"My decade-old and very well-travelled Toyota Land Cruiser finally died, and I hoped my new-ish ebike could replace it."<p>How that article sounds. I don't care how fancy they make them, iPads are just unserious computing devices for real work.
This was all over the place. The article itself seemingly bares no relation to the headline. Replacing your laptop with a tablet and then complaining that the tablet cannot do the same things as the laptop was a slightly interesting take in 2010. The iPad has now been around for 15 years. A tech journalist being surprised it doesn't have a terminal with root access at this point is baffling.
I guess this kind of article always gets attention, but they always seem so stupid to me.<p>A thing exists that I don't want.<p>I could:<p>(1) ignore the thing; or
(2) complain that the thing isn't something I want<p>(1) seems so obviously the right thing to do. This goes double when <i>the thing you do want does, in fact, exist</i>.<p>But, no, the internet opts for (2). I guess complaining just feels good, even when it's about something that has zero actual effect on you (or on anyone, even).
I dub the distinction between a tablet and a laptop fake. Tbh they are running the same hardware. I started with Android and first things I did on my phones was to install terminal and ssh. Later it became impossible, because of the changes that were being imposed by Google ("for the sake of my safety").<p>What I valued Android over IOS was to have access to my files (like DVD-dumped futurama) that I could watch on them (I did it before it was trendy, before netflix came into phones, moreover before the data transfer got so cheap I could watch a whole movie and not pay through my nose).<p>On IOS it was possible though with VLC - I had to upload there my movies using HTTP server (yes - server had to be on a computer).<p>And then it began! You cannot listen to free spotify on your tablet the same way you got it on your laptop - you have to install an app and it will impose on you different limitations. HEY! This is the same thing as my laptop! HOW CAN YOU TELL!??? AH MY BROWSER WEASELED ME OUT?
I don't understand these articles, they've stumbled upon what many of us have known which is that the iPad just doesn't feel the same as a Macbook laptop. The iPad just doesn't suit what they need, some people it does suit them better, others not.<p>They could've just gone back to the Macbook and left the iPad for others, but felt the need for an article.<p>I was telling people back in 2012 that whilst the iPad is a shiny new thing, it doesn't fit the bill like a laptop and subsequently our staff wanted both laptops and iPads once they realised that.<p>There's a lot of loose connections and frustrations in this article whereby the Surface Pro not being able to upgrade to Windows 11 being another source of issues, whilst this also impacts Desktop users it still wouldn't fix the keyboard and trackpad issues.<p>If you like the Macbook and its functionality, keep buying a damn Macbook then. Apple didn't lock you into anything, you tried to use a different Apple product in the same way you use your Macbook and found out they're not designed to work that way.
>Will we still have just three operating systems to choose from - of which only two are really suitable for a worker's desktop?<p>That's going to go down poorly with the Linux enthusiasts
I don't understand how the author managed to connect iPads running a toy operating system with Microsoft's serious business operating system not being supported on older hardware.
That's why I am still using iPad Pro from 2018. There is nothing in their new iPads that is interesting to me. I don't think I'll upgrade unless any of the following happens: (1) the iPad dies (2) it stops getting any updates and cannot install any apps (3) it can rust Python/Rust/Go/vscode natively at raw performance, without all those stupid, unnecessary sorcery just to make things run at a fraction of real hardware power.<p>Voting with my wallet.
While I think everyone has more than covered the contents of the article, the title is rather ridiculous in itself.<p>(Note original title in source: "Hardware locks us in Apple's and Microsoft's monopoly cages")<p>> Microsoft won't let users upgrade their older boxen to Windows 11.<p>OK but this does not put you in a cage with your older devices. Windows 10 machines are still general computing devices (or personal computer / PC). Eventually, the blocked upgrades will mean the consumer has to choose between installing Linux or buying a new PC.<p>That's a very different choice from what you have as an iPad owner (if it's your only device.) And as others have pointed out, buying that device was a choice. Arguably misinformed if you thought it was a PC when it is, in fact, a closed-source and locked down tablet.<p>You mention a Surface Go - so OK you know what a "tablet" that is designed to be a convertible between laptop and tablet looks like and how it works. But just because Microsoft did that, and Apple <i>kind of</i> advertises the iPad that way, doesn't meant Apple and Microsoft put you in the same cage. In fact, they are quite the opposite!<p>To address that original "monopoly" title - in fact again I think the opposite is happening. Microsoft "forcing" you to purchase something new because you can't "upgrade" to Windows 11. Well actually it drives some people to Linux or Apple. And it's <i>software</i> that is responsible for the issue, not <i>hardware</i>. No wonder you changed the title, but it still doesn't work with your article.
>> Will we still have just three operating systems to choose from - of which only two are really suitable for a worker's desktop?<p>Such an intriguing statement. Firstly there are at least 5 major operating systems in play (windows, MacOS, Linux, iOS and Android. ) Plus a lot of "minor" ones (BSD etc), and any number of tiny ones.<p>But assuming he meant mainstream desktop machines, let's focus on Windows, Mac and Linux. I can only assume the "not suitable for workers desktop " means Linux. Now lots of techies use Linux for desktop, and there are lots who say it could be used as a general desktop, but it hasn't gained much traction there.<p>Linux of course reigns on the server, with Windows Server also strong.<p>Indeed you see this "choice of 2" (with sometimes a distant 3rd) in pretty much all hardware spaces. iOS and Android. Windows and Mac. Windows and Linux. PS5 and Xbox.<p>Notice how it starts first with the function - what the machine is designed to do. Then the mainstream coaleses around 2 players. But often with other minor alternatives.<p>This approach works well. We don't need 5 desktop OSs to choose from. Or 5 servers. Or 5 tablets.
I think there's a difference between Microsoft refusing to support completely operational hardware for their new OS, and Apple not adding extra features / support into a pre-existing product just because the underlying tech is now more powerful.<p>It sounds weird, but going OS #1 -> OS #2, you don't expect your hardware to impact it from a computer point of view. But going from iPad #1 -> iPad #2, why would it all of a sudden have a completely different OS and support when iPad #1 is even still receiving updates?<p>We've reached the age where you need 16GB ram to even keep some tabs open on Mac + Windows, and in terms of versatile computing and gaming I think cloud-based Linux really is the answer. Once it comes time for my next gaming computer upgrade, I'm pretty confident with just using a game streaming platform vs. paying $500 for a new graphics card + anything else (since my current MB doesn't support Windows 11...). Same goes for coding, just connect the IDE to your dedicated cloud box and away you go, all the power and scale you could ever need from $10/mo and up.
Yes? The iPad is a "content consumption" device. With the exception of a few graphics workflows, you're better off with a laptop/desktop.
I admin 150 Windows machines, have set up Linux servers, TBH I am not religious about OS, though Android is my least favorite.<p>I recently got an iPad Air and a MacBook Air 15 to replace older devices (2018 & 2012). The MacBook is lighter and has better battery life than the iPad with Magic Keyboard, wasn't expecting that!<p>My biggest frustration with iOS is how it abstracts & hides away file system access. Especially for producing music across multiple apps I find it much easier on a Mac, same for any programming. Not to mention the dongle-mania for connecting peripherals! An iPad's just an overgrown phone at heart.<p>And...IME iOS doesn't have the same true realtime low latency performance as OSX. I have been able to flog Mac laptops, iMacs & desktops right up to the edge for audio/video production (Logic, iMovie, FinalCut, Ableton Live) and they'll absolutely keep up (within limits like reasonable audio buffer latency settings for complex projects). While iOS can definitely have audible glitches, especially with multiple apps open.<p>But I take the iPad out of the house much more. I think Apple could add touchscreens to laptops without destroying iPad sales, but I don't want them to iOS-ify OSX completely.
> What we see today is the outcome of almost two decades of design choices that have only recently started to accommodate keyboards and external pointing devices.<p>?? I've been using an iPad with folio keyboard for close to a decade and first party apps have always had fantastic support. Even third party is usually pretty good. I don't think the author here has any idea what they're talking about.
I don’t know if the author realised they proved Apple’s point: they have paid money for an ipad but they will pay more money for an m4 macbook air anyway.
Author has not tried WSL - its pretty amazing on windows and is the designated cage breaker for Windows. I run nearly everything inside WSL and all apps runs faster!<p>Thanks to Windows security not scanning files inside WSL, the laptop fan doesn't start spinning up when doing I/O intensive work. Can actually rest the laptop on my lap without wincing.
Back in the 90s John C Dvorak wrote an article calling a Mac a Cuisinart. It was a criticism of Apple that they had created an appliance, not a general purpose computer. Granted the guy hated Macs at the time, but I think it’s a reasonable way to describe an iPad.
Remember Jobs coining the phrase "Post PC era". Good times.<p>There was a period of about two, maybe three years where you saw nothing but tablets outdoors.<p>Now it's very rare for me to see someone tapping away at an iPad out in the wild, all I see are laptops.
Why did the author buy Microsoft and Apple devices and expect them to deliver their customization needs?<p>If I would attempt something like this today, I'd probably buy a used Microsoft Surface tablet from ebay and install Archlinux(ARM) on it, with Plasma Mobile and KDE. In the worst case I log out and log in again after I unplugged the device from its peripherals. And in second worst case I just use its mobile attachable keyboard with it.<p>I guess that was the dream behind the purchases of pinephones and pinetab devices back then, which were too underpowered in terms of CPU and GPU for it.
I’m personally not interested in a mishmash laptop-tablet thing. You end up with a thing that is either good at one and not the other or a thing that is bad at both.
The reasons this article cites are likely why so many of my peers, myself included I have switched to "home servers" to gain any sort of freedom. It's sad that it had to come to this, but for any device that's meant to fit into pocket or move around it's simply not efficient for our kind of consumer to have any control over the design process
I think there was a thread on Reddit recently, where the thread starter had been forced to use his iPad for work a whole day. The user concluded (paraphrasing) "its like replacing a truck with a small sedan. Sure you can still haul many of the same things, but it will require a lot more work and trips back and forth"
“Hey why doesn’t this tablet designed for “pro” web browsing replace my workstation?”<p>I’ve actually seen this sentiment so much from apple “pro” users. They seem to think that because the os feel is similar that it should just work the same. It’s the equivalent of expecting a gaming laptop to perform as well as a PC.
Apple experimented with the iPad head to head with was also experimenting with the 12” MacBook retina which was only 12 lb.<p>If you want something iPad size with a first class keyboard and mouse experience there might not be a better remote terminal than the 12” MacBook (sans touch screen) compared to the iPad
Google Pixels are getting something akin to vm's and wsl. More than dex, but less than full visibility to all of the Android fs.<p>Termux is a halfway house. It's said this will be better.<p>Maybe iPad OS will do this too in the future? It feels like an air with a detachable keyboard is close.
The iPad is in a kind of gray landscape because it is not phone and it is not a Mac but they are treated special like the iPhone so they can put any greed-based limitations they want instead of it becaming a general computer.
Apple's marketing team must be so good if they can convince HN users that an iPad is a suitable replacement for a "real" computer. No one who knows what a terminal or root access even means should be fooled by this.
"Do not buy something for a promise of what it 'could' do, but what it can currently do." I forget who said this, but you just need to follow this rule and you won't have this problem anymore.
iPad is a product segment, its not really comparable with legions of windows 10 machines not getting windows 11, which is vastly the same operating system as 10 with TPM2 and secure boot becoming hard requirements.<p>Yeah it sucks apple doesnt give you root access to your tablet. And it does suck that microsoft wont let us upgrade our PC's. But they are different unique variations on sucking for largely different reasons.
iPads have always been this way, right? They're an appliance, and only a computer in the technical sense. Did the author just learn how to program and he wants a terminal now?
This is pathetic, just get literally any laptop u want.. have one made up if u want, and put linux on it.<p>apple-heads have some sort of bizarre stockholm syndrome thing going on.<p>The mental gymnastics they do are insane. I guess that's what comes from decades of buying the same components as everyone else, but in a shiny box with a shit OS and a 4X markup.
Yet, another I've bought a tablet but should have bought a laptop to replace my old laptop "article". It's not ready, why apple does it like this we don't know... but pretending that we don't know it despite talking about it for 10 or more years is disingenuous and fails the debate at hand.
/s<p>My life would clearly be better if all of my non-programmer non-technical family members and friends, young and old had a terminal and unix user levels exposed to them…