Can I use an Ipad in lieu of a smartphone?

For background, I know nothing about Apple or its ecosystem, so please don't assume something even if "everybody knows" it. I owned an Ipad mini years ago, and it was stolen within a week, and that was it.

I have stopped using smartphones entirely because of my vision. I can't see their screens anymore. A smartphone is just a computer with a tiny screen, and I have multiple other computers with larger screens that I CAN see. The problem is, there are many things out there that require you use the computer with a tiny screen. I have been fighting this for some years, but finally have to admit it's a lost battle. I continually encounter "Sign up in our app", "you must use the app" blah blah. So I need something that runs "the app" but has a larger screen.

That's the background for my question. Can an Ipad do all the things a smartphone does, in terms of apps that for some reason must be run on a computer with a tiny screen? I don't need it to make telephone calls, which is all I find help on in general searches with this question.

Thank you in advance for any assistance.