Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

ozshadow

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Oct 29, 2011
336
35
I have been very happy with my Air 2 64gb but it is aging. I appreciate the size and screen resolution as it is 90% used for browsing, Youtube, and reading PDF files. The other 10% is for listening to music or audiobooks.

I now need more than 64gb in storage.

I do not really game or use the office apps. I do not need cellular.

I like the Home button with fingerprint unlock, but I do have a 12 Pro phone so I am used to the other. With facemasks, I actually appreciate the fingerprint ID even more.

I really do not want to spend $1k. I am looking for recommendations that will give me the best bang for the $. I want a screen equal to or better than the 9.7" Air 2 screen. I expect anything current will blow it away as to performance.

Best recommendation? Are sales generally better than trade-in offers with something this old?
 

Gandek

macrumors 6502
Dec 7, 2017
275
203
At least when it comes to iPads the trade in values Apple offers are pretty good and might be worth it, you could put it towards a 8th gen 128GB should be plenty fast and get updates for years to come.
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,920
13,271
Costco has it for 670. What would be the biggest benefit over the current basic 8th gen 128gb for 400?

Apart from the extra storage, Air 4 (A14/4GB) gives you stereo speakers in landscape, fully laminated display, Apple Pencil 2 support should you want it down the line and A14 plus extra GB RAM.

Another option you might consider is the 2020 iPad Pro 11" 128GB (A12Z/6GB) for $650 at Costco. Older chipset but has double the RAM of the base iPad, quad speakers and ProMotion display.

I have access to both iPad 6th gen (A10/2GB) and 7th gen (A10/3GB) and the 6th gen with 2GB RAM is more prone to out of memory errors compared to 7th gen. The CPUs are very fast now that I think opting for more RAM would help with longevity.
 

AutomaticApple

Suspended
Nov 28, 2018
7,401
3,378
Massachusetts
I have been very happy with my Air 2 64gb but it is aging. I appreciate the size and screen resolution as it is 90% used for browsing, Youtube, and reading PDF files. The other 10% is for listening to music or audiobooks.

I now need more than 64gb in storage.

I do not really game or use the office apps. I do not need cellular.

I like the Home button with fingerprint unlock, but I do have a 12 Pro phone so I am used to the other. With facemasks, I actually appreciate the fingerprint ID even more.

I really do not want to spend $1k. I am looking for recommendations that will give me the best bang for the $. I want a screen equal to or better than the 9.7" Air 2 screen. I expect anything current will blow it away as to performance.

Best recommendation? Are sales generally better than trade-in offers with something this old?
I think the 128GB iPad is a much better value than the iPad Air.
 

svish

macrumors G4
Nov 25, 2017
11,692
29,727
I have been very happy with my Air 2 64gb but it is aging. I appreciate the size and screen resolution as it is 90% used for browsing, Youtube, and reading PDF files. The other 10% is for listening to music or audiobooks.

I now need more than 64gb in storage.

I do not really game or use the office apps. I do not need cellular.

I like the Home button with fingerprint unlock, but I do have a 12 Pro phone so I am used to the other. With facemasks, I actually appreciate the fingerprint ID even more.

I really do not want to spend $1k. I am looking for recommendations that will give me the best bang for the $. I want a screen equal to or better than the 9.7" Air 2 screen. I expect anything current will blow it away as to performance.

Best recommendation? Are sales generally better than trade-in offers with something this old?

Get the iPad Air (4th gen) 256 GB for $749. If 128GB will do, go for the iPad Pro 11"($799). $50 more, but comes with 120 Hz ProMotion.

I switched from 64GB iPad Air 2 to 2020 iPad Pro 11" 256GB. Thought initially to go with 128GB but now am happy that I went with 256. Peace of mind.
 

one more

macrumors 603
Aug 6, 2015
5,156
6,574
Earth
You could also consider iPad 8 with 128 GB, 429$ brand-new from Apple. You will get an extra 0.5” screen space, a Pencil compatibility and a faster A12 chip.
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,920
13,271
You could consider iPad 8 with 128 GB, 429$ brand-new from Apple. You will get an extra 0.5” screen space, a Pencil compatibility and a faster A12 chip.

The OP is considering it (post #3, $400 from Costco). One caveat, it's non-laminated with higher reflectivity compared to the Air 2 which is fully laminated so I don't know if that passes the "better display" requirement. Personally, I think it's fine but others might not be.

I think all suggestions are excellent options. Personally, at the Costco prices I'm inclined towards either Air 4 256GB ($670, A14/4GB), 2020 Pro 11 128GB ($650, A12/6GB) or 2021 Pro 11 ($750, M1/8GB).

The Air 2 was released ~7 years ago and if the OP wants similar longevity from the new iPad, I believe either Air 4 or Pro 11s have a better chance of delivering.

If the OP prefers immediate savings though, the iPad 8 ($400, A12/3GB) is still a very good choice.
 

mi7chy

macrumors G4
Oct 24, 2014
10,627
11,298
If storage capacity is the only issue maybe look into a service like this.


Here are some prices listed in Malaysian currency converted to USD and they have worldwide locations. If you're closer to China it may even be cheaper.

https://www.iphone-repair.my/service/upgrade-ipad-storage/

128GB RM400 $96.93 USD
256GB RM500 $121.17 USD
512GB RM600 $145.40 USD
 
Last edited:
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.