There are many uses for the iPad, but in this article, I narrowed down my top five reasons why you should consider buying an iPad.
So, without further ado, let’s get into it.
Reason #1: iPad is a great decision for school
I’ve used an iPad for school for the past three years. And honestly, upgrading to an iPad from a notebook was probably the best decision I ever made for college. So if you have the means to do it, go ahead and do it, because it was the best decision I ever made.
So, why do I think an iPad is a great purchase for school? Well, i used the iPad for a bunch of things—from taking notes to watching lectures to taking notes while watching lectures on the same device. It eliminated the struggle of not having enough space for my laptop and my notebook on the same table. It also got rid of the fact that I had to buy notebooks, pens, highlighters, and all that school stuff every year.
Yes, I spent a pretty penny on my iPad. But after the first year of school, it basically paid for itself due to the fact that I’m saving money because I can buy an ebook version of the overpriced textbooks for my classes. And those ebooks are like a quarter of what a regular textbook costs. Seriously, the most that I’ve ever been asked to pay for a textbook was over $450. Some schools have books that are up in the thousands. And that same year, I had two other classes that told me I needed other textbooks that were both $200 each. That’s over $850 in textbooks, and the iPad was $700 with Apple’s education discount, and it came with a free set of AirPods.
But you don’t have to be like me and buy the iPad Pro. You can go with a regular iPad and still use one of the Apple Pencils that they have. Apple sells an Apple Pencil for iPads that don’t support magnetic charging like the older generations of iPads. This Apple Pencil, instead of plugging into the bottom of the iPad and looking like a weird antenna, you just pull on the top of the pencil, and it reveals a USB type C plug for you to charge with the same cord that you use to charge the iPad.
Reason #2: iPad is a great tool for creatives
The second reason that you should purchase an iPad is because it is a great tool for creatives, especially for people not like me who can draw and paint, as well as people who are like me who like to edit photos on the go. The Apple Pencil is what makes this fact shine the most, with features like being able to make fine-tune adjustments without your finger getting in the way and the ability to press harder to make darker or bigger marks when you’re drawing. Also, being able to double tap on the pencil to switch to the eraser, taking out the multiple-step process of going to the tool menu of whatever app you’re using and picking the eraser tool, is a plus.
I wish to mention that I’m not a drawer, as previously stated, but I have friends who do draw, and the apps that they use to take advantage of the Apple Pencil’s features are apps like Procreate, where you have endless brushes to take you wherever your imagination can take you.
Aside from the portability, if you’re a photographer like myself, it’s a great tool too. Adobe’s made apps that work great on the iPad. Apps like Lightroom and Photoshop are a breeze to use and edit with. Sometimes when I’m editing photos, I like to specifically edit photos on my iPad. It’s great because when I’m done editing whatever photo I’m editing, I can save it directly to my iPad. And because of iCloud, the photo will automatically sync to my iPhone and is ready to post on Instagram or Facebook or whatever app that keeps me up at night.
Reason #3: iPad is a great streaming device
The third reason for purchasing an iPad is the fact that it is a great experience for streaming on. Mostly, everyone has turned to streaming for their entertainment needs, and the iPad just makes that better. Using it to watch your favorite YouTuber or watching your favorite show on Netflix or any other streaming service is great. Yes, you can do that on your phone and on your laptop, but with the iPad, you have a bigger screen. It’s more portable than having to bring around a laptop, and you can always get an iPad that’s hooked up with your cell service provider and not have to worry about finding access to Wi-Fi.
Also, most of the models of iPad have stereo audio, meaning that they have speakers at the top and bottom of it. So when you turn it on its side, you have speakers to the left and right of you, making the audio experience top-tier. Or you can always go with how I listen to whatever I’m watching on my iPad and use my AirPods.
Reason #4: iPad can be a great alternative to a laptop
The fourth reason is that it can be a great alternative to a laptop. There are loads and loads of accessories that you can get to enhance the experience that you can have with the iPad—keyboards, mice, a screen protector that makes it feel like you’re actually writing on paper. And with the fact that the iPad comes with USB type C now, you can use external hard drives without a dongle to unload or, in my case, load things like scripts onto it. So I can use it as a teleprompter.
Apple does make its own keyboard that doubles as a case that effectively turns your iPad into sort of an all-in-one computer. The keyboards from Apple range from $159 to $299 depending on the features and the type of iPad that you decide to purchase. And don’t worry, there are cheaper options that you can choose from on Amazon. If you’d like to read a review of cheap iPad keyboards, please let me know down in the comments.
Now, maybe an attached keyboard isn’t necessarily your style. You can always use any wireless keyboard that has a Bluetooth connection with the iPad. Personally, whenever I don’t feel like writing my notes, I’ll connect my Logitech MX keys to the iPad and use that. I like the feel of a full-size keyboard because of the 10-key number pad, but they have the MX keys mini that comes without the 10-key as well. Side note: they also have a mechanical keyboard, and it’s pretty cool.
Reason #5: iPad is an excellent gaming device
The fifth and final reason why you should buy an iPad is because of gaming.
What?
Yes, you heard me right. I said gaming in the context of an Apple product, but it’s true. Apple has a list of games that are being offered to play on the iPad. Titles include Minecraft, Call of Duty Mobile, Resident Evil Village, and Mario Kart, with more titles to come to the Apple ecosystem, according to Apple. The gaming experience is enhanced due to the fact that you can use a gaming controller like the one you might use for your Xbox One or PlayStation 4 to play games if you don’t want to use the touchscreen. This also makes it so that you no longer have to hold onto the iPad when you’re using it—just play. I can imagine sitting at an airport with a long layover, throwing in my AirPods, connecting my controller, and just passing the time.
That’s it for this article. As always, I’m going to throw it back to you. Do you use the iPad? What kind? And what’s your favorite feature? Let me know in the comments below.