When iPad Pro was announced in September 2015, we couldn’t quite imagine how it’d fit into our creative workflow. But after getting our hands on one for a couple of weeks and letting the team put it through its paces, we’ve come to understand Apple’s vision for this super-sized, yet super-portable and powerful tablet.
We placed iPad Pro with our in-house creative team, to see how they used the device as part of their creative workflow. iPad Pro seamlessly integrated with our Mac computers and Adobe Creative Cloud applications. Here’s how the team has been using iPad Pro this week…
Monday:
“I kicked things off by taking iPad Pro with me to our weekly creative team catchup. It was great for making quick notes, annotating and sketching out ideas. Initially I thought it would be too big and heavy to take to meetings and brainstorming sessions, but on closer inspection I found it to be quite the opposite and a great portable device. It’s particularly light and thin with a beautifully sleek 12.9” Retina display making it ideal for sharing ideas with the team in meetings and on the go. Being able to handwrite notes using the Apple Pencil was a real bonus, and was a great addition during brainstorming sessions.” - Becky
Tuesday:
“This week I’ve been working on a new illustration to front an event invite. I used Adobe Creative Cloud mobile application Photoshop Sketch to create my initial artwork ideas. Photoshop Sketch mimics the same visual effects you get when painting and drawing on paper, so using iPad Pro with Apple Pencil felt really natural. I’ve been working with the water colour brush today, which is really responsive, I can watch the colour spread and develop much like the real thing would.
I wasn’t expecting iPad Pro to replace my iMac setup and desktop Creative Cloud applications, but I could certainly get used to switching between the two and would benefit greatly from having the freedom to work on the go, knowing that my projects would synchronise across devices and apps so I could keep picking it up wherever I’m working.” - Xenia
Wednesday:
“I find that I’m just as productive working on iPad Pro as I am on my MacBook. Although the multitasking Spilt View feature is available across iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 4, using it on iPad Pro was brilliant. Today I was writing up my work in Pages using Split View with Safari open on the other side. It’s a great way of working and such a time saver not having to flick between applications.” - Shariff
Thursday:
“I’ve just finished working my way through an Adobe training clip. I like to keep on top of Adobe updates, so today I was working in Split View with half the screen displaying Adobe Comp and the other half open with Safari so I could follow the tutorial.” - Thierry
Friday:
“Today I’ve been finishing off the projects I started earlier in the week. I really enjoy being able to pick up iPad Pro, tap into Adobe Creative Cloud applications and pick up sketches and graphics I’ve been working on, on my desktop in mobile form. I like how weighty the Apple Pencil is, it doesn’t feel like it’s about to fly out of my hand across the room and there’s minimal lag! When I’m sketching on iPad Pro it feels like a completely natural drawing experience, Apple Pencil is thinner than the stylus I usually use with my Wacom tablet, but it was very easy to adjust to.” - Jamie
Additional thoughts from the team:
“The Apple Pencil is awesome, and the iPad Pro is a good size, but it’s not really necessary when you have a MacBook. I can see the appeal if you’re working on an iMac and need something portable though. If the iPad Pro could run the Photoshop desktop app like a Mac did with OS X, it’d be on to a winner.” - Liana
“While iPad Pro impresses most when drawing – the Apple Pencil is a real pleasure to draw with, being incredibly responsive, and also much more natural and comfortable than some graphics tablet pencils – for me, as a copywriter, it’s the screen size that’s the winner. When it was first announced, some balked at the idea of a 12” iPad, but actually using the iPad Pro, it makes perfect sense. You have an almost full-size keyboard at your fingertips, so word processing is a realistic option. I’d still prefer to type on my trusty 13” MacBook Air – I would miss the feedback and clickety-clack of a real keyboard – but I would definitely consider iPad Pro as a tool for word processing on the move.” - Liz
The pros
- It's far lighter than you expect, which makes it a very portable option despite its larger size than other models.
- The added size just makes everything a little bit easier to do (without going too big!) – everything from multitasking to typing to sketching ideas and making notes is natural.
- The Apple Pencil is a joy to use! Sketching is so much more accurate than comparable tools we have used and very quickly it becomes as fluid as using pencil on paper.
- Split-screen makes sense on iPad Pro, as you basically have two full sized apps running alongside each other in a way that's not been possible until now.
We'd love to see...
There's really only one thing: more heavy duty creative apps that would give it the ability to be a realistic alternative to the notebook. At the minute the Adobe tools available are great for developing ideas and working on the fly, but you're going to have to have your MacBook with you if you want to do anything more than sketching and basic comping. But that's more about the tools than the hardware, and we'll be keeping a close eye on developments in that area.
Want to find out more about iPad Pro? Options start at the 32GB model up to 128GB, and it's available in Silver, Gold and Space Grey, with prices from £547 ex VAT. Get in touch with the team on 03332 409 306 or email sales@Jigsaw24.com. For all the latest news and reviews follow @WeAreJigsaw24 on Twitter or ‘Like’ us on Facebook.