What are you using your iPad for?

Hardware
1

I saw the Apple event when they showed the new iPads and I have been thinking of use cases for the Ipad. I study at university (computer science) and can see some things that can be a good use. But i am keen on hearing what you guys do with your iPads?

2 Likes
2

My thread about my experiment with the iPad will give a good idea of how I use it.

3

Welcome! The main things I do with an iPad relevant to a CS degree are:

  • Read and mark up text (articles, papers and books)
  • Organize what people are saying. Sometimes it’s just for my benefit; other times I’m making an artifact to share later or to inform a longer writeup at a desktop/laptop
  • Noodle on system design/coding problems/opportunities

Students seem to be all over the place in tablet use depending on learning/thinking styles, nature of coursework and obligations outside of class.

1 Like
4

When I was in school I used OneNote on the iPad a lot. It can handle pictures well, imports PDFs, and you can use the Pencil to mark up everything. MS also has a math app that was handy for writing equations and solving them for you, but last time I tried it (it’s been a year or two) the text recognition was really bad for some reason. The iPad was near perfect for my uses back then (I also used a MS Surface one year, which is also great for school and it gives you the option to run PC software that you often need in school).

Nowadays I have far too many iPads since I never sell the old models until the battery is all but dead. They are mainly entertainment devices for me. For the stuff I want to do (Excel mostly), I have too many issues with app compatibility and the Files app. I do use Obsidian on them a lot, but mainly they are for YouTube, music, etc.

I replaced my HomePods with iPads. So now whenever I need to turn on/off lights, add a reminder, etc, I always have Siri close by.

5 Likes
5

I’m at the opposite end of a CS career having retired 10 years ago. I use my iPad mainly for reading - books, magazines, newspapers, and other content. I also use a lot of apps that are more convenient than using a web browser like accessing financial accounts, entertainment, and smart home devices. I find the iPad easier than my iPhone with the larger screen and bigger keyboard.

6

I use it for all kinds of stuff, probably the device I love the most working on/with for most stuff.

  • Social media (this forum + Mastodon)
  • note-taking (Obsidan mostly these days, but GoodNotes is great with the Pencil too)
  • web lookups
  • vector drawing and other fun in Affinity Designer
  • photo editing (Photos, Affinity Photo, Adobe Lightroom)
  • playing music (Tidal, Sonos)
  • news, weather
  • processing email
  • work stuff in the Office 365 suite (Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint, Sharepoint etc)
  • mind mapping / visual thinking (Mindnode)
  • a few silly games
7

Everything!

All the casual, general computing:

  • Email
  • Tasks
  • Web browsing
  • Mastodon
  • RSS
  • Movies/TV

Work stuff:

  • Document design/layout with Affinity Publisher, Designer, Photo
  • Writing/blogging with Textastic and Obsidian. Publish to micro.blog with iA Writer
  • Create and manage existing websites with Textastic

Work, hobbies and fun

  • Photo management and editing with Photos, Photomator, Darkroom
  • Accounting and invoicing with Numbers
  • Shortcuts for all sorts of things
  • Amateur astronomy with Sky Safari, Numbers (tracking, recording observations) and Procreate for sketching/painting objects
  • Family genealogy/historical research with FreeForm/Photos/Notes
  • Podcast editing for a local library project with Ferrite
  • Occasional, for fun video editing projects with LumaFusion