Illumination | Technology | Apple
Why the Hell Does the iPad Not Have a Calculator?
I have a serious bone to pick with them.
I’ve been using the iPad Pro 2021 model for over a year now. I recently published an article about my experience with it, here:
However, I have a serious problem.
Calculator app
On the iPhone, you can access the Calculator app, made exclusively by Apple for iOS users.
It’s accurate, safe, and doesn’t have constant ads playing because Apple doesn’t need the finance.
It’s simply a convenient addition to the phone to fit the functions of almost any item, like an alarm clock, watch etc.
So, why is it not on the iPad?
Many iPad users have had to resort to downloading third-party calculator applications from the App Store.
Some of them may have more functions than the typical iOS calculator (like calculating fractions), which is good, but then there are the cons.
These apps are mostly free so developers will place ads to earn income from them.
For such a basic function, having to deal with 30-second ads every time you input a number is going to be a hassle.
Backstory
Articles [1] have mentioned that there’s a reason why Apple deliberately didn’t have the app.
Steve Jobs was working in the run-up to the release of the first-generation iPad. A month before the release, he noticed the calculator app was essentially a stretched-out version of the iOS calculator.
So he went to his developer and told him to create a new calculator app for the iPad from scratch. But with only a month, this would be impossible.
Therefore the first generation iPad (and future models) would be released with no calculator app.
On community forums like this, people have complained about this but ended up getting recommended to third-party apps.
But, my question is, why can’t Apple release it nowadays?
The time pressure back then can be justified, but now, there is plenty of time to consider making a calculator app exclusively from Apple for the iPad.
People in forums like this have seen that Apple is simply procrastinating the chance to look back and consider making a calculator app for once.
What to do?
Articles like this have mentioned alternatives to this issue.
You can still ask Siri to answer math questions (e.g. “What’s 234–12”), even though there’s no official calculator app on the iPad.
While most third-party apps have ads, apps like Sci: Pro Calculator are free without ads, although it hasn’t been updated in a while.
Apple is giving the sense that they won’t be revisiting this idea for the foreseeable future, so we will have to make do with this.
Hope you enjoyed this article about my experience with the iPad Pro & the absence of a calculator app. Feel free to comment below with your thoughts!
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