who are these Pro users apple is so aggressively trying to interest in their iPads filmmakers writers photographers Mi enough Pro to truly utilize everything the iPad Pro can give me the Baseline M2 MacBook Air is only 11.99 and it’s not pro in any way iPad Pro 12.9 with the magic keyboard is 13.99 and this got me thinking how Pro you need to be to replace a Mac with an iPad I’ve used the iPad Pro as my main computer for an entire week and I’ve tested every aspect of it so stick around to find out whether the iPad can be a direct laptop replacement let’s start with something basic a person could do carry it around now now we will not turn it on just yet an iPad with a keyboard weighs a little over 3 pounds which is heavier than a MacBook Air the iPad keyboard combo also is thicker however I really like how the iPad is elevated and flows over the keyboard word giving it a more futuristic more novel feeling told aluminum of the iPad is very pleasant to hold and the soft rubbery material of the magic keyboard feels really nice aesthetically an iPad and a keyboard look much more interesting than any Macbook so if you want to stand out it can be your call for the purchase now let’s tackle this
system real quick Apple has made many improvements to the iPad OS over the years polishing and refining as animations interacting with files apps everything is Top Notch it needs some getting used to time but I would say that navigating through iPad OS feels just as nice as it is on the Mac but can you really get some work done I do YouTube That’s My Craft and my passion so I can access this combo on different levels every video starts with the idea that idea must be researched finalized and scripted this stage of production can be overlooked and all this stuff we’ll do here is really similar to this stuff an average student will do so okay subject research usually I use YouTube for this and occasionally I browse the web YouTube as you may expect works great the image quality is amazing the brightness level is simply mind-blowing the screens on iPads are as good as they are on Pro MacBooks crisp ultra bright P3 white color gamut support 120 hertz so much better than
anything you can get on the MacBook Air for example and the best part I can easily detach the iPad from the keyboard and continue my research on the couch in the kitchen Outdoors on the white Throne iPad is just much more versatile much less restraining using it feels fresh unusually comfortable now as we’re done with researching let’s create a script I will use Google Docs for that but you can use Pages Office 365 anything you like basically right off the bat typing experience is just as great as on my 14 inch MacBook Pro the keys are the right size they travel just the right amount and the backlight is a very nice thing to have trackpad is basically identical to the one in MacBooks but much smaller gestures are still there familiar to the ones on Max but perform in them is tricky my fingers are not very big but cramping three or four fingers with a small trackpad doesn’t feel natural at least as natural as it is on Max and another thing that is not working is typing it with an iPad on your lap finding the balance so the iPad won’t fall is hard because the point of balance is high up of course that’s the limitation of this keyboard design that can be mitigated but I really can’t call this keyboard combo a Macbook replacement in every way in some way sure but not in every
way if you always type with your laptop on your desk then your experience will be just as great oh and one more thing I wish there was a row of function keys because reach into the control center each time I need to adjust the brightness or volume isn’t all that convenient the cheaper 10th gen iPad has that so Apple maybe it’s time to upgrade the magic keyboard okay the keyboard is great but how about the text editing software well here’s the cache if you use Pages you basically have the full functionality as a Max but with Google Docs you are limited interface is simplified not all editing functions are present and you need to go through a couple of menus just to check the word count the same goes to Google Sheets and Apple’s numbers making small occasional adjustments is doable but forget about comfortably inserting huge formulas or managing five sheets at once summon up the experience a student or writer can get as possible but if you need to do something bigger more advanced I would choose something more macbook-ish so 7 out of 10 replacement for students and basic people maybe video calls will crash the iPad the iPad’s front facing camera has a 12 megapixel resolution and can shoot 4K 60 while MacBooks are limited to heavily processed 1080P or even 720p yes it is located rather weirdly on this side but if you can cope with this minor inconvenience you will feel the power of a big sensor standard stage and 4K videos iPad 4 conferences and video calls is just as good if not better than a Macbook so 10 out of 10.
now let’s move on to something more challenging cameras and ports videographers and content creators often need to transfer data from camera to the editing device and then to a hard drive and the iPad do that since 2018 the pro iPads have been equipped with type c ports and I will connect the camera first as soon as I plug in the cable it starts charging to transfer files I must turn the camera on after a few seconds the iPad finds the camera and shows it on the import tab here we see all the files stored on my camera we can import them and delete them from the camera storage okay the camera is working how about drones again and plug in the cable turn on the Drone and here we go again okay what’s next now I will transfer these files to my external drive plug it in wait for it to appear in the menu and Export the files from the iPad boom it took only a few minutes as a media transferring device 10 out of 10 definitely recommend there is one catch though iPad has only one USB type-c that supports data transfer so if you want to charge it and transfer data simultaneously and use an HDMI port you will need to buy a dongle unlike MacBook Air or MacBook Pro which has a magsafe charger and
two type c ports an iPad Pro needs a dongle so maybe I should take one point Back 9 out of 10 for media transfers good but sometimes inconvenient oh and one more thing if you’re using a Sony camera like I am you probably are using the Sony Mate app for using your iPhone iPad or Mac as an external monitor if you do that you know how bad the app is it freezes the controls are lagging the connection is unstable and the interfaces is a mess but there is a better app called monitor plus this is not an ad I didn’t get paid for it I just want to share my findings and possibly help people through this app you can access all the cameras features adjust focus white balance Etc it has zebras guides anamorphic D stretch and more but the best part is the low latency the app from Sony is just horrible in terms of latency now let me rephrase that it is especially horrible in terms of latency the delay is so big that you can fit in an entire shooting day in the time between your command and seeing changes monitor Plus on the other hand has a very low latency it’s always funny how enthusiasts can make Big Brand Products much better by adding the passion they have so iPad as an external monitor four cameras 10 out of 10.
Okay this script is done the videos are shot and trend transferred next editing it is no surprise that there currently is only one app that allows complex editing on an iPad lumafusion this app is not it’s exclusive to iPhones and iPads you won’t find it anywhere else lumafusion is very well optimized so editing complex 4K videos is a walk in the park for the iPad Pro the app library has countless effects transitions sound samples Etc the app can work with multiple video and audio tracks text layers you can color grade your videos add animations to every aspect of them just like in Pro apps on Mac it works with a green screen supports lots and more for simple YouTube videos lumafusion is perfect plus as optimization makes it faster than some MacBooks when exporting the same project it is not cheap the app costs 30 dollars but it’s worth every cent plus recently Apple has announced that DaVinci Resolve is common to iPad this is massive for video editors and if the functionality will be the same or at least almost the same then the iPad will really be a laptop replacement the screen is great for color grading and amp chips give enough power even for complex 4K editing we of course will test the Venture resolve when it comes out so if you want to see a video about It smash that like button so iPad as a video editing Station 8 out of 10.
Okay the last thing left to do is create a thumbnail for that I will use procreate since it is the coolest thing we have to photoshop an Adobe Illustrator again this app isn’t free and cost 9.99 for such a powerful app that’s a steal the app is extremely similar to Mac apps in terms of functionality you can work with layers cut things out powerful versatile but much more user friendly no wonder so many designers use it but here’s the catch on an iPad you can use the apple pencil for that draw in and edit in photos with the apple pencil is a completely another level you can instantly feel more creative imagine yourself as as some kind of a Picasso pencil and iPad opens so many new possibilities you couldn’t have gotten on mag by default it’s super responsive kind of recognize tilting pressure Etc and it really makes thumbnail creation or photo editing 10 out of 10.
definitely the best way to create thumbnails editing photos also falls in the same category Lightroom and iPad is probably the best app for photo editing it’s fast optimized and has a lot of features yes it’s still limited but if you know what you’re doing and have custom presets the iPad will become your best friend during photo shoots took a few shots transferred to the iPad and edited on the go plus with the screen that’s better than on a MacBook Air for example all images will look ultra realistic colorful and in every way perfect I of course still want to see full fledged Lightroom in Photoshop on an iPad so for now I will give it a 7 out of 10 for photo editing okay it seems like the iPad itself can do all the things I need but can it work with Windows yes it can now iPad OS 16 Apple has added stage manager which kind of turns your iPad into a Mac let me explain the iPad keyboard monitor combo really feels like you’re just using a conventional laptop you have Windows you can resize them
and move them around and they overlay one another but there’s always a button it doesn’t quite work like you’re used to Stage manager is a really cool feature but it requires some getting used to plus it makes everything cramped I’m using the 12.9 inch iPad and it already feels kind of crowded with only a couple of apps opened I can surely switch off the recent apps and the dock and get a bit more space generally to Mac User this stage manager may seem confusing at first apps overlay differently the system moves them around automatically transfers to recents if you really want to use your iPad as a Mac you can with an external display you will get roughly the same experience so 7 out of 10 Window Manager it what else can the iPad do well it’s back cameras and lighter sensor can be used to scan objects those 3D models can later be edited in blender for example IEC Architects benefiting from that the most scanning columns arches and other elements is something you can really take the advantage of for me not a very useful feature but I recognize the potential when I see it so 8 out of 10 for 3D scanning now you may ask is there anything the iPad can do and yes there is an iPad will be virtually useless if you are a programmer the only code in app is Swift playground but it’s meant for kids and doesn’t allow for complex workflows no c-sharp Java python nothing if you are a programmer the best way to use the iPad will be as a second screen but why do that when you can have a much bigger screen so one out of 10 for coders and what if you want to use figma mum Big Mountain iPad doesn’t exist and the web version is so janky and limited that you will wish to never open it again even though the iPad seems like a great device for designers it’s
still Limited in some areas so am I Pro enough for the iPad Pro apparently yes can it replace your MacBook in a way the iPad is just great deal for the price of a laptop you’re getting multiple devices at one you are getting a laptop and extremely capable drawing board an external display for your camera and a full tablet a tablet that gives you stuff you don’t have on Macs such as face ID or comfortably watching videos in bed or reading books or high quality cameras if your workflow is relatively simple you edit videos without too many effects you don’t work with huge Excel documents and the iPad can replace your MacBook I would even say that the iPad and a keyboard would be a perfect device for a button YouTuber you don’t even need a camera you can shoot videos with an iPad edit them create thumbnails and upload all from one device I can even say that from many perspectives iPad is even better than a Mac I’m sure if you spend time and optimize your work you will be able to really make an iPad the MacBook replacement and what do you think could you replace your Mac with an iPad type your thoughts in the comments below and smash that like button for the YouTube algorithm and see you in the next one