Who can do their day job effectively on the iPad?

8 months ago I made a decision to start working on my iPad as my main computer. Over these months I got to know the strengths and weaknesses of the iOS platforms and although I still need to work on my Mac Mini from time to time, most of my day to day job is now done on my iPad. Can you get your work done on the iPad as well? Let’s find out.

I’m an entrepreneur running Nozbe so I wear many “hats” in my job. I write a lot… and then as the “product guy” I design my product, get and give feedback to my developers and designers… and as a CEO I do some spreadsheets, presentations, email, IM, calls… and I blog, do social media and more… and I travel a bit. If the iPad fits my lifestyle, it’s probable that it will fit yours… let’s dive a little deeper into this:

Some jobs that can be done on the iPad:

1. CEO of a company

You can use the built-in Mail.app for email as well as the Google’s Gmail. I use both (Gmail mainly for a quick search). Spreadsheets - I use QuickOffice HD for Excel (with Dropbox and Numbers (synced via iCloud with my Mac). For presentations I’ve always been using Keynote and thanks to iCloud I put all of my past presentations there as well.

For keeping in touch with my team I use Nozbe (we communicate through comments attached to our tasks), iMessage, Facetime, Socialcast and Skype. iPad is a very well communicated device.

2. Writer

I write using AI Writer (synced via iCloud) and Nebulous (synced via Dropbox). iPad is perfect for writers as you can put the screen vertically (perfect for typing with an external keyboard) and the one-app-open-at-a-time paradigm helps you focus on writing instead of checking other stuff.

3. Blogger

Most platforms like Wordpress, Tumblr and others have dedicated blogging apps for the iPad now. And great web interfaces. I blog on my own platform that syncs my Dropbox files to the web, so it’s even easier. And I use Markdown. Both apps I mentioned above support it. Moreover iPad has some of the best social media apps out there. I use Tweetbot, Twitter, Hootsuite, Facebook and Facebook Pages and Google+. iPad is a great social-media-blogger type of machine.

4. Traveler

10 hours batter life, half a kg weight, fits any purse (or man-purse for that matter), iPad is a fantastic device for traveling. I should know, last year I went on a trip to the USA without my laptop for the first time and didn’t miss my good old MacBook Air. With dedicated travel apps for flight tracking, hotel booking, navigation and maps, it’s hard not to make it the best traveler’s friend.

5. Programmer

This is a tricky part. I do some of the programming still (not as much as I used to - my developers are a lot better than me!) and while I love Textastic app and the vertical screen, to really effectively program you need at least two screens (or a wide 27” screen like I have). That’s why I do occasional programming on the iPad but for a longer coding session I still choose my Mac.

6. Product guy

I spend my days designing new features for Nozbe, testing what my programmers and designers have developed and sending lots of feedback. Thanks to great apps like Paper (where I sketch ideas), Skitch (where I draw visual feedback)

7. Busy professional

Well, that’s me and you - a mixture of the above points. My experiment with going “ iPad only” has been a success and I’m not coming back. I love the fact that I can take my iPad anywhere I want in my small man-purse and nobody really knows I have a real working machine with me at all times. I don’t need to search for a power plug as I have more battery than I need for a full day’s work. My iPad syncs perfectly with my iPhone through many cloud apps so I’m on top of things at all times.

Question: Is the iPad well suited for your job? Do you think iPad can work for you as the only device? Share your experiences below!