Would Like to Hear About People's iPad Experience

By Scott Duck, 11 June, 2019

Forum
iOS and iPadOS

I'm thinking about giving the iPad another try. I once had one but it was a iPad 3, running IOS 9. In recent years, significant advances have been made on the iPad side of IOS, in terms of multitasking functionality, and iPad OS promises to bring even more. On the one hand, between my iPhone and my Mac, I can already do everything I need to do. On the other hand, I have often found that I don't know what advantages a device might offer until I get it and actually start playing around with it. So, given the current state of things with IOS and upcoming iPad OS, I just may give the iPad another try.

That said, I'm curious, for those of you with an iPad and using Voice Over, what has your experience been like, good or bad? What do you use your iPad for? What advantages have you found a iPad to have over an iPhone? What disadvantages have you found? Do you prefer iPad Mini, regular iPad, or iPad Pro, and why?

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Comments

By tunmi13 on Saturday, July 6, 2019 - 16:36

It's been a rough journey until I switched to the iPhone side of things, mostly because of the fact that it is portable and easy to take around with me.
Anyway, my experience? It was a hard one. I started with an iPad Mini, the first model, handed down to me by my parents because they no longer needed it.
I really struggled with the iPad, mostly because the screen was rather big and my hands were still rather small then, being in about third or fourth grade.
Anyway, I started with iOS 5 something, can't remember what exactly. I used my parent's Apple ID for app downloading, and got intrigued with downloading apps.
The problem with this, was that I had no clue inaccessibility was a thing, my small brain miscalculated and thought "I can play anything!"
So that's when I learned I couldn't actually do that. Until my VoiceOver skills improved.
The first accessible game I downloaded by searching audio racing games was one by Marty Schultz called "Blindfold Racer". I was intrigued with the game and loved it, every single scenario.
My journey stopped at iOS 9.3.5, the last version my iPad would ever update to, since it was 32-bit. By that point, my iPad decided its time was up, and began to crack, glass piece by glass piece. Slowly the top left area of the screen had completely cracked, exposing the strange rubbery substance beneath it.
My parents had gotten a new iPad, the second model of Apple's Mini generation. I used that until iOS 11.2-ish, then received my first iPhone for Christmas, a 6S.
I've been using the 6S ever since, I prefer it over the iPad. However, going back to the iPad is your decision. In fact, I did use a Bluetooth Keyboard with it and it worked as a perfect laptop for awhile, then the keyboard stopped working.
I've heard that iPadOS is going to be a great laptop replacement and it may be worth some consideration.
Hope this helps!

By Scott Duck on Saturday, July 6, 2019 - 16:36

Thank you for sharing your experience Tunmi. Just to clarify, I would not switch from the iPhone to the iPad but I may get a iPad in addition to keeping my iPhone.

By Yvonnezed on Saturday, July 6, 2019 - 16:36

Hi. I've been using an iPad Pro as my primary machine basically since the first one came out. Obviously, that means I'm using a 9.7, so I have no comments about larger screens, other than if you think a mini or 9.7 is hard anything larger would be worse.

I really enjoy it. I like the apps, I like being able to see two apps on the screen at once without switching. I like choosing whether I want a keyboard or not depending what I'm doing. I actually like having to learn spacial orientation on a screen. As a blind person using a Mac, I always had windows all over the place and never really understood window placement and layout all that well. An iPad is much more concrete that way, so if it's useful for you to know how things are layed out on a screen, it's a lot easier.

The other point I'd make is that it is not an iPhone. I honestly believe if you don't at least try to work out roughly where things are on the screen and tap close to them and instead just start randomly right and left flicking, it'll be a lot harder. Spending some time really using the iPad a lot, particularly in the beginning, rather than just using a device that's easier for you instead is also pretty important. I used an iPad mini like that years ago and never got comfortable with it.

By Chris Hill on Saturday, July 6, 2019 - 16:36

I really don't like having more than one thing on the screen at a time, finding the part of settings you're trying to use is annoying with all the rest of the stuff still there. I've never quite managed to touch type on my ipad, and for the typing I need to do, my phone is quicker. I'm using an ipad running IOS11, and I probably need to update to something newer or quit using the insecure old thing. I haven't quite decided if I want another ipad, or just buy the newest version of the ipod, depends on how much smaller it is than my phone, I guess. I like having two apple devices, much easier to stream a podcast on something connected to my stereo other than the phone I like having on me at all times.

By Ishkabibble on Saturday, July 6, 2019 - 16:36

Hello,

My iPad experience was great from the beginning. I got my first Apple device, (my iPad Air 2 that I still use today), in the summer of 2017. It was a slight learning curve, but for me, the 2-pane layout of applications and large screen felt quite intuitive. It gave me a freedom to not feel very cramped when doing anything, as I always had ample screen real estate at my disposal.

I got my first iPhone September of last year. The iPhone is basically a smaller iPad, with some compromises, (you can't have 2-pane applications like you could have had on an iPad.) Overall, I think the iPad is a great platform because of the extra space and multi-tasking.

Apple sells many current-generation iPads that are very inexpensive compared to their iPhone counterparts. Most people recommend the new iPad Air for its balance of iPad Pro-level features and refinements with compromises that keep the cost down, while still being a great product. If screen real estate is an issue, the new iPad Mini, with its smaller screen, might be a good choice. Both new iPads have the latest processor (the A12 Bionic found in the iPhone XS, XR, and XS Max), so they should be able to hold up for several years.

By Yvonnezed on Saturday, July 6, 2019 - 16:36

In reply to by Ishkabibble

I'm not positive, but I actually wonder if the mini in some ways is actually harder than something like the 9.7 or larger. It really is a completely different mindset if you're used to iPhones, particularly the really small ones like the 5S or the SE. Until I really started thinking a lot more about where things were and started moving my hand to where that thing was before touching the screen, it was a real slog.

That's why I said you should probably try to use it a lot in the beginning. Once you get it, you're fine, but the totally lost feeling in the beginning is real. Now that it's clicked for me though, it's the best computer I've ever used, bar none, and I've been using computers for at least 30 years.