At the start of this semester, I finally got an iPad after months of weighing the pros and cons. It could either improve my learning experience, or it could be a waste of hundreds of dollars.
During the first two weeks, I was leaning towards the latter, but now, I can’t imagine my life without the ease of so many resources at the tip of my Apple pencil. Here are the main obstacles and experiences that occurred during my journey from regret to my newfound love of my iPad.
Accessories
Like the excitement of adding a new sticker for my laptop or getting a new case for my phone, I was looking forward to getting the perfect case for my iPad. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the perfect case.
I tried three different cases from Amazon, and they all fell flat. One was too small even though I triple checked the model compatibility. The second was a different color in reality, while the last one’s texture felt cheap. To be fair, I was looking for a case on a budget, so they might’ve been great for their price, but I wanted something that I would love and use for a long time.
Feeling discouraged, I stopped browsing Amazon and started to bring my iPad to classes without a case. I grew to enjoy the thinness of its size and its color. I now feel comfortable and happy without one.
Aesthetic
Creating the right vibe was vital. I hoped to find a pink home screen with matching widgets that made my iPad look more fun. This task proved to be another challenge. It was difficult finding free, cute material to download and customize. I spent about four hours one day scrolling on Pinterest and testing out different options. By the end of it, I still wasn’t happy.
The social media display of aesthetic iPads made me feel pressured to design something amazing and I felt frustrated without it. The power of online influencing made me unhappy, so I put expectations aside and eventually put together something that I loved.
Note Taking
There are countless note taking apps, and I didn’t know which one would be best for me. I decided to try using two of the most popular ones: Good Notes and Notability.
During the trial period, I was stressed about picking one app to use for good. Both tools had very similar features that made me torn between the two. I would go to class and use one on Monday and another on Wednesday. Having my notes in two different places felt disorganized, so I ultimately decided between the two based on pricing.
After the app problem was solved, I faced a bigger issue: writing on a glass screen. Writing with a pencil and paper has friction that makes it easy to control the pencil, while the plastic tip of the Apple pencil sliding against the smooth glass screen made my handwriting messy.
Neat notes are something that makes studying more enjoyable for me, and this struggle made me second guess my big purchase. The only thing that solved it was a few weeks of practice and becoming accustomed to it. By the time I was comfortable with writing on my iPad, I was also enjoying the many color and highlighting options.
Given its price, I sometimes felt pressured to use my iPad as much as I could. However, it just didn’t feel right for some courses. I can’t imagine using my iPad for notetaking in organic chemistry lectures, but it’s perfect for my genetics class. I learned that it’s okay to still use paper in some classes, as long as the iPad is useful in other ways.
Incorporating an iPad into my learning routine was unquestionably a challenging and worthwhile experience. Now that I’ve used it for several months, I would recommend an iPad for college students who regularly handwrite notes. While it wasn’t a magical device that automatically made learning more fun, it added ease and efficiency to my learning experience that I now can’t go without.