[protocow]

This is nonetheless a helpful article for pointing out some interesting tools available on iOS and on a server for getting this type of work done. But I agree, the $1000+ iPad Pro here is basically being used as a dumb terminal. If you're willing to accept a less-spectacular screen, look into inexpensive vintage products instead, like a Surface 3.

[suprfnk]

It's funny to me that you refer to a 2 year old product as 'vintage'. You can barely call it 'old'.

[falcolas]

Well, when you consider that most semiconductors have an anticipated operational lifespan of 5-7 years, and the surface contains many such components, 2 years is well into middle-age.

ref. https://c3.nasa.gov/dashlink/static/media/other/ObservedFail...

[TheArcane]

> most semiconductors have an anticipated operational lifespan of 5-7 years,

Funny, my 7 year old laptop seems to be running just fine.

[falcolas]

So, still within the 5-7 year range? An operational lifespan is a timeframe in which most of the objects in question are expected to still work, not the timeframe by which most have failed.

If it continues to work for another 5-7 years, that's when you're getting into the "sturdier than average" realm. Your laptop could be a micron's worth of a whisker away from shorting itself out - you won't know until it happens.

Perhaps I should have stated my earlier point differently, but 2 years is still not a small portion of the lifespan of your average computer.