iPad Pro 2018 | Apple

You’ve all seen the reviews, the comparisons, you may even own an iPad. They all say that the new iPad Pro 2018 is amazing hardware, awful software. I think that’s all about to change, here’s why.

My Solution

Apple said the reason there’s no touch screen on Mac is that no one wants to reach up to the screen to interact. They should keep their hands on the keyboard. Why doesn’t the same apply to the iPad? One of the main things holding iPad back is the lack of a precise mouse pointer.

As an iOS developer, I thought if Apple isn’t going to fix it, I will. So I created SSMP. It’s a framework that allows for your device to become a desktop in just two lines of code. All you need is to connect your device into a monitor/TV and your device becomes a keyboard and trackpad. SSMP also allows for easy external monitor support if you’re not interested in a mouse and keyboard.

If you're a developer and interested in trying it out, I open sourced it for pre-release on GitHub.

What YOU can do

It’s very easy to just wait on Apple, but if history tells us anything, it’s that Apple could take quite a while. It usually has a good outcome, but if we want the iPad to strive, we must work.

Currently, the iPad’s main problems for pro users is:

A proper files system

Mouse pointer (Solved by SSMP)

Proper external monitor support (Solved by SSMP)

A desktop web browser

Too many steps for simple operations (such as zip files)

Some of these we do need to wait for Apple, but some are possible. Developers can make a file system that works on many apps as an open standard. Similar to Google Drive or Dropbox. Just a more advanced, universal framework. As you can see, developers can make a mouse pointer and external monitor support. A desktop web browser is as easy as changing the user agent and adding features like a downloading protocol.

Open Standards

If you can summarize this whole post into two words, it’s open standards.

If we want clean, modular solutions, we need open standards that developers can contribute to and create a seamless solution. Imagine, a file system that doesn’t have to look bad, or clunky on a per-app basis, but a file system that’s standard across many apps and improves over time. And because of its modularity, if Apple finally catches up, then we can replace it with Apple’s and problem solved.

WWDC19 may fix many of these issues, but what if it doesn’t? What if iOS still has the awful files system, awful web browser, awful external monitor support, a lack of mouse support, or just a lack of simplicity? What next? We should be prepared and work together.

Maybe, just maybe, Apple would watch, and see how it’s done by the people that care the most, the consumer.