I’m an iPad guy. I just love this device. It’s a true pleasure for me to use it every day. I could easily (well, maybe not easily, but still) get rid of my iPhone, Apple Watch, Mac, and other devices I own and use – not only the Apple ones – but I cannot imagine myself not using my iPad. It’s a perfect device for me. It always was, even before the latest iPadOS 26 features, which make it a true and complete computer from this thin slab of glass. Actually, I even liked it much more when it wasn’t capable of everything it can do today. Back then, it was this minimalistic, weird device that only truly inspired people could and would use. And I was one of them.
I think I got rid of this mass approach to many things in life. I can easily do things differently, and maybe this is why the iPad just clicked for me. It’s different, minimalistic, beautiful, and such a creative slab of glass. I could easily imagine my life where I only own an iPad and maybe some kind of cheap, dumb phone – the old-style one that can only make and answer phone calls. Or maybe even without a phone at all? I think I could even try life with only an iPad and Apple Watch – oh, what a challenge. It would be so nice to try this one day. Without Macs – which I use only for some work-related stuff, and actually hate, together with everything they represent – without an iPhone, maybe even without speakers (HomePods). Interesting. An iPad and Apple Watch. I will definitely write this down and look carefully at how to do this one day. It would require many changes in my life – but after all, I still want to introduce them someday. I live for changes.
Ok, let’s get back to my iPad(s). I have two of them. One is an 11-inch iPad Pro – the perfect one that I use for everything. And it is actually perfect. This is the device I have in mind when writing about how much I love iPads. But I also have the second one – the bigger brother, the 13-inch iPad Air. I’m using it right now to write this post. Yeah, this may require an explanation – maybe not for you, but mainly for myself.
So, the regular-sized iPad is my everyday and always-have device. But every few years, my mind gives me the same thought:
You like this iPad so much, and what if you had two of them…? Or you could try switching to a different size? The bigger one (than 11 inches) or the smaller one (iPad Mini) might be better for you? Or what if you just had two of them, different sizes, for different use cases? It would be like two times nicer than now, right?
Not a very minimalistic approach, but still – my desire to spread (or rather multiply) the joy of using this great slab of glass is strong. But also – to defend myself a little – there are so many situations where I just wish that this perfect 11-inch device could be a little smaller or much bigger. For example, when working in Apple Freeform app – I use this infinite canvas app (actually it’s not infinite) to brainstorm, prepare mind maps, and store ideas for different topics – I wish my iPad was much bigger. The bigger, the better. Right? Also, when writing – this post, for example – in the Ulysses app, I like having a screen bigger than 11 inches.
But on the other hand, when reading articles from my read-it-later app, Instapaper, I know that having my iPad a little smaller and lighter would be better. Also, some time ago, when I was recording The 🐽 PiG Podcast with Peter, I loved editing it in Ferrite app on my iPad Mini – which I also owned at that time – during bus rides around Warsaw. It was so nice and easy to just take out this little device, grab my Apple Pencil, and edit 10 minutes of my podcast while going somewhere by public transport.
So… every few years I try different iPad sizes for some time – of course always ending up with the true and best one, the 11-inch model. It may sound like a compromise (I hate compromises!), but it’s not. This regular-sized iPad is just the perfect one. It’s actually not too small for writing or working in Apple Freeform app, and not too big for doing things on a bus or train. It’s just a matter of getting used to it. And the 11-inch one I can bring everywhere. I’m actually carrying it with me wherever I go.
But – like I wrote – from time to time I like to experiment with other sizes, and I actually enjoy those experiments. Well, I like iPads, so trying new ones is naturally fun for me. So I also own the bigger one now – the 13-inch iPad Air. Most of the time I use the normal one, but when I’m at home and want to write something, this big brother is always waiting for me. It’s connected to an external keyboard (Apple Magic Keyboard) and mouse (Apple Magic Mouse) all the time. It’s always waiting for me on my Ikea stand and Ikea standing desk in the kitchen. It’s like having a desktop computer there – except it’s an iPad. Always there, waiting, ready to write on. Because this is its main purpose. This is my blogging device.
This story could easily go in many directions. I could write about my blogging workflow – which is quite interesting, I think, thanks to its exclusive use of iPads. I could also tell you more about how I use my iPad(s) at home or while outside, traveling by bus or train. Or even more about why I like them so much. I could also share more of my thoughts about iPhone use cases and how recently this strange idea crossed my mind while writing this post: that I think I could actually live without my iPhone, relying only on my iPad and Apple Watch. This small yet daring idea surfaced in my head just a short while ago and has been taking root ever since, constantly surprising me with its simple beauty. Like I wrote, I think the time will soon come to put this experiment to the test.
So many great things to talk about related to the iPad. But this post is about to get a little sad. Because a few weeks ago I broke my iPad. The bigger one. It just fell on the floor. Well, actually not exactly on the floor – it fell onto a sharp object, and now there’s a big hole in its screen. It’s not unusable. Like I already told you, I’m writing this post on it right now. But it’s just… sad. Yeah, it’s the sad iPad. Just a big slab of glass with a hole in it.
I treat this as a lesson. An opportunity to move forward by stopping, I guess. It’s like clicking a pause button in my – quite focused, but still sometimes impulsive – life. This situation takes me out of my comfort zone. It makes me stop and think about my iPad workflow. It’s like being in a race, a marathon – I’m just running, everything’s happening without thinking – and this is like a checkpoint, a moment to stop and think. My first thought after seeing this big hole in my big iPad was: how much will it cost to fix or replace this? Still thinking through the marathon. How to get back on the road. But after a while, when the emotions dropped, I realized that my minimalistic life has this big problem: I have two iPads. And it’s the opposite of the minimalism I want in my life. It’s comfort thinking – and comfort is not the main value I want to follow.
Yeah, it may sound weird, but a long time ago I came to the conclusion that comfort is one of the main obstacles in the focused life I want to have. And this big iPad idea is almost the definition of comfort. Maybe even a shortcut. And I should not be guided by those things. Because this kind of attitude helps me build more complicated workflows, a more furniture-based home. It requires money, energy, care. It takes away my focus. The best example is having this thought every time I’m at home:Which iPad do I want to use for this task? It is so distracting. And it is too much for me. I should simplify my life, not add more stuff to it.
After some time with those thoughts, I decided not to get rid of my big iPad, nor fix or replace it. I pressed pause and started observing myself. Or maybe just using what I already have, without changing anything for some time. I know I’m good at building, fixing, acting – but those are also the values that brought me to this two-iPad situation. Those are also very distracting things that I want to avoid. I think – and hope – that this broken, sad iPad will lead me to some answers in my life. This hole in the screen will be like a reminder of the marathon I was in. Thanks to this whole situation, I stopped. So maybe it’s actually good. An expensive but necessary lesson. Or maybe not having this lesson would have been much more expensive for me?