For as long as I ’ve have a Macbook and an iPad ( read : two age ) , I ’ve been search for a way to tie in the two together , marrying touch sensitivity and portability to a right operating organization in some kind of post - Jobsian tech utopia . And as long as I ’ve been trying , every half - assed solution has breastfeed — until now .
Astropadis a pretty basic concept : download an app onto your Mac and your iPad , and the Mac screen will be mirror wirelessly onto the iPad , letting you drag and drop and suck without the pauperism for a thousand - dollar pen display . It ’s an musical theme that many apps have had before , but they central remainder is , they all soak up .
Every app I try before was buggy and laggy , claim age to set up , only working half the clip , and being so dull it was unusable the other one-half . Astropad ’s executing is much better , requiring zero apparatus , and mirror the display with zero meantime and total reliability ( you may even employ a USB cablegram rather than Wi - Fi , if you ’re work offline ) . It in all likelihood helps somewhat that the app ’s founders are a pair of ex - Apple engine driver .
Once you ’ve receive the connective up and running , it ’s unclouded that Astropad is designed for artist and graphic designers , rather than people judge to totally contain a Mac from their iPad . All the contingent are thought out with something like Photoshop in mind : a toolbar to help you navigate , mere carrying out of pinch - to - zoom , and best of all , musical accompaniment for a pressure level - sensitive stylus ( which you ’ll have to purchase on an individual basis ) .
All told , that means that the app should let you replace a pen tablet , or even something like Wacom ’s Cintiq pen display . I ’ve been represent with the app on my Macbook Air and iPad mini , and while I can not pull out ( no in earnest : my high school artistic creation instructor never managed to successfully teach me to draw in a control stick bod ) , I do expend a Wacom tablet for Photoshop redaction , and the Astropad+iPad combo is better in passably much every way .
in force of all , the founder have hinted that they might impart the rudimentary mirroring technology , dubbed ‘ Liquid ’ , into something that would let you use an iPad as a second monitor , rather than plain mirroring .
The only problem as it presently stands is the Mary Leontyne Price : $ 50 ( or $ 20 for student ) , which happily make it the most expensive app I ’ve ever regard buying . However , there is a 7 - twenty-four hours devoid test , so you may whet your appetite before committting your penitentiary tablet to the dumpster . [ Astropad ]
AppleiPad
Daily Newsletter
Get the best technical school , science , and culture news in your inbox daily .
News from the future , delivered to your nowadays .
You May Also Like
