Why Haven’t I Stopped Carrying My iPad Pro?

The question isn't a rhetorical one. I am really trying to figure this out.

As I have written in my earlier posts, the iPad Mini has been serving me exceptionally well. I have been able to successfully transition most of what I do to this device seamlessly. The issues with the screen in my classroom turned out to be a glitch. When I get to the office, I can plug in a mouse, connect to a keyboard, and use a monitor for work tasks that demand more screen real estate.

And as I said in a prior post, I am enjoying Scribble, which parses my printing and cursive well enough that I suspect the occasional misinterpretation is no more frequent than the typos that creep in when I am using a keyboard.

So why am I carrying my iPad Pro with me as if it were the technological equivalent of carrying an umbrella to insure that it won’t rain?

The longer this experiment continues, the more I suspect it is a strange kind of iPad Pro FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out).

I have used the 11-inch iPad Pro for many years and, as is the case of many users like me, have come to appreciate its design and its power and the quality of the Magic Keyboard. But the more I think about it, the more I begin to accept that the design and power are there for other users. Even with the games I play, by and large, I am more likely to be pushing battery capacity than processing capacity.

So beyond adding an insufficient amount of extra weight to make any real difference when closing my exercise rings, why do I still carry it?

As I have said elsewhere, making the switch from the Pro to the Mini comfortably would require getting some additional peripherals (And who doesn't like looking into accessories?).

But that doesn't ring true as the real reason.

That's why I keep coming back to the FOMO.

It interests me.

It interests me because I suspect that the FOMO isn't being driven by Apple. I would love to lay the blame on Apple or reviewers making the devices too irresistible. But while there is a kernel of truth there, the truth lies in the context rather than the cause.

A side effect of watching YouTubers and listening to podcasters whose opinions you have come to respect is that their concerns become a lens through which you view the devices they discuss — whether they are formally reviewing them or discussing their capabilities in passing. As a result, part of my opinions of these devices are driven by how well they perform tasks that are mission critical for videographers but not the kind of thing I am likely to do.

But (and here's the FOMO) they are things I might want to do someday. (After all, how can I claim to be a power user if I'm not using all the tools and apps that they are?) What if, for example, my minor forrays into podcasting morphed into an internationally acclaimed YouTube channel?

As if that kind of thing happened overnight and as if I didn't work at a university with a Communications program that would immediately adopt the theoretical internationally acclaimed YouTuber....

These aspirational feelings aren't entirely absurd. I don't use many Shortcuts and the ones I do use are very simple. But the handful I do use were inspired by listening to Frederico Viticci’s adventures with them.

Ultimately, the FOMO is, at its heart, absurd. It is as absurd as the knowledge that I will be packing the iPad Pro into my bag tomorrow.

But it will still be in my bag and the FOMO will keep it there for a little while longer.