Hello folks, welcome to CCB. I recently got an iPad and I’ve been using it as my laptop replacement. In this post I’ll be educating you on the pros and cons of using an iPad.

Let’s begin with the pros of using an iPad. Well, the iPad is extremely portable and fun to use. The portability quotient also depends on the size of the iPad. I use 9th gen iPad which happens to have 10.2 inch screen. If you are someone who uses the 12.9 inch iPad Pro with Magic Keyboard then the portability quotient definitely drops.

I primarily use the iPad for blogging, media consumption which includes apps like YouTube and social media apps like Instagram, I also use it to read e-books etc. The 10.2 inch iPad is pretty decent for reading books and I like it more than my laptop. The biggest benefit is you can hold the iPad in landscape as well as the normal orientation, this comes in handy while reading subjects like Geography that usually contains maps in landscape mode. When the aforementioned has to be done on a laptop it is a pain…

The next reason I like iPad is for editing documents and photos. The touchscreen solves hell lot of problems and makes things super easy. I recently had to make a Resume and this app called Canva helped me take the aesthetics of my resume beyond the universe. Well, the user interface of iPad also requires a learning curve and not all may find it easy.

The next and the obvious reason to own an iPad is for iCloud. I sync my iCloud with both my iPhone and iPad and things become super easy. If you are someone who uses a small screen iPhone then having an iPad can reduce stress and increase efficiency. I still remember the days when I used my iPhone 12 for drafting documents and the small screen was disappointing. Of late I use my iPad for most of the things and the experience is amazing.

Let us now talk about the cons of using an iPad. Well, Safari (browser) on iPad is desktop class but yet it isn’t top notch. There are instances where iPad is limited. If you are applying for some of the government jobs that requires desktop class browser then iPad may not do the job.

The next con is with respect to expensive accessories. I got Smart Keyboard for my iPad and it was a expensive affair. I’m yet to get the Apple Pencil.

Another con on iPad is the issue of aspect ratio while viewing videos. Usually most streaming services use 16:9 aspect ratio and henceforth you get to see the black bar above and below the video. Netflix has a feature wherein the entire screen real estate of iPad can be used but the con is the video is zoomed in and you miss out on the full frame.

One distinguishing feature to pick iPad over laptop is cellular connectivity. Yes, that costs another fortune but if you live in places that has regular power cuts and own modems that turn off the very next second the power’s down then the cellular models come in handy. If you happen to be a nomad and if data costs are cheap in your country then I’m pretty sure you’d go for an iPad over…

Well, I’m a Mechanical Engineer but currently I don’t work in that domain and my current work flow doesn’t require any application that runs only on Windows or Mac and therefore iPad does happen to replace my laptop.

Do I recommend buying an iPad ? ——— Well, the 256 GB variant with cellular connectivity, Smart Keyboard and Apple Pencil almost costs the same as MacBook Air. I got an iPad because MacBook Air hasn’t been refreshed since 2020 at the time of writing this post and also I’m an avid reader and my bookshelf would have grown taller than Burj Khalifa if I hadn’t got the iPad. An important thing to note here is not all books are available on Kindle and its counterparts, at times you may have to buy physical books. Also Kindle app allows you to increase the font size while reading books and boy oh boy it’s amazing. When you own an iPad you can get books from multiple services like Amazon, Apple Books, Play Books etc. this isn’t the case with other e-readers that use e-ink. The display of the iPad can be stressful on the eyes when compared to e-ink readers but if you follow good eye care principles and don’t read 200 pages in one go then iPad is safe on the eyes. Also these days you get spectacles that filter blue light and iPad also has dark mode.

I would buy a MacBook in the near future but I still find the iPad Pro to be sexier than the MacBook. If Apple improves iPad OS and if my workflow doesn’t require MacBook then I’d upgrade to an iPad Pro over MacBook.