iPad Pro Vs. MacBook: Is The Tablet A Laptop Replacement?

The latest version of the iPad Pro from Apple has been given the M1 chip as a processor. This is the same processor that works in the MacBooks. In addition, the iPad Pro has up to 2 TB of hard disk space and up to 16 GB of RAM. With this hardware, the question arises: Can the iPad Pro replace the MacBook in the meantime? 

To find out, let’s look at how the iPad Pro fares against a MacBook in various everyday situations. We assume that you use the iPad Pro with a keyboard and an Apple Pencil to get as close as possible to the MacBook.

Word Processing: Better Typing With The MacBook

Many office workers rely on word processing in their day-to-day work. That is why the iPad Pro should master this discipline at least as well as the MacBook. As an input device with the MacBook, you get a fully-fledged illuminated keyboard firmly anchored to the device. Usually, this is very well made and is ideal for typing texts. 

With the iPad Pro, on the other hand, you are spoiled for choice. It does not have a keyboard by default but is compatible with various Apple and third-party keyboards. If you choose the Magic Keyboard from Apple, you put a little more money on the table, but you also get an excellent input device. The advantage of the iPad is that you have a choice here. 

The following vital point in word processing is software. With the MacBook, you work with macOS while moving with the iPad with iPadOS. Most typing involves juggling different sources – text documents, websites, spreadsheets – which are best opened simultaneously so that you can switch back and forth quickly. macOS offers a seamless user experience here, as you can use the operating system to open several programs simultaneously and distribute the windows on the screen as you wish.

But even under iPadOS, you can now start several apps and run them on the split-screen. You also have the advantage that the iPad Pro has a touchscreen to draw with the Apple Pencil. So you can also quickly save notes or drawings. 

Overall, you can create and edit texts with the iPad Pro and a Magic Keyboard just as well as with a MacBook. If you’ve only used Apple’s laptop before, you will probably need a little getting used to it, but the iPad Pro doesn’t have any significant disadvantages here. With the touchscreen and Apple Pencil, it sometimes even offers you more functionality.  

Films And Series: Resolution And Size

After your work is done, you can use the tablet or laptop to watch your favourite series. Above all, the display is a decisive factor: You can get the iPad Pro with either an 11-inch or 12.9-inch liquid retina display. The MacBook’s collections range from 13.3 inches on the MacBook Air to 16 inches on the giant MacBook Pro. 

So when it comes to size, the MacBooks have the edge. But of course, size is not everything: resolution is also a decisive factor. This is measured in PPI, which stands for pixels per inch, i.e. pixels per inch. The higher this number, the sharper the image on the screen. With the iPad Pro, you get a pixel density of 264 PPI for both screen sizes. With the MacBooks, however, the MacBook Pro has the highest resolution with 254 PPI. Apple’s laptop doesn’t even come close to the iPad Pro here. 

Another advantage of the iPad is removing the keyboard if necessary only to have the screen in your hand. This makes it more portable if you want to watch films and series on the go, for example, on the bus or train. Thanks to the higher resolution and more accessible transport, the iPad is also ahead here. A MacBook Pro is probably a bit nicer for streaming films and series in terms of screen size.

Image And Video Editing: Now It’s Time To Turn To The Hardware

Nowadays, image and video editing has become indispensable for many users – most of them want to get the best out of photos and videos, not just professionally but also privately. An actual MacBook replacement like the iPad Pro should be able to do that. With the Apple M1 chip and up to 16 GB of RAM, the iPad Pro provides enough computing power to master these tasks – the necessary software, such as Photoshop and others, is also available on the tablet. 

The iPad Pro even offers a significant advantage for image processing: the touchscreen and Apple Pencil. Both artists and designers can use both to draw directly on the screen. In this way, you create precise images and, for example, place the shading exactly where it should be. This works anything but well with a mouse – if you want to draw with a MacBook, you need extra accessories. 

With a MacBook, on the other hand, you have the advantage of a larger screen, which effectively offers more work surfaces. In many editing programs, you are happy about every inch that you have available. In addition, the MacBooks in the Pro version have an Apple M1 Pro chip. It is even more potent than the standard M1 chip due to more cores in the CPU and GPU. You should get faster results here, especially with video rendering. 

If you want to draw or paint yourself, the iPad Pro is probably a better choice. If video editing is one of your tasks, you will benefit from the larger screen with the MacBook and more computing power in the Pro version. 

Surfing: Anyone Can Do That

Every device should master this essential function – and there is no clear winner here either. You can choose between different browsers on both the iPad Pro and the MacBook, such as Apple’s Safari or Google Chrome. Since both devices support a keyboard and trackpad, navigation works just as well. So in this category, there are no significant differences between the iPad Pro vs MacBook. 

Conclusion: iPad Pro vs MacBook

The iPad Pro can serve as a MacBook replacement on paper. But the performance is exemplary, and iPadOS also offers all the necessary functions. In addition, thanks to the M1 chip, loads of RAM and a hard drive of up to 2 TB, it provides more performance than many office laptops. If you are faced with iPad Pro vs MacBook, the only decisive factor is what you mainly want to do with the device. 

For artists and designers, the touchscreen of the iPad Pro plus Apple Pencil is an excellent function for everyday work. However, if you tend to write and have many tabs and programs open simultaneously, macOS is probably the more apparent operating system. Both versions of the iPad Pro have sharper resolutions for series and films, while the MacBook has a larger screen. You can remove the keyboard of the iPad Pro to make it more portable and more convenient for streaming. 

The price is often a decisive factor: the most miniature version of the iPad Pro starts at 73,700. For the full functionality, you should buy a keyboard and an Apple Pencil. 

The MacBook Air, on the other hand, is available in the cheapest version. For more power and a larger screen with the MacBook Pro versions, of course, you also pay more: The Pro with a 14-inch screen starts at a whopping 1,88,600. 

Still not sure? We prefer a MacBook Air to an iPad Pro. On the one hand, we get a better price-performance ratio here. On the other hand, we are used to the desktop OS and find our way through several tasks and documents faster than with a mobile system.

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