Ditch the Windows Desktop for Ipad?

Question

I would like to get rid of this monstrous Windows Desktop computer and use only an ipad.  I need a cleaner, more streamlined system that won't get bogged down with viruses and have to be replaced constantly. 
I'm figuring I can just get a G-Tech G-Drive for additional storage space and the 64G Ipad. Are these two devices compatible? I only web bill pay and send an occasional email online.  Has anyone done this and know of any challenges I may be facing?
Thanks,
CD

Answer 1

Operating with an iPad as your sole computing device can present some issues, depending on what types of activity you need it for.
If you are doing fairly heavy duty work in word processing, spreadsheets and the like, youneed to be awae that most apps handling this type of activity are still fairly limited compared to the desktop versions (Numbers and all of the Excel replacements I know of cannot handle pivot tables, for example; you cannot install fonts in iOS; etc.). If your needs in this area are reasonably simple, however, it might work.
You cannot connect just any external hard drive to an iPad. There is no USB or Ethernet connection. Consequently, and only with specific models of drive with WiFi built in, you can generally only consume content on the iPad from one. You can't write to it. You can, however, use cloud based services such as Box or Dropbox to store additional data and content, with some limitations.
In the event something goes seriously amiss with the iPad, it is necessary to plug it into a computer running iTunes to resolve the issues.
I am on my second iPad (first was a 1st gen purchased on the day of release) as well as two iPhone5's. I do about 95% of my non work computing on the iPad, have never had reason to do a full restore and the current devices have never been synced with itunes (I have iTunes match). So it is possible to do it, but not as easy as you might suspect.