Can you replace your laptop with your iPad? Apple’s tablet is basically a MacBook.

Table of contents

As a long-term iPad user, which has been covering Apple for several years, I am increasingly skeptical: the iPad is basically just a laptop.

In 2024, when Apple launched the iPad Pro with the M4 chip (even putting the chip into the MacBook) – along with the iPad Air on the M2 chip (and then the M3 version a few months later), all signs suggest my tendency is right. Apple wants its tablet to be as powerful as a laptop.

However, the final evidence that proves my hypothesis is at Apple’s 2025 WWDC, when the brand announced the latest feature for the iPad, called “Windows.” This feature allows users to resize the application window in the screen to view multiple applications at once. Although this feature is new to the iPad, it is a standard feature that exists most of the laptops.

If I think math is the way to math, then Apple’s iPad is basically just a laptop. This is how Apple turns tablets into laptops and why they might be a more affordable option.

iPad and MacBook have the same powerful processor

Apple’s M-series chips now power the brand’s computers. It is one of the most powerful processors we’ve tested, amplifying the speed and efficiency of Apple’s products. The first time we saw the M4 chip wasn’t in the laptop, it was Apple’s iPad Pro, which scored 14,586 on the Geekbench 6, better than most laptops tested at the time.

Now, half of Apple’s iPads have M-series chips. The iPad Pro includes the M4, while the iPad Air has an M3 chip. Meanwhile, the other half of the iPad series has Apple’s A-series chips, which are usually found in iPhones. Based on the processor alone, it seems that half of Apple’s iPad models were actually built to calculate laptops. However, this line may blur very quickly.

There are rumors that Apple’s next MacBook could be an affordable model with A-series chips, which does mean you can’t judge a laptop or tablet just based on its processor.

Screen sizes are closed to each other

To be clear, not every iPad is basically a laptop. The iPad Mini’s screen is too small to compete, which means it’s a great alternative to e-readers. But the standard iPad, iPad Air and iPad Pro all have 11-inch screens, which are 2 inches away from the smallest 13-inch MacBook. However, the iPad Air and iPad Pro completely narrowed that gap with its 13-inch model.

iPad can be transformed into workstations, especially for creatives

Add a magic keyboard and voila, your iPad is a laptop.
Credits: Samantha Mangino/Mashable

OK, but even if they have the same size screen as a laptop, they are still only half the laptop, right? A little while the iPad is technically just a touch screen, the magic keyboard turns it into a workstation. These keyboards, now available for purchase with iPad, are seamlessly connected to tablets (la airpods and iPhones) and allow you to type on any actual keyboard instead of on the screen. They even include laptop-style trackpads.

The keyboard ranges from the portfolio of basic iPads to the more advanced keyboards representing iPad Air and Pro, which makes the iPad look like a laptop. In fact, the iPad and Magic Keyboard settings are more similar to 2-in-1 laptops, such as Microsoft Surface.

By adding an Apple Pencil to the iPad and Magic Keyboard pairing, the iPad has also become the ideal Mac for artists. When it comes to interviewing graphic designers’ work, many say that the iPad is actually their preferred device than their laptops.

But where iPads and laptops communicate with each other is their port. iPads offer a USB-C port, while laptops usually have multiple ports, including USB-A, USB-C, and HDMI ports. That being said, Apple’s port options are declining, with some MacBooks offering only three USB-C ports. However, both iPad and MacBook can solve this problem with the help of plugging in and providing port breed dongles.

iPad and MacBook interface

With “Windows” on iPados, you can view multiple applications at once.
Image source: Apple

Even if the iPad looks like a laptop, it doesn’t mean it can work like a laptop. Using a laptop, you can organize file storage and navigate through multiple windows. Now you… have the ability to organize file storage and browse multiple windows on your iPad.

Both iPad and iPhone now have file storage apps, which basically work like Finder on Portable devices. With the introduction of “Windows” for the next iteration of iPados, users can instantly view multiple applications for a better workflow.

So, in terms of functionality, the iPad and laptop Venn diagram is basically a circle.

iPad is just a competitive MacBooks

iPads do not overlap with laptops (especially MacBooks): Price. This actually works in the favor of tablets. The basic iPad and iPad Air cost hundreds of dollars less than Apple’s most affordable laptop, the MacBook Air.

I’ve compared the price difference between the iPad and MacBook with the same price difference between Chromebooks and standard Windows computers. They are a more affordable option with reduced functionality. But, as far as iPads are concerned, they are often more features than Chromebooks anyway.

The most affordable iPad starts at $349, while the most affordable MacBook is the 13-inch MacBook Air, which starts at $999. Even if you upgrade to the iPad Air (just like the MacBook Air, it has an M3 chip, which costs just $599). And if you’re adding a $269 magic keyboard, that’s up to $868, and you can still save over $100 compared to the MacBook Air.

But the more advanced the iPad model you buy, the more it starts with a laptop. But even the 13-inch iPad Pro is $300 cheaper than the 14-inch MacBook Pro and they all come with an M4 chip.

Is this arguing that you should buy an iPad on your MacBook? not at all. But this is a more affordable alternative in the iPad that can be face-to-face with many laptops, especially MacBooks.