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Ted Landau published an article for Macworld today, entitled “Why the iPad still can’t be a true Mac replacement”. In it, he lays out some of the differences between the Mac and iPad, and why, because of those differences, the iPad is not yet ready to be a Macintosh replacement.
Ted is correct in his reasoning for why the iPad isn’t a Mac replacement. The iPad runs a completely different OS with completely different apps. And it does not have the same hardware expansion capabilities as the Mac does, such as the ability to connect to external hard drives and monitors.
At the heart of Ted’s article, however, is this bit about why he is arguing that the iPad isn’t ready to replace the Mac:
[T]here remains a persistent undercurrent in the media predicting an eventual demise of the Mac at the hands of the iPad. Whoa!
I agree with Ted that this undercurrent exists. There also exists a current going the other direction (as Ted demonstrates) stating that there’s no way the iPad could replace the Mac. I think these two “currents” are black and white, overdramatized extremes.
The future of the Mac is not to shrink until it’s the size of an iPad and the two become one. Nor is the future of the Mac to die a slow and painful death as the iPad eventually gains so much marketshare that Apple just shuts down the manufacturing of all their iMacs and MacBooks.
Which is why I think Ted — and anyone else who argues that the iPad cannot be a Mac replacement — is missing the point. The iPad isn’t meant to be a Mac replacement.
The iPad is a Mac alternative — and only if you want it to be.
Nobody is forcing us to use iPads instead of a Macs. There is no law which requires anyone who purchases an iPad to then dispose of their Mac. When you walk into an Apple store to buy a new Mac, you are not asked to prove that your needs are sufficient enough to warrant the use of a Mac rather than an iPad.
Never has Tim Cook said that the Mac and OS X will be phased out and that we had all better learn to love our iPads. In fact, just look at what Apple was up to in 2012: Retina MacBook Pros, new iMacs, and a commitment to an annual update cycle to OS X. That doesn’t look like the demise of the Mac to me.
Arguing about if the iPad is a Mac replacement or not is a bit like arguing about your favorite color. Yes, there are people who would do quite fine with an iPad as their only computer. There are also those who can use the iPad for some work tasks, but not all. And there are those who prefer their iPad for watching videos and reading and that’s about it. And, of course, there are all those in-between scenarios.
It’s no secret that I’m a big proponent of using the iPad as a workhorse device as much and as often as possible. However, it’s not because I’m “training” myself for that fateful day when Apple stops selling Macs. Nor am I against using the Mac — goodness, no. I mean, I’m typing this on my Mac right now.
The reason I chose to work from my iPad when I can is because I enjoy it. I like the change of pace that comes with using iOS. I like aiming to do the same quality of work without all the fancy macros, scripts, and shortcuts I have at my fingertips when on my Mac. I like staying abreast of iOS apps and workflows. And when I’m away from my home office, I love taking the iPad because it’s such a lightweight device with long battery life and LTE connectivity.
But does my iPad replace my Mac? No. Is it an alternative work device when I want it to be? You bet it is.
The iPad is awesome. The Mac is awesome, too. Those two statements don’t have to conflict with one another. The Mac and OS X can be refined and polished at the same time the iPad and iOS are matured and strengthened.1
The iPad’s hardware gets better and more capable every year. And iOS gets better every day. But the Mac doesn’t have to become less in order for the iPad to become more.
It was through this weblog that I cut my teeth on Mac nerdery. It was for the sake of writing about the Mac that I even started shawnblanc.net in the first place. And, over the years, as we’ve come into the age of the iPhone and iOS and iPad, a lot of my affinity for fine software and hardware has shifted from OS X only to iOS as well.
Like others, I too am ever-increasingly interested in getting the maximum utility possible from my iPhone and iPad. However, this growing interest does not prove that the future of the PC is the iPad as it stands today. I believe the whole underlying principle is behind this argument is that the iPad is showing what the future of technology hopefully looks like. It’s a future of extreme simplicity coupled with extreme usability.
Instead of arguing for or against the iPad as a Mac replacement, let’s discover ways to use both devices better.
I want to know how to use both my Mac and my iPad to do my best creative work. And I want to do that work as often as possible while enjoying and exploiting each device’s respective workflows.
Nathan Edwards for the Wirecutter:
Google just announced its first premium Chromebook, the Chromebook Pixel. It’s gorgeous. Unfortunately, it’s so expensive that I can’t think of a single person who should get one.
Pogue’s review doesn’t touch on anything you probably don’t already know about the RX1. But there were two things in particular I liked about his article: (a) his cheesy (literally) 60-second video; and (b) this closing bit about the RX1 being more than just a great camera, it’s a milestone:
In the meantime, it’s fantastic that Sony decided to produce this expensive, astonishing, limited, one-of-a-kind machine. You may scoff at its nonzooming lens, its slowish focusing and its nosebleed price, and that’s fine; in many ways, the RX1 is a proof of concept, a bold experiment, an effort to achieve what’s always been thought unattainable.
Meslo LG is a modified version of Menlo that improves upon one of the typeface’s biggest shortcomings: the tight line spacing. For the longest time I would switch between 11pt Menlo and 13pt Inconsolata about once a month. Then Source Sans Pro came along, and it’s been my daily driver for writing for a while now. But I think I’ll give 11pt Meslo LG M a shot.
Muffling. Brilliant.
“Our giant 80-gauge current is the highest point of perfection yet attained in electric belt making.”
John Gruber, regarding the “simplicity” of iOS:
The utter simplicity and obviousness of the iOS “system”, from a user’s standpoint, is arguably the primary reason iPhones and iPads are so popular. Is such simplicity for everyone? No. Is it suitable for all computers? No. But it is both comforting and comfortable for everyone who’s spent the last two decades more confused than not by their computers.
The utter simplicity of the iOS home screen is Apple’s innovation. It’s the simplest, most obvious “system” ever designed. It is a false and foolish but widespread misconception that “innovation” goes only in the direction of additional complexity.
Rene Ritchie:
From Apple II to Mac to iPad to Siri or whatever’s next, Apple has relentlessly pushed form factor and interface towards the mainstream.
Charlie Kindel, with some additional thoughts to Horace Dediu’s aforelinked article:
[Apple] only focuses on one customer: The Consumer.
In my experience, the behaviors and culture of an organization (large or small) that focuses on the Consumer as a customer is diametrically incompatible with the behaviors and culture of an organization that focuses on Business as a customer.
And, by extension, Mac and iOS 3rd-party developers have the same mindset. Thus the whole ecosystem is one which focuses on the consumer.
Great conversation between Ben Brooks and Marco Arment:
BB: To your point about a fresh take always having a shot, how do you plan on keeping The Magazine fresh — is that solely done through the content, or through exploring more publishing styles and avenues?
MA: I think it’ll be done primarily through content. Content is enough if it’s good.
If you’ve still got some stray websites which use the same few usernames and/or passwords as others, here’s a nice tip for using 1Password smart folders to help you find all those sites so you can work your way through and update them all with unique passwords.
A very transparent look at all the software and services United Pixelworkers uses to ship over 1,000 t-shirts a month. I’ve done two rounds of t-shirt sales myself, and I learned quickly is that (a) there’s not much money in t-shirt sales, and (b) printing, packing, and shipping t-shirts can be a royal pain in the behind. Which is why I think it’s cool that something new United Pixelworkers is now offering is a partnership program, where you design the shirt, they sell and ship it, and you both share in the profits.
P.S. United Pixelworkers was awesome enough to donate a handful of shirts to the membership giveaway.
Horace Dediu:
Put another way: Why is it that everyone wants to copy Apple’s products but nobody wants to copy being Apple?
For the same reason there are people who cook their Thanksgiving turkey in the microwave.