The MacRumors Show: Thomas Frank Talks iPad and Mac Productivity

Productivity guru Thomas Frank joins us on The MacRumors Show podcast this week to evaluate the state of the iPad Pro and Mac as productivity tools.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos

Thomas is a YouTuber, podcaster, and content creator best known for his personal development video essays, Notion tutorials and templates, and Skillshare courses. We discuss the ‌iPad Pro‌'s hardware and form factor, the advancements and limitations of iPadOS 16, and accessories like the Apple Pencil and Magic Keyboard.

We explore the M2 MacBook Air, share some productivity tips, and weigh up the upsides and downsides of Apple's platforms for getting things done. We also touch on some of our favorite third-party apps like Things 3, Obsidian, Craft, and Notion. See more of Thomas's work on his YouTube channel or his website.

Listen to The MacRumors Show via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Pocket Casts, Castro, Google Podcasts, or subscribe by copying our RSS feed directly into your podcast player. You can also watch a video version of the podcast on our YouTube channel. If you haven't already listened to the last episode of The MacRumors Show, be sure to catch up for an in-depth chat about Apple's long-rumored foldable iPhone following the launch of Samsung's latest Galaxy Z Flip and Z Fold devices.

Subscribe to ‌The MacRumors Show‌ for more episodes, where we discuss some of the topical news breaking here on MacRumors, often joined by exciting guests like Jonathan Morrison, iJustine, Ross Young, Sam Kohl, Ian Zelbo, Jon Rettinger, Rene Ritchie, Andru Edwards, Jon Prosser, and Mark Gurman. Remember to rate and review the show, and let us know what subjects you would like the podcast to cover going forward.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.1 Available Now With These 8 New Features

Monday November 3, 2025 5:54 am PST by
Following more than a month of beta testing, Apple released iOS 26.1 on Monday, November 3. The update includes a handful of new features and changes, including the ability to adjust the look of Liquid Glass and more. Below, we outline iOS 26.1's key new features. Liquid Glass Toggle iOS 26.1 lets you choose your preferred look for Liquid Glass. In the Settings app, under Display...
2024 iPhone Boxes Feature

Apple Adjusts Trade-In Values for iPhones, iPads, Macs, and More

Thursday November 6, 2025 11:12 am PST by
Apple today updated its trade-in values for select iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Watch models. Trade-ins can be completed on Apple's website, or at an Apple Store. The charts below provide an overview of Apple's current and previous trade-in values in the U.S., according to its website. Maximum values for most devices either decreased or saw no change, but the iPad Air received a slight bump. ...
Finder Siri Feature

Apple's New Siri Will Be Powered By Google Gemini

Wednesday November 5, 2025 11:57 am PST by
The smarter, more capable version of Siri that Apple is developing will be powered by Google Gemini, reports Bloomberg. Apple will pay Google approximately $1 billion per year for a 1.2 trillion parameter artificial intelligence model that was developed by Google. For context, parameters are a measure of how a model understands and responds to queries. More parameters generally means more...
Liquid Glass General Feature

Apple Shares Liquid Glass Design Gallery

Thursday November 6, 2025 2:45 pm PST by
Apple is promoting the new Liquid Glass design in iOS 26, showing off the ways that third-party developers are embracing the aesthetic in their apps. On its developer website, Apple is featuring a visual gallery that demonstrates how "teams of all sizes" are creating Liquid Glass experiences. The gallery features examples of Liquid Glass in apps for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, and Mac. Apple...
Apple Logo Spotlight

Report: Apple to Launch These New Products in 2026

Sunday November 2, 2025 5:34 am PST by
Apple is planning to launch at least 15 new products in 2026, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman outlined what to expect from Apple in 2026 in the latest edition of his "Power On" newsletter. He said the company is heading "into one of its most pivotal years in recent memory," with the rollout of major new Apple Intelligence features, intense regulatory pressure on the App Store,...
iOS 26

Apple Releases iOS 26.1 With Liquid Glass Toggle, Slide to Stop Alarm, New Apple Intelligence Languages and More

Monday November 3, 2025 1:11 pm PST by
Apple today released iOS 26.1, the first major update to the iOS 26 operating system that came out in September, iOS 26.1 comes over a month after iOS 26 launched. ‌iOS 26‌.1 is compatible with the ‌iPhone‌ 11 series and later, as well as the second-generation ‌iPhone‌ SE. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones over-the-air by going to Settings > General >...
apple watch se 3 always on

Apple to Remove iPhone-Apple Watch Wi-Fi Sync in EU With iOS 26.2

Thursday November 6, 2025 4:37 am PST by
Apple in iOS 26.2 will disable automatic Wi-Fi network syncing between iPhone and Apple Watch in the European Union to comply with the bloc's regulations, suggests a new report. Normally, when an iPhone connects to a new Wi-Fi network, it automatically shares the network credentials with the paired Apple Watch. This allows the watch to connect to the same network independently – for...
Early Black Friday Deals 2

The Best Early Black Friday Apple Deals

Sunday November 2, 2025 10:04 am PST by
We're officially in the month of Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When ...

Top Rated Comments

BootsWalking Avatar
42 months ago
Those must be some major productivity tips to warrant watching a 67 minute video.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ackmondual Avatar
42 months ago

Those must be some major productivity tips to warrant watching a 67 minute video.
I skimmed through that video. No screenshots, nor videos of workflows in action. Just talking. This makes it great if you want to turn it into a podcast (ie, at the gym, driving, daily commute), but as person who doesn't use MacOS, and not iOS for gaming, I was kind of hoping for video clips of such productivity (to get some specifics as to why creative people prefer MacOS). Oh well. That's something that's been on the back of my mind. I'll put in a mental to do list item to seek other videos. I do know one guy who's a solid Apple user (IIRC, he has about $13K of Mac OS equipment alone), so I'll ask him next time I run into him.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Dan Barbera Avatar
42 months ago

I skimmed through that video. No screenshots, nor videos of workflows in action. Just talking. This makes it great if you want to turn it into a podcast (ie, at the gym, driving, daily commute), but as person who doesn't use MacOS, and not iOS for gaming, I was kind of hoping for video clips of such productivity (to get some specifics as to why creative people prefer MacOS). Oh well. That's something that's been on the back of my mind. I'll put in a mental to do list item to seek other videos. I do know one guy who's a solid Apple user (IIRC, he has about $13K of Mac OS equipment alone), so I'll ask him next time I run into him.
This IS a podcast lol
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
topdrawer Avatar
42 months ago
watching youtube is not productive to me.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Starscape Avatar
42 months ago
So iPadOS’s limitations are a good thing, because it means less distractions.


Alrighty.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
imnotthewalrus Avatar
42 months ago
Sorry, MR but as a video - no. Just my opinion. Nothing more, nothing less. I didn't even make it to the halfway point.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)