When Apple announced the new iPad Pro last March 18, it came with a new accessory called Magic Keyboard Folio. It’s the same marketing name they used for the keyboards in their Macbook line and the peripheral for the iMac and Mac Pro, essentially saying this will provide the same experience as that of a real keyboard. It also has a miniature trackpad that will work with the new tablet and other iPads once iPadOS 13.4 is released.
It’s only two things combined into one but all of a sudden, the iPad is stepping on the toes of its cousin, the Macbook Air. Yes, the iPad was supposed to do this from the get go when it was released in 2010 but that didn’t happen despite its initial success.
Pride in Cannibalization
Apple isn’t new to cannibalization – meaning releasing a product that competes with an existing product in their lineup. They launched the iPod Nano despite having the two-year-old iPod Mini in 2005. Apple also didn’t care when the iPhone was eating up the sales of the iPod line that ultimately led to its extinction.
It might seem derogatory but Apple cherishes the word and lives by it. In his official biography, Steve Jobs was quoted as saying “If you don’t cannibalize yourself, someone else will.” This was supported by an interview with Phil Schiller, Apple’s Senior VP of Marketing, where he said that the competition between their products “is almost by design”.
“The iPhone has to become so great that you don’t know why you want an iPad. The iPad has to be so great that you don’t know why you want a notebook. The notebook has to be so great, you don’t know why you want a desktop. Each one’s job is to compete with the other ones.” – Phil Schiller, Senior VP, Worldwide Marketing.
Rise of the iPad
When the iPad was launched in 2010, it was hailed to be a “laptop killer”, with some even saying it “will replace laptops for many people”. It did so well in its first few years that during this time, Apple didn’t give the Macbook Air a significant upgrade for 5-6 years. They also recognized the potential of the iPad and quickly made different flavors for it in the guise of iPad Mini (Oct 2012) and iPad Air (Oct 2013). However, it didn’t get to enjoy its glory for long.
Sales for the iPad peaked in Q1 2014. Later that year, Apple would succumb to market pressure and release the bigger iPhone 6. To say it was received well is an understatement as it took the company to new heights, selling 74.4m units, while the tablet slid down to 21.4m from 26m the previous year. The release of the first iPad Pro didn’t help as sales continued tumbling down until it became steady at 13m. (No figure for 2019 onwards because Apple stopped sharing unit sales figures in their fiscal reports).
War on Two Fronts
The laptop killer ended up barely breathing because it fought on two fronts and lost in both. The first was against the unexpected move of Apple to ditch Steve Jobs’ mantra about phone sizes. They follow the trend set by Samsung and went for bigger iPhones named 6 and 6 Plus.
The second battle was against the Macbook Air. Despite not having a significant upgrade and marketing push, its recall as the entry level Macbook was enough to maintain its position in Apple’s lineup.
For its part, the Macbook Air also fought two enemies. Apart from the iPad, it clashed with the Retina Macbook (officially ‘Macbook’) that was launched in 2015, same year as the iPad Pro. Apple positioned the Macbook as the new standard and entry-level laptop for consumers but failed due to its weaker spec and single-port design. It was last updated in 2017 and discontinued in 2019, while the Macbook Air finally received the Retina upgrade in 2018. It was the first time in Apple’s recent history that an older product retained its position against a newer one.
So now it’s time to ask – why did the iPad’s sales plummet like that?
Identity
It’s just as Phil Schiller said, a product has to be so good you won’t consider another item and the iPad was average at best. For many years since its debut, the iPad was more of a digital paper than being something crucial. You use it to take down notes, take casual pictures, browse the internet, view movies on a bigger but portable screen, and play some games. If you see it on the field being used for work, it’s mainly on registration booths, or as a digital brochure during conventions. Yes it has the optional keyboard but it’s unnecessary given you can type on the screen itself. Sure it’s a bit of pain, but still better than a PHP10k keyboard for a tablet.
When the iPhone 6 was launched, the iPad lost its purpose. People now have a bigger screen that’s more portable and they didn’t see a need to upgrade their current iPads. On the other end, it’s much weaker than a Macbook Air.
Even the iPad Pro that was launched in 2015 wasn’t revolutionary. Yes, it performs better – versus an iPad, not against a laptop. Its introduction video has photo and video editing, but all it boasted about is the response of the screen, the visual clarity, and the speakers. Nothing about productivity, application in a professional setting, or anything that can undercut a laptop’s use. It was further crippled by its Lightning connector, something that pros do not really use except for charging their iPhone.
Despite the small sales figures, the Macbook Air remained the logical choice if you need a reliable laptop for intensive work without the Pro pricing. It might be a lesser laptop than the Macbook Pro but it can handle anything you throw at it. Photo edit, video edit, audio, multi-tasking, coding. It might take a while, sure, but your workflow will not be interrupted. This is what the iPad needs to tackle if it wants to be the best.
The Takeover
The 2020 iPad Pro is a “roll up our sleeves” moment for Apple. They have the iPad OS, it has the universally accepted USB-C port, the portability, battery life, visual flair. The iPhone trashed it a few years back, it’s time for the limelight again. All it needs are a few key appointments to boost productivity and it will be a real pro. The situation is similar to when Apple released the trashcan Mac Pro, only to return to the tower case design – only that one took 6 years.
Joining the 2020 iPad Pro is the Magic Keyboard that has a small trackpad. Apart from the trackpad and mouse feature of iPadOS, this trackpad supports essential three-finger gestures so you can be as efficient as you are on a laptop.Enabling trackpad and mouse use for the iPad Pro means you can really work from laptop to desktop with minimal adjustment. It also avoids the hassle that made the Smart Keyboard folio weird – why would you type on the keyboard then when you need to move something, you’ll have to put your hand up and touch the screen again?
The Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro also has a USB-C port so you can charge the iPad from there, and use the port on the tablet itself for your external hard drives, dongles, or as an extended display. These features of the Magic Keyboard alone make it worthy of the $300-$350 premium it demands.
Combine those with the internals of the iPad Pro and it would be clear why it’s now a serious threat to the Mac Air line. There are no benchmarks but Apple claims its A12Z Bionic processor can rival those in Windows laptops. 6GB of RAM on iPadOS means it can do a lot of tasks quickly and efficiently. It might have a small starting storage capacity but that’s why you can connect external hard drives to the iPad Air. Suddenly, the edge of the Mac Air has diminished into software advantages, and Apple can easily deal with that with updates in iPadOS.
What this means is a holistic workflow. Use it as a laptop in the office, a tablet when you’re in between places, then go back to Magic Keyboard when you’re at home. Once done, you can just detach the iPad Pro and do casual things with it – play games, watch movies, rant on Facebook, and do it from anywhere in the house. You won’t be restricted to hunching over a small table in the living room anymore.
Looking at it now, the 2020 iPad Pro is what it should’ve been when it was introduced. Instead of being an evolution from the iPad, it should have left behind its mobile roots and aimed straight for the Mac line. Its marketing video also focused on what you can do with the iPad Pro that you can also do with a Mac Air, and so much more.
Apple is finally in the right direction with the 2020 iPad Pro – and that direction is that your next computer is not a computer, but a tablet. The countdown for the Mac Air’s exit just started.
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