My laptop is fantastically powerful. Not the one my employer expects me to cope with, mind, which is now better suited to frying eggs than computing. But the one I bought for myself so I could edit videos and photos.
My problem is that, when I’m shopping for a device, I tell myself it’s best to spend more now and have the best for a while – and I always want the biggest screen available on my laptop.
That meant a 16-inch M3 MacBook Pro for me. And I should think myself lucky that, as a longtime MacOS user, I’m reluctant to switch to Windows, which offers even physically bigger choices in the form of massive gaming rigs with 18-inch screens.
They, no doubt, would give my back even more to complain about (because I am one of those folk who likes to keep a lot of gear in a good backpack).
The solution is an iPad?
After watching the announcement of iPadOS26 at WWDC25, I let myself think that perhaps the iPad could finally be the solution. I mean it isn’t yet, of course, because only developers have access to the new version of iPadOS. But I can finally be confident that the M4 iPad Pro in stores now is capable of being a lightweight workhorse.
Such is my addiction to the ‘best and most powerful’ that, as I headed into the Apple Store to put real money behind this theory, I still found myself looking very hard at the bigger iPad Pro 13-inch (it comes in 11-inch and 13-inch sizes). How mad is that? I’m looking to get the lightest most portable device and I’m already being lured by bigness.
In the end I resisted (and I am typing this article on an iPad Pro M4 11-inch, in fetching Space Gray). I did “invest” (an odd word for something that will depreciate) in the keyboard, despite my irritation at the cost, because the goal here is a laptop replacement – and typing on a screen is never going to cut it in terms of speed.
So, is the iPad ready yet?
In a word, no. But, since I'm still waiting on the beta of the Apple software shown at WWDC and I'm confident that will come in a few months, that is much less of a concern for me now.
Because it is a lot more ready than I expected, to be honest. And there are real advantages, too. Which I had grown used to not thinking about, because of all the moaning about iPadOS "not being a proper computer" or "being deliberately designed to stay different from MacOS so you have to buy both".
In practice, as it exists now (before iPadOS26), the iPad is pretty keen to make me work in one app at a time, like my phone. This isn't the massive irritation I assumed it would be, but actually seems to help me.
I'm not diagnosed with ADHD, but I'm definitely prone to switching to new tasks before the one I'm working on is complete, and having a full-screen workflow is not actually a terrible thing.
The touchscreen is very natural, too, and I do already, after just a few days, find myself trying to touch things on the screen on my Mac. That might get more problematic over time (especially with the glass interface getting more consistent). But it is a nice thing to have, and it's nice to be able to swipe through my photos.
It doesn't hurt having a decent outward-facing camera on the device, either.
It's lighter, but that's not even the best thing…
For some reason, I've increasingly found that sharing my phone's 5G connection is problematic on my older 2019 MacBook Pro (no problem on the M3). The iPad, meanwhile, can either use its built-in 5G or my phone's connection incredibly easily, meaning work on the move doesn't involve 10-15 minutes of fruitless setup.
Why don't all Apple computers have touchscreens and cellular connections? I don't know. But if they did, I'd only end up buying the heaviest one again. For a spell, at least, my back can rejoice!
Check out our guides to the best iPads for photographers, and to the best Macbooks for photo editing
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