iPad Pro vs Mac book for college?

Since the iPad Pro is a tablet and not a real computer as the MacBook Pro is, it will not be able to do all of the things that the MacBook Pro can do.

The largest draw back to the iPad Pro is that it runs the mobile firmware, iOS whereas on the other hand the MBP runs OS X which is a variant of Unix.

Another short coming of the iPad Pro with iOS is that it does not have a file system. Instead the data is stored as part of the application. This a far more limited implementation then file system used by the MBP and HFS+.

Further more the number of accessories that can be attached to an iPad Pro are far more limited then what can be attached to the MBP.

The iPad Pro with Apple Pencil using GoodNotes 4 is the best and most powerful note-taking mechanism I have ever used. And I've used many since i started college in 1978 and went to medical school from 1984-87. The only rival was the Livescribe Echo SmartPen because it could record an play back what was being said exactly while you were writing something. But the Livescribe 3 was a terrible disappointment because it did not record by itself but requires a pairing with an iPad/iPhone that you have to be sure is on and the microphone not blocked. An the ink cartridges are terrible. Very low-quality ink and barely last a few pages.

I still take a lot of notes. For college, I would think that you could easily get by with the iPad Pro instead of a laptop. Taking notes with and Apple Pencil is easier and quieter than with a keyboard and allows you to easily draw diagrams while taking notes. I love it. It certainly will not to everything that a MacBook will do, but I believe it can do everything a student needs it to do, ans some of it (note-taking) better.

You are studying a professional scientific discipline that relies heavily on computation resources to do the work you plan to do. Buy a proper computer, not a tablet - you'll need it before your degree is over. If I were you, I'd be looking at the MacBook Pro line. If nothing else, you're going to be writing papers that are best done on a true multi-tasking operating system (so you can use a word processor, citation manager, spreadsheet, and other scientific and graphics programs simultaneously. You are also likely to be working with a variety of file types, so an un-restricted file system will become more than merely a convenience feature.

I'm a toxicologist and biostatistician/bioinformatics professional - while I love and use my iPad Pro for work related things (mainly meeting notes, project management and mobile email when not at my desk) I could not possible do what I need to as a scientific professional without a true computer system as well (writing complete technical manuscripts on an iPad would be a huge PITA, if even truly possible which IMO is not so).

So the best solution is more likely a Microsoft Surface Pro or Surface Book than a Mac laptop, so that one can do all of those things and take notes without a keyboard. Too noisy and too awkward primarily because you can't draw.

sallenmd wrote:

So the best solution is more likely a Microsoft Surface Pro or Surface Book than a Mac laptop, so that one can do all of those things and take notes without a keyboard. Too noisy and too awkward primarily because you can't draw.

It's been a while since you were in college. 😉 Using laptops in class is quite normal. Unless someone is really hammering on the keys, I doubt the noise would be considered unacceptable.

Personally, I prefer to take notes using a keyboard as my handwriting is execrable.

sallenmd wrote:

So the best solution is more likely a Microsoft Surface Pro or Surface Book than a Mac laptop, so that one can do all of those things and take notes without a keyboard. Too noisy and too awkward primarily because you can't draw.

No, I would not want a Surface Pro either if I was studying biomedical physics. This is a computationally intensive discipline where a great deal of professional work is still done at the command line in UNIX/Linux or using computational intensive applications for OS X or Windows. A nice 4-core i7 OS X machine could meet all foreseeable usage for such a degree very well. IMO a Surface Pro would not come any closer to sufficing than an iPad would, which is to say neither is ideally suited for that sort of degree. A student studying for such a degree needs something far more capable than merely taking notes or completing a couple of term papers - unless they are going to purchase multiple pieces of hardware.

Get either the brand new MacBook with 512 GBs of storage or a well spec'd 13 or 15 inch screen MacBook Pro.

iPad Pro isn't quite there yet as a super powerful laptop/MacBook replacement.

It still an iOS driven device that IS less powerful for what you need it to do.

Also, trying to make ANY iPad into a much more kludgy laptop/MacBook wannabe is just ridiculous and futile.

Get the right tool for the right job!

You need a MacBook NOT an iPad Pro.

iPad Pro is really a downgrade from ANY MacBook model.

Good Luck!

The answer you seek depends solely upon the needs of your academic program. Macbook and iPad are both fantastic computers with robust software application libraries, and I can attest to that fact given that I have used both devices during my academic career. You will find that bth devices offer amazng academic software for students. That said, you are better off asking your department which software applications (if any) are required for your academic program. In the event that there are no preferred applications or computers, investate the applications available on Macbook and iPad to see which offers specifically what you need. Best of luck choosing an Apple computer to assost you in college.

Meg St._Clair wrote:

Using laptops in class is quite normal. Unless someone is really hammering on the keys, I doubt the noise would be considered unacceptable.

Personally, I prefer to take notes using a keyboard as my handwriting is execrable.

So what do you recommend when the instructor draws a graph or diagram? Take a picture? Use a paper and pencil?

Actually you can do exactly that - with the iPhone / MBP combination - it is unbeatable - also as others have mentioned - I use OneNote and I do critical care as well as teach both medical school and medical informatics - by far the largest portion of students in either of my classes have MBP's whether they are in med school or residency or in the University bioinformatics program - given its ability to capture video clips as well as excerpts from web pages I find OneNote an extremely good add on

With AirDrop and the ability to have OneNote on the iPhone - you will not regret going down the MBP route

With apologies to bobseufert - I have never really taken to the iPad per se as a serious computing instrument for the professional (My own personal opinion only)

EDIT: Being able to control Keynote with the iPhone app as you walk in the audience while giving a presentation is a nice perk as well - just had a lecture two days ago - the smiles on the faces of the other Mac users were in stark contrast to the amazed / envious looks of the Windoze users

Sounds very practical. In my circumstances, I am all over the place taking notes and often have nowhere to set a laptop to type, so the iPad Pro is perfect for me. And as a bonus, it's great for reading digital comics and magazines. Since I have no need to do any "computing" while I am out and about, that can wait until I get back to my regular computer.

If I was a student today, I think my ideal situation would be an iPad Pro and either an iMac or Macbook Pro (maybe with an external 27" monitor at home). But that will be highly dependent upon budget if nothing else. I know a lot of students need or can only afford one device for everything.

Professionally, I do use an iPad Pro and a MacBook Pro, but also about a half dozen other machines including a small Beowulf cluster, some Linux boxes and a Windows i7 desktop. But then, I did not have to pay for all of those with my own money which is the key difference from student days.

I, absolutely, love my large iPad Pro for creative sketching/drawing/illustrative work. I, also, use mine as a laptop replacement for writing notes and quick sketches, typing texts and for other entainment and reading purposes, too!

I am not sure how well iPads do in an educationa/college setting and I am not sure how well it will fare for your medical major, either.

iPads and iOS use scaled down, less feature rich applications than the ones typically available for a normal laptop/desktop computer.

And with iPads and iOS, just about every major tasks you will need to do on an iPad will need its own app where you might be importing/exporting data back and forth through these apps to get the completed task done.

You need to use an iPad in a different way from a normal computer.

That stated, instead of getting the Apple Smart keyboard cover (with the Apple pencil), get the Logitech iPad Pro keyboard case, instead.

Logitech's keyboard is a superior keyoard case to Apple's own keyboard cover, with more keys that are, also, backlit for better visibility in darker environments.

If you decide on the larger, 12.9" screen iPad Pro model, go for the highest 256 GB storage capacity.

The 32 GB storage models (approx. 26 GBs actual data storage space) models are barely adequate for storage of both apps and data and really don't allow for enough wiggle room for free data storage space.

I own the 128 GB storage model (approx. 117 GBs actual free storage space) and while this has been working out just fine for my iPad use, it was the highest storage limit back last Nov., but I like to have the highest storage limit to make sure the iDevices I put to constant use everyday have more than enough needed storage for "future proofing" as I keep my iDevices for more than 4-5 years before replacing them with the newest iDevice available at that time.

In any event, make sure you purchase extended AppleCare for the mobile computing device you end up purchasing.

Also, if you decide on an iPad Pro, make sure you have something or some way to make consistent and reliable backups of the data on a Apple iDevice.

Apple's iDevices are less mature, robust and more fragile devices when it comes to storing important data for the long term.

If you decide on an iPad/iPad Pro, you need to get some sort of local, portable, external storage device to make backups of data stored on an iPad.

Look to something like the SanDisk iXPand Flash Drives for iDevices. Get one that,in a storage size that is, at the very least, half the data storage space size of your chosen iPad data storage size.

Good Luck on whatever you decide.

😉

MichelPM wrote:

That stated, instead of getting the Apple Smart keyboard cover (with the Apple pencil), get the Logitech iPad Pro keyboard case, instead.

Logitech's keyboard is a superior keyoard case to Apple's own keyboard cover, with more keys that are, also, backlit for better visibility in darker environments.

There are numerous reports of the Logitech keyboard badly scratching the iPad Pro screen, and from looking and touching the Logitech, this is no surprise. A screen protector is an absolute must if you buy that keyboard. And it is also large heavy and clunky.

Other than it being heavy and adding some significant weight to the iPad Pro , it is getting many positive reviews from Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-920-007824-Keyboard-Connector-12-9-Inch/dp/B01798 WTD6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1465186581&s…