I'm always on the move and I mainly work with Google Docs, emails, and YouTube. My current laptop is from 2019 and it's getting slow, but I'm wondering if I should just get an iPad with a keyboard instead. That would be cheaper and lighter to carry around. What do you think - is that really enough for everyday use or do I actually need a proper laptop?
The problem is more that with a tablet you quickly realize when you need to do something with multiple windows side by side or need specific software - and then you're stuck. For your three things it's more than enough, but the line between "just barely works" and "constantly annoys you" gets crossed faster with tablets than you'd think.
I wouldn't see it so black and white - it really depends on how flexible you need to be. For Google Docs, emails, and YouTube, a tablet is absolutely enough from a technical standpoint, and yeah, it's lighter and often cheaper. The iPad with Magic Keyboard is a solid solution. But here's the catch: with tablets, sometimes you just need a "real" operating system experience. If you ever need to save a larger file attachment, need multiple windows side by side, or eventually have to work with other programs, it gets frustrating. Google Docs runs on the tablet fine, but everything around it is often fiddly.
A used or affordable new laptop from an established manufacturer could honestly be the better investment. You can get really good devices for cheap right now that'll last you a few years. A 2019 laptop isn't ancient yet - if it's just running slow, an SSD upgrade or a cleanup might help before you buy something new. But if you do need something new: a lightweight ultrabook with good battery life would be the compromise between a tablet and your old laptop. Then you get the flexibility without making compromises.
For your use cases, a tablet would technically work just fine, but here's something a lot of people overlook: if you ever need to convert a file, do more complex stuff with documents, or just quickly save something locally, it gets annoying on a tablet. A used laptop from 2022/2023 often costs about as much as an iPad with a keyboard and gives you way more flexibility if your needs change down the road. My tip: check out refurbished devices - they're cheaper, come with a warranty, and you don't have to stress about getting the right size like you would with a tablet.
Tablets with keyboards cost almost as much as cheap laptops these days - that's one of those myths that just won't die. If you really want to save money, you can get a solid used laptop from the last couple of years for the same price, and it'll last you a long time. But whether tablet or laptop - both would work for your work tasks, the real question is how much flexibility you need.
What the others already mentioned about multitasking limitations is real. But honestly, people sometimes overestimate that. With Google Docs and emails, you don't really notice much difference in everyday use. The real problem comes more gradually: when you eventually need to quickly open an Excel file with a specific pivot table format, or need software that only exists for desktop, or just start noticing that handling it gets more and more fiddly. With a tablet you'll get frustrated.
My take: if you really only do these three things and that stays the same over the next two or three years, a tablet would be enough. But people change their requirements - either you suddenly need more, or you get annoyed by the little things. A cheap new laptop (or a good used one) just gives you more room to breathe and doesn't necessarily cost more in the end.
At home, the iPad has pretty much become my main device for exactly the stuff you're talking about, and honestly it works surprisingly well - until the first time I need to save a file differently or suddenly need two browser windows side by side. That's when it quickly hits me why I haven't sold the laptop yet. For your use case, I'd lean more toward a cheap, current laptop instead of the iPad, because you just have fewer limitations with it and won't end up frustrated at some point when the interface gets annoying - that's happened to me.
For your use cases a tablet would technically work, but here's the catch: try writing longer texts in Google Docs on a tablet or actually using multiple tabs at the same time - it gets annoying faster than you'd think. What nobody mentions: get yourself a used laptop from 2021/2022 instead of a new one, that way you get way more performance for your money and you still save compared to an iPad with a keyboard. If you really just consume content and write minimally, a tablet will do, but for real flexibility on the go a cheap used laptop is the better choice.
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