I have just bought the ipad air and it is extremely light, with the leather case it does bring it up a bit, still light. I also got the apple keyboard and the Incase origami workstation on order due to be delivered tomorrow. I hope this will be a good work round. I wanted to buy the macair, but there is so many issues with wifi it has put me off so I will carry on waiting for that.
homeport, congrats on your purchase of the ipad air. I have an ipad 3 that I use with a bluetooth logitech keyboard and the two make a strong, lightweight combo that fits into a zipper case. As for wifi, you’re going to find that an awful lot of iOS apps require it as well. Since you’re a Windows user, you might like the QuickOffice set of apps (free) which allow you to save to Google Drive, Box, DropBox and several other cloud servers. You may also use the iWorks apps on iCloud, and pray for success. 
Robert,
Thanks for the Matias info. I’m a bit concerned that it has a slightly different layout than my Majestouch keyboards, but I might get one to try out.
Regards,
Dan.
Hi druid thank you for that advice I am going to check them out today. I keep hearing bad feedback on the dropbox app, do you use it with success?
I must admit I am looking forward to the keyboard and the origami workstation arriving today 
Never had a single problem with Dropbox.
However, I always ZIP my files before backing them up.
I like WriteRoom a lot. It has something like the Binder, that can be hidden to leave the full screen to the text you are editing. It is very elegant. And it syncs with Scrivener (via an external folder in Dropbox) very well.
Paolo
I use an iPad Mini with IA Writer, which perfectly fits the description of a piece of blank electronic paper There are almost no parameters you can waste time messing around with - and so it encourages you to get on and write. The iPad mini is a perfect size for this and you can write in bed using the screen keyboard without tiring your arms out. For more vertical writing I use it with a Logitech keyboard/cover, which again I’ve found trouble free. This is perfect for writing rapidly and distraction free.
IA Writer uses iCloud so I can pick up drafts very easily on my iMac and then paste them into Scrivener and edit and arrange there. I have looked at automatic sync options, but prefer the control and safety of doing it manually ( I suspect it’s quicker, too). This is working very well for me, but your workflow may vary…
Since my last posting I have had to return the ipad air as it had a weird white spot/bubble under the glass or in it, that I never noticed until I set it up on the origami workstation with the apple keyboard to use, and there it was. It never showed up on dark only white , weird so I contacted apple and they said defiantly change it. We went back to the store and while there looked at the mac book pro with retina which has just come out and I have to say I fell in love with the 13 inch. So now I have a bit of a predicament, as we bought two iPad, and I could use my husbands if need be. I am tempted to buy this machine then would have best of both worlds, plus as I work in a school I can get the educational discount which takes a bit more off the price.
I was thinking of going with the middle of the road 13 inch screen one, so the i5, 256, and 8gb, and then also buy office for mac.
I am now doing a bit of research and trying to justify the spend, I do love the ipad air, do we need two in the house anyway? the mac pro is not as light but not heavy for taking out and about?
Any help would be welcome
Is the MBPr really much heavier than the iPad Air plus a keyboard?
Personally, I’d go for the power of OS X and the MBPr running Scrivener.
I wouldn’t go for Office as iWork and Scrivener do everything perfectly.
I have both a MBP 13" retina and an iPad4, and while I do like my iPad, the MBP 13" retina, as I said a few times in these forums, is IMO the best machine Apple ever made. Light, fast, small, powerful, great-looking. I must say I have an i7 processor in it, but I doubt it makes a huge difference
Thank you for those replies, yes I thought about that, with the keyboard it brings weight up. Also I would be able to have scrivener on it as mentioned. I have spent the morning browsing and reading up and I am swaying towards ordering the Mac, and can still use hubbies iPad 
If you have the larger one I am guessing you have the different graphics, with the one I am thinking of getting it will be integrated 
, but I think that will work well enough for me.
I too would go for a MBX. I haven’t used the latest MacBook Airs, but I love my late 2010 13” MBA. It doesn’t have a retina screen, but it is pretty high resolution anyway. And it is even lighter and slimmer than a 13” MBP. I also have the late 2011 17” MBP, which is great to work on, but more of a “moveable desktop” than a laptop, so I don’t have experience of the 13” MBP, other than moving my wife’s and occasionally advising her on something she’s doing on it, or of retina screens other than on my iPhone.
And Briar Kit, the latest releases of iWork — Pages in this connection — doesn’t read RTF at all at the moment … Nisus Writer (Pro) is a much better bet, although it costs money.
Good point, though for me RTF is not an issue.
To add to the chat, I bought an iPad in May 2012 believing that Scrivener for iOS was imminent. I so wish I had gone for a MBP or MBA. I use the iPad a lot, but I know a MBx would have been more suitable for writing tasks. The iPad is great for consumption, but I find it clunky and slow for getting work done. Really miss the MBP I got rid of to buy the iPad. Big mistake.
I do think a mbp will prove more productive to typing. Before I realised there was an issue with my ipad air, and set it up with the apple keyboard and origami workstation, I found it a slower process, having to touch the screen before I could type anything, also the movement on the keyboard set on the workstation was distracting.
Exactly. Think the MBP is the right decision. Rather envious.
I find both MBP and iPad excellent for productivity. However, if I had to use only one, I’d definitely go for the MBP. But I do get lots done on the iPad too, I must say
Do you use pages and the ipad keyboard for that
I got the Clam Case Pro for the iPad, which is a wonderful BT keyboard (it does look like a little Mac, if I work on it for a while, at some point I find my hands searching for the trackpad, which is not on the BT keyboard, of course) and case. However, I can get quite a bit of work done even by simply tapping on the glass of the tablet.
I do use Pages for certain things, and for others I use markdown text editors (my favorite ones are Drafts and Editorial, but I also use Byword quite a bit). I have a number of different types of workflows, depending on the kind of thing I am working on. My work is inherently collaborative, but on some things I either work on my own, or I start them on my own before sharing with collaborators/trainees. When the work becomes collaborative, since most people are apparently only able to use Word, I must use Pages. But my preference is to write in markdown text editors on the iPad. I actually use Scrivener pretty much like a markdown text editor (except that a big part of my Scrivener use is for its powerful file management system that allows me to organize research files in a handy and rational way)
ipad retina mini released today online
Homeport,
Thanks for posting this heads-up.
To all…
The great feedback in this thread has made me think critically about my overall wants and needs. I.e. for what will an iPad be used and where, and how does it fit in with my lifestyle going forward?
I’m wrestling with many competing needs. Since I’m retiring in 2014, this means short-term personal and long-term retirement needs. My concept of retirement is not sitting on my tush and doing nothing. It is the freedom to spend my time creating what I want.
After thinking this through, I realized two things - I love to write and I love to create software. My tools should support this.
For writing in general, I currently have most of what I need for long writing sessions - several PC desktops and a Laptop. Writing on an iPad will probably be adhoc and limited, and portability will be more important than screen size. In addition, a lightweight device will make for easier reading. Therefore the iPad Mini Retina (apple.com/ipad-mini/) seems like the best choice for me.
As for writing software, even though I’m a PC software developer, it’s obvious that mobile devices are the future and Apple has the lead right now. Something simple like a Mac Mini is probably the best device to get started with iPad/iPhone software development. With my current iPhone 4 and iPad 2, and after adding an iPad Mini and a Mac Mini, I believe that I’d have all to the tools necessary to write and test software.
Again, thanks for the excellent feedback.
Regards,
Dan.
p.s. A keyboard for my iPad? Hmmm… That’s still an open issue. 