So, I’m planning to get another laptop-like device. My main purpose is writing, because I don’t enjoy writing at my PC and I know I would be a lot more comfortable with something I can write on while sitting on the couch. By writing I mean recreational fiction, something I used to do really well but am now way out of practice.
Then there’s the little fact of Diablo III being released in May. It would be ideal if I could play it on a laptop, but if I need to, I can just play it on the PC.
I guess my main question is, how adaptable is the iPad for writing? I’ve seen that they can be set up sort of like a laptop, with an external keyboard, but I’m not sure how well they approximate the laptop feel. Also, I’m not sure if I really need an iPad. How are they different from laptops?
I used to have a wonderful MacBook Pro but I was hoping for something a little smaller and lightweight, like a netbook (but with a full sized keyboard.) Do they even make tiny Macs?
There’s an ultraportable 11" version (that’s the “$999” one) and a 13" (more comfortable viewing).
The 11" is droolingly slim and might be fine for writing if you can handle the tiny screen. I was looking seriously at a 13" but the processor at the time (I was in the market ~1 year ago) was lacking. I ended up with a 15" macbook pro.
IMO The most amazing thing about the 11" is what it’s like when it’s closed, which doesn’t say much for the rest of it.
There will be wildly differing opinions on this, but IMO even with an external keyboard, an iPad will likely be insufficient for anything more complex than a blog.
Wait a couple of months. There will be new models of MacBook Air and Pro, and reportedly the new MBP’s will be thinner and lighter.
The MacBook Air doesn’t have an optical drive, and a 13" screen isn’t much bigger than an iPad (@9.5x7")- so I’d go for an iPad with an external keyboard. There are ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ keyboards available; the ‘hard’ has a much more laptop-like feel.
Either choice means Diablo III is confined to the pc, olives!
I agree with the comment above about the new MacBook Pro/Air models due this summer. Either an excellent time to get a sale or refurb item or a chance to get a better, faster etc model.
Regarding Diablo III, Win7 runs happily on MacBooks, natively, dual boot or under a VM. All you need is enough disk space for a minimal Win7 install. I’d bet that Diablo would be fine too, but don’t know for sure.
I have my MacBook Pro set up to dual boot into Windows 7 or OS X and it works beautifully. That’s how I do my PC gaming. (I have a virtual machine setup for my Windows-only indexing software, but I go ahead and boot straight into Windows for gaming.) Just make sure the laptop has the specs to run the game, obviously.
Personally, if I intended to use the device for a lot of writing, I would not go with the iPad. I really don’t feel like that’s what they’re designed for. Yeah, you can hook up an external keyboard, but if you’re going to be using it for that, I’d go with the laptop instead.
I have both an iPad and a Macbook Air and I can say, without a doubt, the Air gets FAR more use than the iPad. Even for quick web browsing. Browsing the web on an iPad is not bad but doesn’t compare to a proper computer. The air is incredibly light and small, the touch pad is awesome, its much faster online, is also “instant on” like the iPad and works for all your computing tasks. The advantages of the iPad are that the battery life is pretty great and it is certainly cheaper than an air. Even my wife, who does nothing beyond web browsing, won’t use the iPad for anything anymore now that the novelty has worn off.
With that said I bought an alienware laptop and gave the air to my wife just so I could play D3 when I travel.
I love my MacBook Air, it’s the perfect couch computer and a joy to type on, plus the trackpad is fantastic. I disagree with one of the earlier posters, the 13" screen is indeed much larger than the iPad.
Well, I ended up going with the iPad 2. Right now I’m writing using an external keyboard and it seems to be working pretty well. I thought very serously about the Air, but it bothered me that it’s flash drive only storage. At that price I may have well have sprung for a Macbook Pro. Also, I think it’s ugly.
I actually just got rid of my Macbook Pro, well, I gave it away over Christmas, and I decided I wanted something lighter weight.
So… iPad. I almost went with the Samsung Galaxy, because I think Droid is superior to OSX, but they didn’t have the kind of accessories I needed to turn it into a writing machine. So… iPad.
I recently took my iPhone into the Apple store to get something fixed and while I was there, I mentioned to a sales guy that I’d like some sort of portable situation, but wasn’t sure if I want the new iPad or something else.
After quizzing me on my needs (websurfing, typing things up, launching our business’s Citrix server, etc) and what I do and don’t like about my iPhone (I HATE TYPING ON MY IPHONE!), he suggested I look at an Air. I said, “Well, can’t I just get a keyboard for the iPad?” and he said yes, but then I’ve got an iPad and a keyboard. . . which isnt any smaller than an Air would be.
I didn’t buy an Air that day, but I waited a few weeks and ordered a refurbed one on Apple’s site last week. Should be here Tuesday!
