Intro
Over Thanksgiving break, I went on a trip with my family to Hawaii. During that trip, I had no access to my iPad or any other computer. All I had was my semi-broken iPhone 8.
Here’s what I learned from a week without my iPad.
I Miss Browser Applications
This is probably the most obvious issue, but I missed computer browser applications. With my iPhone, I can’t access full-fledged Google Ads, an important tool I use to volunteer with organizations. However, I was on a vacation, and it probably was a good thing that I couldn’t access my work.
Another thing I missed was access to in-browser coding platforms like repl.it. For the past couple weeks, I’ve been working on building some small coding projects, like a script that calculates the molar mass from the chemical formula of a substance and a script that simulates the Monty Hall problem. Coding on my phone would have been physically exhausting for my fingers, meaning that it was virtually impossible for me to code during my trip. Like my previous point, however, this may have been a good thing.
I Also Miss Note-Taking
In addition to browser applications, I also missed the experience of creating notes using the Apple Pencil and/or the Magic Keyboard. Over the past couple of trips I’ve gone on, I’ve gotten into the habit of taking notes on what I did each day of my vacation. Typing with my phone’s tiny keyboard was definitely not a fun experience.
Because typing with an iPad is significantly easier than typing with an iPhone, I assume that I would have taken more detailed notes with my iPad. This would have helped me remember more about what I did on my trip, like overcoming my fear of heights by going on a last-minute parasailing excursion. However, I also might have become too involved with taking notes. After all, the point of a vacation is to relax and take a break from my work.
Large Screen = Good For PDFs
For those who don’t know, I’m a high school student. I participate in a couple extracurricular activities, like congressional debate. I have a competitive tournament coming up this weekend, but I didn’t sign up until midway through my vacation. This meant that I had to start prepping without a computer to use.
While I was able to look over the bills I was debating on, I didn’t get a chance to starting preparing for the tournament. Admittedly, I could have started researching with my phone, but (as I’ve mentioned before) I was on a vacation to relax, not to do work. However, even if I tried to do work, I doubt that I could have written out any points to discuss in my debate. Reading the pdf of the bills to debate was not easy on my phone, and I definitely missed my iPad’s large screen for this use case.
Conclusion
Ultimately, I think it was a good thing that I left my iPad home. Not only was I at ease with the fact that my iPad wasn’t going to get lost anywhere, but I also forced myself to do little to no work on my vacation.
A Quick Note
This article was a simple experiment on what iPad work I could do on my iPhone. I’ll be heading back to traditional content next week. In addition, I’m launching a new community idea after receiving some feedback from an audience member (should be launched by Wednesday).
Thanks for reading!
Adi