iPad Pro 9.7 or Surface Pro 4

[soccermac42]

What do you guys think. Both seem to work well with drawings etc you can take notes and import books via pdf. I have a Mac and have loved it. I am pretty sure the iPad is far superior in reliability given I still have one that is a first generation. So in everyone's opinion what should I choose. I really like the surface but I am worried it will crash on me and leave me disappointed.


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[AlteredScale]

What do you guys think. Both seem to work well with drawings etc you can take notes and import books via pdf. I have a retina Mac and have loved it. I am pretty sure the iPad is far superior in reliability given I still have one that is a first generation. So in everyone's opinion what should I choose. I really like the surface but I am scared it will crash on me and leave me disappointed.


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I'd go for the iPad because you are already settled with the workings of the mac software. I enjoyed the ease and accessibility of the Surface (especially with the pen having a good amount of controls to ext specific pages and or switch certain pages) but I just couldn't handle having to "learn" a new system with the Surface.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Neither, go with the ipad air 2 or 3 if you're looking for a tablet. The Ipad Pro is over priced and makes utterly no sense ( I.e sure it's faster than the air, but you're not going to be doing anything that needs that speed i.e data transferring or editing on adobe as it's fundamentally a tablet with a single core). The surface pro 4 is a full laptop.

 

[diesel2101]

I agree that the answer is older generation iPad or surface pro. I have both the iPad air 2 and a surface pro, and the iPad is nothing more than an upscaled iPhone. With the surface pro, you'll get the full functionality of a laptop (which, IMO, can't be substituted for).

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I agree that the answer is older generation iPad or surface pro. I have both the iPad air 2 and a surface pro, and the iPad is nothing more than an upscaled iPhone. With the surface pro, you'll get the full functionality of a laptop (which, IMO, can't be substituted for).

Tbh, I'd skip the surface pro and get a surface book or a laptop with better thermals than the surface pro.

 

[soccermac42]

I have a Mac. Not looking for a laptop just a supplement tablet with writing features and to read on.


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[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I have a Mac. Not looking for a laptop just a supplement tablet with writing features and to read on.


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Writing on a tablet isn't really effective in medical school. Sure, you can use it to type and get apps like noteability or iannotate and type in them, but it'll simply be too slow and it'll be too sloppy to write.

 

[MedicaMagus]

I have an SP3 and I love it. I thought it was going to take a significant amount of getting used to, but it takes notes just like writing on paper. The added bonus is that you don't have to drag the paper around.

 

[soccermac42]

I have an SP3 and I love it. I thought it was going to take a significant amount of getting used to, but it takes notes just like writing on paper. The added bonus is that you don't have to drag the paper around.

Yeah I feel like the note taking is pretty efficient with the newer tablets. Is the sp3 plagued with problems. I have seen many with battery and screen issues. How is yours doing?


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[MedicaMagus]

My battery and screen have been great up until this point. The fan can be loud at times (which I've heard is sometimes an issue),however it doesn't bother me much.

 

[Mavs88]

Writing on a tablet isn't really effective in medical school. Sure, you can use it to type and get apps like noteability or iannotate and type in them, but it'll simply be too slow and it'll be too sloppy to write.

do you take notes on your laptop or on paper with pen/pencil? I guess that goes for lecture and just self-studying

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

do you take notes on your laptop or on paper with pen/pencil? I guess that goes for lecture and just self-studying

My school gave us an ipad. I use Iannotate and type my notes on the powerpoints.

Writing things out in my opinion takes too much time.

 

[Mavs88]

My school gave us an ipad. I use Iannotate and type my notes on the powerpoints.

Writing things out in my opinion takes too much time.

Makes sense, thanks! I have shifted from writing out to typing up study guides in undergrad as well...amazing how much time it has saved.

Will check out that app as I'm likely an incoming M1 at KCU.

 

[dntke1518]

My school gave us an ipad. I use Iannotate and type my notes on the powerpoints.

Writing things out in my opinion takes too much time.

KCOM had us use iPads, some of my classmates typed in Notability, I chose to handwrite. To each their own.

I would suggest you go with an iPad just for stability's sake.

EDIT: I would also suggest you go with an iPad Air, like others have stated.

 

[soccermac42]

Seems like a lot of support for Apple and the iPad. Thanks.


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[NBLogical]

I know the OP has chosen iPad over SP, but I want to reiterate that the cost of the iPad air 2 has now dropped in price ~$100 and even more for a refurbished model.
Personally, I'm going for the iPad Air 2 64GB since 16GB gets kind of tight with all of the software updates that will eventually come out. The performance upgrade of the iPad Pro also isn't worth the money to me. Sure the screen may load 0.4 seconds faster, but are you really going to tell? iPad Air 2 wins it for me.

Also, protip: buy the iPad on a credit card if possible. Some credit card companies offer extended warranties, purchase protection (like theft or weather damages), price protection (if the price drops, you can get refunded the difference), and/or return protection (return even after the return policy). However, these plans may not cover a refurbished model so you'll have to call your credit card company to find out.
The monetary difference between a refurb and new iPad is minimal IMO when these plan protections are offered. Note that some of these plan protections only range from maybe 90-120 days, excluding the extended warranty.

For those that do use iPad, can you guys recommend some good apps for school? Seems like iAnnotate and Notability are worth looking into.

 

[jojo58]

Get a SP4, the ipad is a toy

 

[Azete]

The SP4 is clearly superior for medical school, and really any professional. There's also a significant price difference, so it's not really a fair comparison.

However, if you need a laptop for medical school anyway (which I believe almost all schools require), then you might as well go with the SP4 since it can fill both voids. I purchased the SP4 recently after using an iPad for the last 4 years, and I feel incredibly stupid for waiting this long. Honestly the iPad isn't for professionals, it's made for entertainment and that's really all it should be used for.

Edit: Also, the common issues you read about with the Surface Pros are pretty overstated in my experience. No, the battery life isn't great -- but with reasonable brightness I'll easily get 6 hours of constant use out of it. If all I'm doing is taking notes I'll get 10+ hours out of it no problem. If you're watching 1080p movies on max brightness then get an iPad because that's not what this is built for. The other stuff like overheating and screen issues must be with the SP3 because I've never experienced anything like that. If you get a faulty product it's an easy swap, I had a buddy with one dead pixel on his screen that appeared 4 months after buying it and he took it to a Microsoft store and they swapped it for free. Even threw in an extra charger for the inconvenience.

 

[oOKawaiiOo]

I'm in the same predicament.

But after reading about the hassles and software issues (batteries/overheating/frozen screen/etc) about the Surface pro 4, it's not worth the trouble on top of the stress added by medical school alone.

I'm sticking with the Ipad (mini 4) + stylus + keyboard.

 

[soccermac42]

I'm in the same predicament.

But after reading about the hassles and software issues (batteries/overheating/frozen screen/etc) about the Surface pro 4, it's not worth the trouble on top of the stress added by medical school alone.

I'm sticking with the Ipad (mini 4) + stylus + keyboard.

Makes sense. I'll probably get the surface, but I can see your point. I have had my Mac 5 years with zero problems. You can buy a good Microsoft computer and have software problems ten minutes after you take it out of the box. Thanks for everyone's comments.


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[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I'm in the same predicament.

But after reading about the hassles and software issues (batteries/overheating/frozen screen/etc) about the Surface pro 4, it's not worth the trouble on top of the stress added by medical school alone.

I'm sticking with the Ipad (mini 4) + stylus + keyboard.

The surface pro 4 only overheats or freezes when you're using it for heavier lifting i.e adobe. The chances of you running it into the ground with typical medical school applications is unlikely.

That being said it has issues that most laptops do, i.e dual core processor, poor thermals and throttling ( Macbook pros do it plenty too as the fans aren't good enough), and poor optimization of many applications.

So if you want a desktop replacement laptop then clearly avoid the sp4, but avoid the ipad pro a lot more. If you're looking for a glorifed travel friendly netbook, then both are fine.

 

[metopic]

Have you looked into the macbook air? I love mine. 12 hrs of battery life no joke. It's amazing, I got it during the first 2 years and I love it. Far far better than an ipad. Very portable, you really can't beat the battery life. Runs slick, very fast and typical apple reliability. No real gaming though it's not built for that. Also no touch screen, if that's what you want.

 

[DrPatriot]

I got the SP4 in December. They have continuously updated it and I really love it. It is so versatile. I have a larger external monitor that I hook up and dual screen at home.

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[IntheClouds4ever]

I have had a Mac for the last 8 years. After using iPads before and checking out the SP4, I decided to go with a new MacBook Pro and Wacom writing tablet if I really needed to write or draw anything for some particular reason. I've always been turned off by digital note-taking, if I need to write more than a page, I prefer paper. I like being able to see everything and not scrolling all over the place which the small tablet screens tend to compound this issue. Just my preference though

 

[DrDreams]

See this post from another thread. I am also a paper learner. This is just an FYI

It really depends on the type of learner you are. I strongly learn better by writing. Additionally, i really like the fact that I can annotate images without having to get a finnicky stylus, or something i cannot rest my palm on. I have shared examples of how my notes are below. Furthermore, I like being able to take notes, have them backup to google drive, print them and compile them in a binder. If i ever missed something in a section, i simply grab all the stuff, move it down and add my additional note. Can't really do that on paper.

Finally, it is better because it is an ACTUAL PC, not a tablet etc. It has full capabilities of a laptop. I personally had a macbook pro, sold it, and got myself a SP3. I do not regret it at all. I love it, and would not trade it for a macbook. (just an FYI, I have had a macbook since 2006, so it is not a PC fanboy thing etc)

THe other reason I love my SP3 is that sometimes, lecturers make LAST moment changes, then if you print your slides, you have a an outdated slide, and stuff that is in there will not be on your printed sheet. With the SP3 I quickly download it and I am ready to take notes just as I would on paper. It is also noted that you retain information better by writing than by typing. Anyway, if you have any other questions let me know.

Here are examples of notes etc that I take:


here are notes after ppt

then printed stuff after notes



Hope that helps!

 

[Rekt]

Get a SP4, the ipad is a toy

This. iPads are for hipsters at Starbucks.
The SurfacePro is literally a computer. It straight up uses Windows 10 os.

 

[Mr Roboto]

It straight up uses Windows 10 os.

This.

...is why I don't want a SP4.

 

[abn632]

My advice below.
Ipad Pro is a no-go.
Surface Pro fo sho.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

This. iPads are for hipsters at Starbucks.
The SurfacePro is literally a computer. It straight up uses Windows 10 os.

It's a computer, but it's still a hipster toy. Almost all ultrabooks are tbh when you realize that you can buy a real quad core laptop with a discrete gpu for nearly the same price in most cases.

That being said the surface pro 3 i3/4gb/128 gb is 600 bucks now. Which is a pretty decent deal if you intend to use it for a notetaking toy and never want to use it for anything productive as windows os will use 2gbs off the bat.