Apple has been announcing the Post-PC era since it launched its first iPad 9 years ago. In Cupertino they are convinced that their tablet is suitable to replace laptops, and that the future of computers is the tablet. But during these years they have managed to convince few users of this, due to hardware and software limitations.
However, the launch of the iPad Pro 2018 has changed things, since its power exceeds that of many laptops, and its USB-C makes accessories suitable for any computer also compatible with the iPad Pro. This has made Many consider the new iPad Pro a serious candidate to finally usher in the Post-PC era. After replacing my MacBook 2016 with an iPad Pro 12,9 ″ I tell you my experience.
Some more than capable specifications
If in previous generations the iPad Pro already demonstrated its potential, with those of the current models things get much more serious. In terms of size, we find an 11-inch model with dimensions of 247,6 x 178,5 x 5,9mm and 468g of weight, another 12,9-inch model with a size of 280,6 x 214,9, 5,9 x 631mm and 12g. If we compare these dimensions with those of a MacBook 280,5 ″ (196,5 x 13,1 x 920mm and XNUMXg) we have a very similar device in longitudinal and transverse dimensions, but considerably thinner and lighter, plus we got almost an inch more screen. Therefore the portability of the iPad is even better than Apple's most portable computer.
But if we are fair and want to make a comparison in which an iPad Pro and a MacBook are on equal terms, we should add the Smart Keyboard to the tablet. Yes, it is not essential to be able to write, far from it, but it is highly recommended. Its 407 grams would increase in weight of the iPad Pro to 1038g so the weight would no longer be an advantage in favor of the iPad. If we compare the prices of both devices, the MacBook 256GB is priced at € 1505, and the iPad Pro 12,9 ″ of the same capacity € 1269, but again I think fair add the price of the Smart Keyboard, € 219, so the iPad + keyboard set is priced at € 1488.
With all this it seems that between an iPad Pro and a MacBook there would not be at the moment any important data that unbalances the balance between one and the other. What about the other specs? If portability and price is so important when choosing a laptop, so are other characteristics such as its power, autonomy, etc. The heart of the iPad Pro is the A12X Bionic processor, aided by an integrated M12 coprocessor and Neural Engine technology.. All models have a 4GB RAM except for the 1TB model that has 6GB.
If we look at the scores that the iPad Pro achieves, in the two available models, with the Geekbench application, literally sweep the latest MacBook into its entry model, which is comparable in price. But we can go further and compare it with the 15-inch MacBook Pro 2018, and the iPad Pro gets better scores.
What if we look at Multi-Core scores? Here the MacBook Pro 15 ″ 2018 has a higher score, but that is not the rival with which we must compare the iPad Pro, basically because we are talking about a team with a price of € 2.799. With which I want to compare the iPad Pro is with the MacBook, and here there is no color in terms of results. The iPad Pro 2018 is much more powerful than the MacBook. Tasks such as photo or video editing will appreciate this extra power, as well as video games or multimedia playback. And autonomy? Both devices support about 10 hours of web browsing according to Apple. In my practice, my feeling is that both can handle a full day's work perfectly, although the MacBook endured days and days when I was resting in my backpack, while the iPad Pro barely lasts a couple of days, reflecting that it performs many more tasks. in the background than the MacBook.
We cannot overlook this iPad's fantastic 12,9 ″ Liquid Retina display and 2732 x 2048 resolution, with 600-bit brightness and True Tone compatible. The pixel density of the iPad is higher than that of the MacBook, which is, a priori. If we add to this its four speakers strategically distributed around the four corners of the iPad, and the new design with the reduced frames, it is a device with enormous potential for multimedia reproduction. We also have compatibility with the Apple Pencil (redesigned).
The iPad Pro and MacBook have a common element: a single USB-C connector. This point deserves to be dealt with in more detail later, due to the enormous possibilities offered by the change from Lightning to USB-C, but in this section what I would like to highlight is that After more than two years with a laptop that had a single USB-C, it has not been a problem for me to adapt to an iPad Pro with that same connector as the only available connection. Of course, it does not have a headphone jack.
And it is time to highlight the elements that this iPad Pro has and that does not have, at the moment, any Apple laptop. We highlight the Face ID, which also comes with the enormous improvement of being able to be used both horizontally and vertically. Apple's security system allows us to unlock, make purchases or access applications through our face, in a practically transparent way to the user. At the moment Apple has only added Touch ID to some of its laptops, but I am sure that Face ID will arrive in the near future., because it is an improvement that will be great for your computers. The 12 Max camera with True Tone flash that allows you to capture 4K or 240fps videos, or that FullHD front camera are also an advantage over a conventional laptop.
The same happens with the possibility of buying an LTE model, which has internet connectivity without the need for any other accessory. For those of us who work a lot on portability, it is really comfortable to be able to have internet connectivity without depending on a WiFi network, and without having to drain the battery of our iPhone sharing internet. Either with the classic nanoSIM tray or via eSIM, this option will soon be coming to Apple laptops, I am convinced.
USB-C changes everything
As I said before, the arrival of USB-C to the iPad is a before and after on the iPad. And I'm not just talking about the convenience of using a standard connector that more and more products incorporate, which means that you do not have to carry different cables in your backpack or suitcase when you go on a trip. I'm also talking about the ease of finding compatible accessories. So far we need a product to be MFi certified (made for iPhone / iPad) to work, and of course the corresponding Lightning cable. Now a product that is not designed for the iPad will be able to connect without problems. My Samson Metheor microphone works perfectly, and I bought it over three years ago. Connecting your photo or video camera, a card reader or an adapter of any kind is already a reality, and that is very good.
It is one of the key elements so that the iPad Pro can finally be considered as a true replacement for a laptop, since many professionals will already have compatible accessories, or at least it will be much easier to find them. As I said before, after two years with a MacBook I already have the accessories I need with this type of connector. In addition, USB-C allows us not to have to resort to official USB-C to Lightning cables, more expensive than USB-C to USB-C. However, not everything is good news, because at the moment there are many limitations.
And, although you can connect a hard drive or Flash memory to your iPad, you will not be able to import any file, even view it, and much less export it to that external memory. Chen we talk about USB-C for file transfer, the iPad is very limited, and there is only one culprit here: Apple. We lack a complete file explorer that allows us to view a PDF stored on a USB-C memory, or that allows us to transfer a video from the iPad to an external disk. We can only incorporate photos and videos to the Photos application, we cannot even transfer them to iCloud Drive, and that is something that needs to be fixed.
A software that is not up to par
The iPad Pro has extraordinary hardware, superior to many current laptops in the same price range, but has software that is not up to par. iOS 12 is great on an iPhone, even a 2018 iPad, but not an iPad Pro. The multitasking is fantastic, the multi-window, the «Drag and Drop» that allows you to drag elements from one application to another, the continuity between the tasks you do on the iPhone or Mac and the iPad ... once you get used to using all these functions (and others), there will be tasks that you will do more quickly than on a laptop. But there are other things that are incomprehensibly complicated to do, and that is that the iPad Pro cries out for a differentiation from the conventional iPad, which is basically a large iPhone.
That file explorer is something absolutely essential that has to arrive in iOS 13, yes or yes. It would not make sense that Apple has opted for USB-C and does not offer us the ability to use it to its full potential. And this is said by someone who has all their documents in iCloud, but that is not enough, far from it. In addition to being able to access all the documents stored in iCloud, we must be able to use external storage for more than just importing photos and videos. Hopes are pinned on June, on the presentation of iOS 13, which we hope is the first iOS that marks the arrival of the Post-Pc era.
Developers must change too
But not only Apple should start to consider the iPad Pro differently, also the application developers for the App Store. We have the best application store without any doubt, and we have a vast catalog with high-quality applications, even for professionals. I thought I was going to miss Final Cut Pro a lot, but With Lumafusion I can do the same as with Apple's desktop software, and for only € 22 (Final Cut Pro costs € 330). Yes, I know that video editing professionals will be squirming in their chairs right now from what I have said, but I am not a professional, and yet I have not found anything in between iMovie and Final Cut Pro for Mac, however. in iOS there are different options.
However, "decaffeinated" applications also abound, and that is what must change as well. Many developers have created the application for Mac and its equivalent for iPad, but the latter is like a "Lite" version, capped, with fewer functions. The iPad Pro deserves the same applications for Mac with the same functionalities, simply adapted to a touch interface. Adobe has already started to take it seriously, and this is great news, because surely many are following in its footsteps. In addition, the Marzipan project that wants to create "universal" applications for Mac and iPad is sure to help a lot in this regard.
The video games section deserves a separate mention, where few developers have opted to create games with the quality that a device like this deserves. It is inconceivable that having everything you need to succeed will not finish doing it. World hits like Fortnite or PUBG, whose earnings on mobile devices are millions of dollars, do not have support for MFi controllers in order to abandon the regrettable on-screen controls. NBA2K19 or Grid Autosport are two examples of high quality games compatible with external controllers such as the Steelseries in the image. Trópico is another of my favorite games for the iPad, and let's not forget R-Play, the application that allows you to play remotely with your PS4 using a controller and your iPad as a screen.
For years there has been talk of the inability of Macs for video games, and here the iPad Pro has a lot to say. It has the power, the necessary accessories too, the only thing missing is that the developers take into account the iPad like a serious video game platform. Hope is the last thing that is lost, but seeing what has happened with Apple TV it seems difficult that this will happen in the near future.
The Post-PC era has begun
With its pros and cons, with a lot of room for improvement and many things that are already perfectly coupled, the iPad Pro 2018 is a serious candidate to establish itself as the first iPad that can stand up to a laptop. By price and hardware, this iPad Pro is much more balanced than Apple laptops, which in a similar price range offer us lower performance. The great room for improvement is in the software, where very important steps have been taken, but where shortcomings are still detected such as the lack of a file explorer that allows access to external storage, or applications with features comparable to their desktop versions.
The iPad Pro is not going to replace notebooks, at least not in a few years, but it can become Apple's best entry-level laptop, better than a MacBook Air or MacBook Retina. That this happens is in the hands of Apple to a large extent, and of the developers in a small proportion. Apple does not stitch without thread, and it is no coincidence that the Marzipan project is underway, or that this new iPad Pro has USB-C. My change from a 2016 MacBook has been very positive, and I am convinced that it will improve with iOS 13.
I would rather say that the post-iOS era is the one that is beginning. What is being asked (and justifiably) is for iOS to mature and catch up with a desktop operating system, with its ecosystem designed to work on the big screen and not on a more modest iPhone or iPad.
When iOS does the same as MacOS, and having the ARM platform almost at the same power level as x86, I would simply say that what PCs are doing is 'metamorphosing', but not disappearing 😉