Horace Dediu: ‘Desktop Computer’

Lots of reviews of the iPad Pro (and associated kit) today. My favorite so far is Horace Dediu’s video review, which is based on a simple premise that rings completely true to me after a week and a half using it: it’s the first iOS device meant to be used on a desk. I wrote this in my review:

It occurs to me that for many people, the Smart Keyboard might best be thought of not as a thick cover, but as a thin very portable desktop docking station.

But Horace makes the point more forcefully.

It makes it all the more curious to me, though, that Apple decided to ship the iPad Pro to stores today without either the Pencil or Smart Keyboard available. It’s these accessories, in addition to the iPad Pro’s size, that make it feel like a desktop device. My review would have been very different if I had spent the last week using the iPad Pro without either the Smart Keyboard or Pencil — but that’s the only configuration people can buy today. It’ll all work out in the long run, but in the short term, getting a new iPad Pro without a Smart Keyboard or Pencil is no fun. Sort of a joyless launch.

Wednesday, 11 November 2015