My family and friends call me a gadget freak or “gadget man”.

Over the years, I have made significant investments in technology, not to hoard or to succumb to FOMO (fear of missing out). Still, I look at technology to exponentially simplify and enhance my personal and professional life.

When I first made a tablet investment, I had Samsung products. But post my switch to an IOS ecosystem, I moved my tablet preference over to Apple when the Pencil got introduced. I am a big note taker as I like to scribble my notes, thoughts, and perspectives in personal and professional life. But the investment in a Tablet has not just been for records and to replace the planners/journals, but as the usage and technology improved, it has moved in many other forms.

With the latest updates to IOS, the tablet software has far improved, and earlier this year, I made a switch to the beast tablet (it is also called the Cadillac of Tablets) the “IPAD Pro 12.9 with 1 TB WIFI only” product. The investment in technology has been one of the best to date. Here are some features which I am often using on my IPad.

1. Sidecar: I am a big believer in leveraging dual screen to get work optimized. More so, if you are in writing, I would highly recommend leveraging screens as it allows you to focus your effort on writing, and all research and reference content can be managed on the second/extended screen.

2. Note Taking: I am a big scribbler of my thoughts, notes, and perspectives from personal and professional life. Note-taking helps me remember, immediately document my thoughts and ideas, and, more importantly, help me be focussed. I would do a thorough review of the note-taking apps, and over the years, have used a variety of them - Evernote, Apple Notes, NotesPro, GoodNotes, etc.

3. Reading: Though I like the feeling of holding and reading physical books and hardcovers, my travel schedule doesn’t allow me to lag the books around. I would share my travel light concepts latter; however, for me, every gram of weight makes a big difference. Hence my IPad doubles up as my reading companion. My subscription to Amazon Kindle allows me to read books and also gain information.

4. Audiobooks: Let me be honest, I cannot spend a lot of time reading non-fiction books, and Amazon Audible has been a big rescue for me. Listening to books on airplanes, car rides or my morning walks has really helped me get through the knowledge or listen to books which I would have not been able to spend time reading them. Naturally, all books would never make it to Audible as some books are definitely meant to be read in a physical format.

5. Podcast: I was introduced to Podcast last year, and since then I have been binging on it for quite a while now. I have over a period of time subscribed to a few of the podcasts, which I like to listen to. I would put together a list of podcasts on a separate list. Podcasts a great medium to gain knowledge, some of them also go deeper into a specific domain or knowledge area.

6. Watching: This is last on my list and it only comes to me on the IPad only if I do want to take a break and watch something which can take my mind away from day-to-day work. I would recommend keep all your Netflix or Amazon Video apps on the IPAD on 3rd Screen (if you have too many apps) or buried in a folder to ensure they are not there on your face.

Naturally, the IPad has many accessories, and if you are serious about getting the accessories my recommendation is here.

• Apple Pencil

• IPad Cover: I would highly recommend the product and do not go in for the Apple Original Cover as with 1/5th the cost you are able to protect your IPad without adding too much weight. If you plan to have a keyboard with your IPad then this is not for you.

• HyperDrive Hub - This really helps to take the IPad to the next level. You can add external devices or transfer media/content from your IPad to another platform pretty easy.

Another hack that I would like to share which I did when buying an Apple IPad Pro, I would recommend you to look at ‘Renewed’ products on Amazon.com (the US only) or Facebook Marketplace to see if you can pick an open box or seldom-used product. I myself bought my IPad as a renewed product and to my surprise, it was net new without any signs of used or renewed. Here is the link to the renewed product on Amazon.com. I bought mine $700 cheaper so was a great deal and with all the money saved I was able to buy the accessories. You can also buy the Asurion product protection which gives you peace of mind from an insurance perspective.

Let me know your experience of using IPad Pro and any unique usage scenarios. Chao..