I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
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I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
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Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#2I did use an iPad Pro as my main machine at times. First with the original iPad Pro, then with the M1 iPad Pro 12.9”. In both eras, it’s somewhat easy to get by. Things have gotten better with Blink and Working Copy being available. Those two apps replaced the Panic apps I used to use on iPad. The problem for me is that at times certain websites will not work properly, external monitors and mice do not work quite the way I’d like, and the UI honestly feels… a bit clumsy. Coupling the iPad with a tiny $3/mo VM at Vultr fixes things like wanting Vim/Emacs or a compiler/interpreter; and you can password nginx, and pipe your log directly to port 80 with netcat for debugging. Not difficult stuff. The thing is that it still isn’t the best experience. For me, it’s close, so I use my iPad as a mobile machine. If I want to be at the beach and get something done, it’s good. If I am at home, at a desk, it sucks.
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#3I was considering the same thing a year ago after my MacBook died, but instead encourage developers to consider a tablet PC running Linux+Gnome.
Here's my hardware reflections after a year of making it my only machine: https://www.reddit.com/r/ErgoMobileComputers/comments/vzs8mm...
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#4One thing the author glosses over that I'm curious about that he said he got working was cloud gaming on the ipad to replace a computer for gaming. I'm curious what cloud gaming setup/provider he used and what the experience was like.
I've personally tried various cloud gaming setups before (stadia, geforce now, etc) and the experience ends up being less than ideal even with a stable, gig down / 40 Mbps connection.
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#5One thing the author glosses over that I'm curious about that he said he got working was cloud gaming on the ipad to replace a computer for gaming. I'm curious what cloud gaming setup/provider he used and what the experience was like. I've personally tried various cloud gaming setups before (stadia, geforce now, etc) and the experience ends up being less than ideal even with a stable, gig down / 40 Mbps connection.
They all have similar not great latency. My understanding is just some people just can't see or care less.
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#6It seems like these “main computer” solutions always depend on ssh-ing into some other machine with a proper command line and disk access. It seems like that defeats the point though, because the advantage of a tablet is mobility, but that also brings along less reliable network connectivity to those remote servers. Really wish we could just install macOS…
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#7It seems like these “main computer” solutions always depend on ssh-ing into some other machine with a proper command line and disk access. It seems like that defeats the point though, because the advantage of a tablet is mobility, but that also brings along less reliable network connectivity to those remote servers. Really wish we could just install macOS…
If the iPad is old enough, you might be able to install Linux instead of iOS.
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#8I once idealistically believed that tablets were the PC of the future. The iPad pro is definitely within the top 5 most disappointing hardware purchases I've made. Terrible UX. Trying to be both a laptop and a tablet has made it bad at being both of those things.
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#9Who is the iPad Pro catering to exactly? I've struggled to figure this out.
Re: I turned my iPad Pro into my main computer (2021)
#10I once idealistically believed that tablets were the PC of the future. The iPad pro is definitely within the top 5 most disappointing hardware purchases I've made. Terrible UX. Trying to be both a laptop and a tablet has made it bad at being both of those things.
I went through similar development, only with Android tablet. Sometimes I use it to show me things, sometimes I play games on it while listening to YouTube videos from my phone.
Most of the time it is just sitting in the stand. Very narrow usability.