I’m not sure any of the charting apps used by air carriers are even available on another OS at this point. I’ve never been aware of JeppFD Pro on Android and I believe they dumped Windows as well.

There are other options of course but as far as I’m aware in the US it’s all iPads and JeppFD Pro. The feds are familiar with it and a regulatory framework is created around it so it’s the path of least resistance. And as a pilot, I’d say most of us are pretty satisfied with it.

plus they make it easy for customers to sign for services which in turn makes it easier for businesses to know that the work was done. toss in CC readers that attach easily and you have a simple POS device

if anything the amount of waste that would come back into our lives without them would be staggering

There likely is a good cost saving there, removing the need to transcribe handwritten forms and archive them in cases where the customers signed them.

It also easily gives you some tracking info, even if you only let it send location info when the service person uses it. That can give you the data to inform other customers on that service person’s route about arrival times.

No I don't, I just brought that up because OP was confused why the pilot can use their device while "normal" passengers can't.

On day four, I received a push message (from Find My) that the iPad had come to life. An airport staffer had found it and charged it up. Presumably it cold boots with airplane mode switched off, so it connected to the cellular network, received the "lost device" command, displayed my contact info, etc. I received a call shortly thereafter.

When I picked up the iPad at baggage services, I chatted with the staff a bit. They let me in on the "secret" that most airline employees never switch their devices into airplane mode anymore, and for this exact reason.

If I want to reply to an email I'll walk upstairs to my real computer rather than attempt to do it on our iPad.

As Joey Hess said[1] "If it doesn't have a keyboard, I feel that my thoughts are being forced out through a straw."

[1] https://usesthis.com/interviews/joey.hess/

I guess what OP was trying to say is that their application as creative tools (production vs consumption) is far more limited than the full fledged PC systems that we are used to.

What? In no way, especially for drums.

The iPad Pros are credited with stopping the slide of iPad revenues - along with all of the accessories.

For specialized software, tailored to specific fields, with only the interaction elements for particular jobs the iPad can be a much better fit than a laptop. Those jobs however aren't generic enough that off shelf software make a ton of sense.

I’m not saying Office for iPad is pointless (I use it regularly, so quite the opposite!), but I do think it’s foolish to think an organisation the size of Microsoft’s doesn’t necessarily do things for obvious reasons. Individual incentives do not always lend themselves to data driven objectives.

Loss-making strategies can ultimately be profitable in a broader sense (if it increases the stickiness of the product on it's primary platforms, keeping away competitors, a strategic moat).

I don't think there's any evidence either way to be able to make any assumptions about the level of interest of the product, and whether or not that justifies it's existence.

For graphic design (typography work, layout, UI, etc) mouse and keyboard are still the best input devices. Much faster and precise than tapping on a touch screen or using an Apple Pencil.

There are Android tablets with precise pen support, but especually the cheaper ones don't have that good pen precision (jitter, lag) and also the available drawing software is not as advanced as on the iPad & powerful ossdesktop drawig tools such as Krita or Mypaint are not yet ported to Android.

So in the end I basically had to get the top of the line Android tablet (Galaxy Tab S6) to get something comparable, where the manufacturer dumped so much mone so that some got also to the pen support & it would be working correctly. And so far so good. :)

The combination of portability (form factor, battery life, LTE modem), with the growing support for the apps. I’m yet to see device that would replace it for me. I have had to take my MBP with me for quite some time.

iPad essentially fuels my remote-first work style.

It does however seem to have found it's way into various trades as an information device. For instance is has replaced laptop as the primary device in elder care in many cities in Denmark. It makes perfect sense to use an iPad, it's more portable, the limited interface forces developer to think hard about what input is really required, and it faster to"unlock" than a laptop.

The iPad has develop very quickly from a consumer device to an "Enterprise" solution. You basically only need it, if you can afford to have custom applications developed. For almost everyone else, there's the large screen iPhones.

Apple isn't going to tell us, but it would be interesting to learn how many iPads are going to customers, and how many to companies and governments.

Also, they are tremendous for the elderly. My 97 year old grandmother really struggles with desktop/laptop computers, but has absolutely no trouble using her iPad. It's the main way she stays in touch with her family.

This would only be said by someone who isn't a frontline worker no interacts with any. Unless you see the people who use tablets for work as not really working.