iPad used instead of a Laptop?

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Hi Guys,
Nearly a switcher here, :Blushing:
I was hoping to switch this month but got the electricity bill! Apparently, my state now has the honour of having the dearest electricity on the planet!

Sorry, getting off track here,
I do a lot of fishing trips away and always take my laptop for Internet access and any other business on the trip

I have been thinking of buying an iPad and one of those "new" iPad keyboards,
Thinking that this would be a more compact option for travelling and if so, I could retire the laptop as I'm getting an iMac 27"

Would the iPad/keyboard combo be a better option for travel?

I don't know how good the batteries are in the iPad or how the wireless Internet compares with a laptop either?
Regards,
Gary
 

Raz0rEdge

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The iPad is a great alternative to a laptop depending on your use. If you use it to browse the web, send e-mail, and a few other things. Then it's a perfect solution. You can also be productive with things like Pages, Numbers and so on and save files to Dropbox or whatever to continue work..

But anyway, let us know what you do with your laptop right now and we can tell you if the iPad can do that and more..

As far as wireless internet goes, the iPad does come with 3G on the iPad/iPad2 and 4G LTE on the "new iPad"..this is cellular technology and will work as good as your cell coverage is where you're headed. The 3G and 4G will obviously be fast enough for most things..

I have a WiFi iPad 2, so I'm not a good judge of how good the 3G and 4G works for general use, other iPad users should chime in here..
 
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Much appreciated ...Ashwin,

I guess , in general, email, web forums, mainly photographic, (now a Mac Forum groupie :Blushing: )
I may upload some of my images to check image quality but not leave them there, (usually 4-8GB),
I keep all my images on cards till I have uploaded them at home and backed up on an independent drive or drives,
Not sure how much ram these iPads would have as an average image would be 10-15MB,

I would also like to run some image software as well
Regards,
Gary
 

Raz0rEdge

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The iPad 2 is being sold in the 16GB variety, and The New iPad is in 16,32,64GB ranges..

Looks like the iPad would do most of what you want it to do, now as far as applications go, you'd have to peruse the offerings in the App Store and see if something like Photoshop Elements or others might do the work for you with photo editing..

Lastly, definitely visit an Apple store to play around with the iPad before you do decide to purchase one just make sure you know what the limitations are..
 

chscag

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Take a look at the latest issue of MacWorld Magazine. (August 2012) Their lead article is titled "iPad vs. Mac". Several authors chime in and state their findings. I think you'll find it an interesting and informative read.
 
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Tks Ashwin,

Sounds like the iPad may be a good option
Regards,
Gary
 
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Tks for the heads-up chscag ,

Will try and get one today,
Regards,
Gary
 
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iPad vs Laptop - Which One Is Better?

it is hard to decide whether the iPad is a smart purchase or not. People who are interested in buying this product are advised to have a personal look at the hardware and software features and then make an uniformed decision.
more detail i get here: iPad vs Laptop
 
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Tks Anny,

Good info,
being unable to load other software maybe a stumbling block although iPhoto may be OK for viewing if I can load the codec for my raw files
Regards,
Gary
 
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i thought this when i first bought my ipad.. but I stopped using the ipad from 6 months and I am using my laptop now..
 
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i thought this when i first bought my ipad.. but I stopped using the ipad from 6 months and I am using my laptop now..

What made you change back to the laptop?

I guess my situation is somewhat dissimilar,
My laptop is windose and the other operation systems will be an iMac and iPad,
Was trying to keep all systems Mac but would be unable to pony-up for all three Apples,
I thought if I can get away without a laptop, I would give it to my grandson who lives in a windose only home and just use an iPad when away from the iMac
Regards,
Gary
 

chscag

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I think for those folks who have a MacBook Pro or Air, an iPad may be redundant. I sold my MacBook a while back and replaced it with a 3rd generation iPad with 4G. But I also have a Mid 2011 iMac in my home office which I use for all our work. The iPad is great when we're away from home and need internet access. I even started using the Verizon free hot spot feature with our iPad. Not the greatest up and down speeds, but works well enough when we are out of range of WiFi.
 

RavingMac

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I have a 15in MBP and iPad2. For file creation or work of any kind the MBP is far and away superior.

But, for consumption, web browsing, reading etc the iPad gets all the love. I use it about ten times as much as my MBP, but it isn't a replacement for it IMO.
 
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Tks Guys,

Amazing how each post contributes a lot more info,
My plan is starting to come together, tks to those contributors, that has made the decision making a whole lot easier,
The plan ATM,
Get iMac,
Get iPad, (going to be a good "toy" in any case ;D
Get a little Mac laptop if I need one, have noticed there are very slim, small, and compact laptops in the Mac range, and, IMHO, not as price prohibitive as they used to be,
I had a look at changing to Mac a long time ago but then prices were a lot higher, now the gap is closing,
Regards,
Gary
 
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I bought an 11 inch refurbished MacBook air when the new MacBook Airs came out. Everyone told me I would stop using the iPad. What I found is if I am sitting desk creating content I would use the MacBook air. If I am anywhere else, or mainly consuming content - I pull out the iPad. Just like Razormac.

I'm posting on the iPad - and the dictation function is quite good. I don't have to type as much.

Thirdly - battery life is far and away superior on the iPad. I travel a lot. For standard tasks like email web browsing etc. I'd rather use iPad while traveling so that my battery lasts longer. I'm not always near an outlet. Plus you can get all kinds of external USB batteries to help out the iPad if you really need it. I've found that the iPad easily lasts 10 hours if you turn down the brightness. At best the Air lasts around five hours. Usually less when the screen is turned up or the keyboard backlight is used.

For photography - the resolution of the iPad is also much better than any of the Airs. I bought Air Display so I could use the iPad as a second display. Not great for active content but works well for picture viewing as well as document viewing.
http://avatron.com/apps/air-display/
 
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Hi Ivan.

>Thirdly - battery life is far and away superior on the iPad.
That is very interesting, that factor alone would get me over the line for the iPad,
I have many 12v cigar lighter connections in my 4x4, guess there must be a 12v charging option
Regards,
Gary
 
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There are a bunch of dual USB 12v chargers that can provide 2 amps. I bought one off of amazon - works for charging the iPad and iPhone. Can't find the one I bought anymore but anything that provides 2 amps should work.
 
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Sounds good Ivan,

Earlier in this post, it was indicated that the iPad only took Apple software, does that apply to Adobe also? Adobe appears to "fit" most Apple hardware,
Regards,
Gary
 

CrimsonRequiem


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Earlier in this post, it was indicated that the iPad only took Apple software, does that apply to Adobe also? Adobe appears to "fit" most Apple hardware,
Regards,
Gary

Depends if Adobe wants to make apps for iOS. Apple and Adobe aren't exactly best friends. :p
 
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Depends if Adobe wants to make apps for iOS. Apple and Adobe aren't exactly best friends. :p

All one can do is hope I guess, most pro image editing is using Adobe products on a Mac so I guess Adobe has to make it work
Regards,
Gary
 

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