Posts tagged with "macpad"

I Turned the New 13” iPad Pro Into a MacPad and Portable Gaming Display

The updated MacPad.

The updated MacPad.

As I hinted in my story on the issues of iPadOS last week, I upgraded from an 11” iPad Pro to a 13” iPad Pro (1 TB, Wi-Fi-only model). While I was very happy with the 11” form factor, I decided to return to the larger model for two reasons:

  • I wanted to have maximum thinness with the ultimate iPad Pro model Apple makes.
  • I sacrificed the physical comfort of the 11” iPad Pro to get a larger display for my MacPad as well as portable gaming.

Today, I will explain how I was able to immediately turn the brand-new 13” iPad Pro into a convertible MacPad using a combination of accessories and some new techniques I’ve been exploring. I’ll also share my experience with using the iPad’s glorious Tandem OLED display in a variety of gaming setups ranging from streaming to emulators.

Let’s dive in.

Read more

A MacStories Setups Update→

Last November, we created the MacStories Setups page. It’s a collection of the gear, apps, and services that Federico and I use for work and play. We knew when we created the page that it would change regularly, and it has. Today, we’re introducing our third update in four months, which collects changes related to Federico’s MacPad setup and some smaller adjustments that we’ve both made recently.

The MacPad additions to Federico’s setup include:

However, Federico isn’t living a MacPad-only lifestyle. He uses the Vision Pro daily and has added it along with the following accessories to his setup:

Other additions include:

Our app lineups change constantly, too, and most recently, Federico has added:

As for me, since my big desk setup upgrade, I’ve made a handful of changes to my desk and gaming setups, along with other adjustments.

The Logitech Casa Pop Up Desk.

The Logitech Casa Pop Up Desk.

With summer around the corner, I’ve been refining my portable setup. The Logitech Casa Pop Up Desk that I reviewed recently is perfect for an afternoon at a coffee shop or sitting out on my balcony. I’ve enjoyed the Boox Tab Ultra so much that I added a Boox Palma for ultra-portable e-ink reading on-the-go.

The articles I save to read on the Palma and elsewhere are currently split between GoodLinks and Readwise Reader. I’ve also swapped out NaturalReader for Speechify for text-to-speech workflows, but I’m not completely satisfied with any read-aloud solution I’ve tried yet.

I’m also slowly refining my gaming setup. The ASUS ZenWiFi Pro Wi-Fi 6E mesh router system is a big step up from the Linksys Atlas routers I was using before in terms of both coverage and speed. I’m still floored by the bandwidth I get with my iPhone 15 Pro Max and Ayn Odin 2 Pro. I also picked up a Miyoo Mini+ retro gaming handheld because I’m traveling soon and wanted an ultra-portable handheld to take with me. Also, to track what I’m playing, I’ve been using GameTrack, which I recently reviewed.

Both of us have added a handful of other apps and gear, too, so be sure to browse through the Setups page to find the complete listing of our current setups.

Permalink

MacPad: How I Created the Hybrid Mac-iPad Laptop and Tablet That Apple Won’t Make

Hello, MacPad.

Hello, MacPad.

It all started because I wanted a better keyboard for my Vision Pro. I had no idea that, in looking for one, I’d accidentally create the hybrid Apple computer of my dreams.

As I quickly discovered after working on the Vision Pro daily, you can get by without an external trackpad, but a keyboard is necessary if you want to type something longer than a passcode. That’s where my journey began: if I wanted to write and edit articles on the Vision Pro, what would the best keyboard-trackpad setup be?

Over the past few weeks, I’ve tested all the options at my disposal. I started with an Apple Magic Trackpad and Keyboard, which I then placed inside a Twelve South MagicBridge (it was too uncomfortable to put on my lap for longer stretches of time). Next, I tried using different types of “trays” for these two accessories that offered a laptop-like layout (comfort was better, but lack of palm rejection was an issue). I even attempted to revive an old Brydge keyboard and use it with the Vision Pro, but, alas, third-party trackpads aren’t supported on visionOS at the moment.

Eventually, I settled on the solution that I should have known was coming for me all along: the best keyboard and trackpad combo for a Vision Pro is a Mac laptop. So I started using my MacBook Air every day, taking advantage of Mac Virtual Display and Universal Control to get work done with the Vision Pro in a mix of classic desktop apps and new visionOS experiences. I’ll write more about this soon, but, so far, it’s felt powerful and flexible in a way that iPadOS hasn’t made me feel in a while.

But something kept nagging me.

Read more