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Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

techcrunch.com

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Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#531

Post by ctdonath »

selestify wrote: post #456
ctdonath wrote: post #293

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And Apple beat that by 8 years with the Newton. (And Wang beat that by several years with a 3" thick monstrosity that, IIRC, went nowhere.) Yes, the trolling reoccurs. Key is how excited the marketplace is for which product, naysayers aside. As others note: the iPod wasn't new, but it was subjectively better than anything else out there.

> (And Wang beat that by several years with a 3" thick monstrosity that, IIRC, went nowhere.) What was this and where can I read more about it?

It was about a foot square (or more), at least 3 inches thick, had a large handle to grip, a wired stylus, and a painfully low-res B/W LCD display. I got to handle it a few times, but saw no compelling use (the concept was great, but technology was far from there). IIRC, 3 came with a Wang minicomputer at the time, late 1980's or early 1990's.

I've tried to find a picture of it several times since, but nothing yet.

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#532

Post by jonknee »

tetraodonpuffer wrote: post #91

no USB port to be able to easily copy files to/from seems a bit detrimental to pro usage, as well as no way to connect an external display for presentations. This said there are plenty of use cases for a larger ipad with a stylus, I am sure it will be a very successful product.

You can use an external display with a dongle or wirelessly through AirPlay Mirroring (if you have an AppleTV on the other end). People have been using iPads to do presentations for a long time.

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#533

Post by rayiner »

jff wrote: post #47

Predicted by a 3 year old comic: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/COenroJWEAAjLoi.jpg:large

I don't think it's accurate to say Surface Pro presaged the iPad Pro by three years. Surface Pro was a basically different vision (not to mention a severely compromised device). A laptop without a keyboard but with a fan and short battery life. A software stack that requires you to go into the desktop to access non-trivial settings.

The iPad Pro is a big iPad. No x86, no fan, touch-based software stack, etc. It's not a computer, it doesn't have USB ports, it can't run desktop software. You can't plug it into a dock hook use it as a desktop machine.[1] On purpose. It's a very different point in the design space.

[1] Some people may consider the iPad Pro to be a Surface 3 with less features. And maybe it is depending on what you want from it. My take is that I've got a quad-core laptop with 16GB of RAM as my workhorse. I don't want a compromise device that's part tablet and part ULV laptop. I want a companion device with a big screen that I can mark up PDFs on. I want a bigger iPad, not a laptop with a detachable keyboard.

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#534

Post by snurk »

blumkvist wrote: post #228
criddell wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

None of that really matters though. It's all about the applications. If you need to run Windows software, buy a Windows machine. If the applications you depend on require iOS, buy an iPad. Other non-software features (like battery life and weight) matter as well. Price doesn't really matter though.

What professional applications require ios?

Plenty of point of sale apps. Really common in smaller retail stores. Also waiters in restaurants using iPad minis

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#535

Post by chillacy »

ThomPete wrote: post #392
musesum wrote: post #307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I suspect that Enterprise IT would prefer Sandboxing - prevents users from downloading malware. What do you get without the sandbox?

Possibilities to properly innovate on the platform. There is a reason why iPad is not doing well and I don't believe it's solved by turning it into a sketchpad. Sandboxing control could come with the enterprise license that way everyone is happy.

Not really apple's way it seems. But I'm not sure that the ipad is doing poorly... despite all its many restrictions, it's extremely popular with schools and companies. I still remember when iphones weren't allowed on corp networks but people kept on using them anyways till IT had to support it. Things have come a long way in 5 years

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#536

Post by ctdonath »

therein wrote: post #411
ctdonath wrote: post #309

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Someone did a detailed comparison between the $19 Apple 500mW cube charger vs a no-name $4 lookalike. Short version: the former is an engineering marvel of efficiency, compactness, and safety ... while the latter is likely to kill someone. You may not appreciate the "diminishing returns" of increased quality for increased price, but Apple's bottom line shows a great many do.

Oh come on, that's such a sweeping generalization. Just because someone compared Apple's cube charger with one of thousands of knockoffs and found that the Apple charger actually adhered with the safety regulations does not mean that Apple's accessories are appropriately priced due to their quality. It doesn't even mean the charger deserves the $19 price tag. How about the iPhone 6 docks, are they also a marvel of en…

"Simple price gouging" is also a sweeping generalization.

You pay for quality. Generally equivalent functionality can be had cheaper, and returns diminish as price rises, but as there are prolific options available "price gouging" hardly applies.

[sigh] This is a friendly chat board. I'm not inclined to provide encyclopedic peer-reviewed proofs to someone taking cheap shots.

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#537

Post by chillacy »

therein wrote: post #382
RexRollman wrote: post #349

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the one important thing that Microsoft's approach has over Apple's is file management. File management is horrible on iOS.

Do you know what happens if you let people see their files? They try to edit them. Do you want people to be able to edit their files? Yeah... I thought so.

I know you're being sarcastic, but yes, some people do edit their files. They see that folder that says System32 and start re-organizing the files within, and then feel like computers are scary and difficult when things break.

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#538

Post by yellowapple »

thaumasiotes wrote: post #466
CamperBob2 wrote: post #325

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Walled garden, Panopticon, what's the difference.

I don't think it's particularly hard to see the distinction between "do whatever you feel like, but someone will write down that you did" and "no, you can't do that. You'll do what we tell you to do".

And if "do whatever you feel like, but someone will write down that you did" is too much, one can readily install a GNU/Linux distro on a Surface. You very likely won't be able to do the same on any iOS device, even the iPad "Pro".

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#539

Post by [deleted] »

Someone wrote: post #505
benologist wrote: post #448

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think Apple will have a very hard time convincing companies to port / produce complex apps that come with a lifetime of free updates. Mac App store has failed pretty objectively at applying iOS conventions to serious software.

Maybe, but what surprises me every time I browse the App Store is the amount of expensive apps I encounter. There are many textbooks that have made the jump to iPad while keeping prices that are far above $10. For an example, see http://www.pcronline.com/eurointervention/textbook/pcr-textb... : "Get the iPad application for only $149.99" Maybe that is just a web site in an app with limited interactivity, but there de…

[deleted]

Re: Apple Unveils the iPad Pro

#540

Post by SunShiranui »

ctdonath wrote: post #309
roymurdock wrote: post #176

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's like the $80 magsafe charger. Thing probably costs $3 to manufacture and distribute, but good luck using your macbook without one. Simple price gouging, but most customers are happy to pay.

Someone did a detailed comparison between the $19 Apple 500mW cube charger vs a no-name $4 lookalike. Short version: the former is an engineering marvel of efficiency, compactness, and safety ... while the latter is likely to kill someone. You may not appreciate the "diminishing returns" of increased quality for increased price, but Apple's bottom line shows a great many do.

My experience (and that of most people I know) with Apple chargers is that they break all the time despite the utmost care. I would hardly call that an engineering marvel.

Edit: I should be more specific - I wasn't referring to the chargers themselves, but rather their cables.

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