10 Reasons Not To Buy an iPad for Students

[*LTD*]

Interesting thread, but rather pointless, as students will end up buying them anyway as part of Apple's exploding iPad numbers quarter for quarter.

They might not *need* one, but they'll *want* one, and wants trump all. They'll find ways to adapt it.

 

[tjb1]

I disagree. I used to think this way, but not anymore. You can get stuff done with the iPad.

1) When combined with a bluetooth keyboard it is really nice. The advantage an iPad has is that you can use it in landscape or portrait, with or without the keyboard, so you can read on it comfortably in one situation and create content in another. People don't read entire books on laptops because it is unpleasant to do so. The iPad is fun. Personally, I much prefer taking notes by hand and scanning them into PDF form later, but if you do want to type your notes in class, the iPad is perfectly fine.

2) The iPad has a longer battery, so it makes it through the day without needing a charge--classrooms often lack adequate power supply. I probably get 90 percent of my work done on the iPad. Here is more detail about how:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1197650/

3) The iPad is much less expensive than any Apple laptop, and many Windows ones, and it gives students everything they need to get basic work done. If you are in a program that creates video content or other heavy processing, it is in appropriate, but that would be the exception rather than the rule.

@tjb1
As for the price of textbooks, they are outrageous, and in many cases ebooks are unavailable. I recommend buying them, scanning the content into PDF form, and then reselling it. Here is some advice about how to do this:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1198956/

@ace198
Also, regarding the secondary market, thanks for that explanation. I wondered if that was the meaning, but it didn't make sense, because I didn't think there was reselling of k-12 textbooks anyhow. I guess he means university level then. Not much of a secondary market there either

I dont have time to scan 5k pages or destory a book in the process. And if I were to buy it why would I not keep it to use for class? I can rent it, copy it, say I dropped the class and get all my money back But I need a real book, plus my tech college isnt in to this e-book thing.

 

[palpatine]

I dont have time to scan 5k pages or destory a book in the process. And if I were to buy it why would I not keep it to use for class? I can rent it, copy it, say I dropped the class and get all my money back But I need a real book, plus my tech college isnt in to this e-book thing.

I don't think you read the information I provided in the link

And, obviously, if I am advising you to sell it back, I am not talking about tearing the spine off the book. Please read it for details if you are interested, but a digital camera or office scanner will do the trick without harming a bit of the book.

As for 5k pages, I easily scanned more than 10,000 pages yesterday (office scanner), and I will do more than that today. Yes, it took many hours, but now they are searchable (OCR is fairly accurate), I'll have them forever, and I can carry many tens of thousands of books around with me wherever I go. Try stuffing that in your backpack

As for your tech college, who cares what they think about e-books? You are the one who is reading it. Read in whatever manner you want. Heck, keep the book if you want.

Interesting thread, but rather pointless, as students will end up buying them anyway as part of Apple's exploding iPad numbers quarter for quarter.

They might not *need* one, but they'll *want* one, and wants trump all. They'll find ways to adapt it.

iPad=porn?

As I recall, the point of the original article, which we are all discussing, is the situation in which someone (parent or school district) is considering purchasing an iPad with the intention of helping their education. The article's author came up with ten (weak) reasons why they shouldn't do it. Whether students buy it on their own is something else entirely.

 

[tjb1]

I don't think you read the information I provided in the link

And, obviously, if I am advising you to sell it back, I am not talking about tearing the spine off the book. Please read it for details if you are interested, but a digital camera or office scanner will do the trick without harming a bit of the book.

As for 5k pages, I easily scanned more than 10,000 pages yesterday (office scanner), and I will do more than that today. Yes, it took many hours, but now they are searchable (OCR is fairly accurate), I'll have them forever, and I can carry many tens of thousands of books around with me wherever I go. Try stuffing that in your backpack

As for your tech college, who cares what they think about e-books? You are the one who is reading it. Read in whatever manner you want. Heck, keep the book if you want.

More of none of the textbooks the school uses are e-book. But I will go and read the whole thread this time, I just skimmed that one yesterday...was more interested in the evernote one.

 

[chrono1081]

That article was pretty poorly thought out by people who obviously never used one for education. Its extremely valuable in my opinion.

First, I don't suggest that these replace a laptop, but for something to augment the laptop and to use on the go, its a great device.

1. Ebooks. Take your books anywhere you want on a device smaller than a magazine.

2. Internet. Need to look something up fast? No problem, just connect.

3. Educational Apps. Need help with physics? Chemistry? History? Language? I hate to sound cliche but theres an app for that! I've used physics apps many times.

4. Smaller than a laptop and fits in a backpack better than a laptop. Because of this, its less likely to get damaged by other things pushing on it in the backpack. I've had all kinds of marks on laptops due to them being squished after shoving all my books in.

5. Note taking. (Bear with me!). Many students still use regular notebooks, but want the convenience of having the internet with them in class. Its easier to fit an iPad and notebook on your desk than a laptop and a notebook. This is very useful when the professor tells you to hold questions until the end but you desperately need to know something immediately.

6. Digital portfolio. For many students, (game development students, 3d art, photography, etc) its a great device to show off your work with.

There are lots of other features I can think of but they aren't relevant to anyone. The people who wrote this article need to ask an actual student how they use an iPad before making assumptions.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

That article was pretty poorly thought out by people who obviously never used one for education. Its extremely valuable in my opinion.

First, I don't suggest that these replace a laptop, but for something to augment the laptop and to use on the go, its a great device.

1. Ebooks. Take your books anywhere you want on a device smaller than a magazine.

2. Internet. Need to look something up fast? No problem, just connect.

3. Educational Apps. Need help with physics? Chemistry? History? Language? I hate to sound cliche but theres an app for that! I've used physics apps many times.

4. Smaller than a laptop and fits in a backpack better than a laptop. Because of this, its less likely to get damaged by other things pushing on it in the backpack. I've had all kinds of marks on laptops due to them being squished after shoving all my books in.

5. Note taking. (Bear with me!). Many students still use regular notebooks, but want the convenience of having the internet with them in class. Its easier to fit an iPad and notebook on your desk than a laptop and a notebook. This is very useful when the professor tells you to hold questions until the end but you desperately need to know something immediately.

6. Digital portfolio. For many students, (game development students, 3d art, photography, etc) its a great device to show off your work with.

There are lots of other features I can think of but they aren't relevant to anyone. The people who wrote this article need to ask an actual student how they use an iPad before making assumptions.

I would call point 6 special case. For those cases iPad is great but lets face it generally speaking college freshman no matter what your major (art included) those are not high on the list.
Later on yeah but I would say for college freshman iPad should not be high on the list of items but something to look at after you have some time under you belt to see if it would be useful.

For my major for example and iPad is complete waste.

 

[chrono1081]

I would call point 6 special case. For those cases iPad is great but lets face it generally speaking college freshman no matter what your major (art included) those are not high on the list.
Later on yeah but I would say for college freshman iPad should not be high on the list of items but something to look at after you have some time under you belt to see if it would be useful.

For my major for example and iPad is complete waste.

I agree that certain majors it wouldn't make sense for, and that for sure #6 is a special circumstance (although one I use frequently) but I think the article was a bit too harsh and made it it seem like it was useless for college when intact it has many places for many students.

 

[KnightWRX]

You can get stuff done with the iPad.

You can, but it's a huge pain in the butt compared to a laptop for things that require a lot of typing. Especially this point :

1) When combined with a bluetooth keyboard it is really nice.

That sure helps portability right there... dragging a whole keyboard along with your iPad.

 

[skittles90623]

pointless article. Yahoo does crap like this all the time. i remember another "top ten illegal things most people don't know" and Yahoo wrote "it's illegal to scan and print money"
... Really?

Just say your piece. Don't write some bs fillers to get to ten.

#1 It's Expensive
#2 It's Not the Best Solution for Note-Taking or Editing Documents
#3 It's Too Distracting
#4 It's Ultra-Portable and Ultra-Droppable
#5 What Makes it Desirable to your Kid is What Makes it Desirable to Criminals
#6 It's Meant for the Enjoyment of One Person, Which Means Social Seclusion
#7 Digital Text Books are a Marvel, but There's No Secondary Market
#8 It's a Status Symbol, Plain and Simple
#9 It'll Already be Old Technology by the Time You Buy It
#10 They'll Also Want a Laptop, Too

Besides number 1, 2, and 10, everything else is pointless. "What makes it desirable to your kid is what makes it desirable to criminals" c'mon now.

 

[FX120]

I don't see this happening for one big reason, and one that like won't be resolved any time soon: There is no way to lock down what the user is able to do, and this is a critical need for any school IT department. You can somewhat control Internet access through filtering on the network, but you wont be able to stop students from playing angry birds in class.

 

[roadbloc]

I bought an iPad 2... ...and sold it again. As it is literally just a big version of my iPhone (without the phone). Making it a very expensive social networking and web browsing tool.

I now browse the web on my cheaper Kindle. It's a bit clunky and in black and white, but it still does the job for a much cheaper price. And a prefer the physical keyboard to the touch screen one.

 

[villicodelirant]

But is this serious?

I mean, would there be students who would go and buy an iPad and use it in class?

Instead of going the traditional notebook&pen route and spending their disposable cash on beer & porn?

This just doesn't sound kinda convincing to me.

 

[eawmp1]

I remember the sorry condition of my school's textbooks after the abuse of 1 year. iPads in the schools would have a very short life span.

 

[0098386]

I wouldn't have bought one as a student. For all they're touted as a replacement for a pen and paper - they're not. It's still quicker and more accurate to either jot notes down on paper or record the session.
And I'm no technical genius but I can't imagine you can plug in a directional USB Mic to get better recordings on an iPad, but I can imagine there's an iPad-only version that costs a lot more.

I survived uni with a 12" Powerbook (recorded lectures, easily uploaded and shared files and documents, used for presentations).

 

[roadbloc]

But is this serious?

I mean, would there be students who would go and buy an iPad and use it in class?

Instead of going the traditional notebook&pen route and spending their disposable cash on beer & porn?

This just doesn't sound kinda convincing to me.

You hit the nail on the head. Students cannot afford these expensive products and would rather fritter away their money on having a good time. Not to mention, on uni accommodation, there is a high chance it would get stolen.

A waste of money essentially as far as a student is concerned.

 

[*LTD*]

http://www.google.ca/search?client=...c.r_pw.&fp=342601afbb3fcd7c&biw=1920&bih=1017

Now what?

 

[roadbloc]

http://www.google.ca/search?client=...c.r_pw.&fp=342601afbb3fcd7c&biw=1920&bih=1017

Now what?

All of them about students being GIVEN iPads. Hell, I'd accept a 2nd iPad if it was given to me, even if I didn't need it. I'd accept a Windows Laptop if it was given to me, even if I didn't need it. I'd accept a free meal even if I wasn't that hungry.

Where is the proof that students are buying iPads? Because, being the age where the majority of my friends are now uni students, NONE of them have bought one apart from one, who bought mine off me. Being a student, especially in this economic climate and the rise of student fees, means you have to be careful with money. No need to buy a £400 iPad when a £200 netbook does just a good a job.

 

[boss.king]

http://www.google.ca/search?client=...c.r_pw.&fp=342601afbb3fcd7c&biw=1920&bih=1017

Now what?

I don't see what your point is... just because a bunch of schools and universities have moved to iPads doesn't mean they are a good solution. Back in the day smoking was backed by the surgeon general, that didn't make it any better for you.

 

[(marc)]

I don't see what your point is... just because a bunch of schools and universities have moved to iPads doesn't mean they are a good solution. Back in the day smoking was backed by the surgeon general, that didn't make it any better for you.

I guess many schools and universities do so to gain a "hip factor". An iPad is clearly not necessary.

 

[*LTD*]

I don't see what your point is... just because a bunch of schools and universities have moved to iPads doesn't mean they are a good solution. Back in the day smoking was backed by the surgeon general, that didn't make it any better for you.

The question is, who or what is the arbiter of a "good solution"?

It seems we're moving in a particular direction.

Your attempt to equate iPads with cigarettes is priceless.

 

[roadbloc]

It seems we're moving in a particular direction.

The only direction we are moving is where you keep on changing the direction of the thread every time your posts are challenged.

Tell me, were is the proof that students are buying iPads. You stated yourself that they will be doing, so where is the evidence?

 

[whooleytoo]

2, 4, and 10 make some sense, the rest are rather petty. Many of them are true of laptops as well.

Any tablet isn't great for note taking, all electronic devices are more breakable than a paper notepad etc....

 

[NT1440]

You hit the nail on the head. Students cannot afford these expensive products and would rather fritter away their money on having a good time. Not to mention, on uni accommodation, there is a high chance it would get stolen.

A waste of money essentially as far as a student is concerned.

No offense, but the projection in this thread is amazing. "I wouldn't use it in the classroom, so obviously anyone growing up with the newest technology would just use it as a toy/status symbol."

Believe it or not, their are good students out there.

I work at Best Buy now and am attending community college. I'm saving to buy the iPad 3 when it comes out because I have several extremely useful apps for my electronics engineering classes, as well as watching the development of Tapose (iPad version of the ill fated MS Courrier project). These devices can be extremely valuable learning tools, if you value actually using it for learning.

Tapose: http://tapose.tumblr.com/

 

[*LTD*]

The only direction we are moving is where you keep on changing the direction of the thread every time your posts are challenged.

Tell me, were is the proof that students are buying iPads. You stated yourself that they will be doing, so where is the evidence?

Where is the proof they aren't?

----------

All of them about students being GIVEN iPads.

Same thing.

http://www.smartplanet.com/blog/bus...ery-student-welcome-to-the-21st-century/18080

http://www.imedicalapps.com/2011/06...ical-students-ipad-medical-textbooks-inkling/

http://www.metronews.ca/calgary/local/article/955737--textbooks-tossed-as-students-given-ipads

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2011/0830/1224303190087.html

That's enough. Way too many similar links to list here.


There is apparently a need for iPads in the classroom. Educators and administrators think there is. Either way, they are finding their way into the classroom. If students aren't buying them, they're being provided with one.

"Are students buying iPads?" is actually the wrong question to ask, since it will be moot in due course. They won't necessarily need to.

 

[Consultant]

"#5: What Makes it Desirable to your Kid is What Makes it Desirable to Criminals" gave me a great product idea: Someone should sell "Samsung" stickers that you can put on the iPad. Problem solved. It also solves the objection that the iPad is a status symbol.

Hide a Pad, in a Samsung thick case!