Windows tablet for photo editing

[goinggreynow]

Morning all
I realise that I've previously asked for help with my quest to restart my photo editing and as helpful as everyone has been, so far I've not moved forward.
Without wishing to ask the exact same question again, I'd welcome knowing if anyone is currently using a Windows 11 tablet (not a laptop) for photo editing?
I'm now as sure as I can be that to get things moving again, I need a portable device with a good touchscreen which doesn't run too hot and isn't too heavy (sort of the weight of my old Ipad Pro which balances on my lap quite comfortably).
Thanks

 

[JonathanRyan]

If you really want a Windows tablet, then you probably want a Surface Pro. I have one and it's extremely good as a portable device. You can get pretty powerful ones and they run fast and cool and the battery lasts a decent amount of time. It's a great form factor and they are very well put together machines. However,

1. I've never tried any serious editing on mine - I bought the cheapest 2nd hand one I could for the form factor rather than performance
2. Accessories can be crazy money - TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY QUID for a keyboard and pen that's "fine" (I almost never use the pen...) and £200 for a power supply stand out.....
3. Form factor can be annoying - it works great as a touch screen, it works fine with a TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY QUID keyboard on a desk but it works terribly as, well a laptop. The flip out kickstand is wonderful for what it does but rubbish at being a laptop
4. The drives aren't big (but they work great with something like a SanDisk extreme SSD

The best Windows tablet you will get, but I'm not sure you really want a Windows tablet. CeX have them at decent prices with a 5 year warranty and 14 days return if you buy online.

 

[goinggreynow]

If you really want a Windows tablet, then you probably want a Surface Pro. I have one and it's extremely good as a portable device. You can get pretty powerful ones and they run fast and cool and the battery lasts a decent amount of time. It's a great form factor and they are very well put together machines. However,

1. I've never tried any serious editing on mine - I bought the cheapest 2nd hand one I could for the form factor rather than performance
2. Accessories can be crazy money - TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY QUID for a keyboard and pen that's "fine" (I almost never use the pen...) and £200 for a power supply stand out.....
3. Form factor can be annoying - it works great as a touch screen, it works fine with a TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY QUID keyboard on a desk but it works terribly as, well a laptop. The flip out kickstand is wonderful for what it does but rubbish at being a laptop
4. The drives aren't big (but they work great with something like a SanDisk extreme SSD

The best Windows tablet you will get, but I'm not sure you really want a Windows tablet. CeX have them at decent prices with a 5 year warranty and 14 days return if you buy online.

Thank you for taking the time to reply. I appreciate hearing your thoughts and experiences.
Since my original post, I’ve become aware that my Ipad Pro has recently received its last security upgrade which means that I now have to consider what I do about that, too!!
I thought a windows tablet could be the ideal solution for me - but it’s looking less likely now.
I’ve even been thinking about going back to basics, buying an ‘entry level’ 11 inch IPAD for £299 and making a serious effort this time, to see if I can’t be happy using it for photo edits.

 

[Hanley]

Why a tablet and not a Laptop / MacBook?
Are you going to be mobile while you're editing and therefore need portability?

I have an 11inch iPad Pro, tried to do some editing on it and it just never felt right. I went back to my desktop while at home (Mac Studio) and when I'm away I use my M4 MacBook Air which is small, light and powerful.

 

[goinggreynow]

Why a tablet and not a Laptop / MacBook?
Are you going to be mobile while you're editing and therefore need portability?

I have an 11inch iPad Pro, tried to do some editing on it and it just never felt right. I went back to my desktop while at home (Mac Studio) and when I'm away I use my M4 MacBook Air which is small, light and powerful.

Thanks.
I’ve never been that comfortable with a laptop.
My plan is - and always has been - to try and find a way of successfully editing photos whilst sitting in my comfy chair without a a laptop actually resting on my lap! Hence the tablet idea.
Also, I just can’t see me ever being happy without a touchscreen.

 

[Hanley]

Thanks.
I’ve never been that comfortable with a laptop.
My plan is - and always has been - to try and find a way of successfully editing photos whilst sitting in my comfy chair without a a laptop actually resting on my lap! Hence the tablet idea.
Also, I just can’t see me ever being happy without a touchscreen.

That's fair, I believe the new iPad Pro which has just been released, is very powerful (mine is at least 7 years old now) and has Apple's M5 chip inside.
They do a no quibble 30 day return so you could order it, try it and send it back if you don't like it.

iPad Pro

iPad Pro features the M5 chip with Apple Intelligence, all-day battery life, 11-inch or 13-inch display, Wi‑Fi 7, 5G, and Apple Pencil Pro support.

www.apple.com

 

[goinggreynow]

That's fair, I believe the new iPad Pro which has just been released, is very powerful (mine is at least 7 years old now) and has Apple's M5 chip inside.
They do a no quibble 30 day return so you could order it, try it and send it back if you don't like it.

iPad Pro

iPad Pro features the M5 chip with Apple Intelligence, all-day battery life, 11-inch or 13-inch display, Wi‑Fi 7, 5G, and Apple Pencil Pro support.

www.apple.com

Thanks.
Over the last week or so, I’ve probably looked at every possibly ‘main stream’ tablet/all in one that you could think of in an effort to try and plan a way forward.
Overnight, I’ve even been trying to get my head around LR on the Ipad to see if it might be a viable way forward, including any good-to-know small details which would/could affect the way it works.
I think my current plan is to get hold of a lightning card/usb reader so that I can load images onto my ipad (I’ve made do without one until now). Then download LR mobile (or whatever its]’s called now) and see how it works - and whether it works for me.
The reason I’ve not rushed out to buy a straight replacement for my 2018 Ipad Pro (same age as yours??) is simply down to cost.

 

[Hanley]

Thanks.
Over the last week or so, I’ve probably looked at every possibly ‘main stream’ tablet/all in one that you could think of in an effort to try and plan a way forward.
Overnight, I’ve even been trying to get my head around LR on the Ipad to see if it might be a viable way forward, including any good-to-know small details which would/could affect the way it works.
I think my current plan is to get hold of a lightning card/usb reader so that I can load images onto my ipad (I’ve made do without one until now). Then download LR mobile (or whatever its]’s called now) and see how it works - and whether it works for me.
The reason I’ve not rushed out to buy a straight replacement for my 2018 Ipad Pro (same age as yours??) is simply down to cost.

Mine is USBC so maybe a year later, the newer iPads all have USBC connection so it's much easier to upload them to your device.
Depending on your camera you can use WiFi or Bluetooth, for example, my Hasselblad X2D II is so slick in this respect, connect it once and then you just push a button in their Phocus app on the iPad when you want to connect, pictures transfer very quickly, I can make any changes in Phocus and then do any edits in Lightroom.

I've sent an item back to Apple within the 30 days and it was so simple, I ordered online, they delivered it but I then decided I wanted a higher spec device, did the return and they come and collected it.

I'd say as you already have an iPad and are probably very comfortable with the interface, get the new Pro version and see how it goes, you can sell your 2018 one to offset some of the cost.

 

[goinggreynow]

Mine is USBC so maybe a year later, the newer iPads all have USBC connection so it's much easier to upload them to your device.
Depending on your camera you can use WiFi or Bluetooth, for example, my Hasselblad X2D II is so slick in this respect, connect it once and then you just push a button in their Phocus app on the iPad when you want to connect, pictures transfer very quickly, I can make any changes in Phocus and then do any edits in Lightroom.

I've sent an item back to Apple within the 30 days and it was so simple, I ordered online, they delivered it but I then decided I wanted a higher spec device, did the return and they come and collected it.

I'd say as you already have an iPad and are probably very comfortable with the interface, get the new Pro version and see how it goes, you can sell your 2018 one to offset some of the cost.

Thank you.
Given how happy I’ve been with the IPad, I honestly don’t think it would get sent back. That said, I need to get over the cost before ordering and also get my head around whether or not the same size IPad Air (m3 chip) would be an alternative.
I did in fact go into JL on Monday to have a look at the models, only to find out that JL - at least where I live - don’t have the Pro version on display!
Sadly, I’ve sort of convinced myself that the Air version won’t do - not because of the screen quality - but because it’s a 60Hz refresh rate comoared to the 120Hz on our older Pros. I can see that annoying the heck out of me although I’m sure a lot of people wouldn’t notice.
Just for a minute there, I got a little excited when I read your comment about the Phocus app - one I hadn’t heard of before. Then I realised it was Hasselblad only.
Thanks again. Much appreciated.

 

[LCPete]

I did a few years ago try using my (now quite old ) iPad Pro for photo editing while away from home
The issue that I struggled with was that it was very slow to copy camera Raw images from SD card to an external drive via a dock, I ended up getting a laptop which was perfect
I would certainly check that out, maybe though things have changed but also check that you get on with the ipad version of editing software that you want to use

 

[goinggreynow]

I did a few years ago try using my (now quite old ) iPad Pro for photo editing while away from home
The issue that I struggled with was that it was very slow to copy camera Raw images from SD card to an external drive via a dock, I ended up getting a laptop which was perfect
I would certainly check that out, maybe though things have changed but also check that you get on with the ipad version of editing software that you want to use

Thanks.
I think I’ve seen that the Ipad Pro 2 uses the equivalent of USB 3 speeds through the Lightning port.
May/may not be fast enough.
If I get hold of a cheap lightning/USB connector, I’m going to try loading photos and see what LR mobile is like.

 

[LCPete]

Thanks.
I think I’ve seen that the Ipad Pro 2 uses the equivalent of USB 3 speeds through the Lightning port.
May/may not be fast enough.
If I get hold of a cheap lightning/USB connector, I’m going to try loading photos and see what LR mobile is like.

When I tried it it was painfully slow and gave up trying
May have been the usb dock I had though actually

 

[inkiboo]

If you really want a Windows tablet, then you probably want a Surface Pro. I have one and it's extremely good as a portable device. You can get pretty powerful ones and they run fast and cool and the battery lasts a decent amount of time. It's a great form factor and they are very well put together machines. However,

1. I've never tried any serious editing on mine - I bought the cheapest 2nd hand one I could for the form factor rather than performance
2. Accessories can be crazy money - TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY QUID for a keyboard and pen that's "fine" (I almost never use the pen...) and £200 for a power supply stand out.....
3. Form factor can be annoying - it works great as a touch screen, it works fine with a TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTY QUID keyboard on a desk but it works terribly as, well a laptop. The flip out kickstand is wonderful for what it does but rubbish at being a laptop
4. The drives aren't big (but they work great with something like a SanDisk extreme SSD

The best Windows tablet you will get, but I'm not sure you really want a Windows tablet. CeX have them at decent prices with a 5 year warranty and 14 days return if you buy online.

This.

I’ve had every Surface Pro since version 4. Brilliant devices and the latest ones with ARM processors are amazing.