Yeah that’s a good point. One of the things that makes it a superior laptop like experience is how stable it feels and the weight probably enhances that.
The other thing I wonder about and I have only minimal anecdotal evidence on is if there are many users that utilize the magic keyboard as a stand/pedestal for drawing. The two biggest pro 12.9 users I know about both take the iPad off the magic keyboard when they draw with it and use it in their lap or flat on a table.
An even larger size might allow them to do something akin to what MS does with the studio specifically the pull over cover the keyboard posture, since it’s already going to be large and heavy.
Absolutely. It’s unfortunate but the weight is necessary for counterbalance and stability. It’s the first detachable device that works well as a laptop since the Surface Book, and you know how heavy they had to make that keyboard base. Going lighter you need to do a kickstand, which for many of us is too “floppy” and also painful as the edge digs into our legs. An origami keyboard like the Galaxy Book 12 eases the pain but is even more floppy. Can’t win.
It is easy to forget that the 12.9 iPad Pro is almost exactly the footprint of an 8.5 x 11 (US Letter) sheet of paper. I’m trying to wrap my head around what a 14.6 would be.
At some point, though, don’t we transition from a “mobile” to merely (?) “portable” use case?
I know this looks stupid, but it really does work especially for taking notes - a very good angle.
Now to the 12.9 and 14.6 iPad questions - even at 12.9”, the iPad+MK is very little different than carrying my MBP14, and I’m sure the 14.6 would seem like a brick in comparison. So unless iPadOS16-17 morphs into MacOS lite, wouldn’t I just be as well off with the two devices doing their own special tasks?
PS - this guy wedges his phone in the MK to keep it from collapsing:
BUT, we just need Apple to utilize their multi-hinge design for MK II so you can fold the iPad forward over the keys
OOPS - see @Desertlap already mentioned this above…
While I don’t think that’s a bad idea, I would still just pull the iPad off the keyboard to draw with. I briefly considered buying a wedge stand for my IPP just for art, but I kept track of my use and realize I very rarely ever use it at a table regardless.
Same here. It’s just a hobby and I draw while comfortable on the couch, holding/bracing the iPP with one hand, drawing with the other. Like someone would using a sketchbook.
@James and @Dellaster - I get it for casual drawing, but in a meeting with clients? Still, I pull it off even then and lay it down on the closed MK…see why the SP8 kickstand and ability to fold the keyboard behind the screen is so much more convenient?
Of course. Just adding my two cents that not everyone has a need to draw or write at a table. I think I have done that with a tablet… actually I can’t remember ever doing so.
I can’t begin to test iPadOS 16 to the extent so many iPad and MacOS experts are doing, but a lot of what I have been reading is frustrating, because their reports really come across as Apple trying to “emulate” MacOS window management but stubbornly adhering to iPad’s touch only interface, with so many work around its beginning to look like a game of Twister - of course, that is the observation of an inexperienced old fogie who clings to the old metaphor of classic windowing environments (MacOS and Windows) and not embracing the new paradigm…still…
I agree with this observation in spades:
“I’m also perplexed to the fact that Stage Manager, available on macOS Venturaas well, works great without the restrictions of iPadOS. While one look at the desktop on a Mac with the feature enabled makes it looks busy , the absence of an invisible grid and the freedom to arrange windows with no worry of apps disappearing, makes the feature enjoyable to use on a Mac.”
I used to schlep one of these around on a daily basis for at least a couple of years. Talk about the definition of “portable” having undergone substantial revision…
OTOH. It had a great keyboard and arguably the best trackball ever put in a portable device.
PS: even early on, Apple was always most concerned about aesthetics. If you notice there are two indents on the top lid. The one on the right is to accommodate the bulge of the trackball, but the one on the left is there only for visual symmetry
That was… interesting. My M1 iPP 11 semi-locked up on me. I couldn’t get to the desktop, though I could swipe from the left and bring up the calendar, etc. I had to force a restart. No idea what instigated it. Perhaps the diagnostics will help fix whatever it was.
We’ve seen that as well. Preliminary speculation is that its a possible virtual memory bug and/or certain apps not behaving 100% compliantly when swapped to virtual memory versus being suspended
I was testing out Story Planner on the iPP, it seemed to be going well, then I opened the app on my iPhone and the new project I had just started wasn’t showing up. I waited and closed the app on both devices, then reopened. No sync. Okay, maybe turn off & on the iCloud sync in the app settings? iPhone off then on, no go. iPP off then on… gah! The project was gone! It synced to the project-less iPhone, erasing all new data on the iPP.
As mentioned, I thought it was a beta thing. However upon looking at the version history I see:
So they were having unreliable sync on non-beta devices and the current version should be “more reliable”?! Um, excuse me, but anything less than absolutely reliable is a no-go. There’s no way I’m trusting a “more reliable” sync that can and will erase all my writing. Sheesh!
Okay, it’s gotta be Ulysses despite the $$ subscription. I have tested it for the past three hours, constructing story element categories, subcategories, data sheets, etc. and it’s rock solid with iCloud backup, syncing across iPhone, iPP, and Mac without delay. And everything is there to work on when in airplane mode (though of course it won’t sync till I’m online again).
Edit: it still might be due to iPadOS/iOS 16 beta 3 that it syncs so unreliably that I lost everything. So this post belongs here. Beta testers beware! Trust but verify!
I’m pretty sure it’s the Story Planner app that’s screwing up though perhaps doing worse than usual because of beta issues. No problems with anything else. But yeah… Better not take any chances with important data and beta. :vb-agree:
