MacBook or Ipad

Don't want to open a can of worms, and I realize everyone may have different opinions....but....which would you suggest and why: Ipad or MacBook.

I have the Imac at home. The second item would be for mobile use when in other parts of the home or for use in my position at board meetings as president of one of the local German Clubs, or when doing work related to that position while at the cottage.

My thoughts are:
- the MacBook offers it's own "protection" by the fact that it closes/the Ipad should probably get some sort of protective case.
- the MacBook obviously provides a real keyboard vs either the on screen Ipad keyboard or an added keyboard.
- the MacBook probably has a CD drive that the Ipad does not.

So.....I am looking for input from people with experience with these devices, as I have none. Would also be interested in what specs/model years etc to either stay away from or specs you would strongly suggest.

Thanks everyone.

The inclusion of a keyboard, price and weight are probably the key differences between a MB and an iPad. I use a 15" MBP at home and have an iPad mini 2 for bed and travel. I would not want to cart the MBP far, even in a shoulder bag, as it's a beast at 2.04 kilos; the MB is slightly lighter at 1.83 kilos. Even the 10" iPad comes in at under 500gr. I prefer a keyboard for lengthy typing but on-screen typing is fine for a short duration.

I wouldn't use any device without a protective cover and have a (cheap - under £10) see-through moulded case on my MBP to save it from knocks and scratches and a book-style cover (about £20 but cheaper available) for my iPad.

No CD drive on MacBooks/MBP for last couple of years, unless you are looking at an older used model, and no SD card reader either.

Have a look on the Apple website for deals on refurbished products which have a 12-month warranty the same as new.

Good information from Sue.

I personally use a 10.5" iPad Pro with the Apple Smart Keyboard Cover as a portable computer for travel. It's lighter than a MacBook Pro or MacBook and small enough to place in a briefcase or travel bag. I puchased the WiFi only model since I already have an iPhone that I can use for cellular connectivity.

The Apple on line refurbished store (here in the US) has started selling the 2017 MacBook in various configurations. You might want to see if the Canadian store has started selling refurbished iPads and MacBooks. The savings can be as much as 15% or slightly more.

You are comparing two very different types of devices, so your tasks and use will determine which one is better. The iPads (apart from the Pro with pencil) is great at content consumption and workable for content creation as long as you stick to the cloud storage..

The Macbook is obviously great for content creation and equally good for content consumption, but as a pure consumption device it might be a bit of an overkill..

chscag said:

I puchased the WiFi only model since I already have an iPhone that I can use for cellular connectivity.

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Me too and my mobile contract includes personal hotspot so I can connect the iPad to the net if wifi isn't available when travelling. It eats data, however.

OK, thanks everybody for your input.

I would add that the way you intend to use the device is important too.
eg. I receive an email with an attachment.
I save that attachment temporarily to my desktop.
I create a new folder on the desktop and I put the attachment in it after saving it as a PDF.
I then put the new, (now named) folder into my Documents folder.
I save other attachments from the same source directly to that folder by putting a shortcut on the sidebar of my Finder Window.
That's just how I work but I cannot imagine how I would achieve the same on an iPad.


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iPad - Click on attachment, click on upload box, choose your destination from the drop down menu.

One of the uses I need for this device is to create Word documents. Can I assume that there is a version of MS Office that works on an iPad? I'm learning toward the iPad.

Yes, it is available..

Reinyrooster said:

One of the uses I need for this device is to create Word documents. Can I assume that there is a version of MS Office that works on an iPad? I'm learning toward the iPad.

Click to expand...

MS Office for the iPhone and iPad is free, however, they do not allow editing a document on a tablet that is greater than 10". You must subscribe to Office 365 before you can edit documents on an iPad that is greater than 10".

There are alternatives though. I use Polaris Office in conjunction with MS Office to edit documents on my 10.5" iPad. I am not going to pay Microsoft to do edits. The version of Polaris Office for iOS is free and will even use iCloud or OneDrive.

Excellent. Thanks for the info.

badshoehabit said:

iPad - Click on attachment, click on upload box, choose your destination from the drop down menu.

Click to expand...

Ok, I'm not much of an iPad user I admit. What sort of destination options do you get?

I recently lost my iPad 2. One of the things I used it for was reading an online only newspaper but moving to the next topic was painfully erratic. As I am retired I have resurrected a Windows 7 laptop and find reading the newspaper much easier, as it would also be on a MB. As others have said it depends what you want it for.

For things like MailChimp an iPad is not much use.

As far as use of MSOffice for iOS is concerned the iPad 2 is only 9.7" wide so I found it worked fine.

I usually use my smartphone when I am on the move, but I carry my 13" MBP with me if needed mainly because I prefer using Macintosh over iOS when I am at college or work.