter of the Walrus party and their Widgets for Everyone platform, but if based on that data I only ever see ads and info that re-inforce my belief in the Walrus Party, it does not a healthy society make. There's plenty of evidence of "Big Data" being used to cause harm and influence our society in various ways, so I choose to spend my money with companies and organizations that value my privacy in principle as much as I do. This isn't even touching the risk of harm that could come from a compromised Google account -- someone could literally take over a person's life if they get their Gmail password.
Privacy also applies to the apps in the App Store.
There are a lot more Calculators that request access to your contacts and microphone in the Google Play store than there are in the Apple Store, based on what I've read, and this is based on Apple's approach to privacy matters. That analogy of a "barbed-wire-fence-hidden-in-the-trees-of-the-walled-garden" that another user posted is apt, but it isn't just to keep you in the garden, but to keep the bad guys out as much as possible.
For most people like me, with very limited technical understanding but a strong desire for privacy, all the research I've done suggests that Apple is the best choice for devices that manage privacy effectively today. Not long ago that was a title held by Blackberry though, so this landscape changes rapidly.
And obviously, this is more important for some than for others, so with all things, pick the tool that fits your application best. I was actually hesitant to chime in here, because this whole "Android versus Apple" thing tends to be more like a team sport than a friendly chat, but I'm happy to see here on OB it's been very friendly without a lot of the anger that for some reason seems to accompany any discussion of smart phone technologies on the internet. I'm not terribly interested in the debate or contest, but am very welcoming of perspectives that correct anything I've written here that is not right. My thinking is always evolving thanks to friendly chats like this!
