I need a dedicated iPad for work, I had a 1st GEN that I loved (sold it on the FM) and received a 3rd GEN for my birthday last summer. Since I've got to get another, was thinking about a "mini" for my personal use and taking my regular iPad to work where I will need to leave it. How's the small screen working out? The ONLY thing I don't like about the regular iPad is the size, I use it often in an airplane, and there is nowhere to mount / lay / put it without it being in the way. The mini might just be the cat's meow for me. But as I get older my vision ain't what it used to be
I never had an iPad, so going from the iPhone screen to the iPad mini was a big step up. I use it to watch videos on the plane and I don't get any eyestrain. I still use the iPhone for different things but for reading/movie watching/game playing, the iPad wins out.
got one for my wife. size is similar to a kindle, display looks nice, 4G works well, snappy performance. it seemed like the normal ipad would be slightly better for watching video, but bulkier for reading and generally keeping around. she uses it quite a bit now, and takes it everywhere.
I got my wife one also, for christmas, she LOVES it. Loves the size, carries it to work in her purse, and is on it a lot at home, her's is wifi only.
Just got one a couple weeks ago and love it. I've never had a regular iPad so not sure how they compare, but I think it is a perfect size. Being used to my iPhone the screen seems plenty big. It's nice not having to lug around a laptop while traveling, and the price was a big factor for me. You can get a new iPad mini for darn near the same price as a used similar spec iPad 2. The only time I use my laptop anymore is when I need to work in excel. The only benefit I could see on the regular iPad is if the screen is big enough to do normal home row typing. The mini is not, so I just use it vertically and use my thumbs. Not a huge deal to me as if I need to do some serious typing I can use my laptop or may in the future look into a Bluetooth keyboard.
We have a 1,2, and a mini. I really like the mini. The edges outside the screen are much smaller. This makes the overall size a lot smaller but the screen is not that much smaller. I think Apple nailed it.
We have 2 iPads now, I didn't realize how much I would use one. But I'm thinkin the smaller size would be great for travelling and carrying back and forth. I've gotten to where can type pretty fast on the iPad, I was wondering how the mini would be with my big fingers. If they make a BT keyboard, that would be the ticket, at home anyway. Thanks, that's what I needed to know. I'm thinking the mini would be small enough to carry easier but big enough to still be functional, especially with maps and navigation. The smaller size would fit in my bag easier and be less cumbersome. So maybe I'll go shopping tomorrow
Just got one this week, love it so far...this is my first so can't compare using it to the full size. The 7.9" size is ideal for me, never bought a full size due to the bulk and cost but works much better for reading and web surfing than my 7" Android tablet. The sound is surprisingly good too and that was a big motivation, am using it to replace a bedside internet radio I've had for years....the sound is fine as is for voice, podcasts, etc and I use a cordless Bluetooth speaker if I want higher quality for music. The resolution works for me too and I'm not so sure my aging eyes would appreciate the higher quality of a retina display anyway. Airplay is not that useful to me for video but using it for audio via Apple TV in the house or an Airport Express in the garage is a great feature when listening to Pandora, Tunein internet radio, etc...
Wait a couple of months, the Mini with retina display will be announced shortly. I got a First gen after it came out, then gave it away to a 4 year old when I got a 3 last fall. The retina display makes a big difference for my suboptimal aging eyes, especially reading on the Kindle App (which I do a lot) and watching video. I have a fairly heavy case to protect the 3, which is great but takes away some of the portability. I think the Mini with retina display and a decent amount of storage will be near perfect, without the need for a big case to ruin the weight.
I'm on the fence right now between the iPad mini and iPod touch. I need an iOS device for work but the issue is I'm getting an Android tablet too so do I really need 2 tablets.....
Pulled the trigger on a mini last nite, shopped at Best Buy and did the 18 month 0% deal. I'll give my gf the iPad 3 and she'll give me her 2 for the office. Ordered the Otterbox case from Amazon since I plan to carry it on moto trips. I'll post up my experience after I've used it a bit. PMR
My wife loves hers and I would have one too, but it was between a new Corbin seat or the iPad. Just to point out how insanely light the wifi only model is. The first time I picked it up in the apple store I would have sworn it was just a cardboard display.
I won one at our company's 2013 kickoff meetings a couple of weeks ago. I like the Mini. The fullsized iPad seems a bit big to me. All that said, I'm not sure what I'm going to use this one for anyway. W.A.
Our family has iPads, iPad minis and 2 Samsung 7" Tablets. I like the Samsung tablets better. Micro SD card slot for cheap expandability and I only paid $149 each for the Samsungs refurbed. I also hate iTunes. I can see my entire androids like a drive on my computer. Apple probably is easier for beginners and people who don't like to fiddle around.
I had an iPad 1, and could see its value... But only browsed with it and read an occasional book. Once Apple stopped allowing it to be updated in 2012, I knew it was time to upgrade. Talking with XtreemJeepn about his use of iPads, I decided to sell my personal MacBook Pro 13 and just use a new ipad for home use. I have a 13 MacBook Pro Retina for work so having to deal with two apple laptops is just too much and unnecessarily redundant. I wanted to go ipad mini, but the ipad 4 retina screen and the 128gb size really was too enticing. The base size ipad does not seem too big at all. Ipad mini would make a better mobile book reader. My iPhone 4S is really my ipad mini.
Enjoying the iPad mini John? I have to say after owning an iPad 1, 2 and 3 the iPad 2 is the sweet spot for price vs features and usability. (Not including the mini in that comparison yet) The screen is nice on the 3 but the extra battery makes it thicker and take twice as long to charge!! Not an issue when at home but it made a big difference traveling with it on the bike. 4 Extra hours to charge the same amount as a 2 is huge! Since the retina screen is twice the resolution the iPad 3/4 store every image at 2x the resolution and every app that is optimized for it is 2x as big. This becomes a MASSIVE storage suck!! I went from using about half of my. 64g iPad 1/2 to having to clear off pictures and apps on the 64g iPad 3 just to have usable space. :eek1 The only reason I mention this is that the current version of the iPad mini might be more fictional than waiting for a "Retina" version unless you absolutely NEED the retina display. We optimized out second issue of Mōtum (a motorcycle magazine for the ipad) for the iPads with retina display and the file size for the iPad 3/4 versions is huge compared to the version for the iPads without the retina display. All for image quality.
That is partly why I went for the current version of the mini, figured a future retina version would need much more memory and power (also $), be thicker, heavier, charge slower, etc....and the display looks good to me as is. The mini display resolution (1024 x 768) is indeed the same as an Ipad 2 but since the screen is smaller there are more pixels per inch. BTW Motum loads fine and looks great on it....
Thank you! The ONLY reason I bought my iPad 3 retina was because the screen resolution changed and we needed to make sure what were were doing with Mōtum looked good on it. I never felt like the screen on the iPad 1/2 were bad. (Though they do look fuzzy for a few minutes after using the 3 for a long time) I would imagine that the iPad mini would be the ideal mix between the resolutions! I'm temped to sell my wife's ipad 2 (my old one) and get her a mini since we can check the resolution issue with it.
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