Why I spent $2,400 on an iPad

(And why I probably spent less on my work tools that you did.)

I bought an iPad last week. 

Specifically, a 12.9-inch iPad Pro. The tablet, plus an Apple Pencil and AppleCare+ (plus tax) together cost me $2,259.34. 

I also bought a Pad and Quill Octavo Slim Magnetic Case for iPad Pro 12.9 for $119.95 (no tax or shipping) and a Twelve South Compass Pro folding stand for $59.99 plus $4.35 in tax (no shipping). 

For a grand total of $2,443.63.

The iPad is now my one and only main device. 

All of which raises the inescapable question: “Mike, are you nuts?”

How I got here

I’ve been straddling the fence between Google hardware and Apple hardware for many years. 

Seven years ago, I was mostly Google. I had the the first Google laptop, the Pixel and one of the first Google WearOS smart watches, the Moto 360. I had an Android phone, a MacBook Pro and an iPad.

Three years ago I started using a Google Pixelbook, a Pixel 3 smartphone, plus an 10.9-inch iPad, for both work and recreation. At that point I had given up on WearOK, and went without a smart watch for a couple of years. 

The Apple Watch got so good that I had to have one. So I replaced my Pixel 3 with an iPad because I wanted the Apple Watch. And so the past year and a half I’ve used the Pixelbook as my only Google device, with everything else Apple. 

Huge props to Google for the quality of the Pixelbook. I carried it across the world, used it in some rough places. I banged on the keyboard like a gorilla. And yet it remained perfect, without any damage to the keyboard, screen, touchpad or any other part of it. 

Alas, the battery declined to the point where it would die after just over two hours of use. Something similar happened to my old iPad. The battery lasted just under three hours (down from something like 12 hours when it was new). 

Because I travel so much and work in so many random locations, I can’t afford to run out of battery life. So something had to be done. 

So I decided to go full Apple: Apple Watch, iPhone, iPad. 

The conventional wisdom on using iPads instead of laptops and desktops goes like this: Sure, an iPad is great for lean-back content consumption (and will do in a pinch during travel) but you can’t do real work on an iPad. 

For me, that’s just not true. My work is content creation, specifically writing words, editing and posting pictures and doing podcasts. 

I’m a big fan of using a wireless Apple Magic Keyboard for writing — I even used to flip my Pixelbook around with the built-in-keyboard facing down and use the Apple keyboard to type. Or to use my iPad for writing using the same keyboard. 

Mouse support on the iPad has been a game-changer for me. It completes the usability of an iPad for writing and research. 

Compared to laptops, including the Pixelbook, writing is better on an iPad. Photo editing with an Apple Pencil is better on an iPad. And with the new iPad’s camera settings, doing video podcasts remotely is better on the iPad. 

As a writer, the single most important quality for my digital tools is: What kind of mindset does it put me in? I’ve always loved the iPad for that reason. And that’s especially true now. The iPad is the only device that rewards you for seamlessly using voice, pen, keyboard and touch all without thinking about any of it too much. 

My Pad and Quill case enables me to carry the iPad around in crime-ridden cities and unfashionable districts without screaming to the world, “Apple product with high resale value here!!” But at any moment I can sit down, flip it open, grab the Pencil and pick up on my work instantly. 

My Twelve South stand lets me pull the iPad out if its case (it’s held by magnets and very easy to remove and replace) and switch as needed between portrait and landscape mode. I prefer portrait for reading and writing — 80% of my work — and landscape for most other tasks. 

Going all Apple lets me really take advantage of the unity of Apple’s platforms. By using Apple-made tools like Reminders, Notes, Messages and others I can “read” and “write” to any device and everything is everywhere. The combination of Face ID and my password manager means that I don’t really “use” usernames and passwords anymore. The screen — what Apple calls a Liquid Retina HDR display and which uses mini-LED backlighting — is stunningly good.

The M1 iPad Pro is the most elegant, polished computing device ever created, in my opinion. It’s blistering fast, without a millisecond of hesitation on any action. 

There are downsides to not using the Pixelbook, of course. There is no portable machine I know of that’s faster or better for just using the internet, generally. I’m really going to miss my Chrome extensions. I loved opening 75 bookmarked pages at once with a single gesture. It was easy to manage files. Using Android apps on a laptop-size screen and form-factor was often great. 

In general, some activities take a lot longer on the iPad compared with the Pixelbook. Others are quicker. But in general, the all-Apple approach, and the use of the M1 iPad, are easier, more fun and put my head in a better space for thinking and writing. 

As a bonus, I can now travel with three devices (watch, phone, tablet) rather than four (watch, phone, tablet, laptop).

Why I spent so much on a tablet

In my book, Gastronomad, I wrote a whole chapter on the unexpected economics of living nomadically. And this is one of them. 

While I spent more than most on a tablet, I actually spent less overall. For example, because I live around the world and move probably on average of every month or so, I don’t own a TV. I use the iPad for TV and movies. 

I don’t have the expense of a mortgage or rental that includes an extra room for a home office. I use an iPad that lets me work anywhere. 

I don’t have a desk or office chair. I don’t buy physical books or print publications. I don’t have a sound system. 

As I say in the book, I find myself spending a lot more on some things (my few electronic devices) and a lot less on everything else. 

And so that’s why I spent over $2,400 on an iPad, but probably spent less than most people do on equipment and infrastructure for work and entertainment.