Thinking of getting an iPad for school? READ THIS

The iPad has made itself so much more useful and attractive to uni students like myself with improvements to iPadOS, the apps available and accessories. This begs the question, how “laptop-replaceable” is it? 👨‍💻

I’ve bought this iPad Pro M1 (11-inch) model last year and spent 1 year with it in university and internship. 🏫 Here are my thoughts on this nifty device:

🔴 THE GOOD 👍 : BEST way to take notes and read documents 📝

The iPad is hands-down the best device available today to take down notes in class and do your readings. Spend the $150 to get an Apple Pencil and it makes note-taking so much easier and hassle-free, especially if you love writing and/or need to take down mathematics equations.

The size, orientation and touch display also makes reading and highlighting fuss-free. I’ve actually enjoyed reading more on the iPad compared to paper print-outs.

🔴 THE MEH 👌 : Portable enough 👜

Weighing around 1 kg without any case or keyboard, it is definitely easy to carry around and lighter than most laptops in the market. However, if you decide to slap on a case and keyboard, the weight is more or less comparable to a lightweight laptop (like your Macbook Air or LG Gram). Still, it offers more flexibility than your existing laptop and makes working on the train easier.

🔴 THE BAD 👎 : Don’t expect to be able to DO EVERYTHING here 📵

As a uni student, writing papers and reports are second nature. What makes the iPad so ineffective is that apps available to help you write like Google Docs or Word are not the full-fledged versions you find on your computers. That said, it can’t format papers properly and tools to help you do citations are not baked in by default. Don’t get an iPad thinking that you can avoid using your laptop again.

🤔So, should you get an iPad? If you can afford it and write often, it can help you a lot in being more productive in class. You can also get accessories like a USB-C Hub to plug in a keyboard, mouse or display out to a larger display, or a USB-C thumbdrive to transfer files easily between devices.

💻 These will make your iPad experience more fruitful, but you should be aware that it is insufficient especially for students taking any course that needs specialised applications (MatLab, Adobe Creative Suite, SPSS, AutoCAD).

Do I have any regrets? Not really, but I wish I can find more opportunities to use my iPad. However, I find myself using my desktop more as I work faster on it, so my iPad has become a glorified Kindle reader. 📖

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