Dallas Morning News: 3G iPad makes you appreciate Wi-Fi

[Blorzoga]

Gps

Speaking of gps. I tried an experiment with gps. I turned cellular data on (without buying a plan) then opened maps and tapped the location finder. It would not find my location. It seemed to center on a point in my township, perhaps where a cell tower is. Once I turned cellular data off, it found my location fine, presumably using my wifi address. I was hoping that gps would work even without activating a cellular plan just by turning on cellular data so it could see the towers. I haven't taken it out in the car yet. Maybe I'll try that next and see if it works.

 

[aperry]

Given that you still need to carry your mobile phone around everywhere......iPad WiFi + iPhone + MyWi = FTW!

 

[M87]

What a load of bull! I streamed an entire episode of lost while traveling down the highway, no hiccups or anything. Streaming video has been working just as smoothly as it does on wifi for me. Whatever makes you feel better about not having 3G though I guess.

 

[aperry]

Speaking of gps. I tried an experiment with gps. I turned cellular data on (without buying a plan) then opened maps and tapped the location finder. It would not find my location. It seemed to center on a point in my township, perhaps where a cell tower is. Once I turned cellular data off, it found my location fine, presumably using my wifi address. I was hoping that gps would work even without activating a cellular plan just by turning on cellular data so it could see the towers. I haven't taken it out in the car yet. Maybe I'll try that next and see if it works.

Wait, is this true? I know the 3G has a "real" GPS chip (unlike the Wifi version), but do you really need to have an active 3G plan to use it?

 

[epi117]

Key word here.....EVERYONE......

I am very happy with the 3G. I have not had the streaming issues mentioned in the article...but I don't do a lot of streaming. For Web, a little slower then WiFi naturally, but very workable. To each their own

Ditto i had wifi on day one, gave it to son and got 3g, i would not go back, being able to sulf/email documents on train on way to work and back home is to important for me.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

BJ drives a 328i? Good grief.

I sprang for the twin turbo 335ix and it is a freaking ROCKET!!!

Exactly. BJ was all over the Bimmer forums scolding 335i owners for overpaying as his 328i was a better value for the same "status." He failed to understand -- probably still does -- that you buy the 335i for balls-to-the-walls joy, not status, unless by status you mean beating the S4 next to you off the line.

Of course now he is excoriating WiFi owners as low status peons. Ah, irony. (Of course I don't think BJ is a real person at all, but just a bored kid, but just the same).

 

[Blorzoga]

Wait, is this true? I know the 3G has a "real" GPS chip (unlike the Wifi version), but do you really need to have an active 3G plan to use it?

Right after I wrote my post I realized that you WILL need 3G to use your gps because gps is no good without a map and to get a map you need 3G.

 

[vw195]

Right after I wrote my post I realized that you WILL need 3G to use your gps because gps is no good without a map and to get a map you need 3G.

Not if you buy a navigation program with preprogrammed maps

 

[boltjames]

Hey BJ,

Before you go there you better tell everyone you have a poser 328i w/o sport. I mean talk about major underlings.

You're a year behind.

I returned my E93 hardtop convertible as it had tons of status but an insufficient amount of space for my growing boys and their football equipment.

I now own an E90 328i with the M-Sport Package, having learned that its about performance and status, not just status. The car is extremely fast, no need for the troublesome twin-turbo that spends half its time in limp mode.

If you have an issue with my car, go on over to BF and take it up with me there. While you may have a point about my choice of car, you don't have a point about my 3G/64GB/$829. Sorry I didn't spend another $7,500 for a 335i. If it were only $100, yeah, I'd have gotten it. No excuse for you. And, please, like I need to take crap from you? You've only got a 32GB iPad. Back of the bus. I'll PayPal you the $100 if cash is that hard to come by, chief.

BJ

Posted from my ///M328i

 

[Seamaster]

kinda glad I just got the WiFi version...

Kinda glad I don't live in the USA where AT&T's p¡ss-poor network is the only game in town.

That article says a lot about AT&T's 3G service provision, and nothing about the 3G iPad.

 

[sassenach74]

Kinda glad I don't live in the USA where AT&T's p¡ss-poor network is the only game in town.

That article says a lot about AT&T's 3G service provision, and nothing about the 3G iPad.

As Meat Loaf would say 'You took the words right out of my mouth'

 

[wombat888]

I routinely get speeds of ~1.4Mbps via 3g here in the Washington, DC suburbs. Wifi at home is much faster. Wifi at my office is significantly faster. Wifi at public places is often slower.

However, the person who wrote the review missed the point. It's not an either/or choice. The 3g model also has wifi; and for that matter, you can use 3g/4g on a wifi model if you have other gadgets to enable this.

Very few people are going to say "hmm, I could download this giant file at home where my wifi speed is 16Mbps, or I could do it sitting on a park bench where my 3g speed is 1.4Mbps," but there's an awful lot that you can do painlessly at 1.4Mbps ... buy a book, IM, email, most Web browsing, downloading apps that aren't huge, checking apps that show Internet info such as weather or movie listings ... etc. And in any event, 3g is faster than you may get at the local Starbuck's on wifi depending on many factors beyond your control. Maybe I've just had weird luck, but 3g has beaten public wifi at places like Starbucks for me three times in a row when I've tested one after the other using Speedtest X.

 

[antiprotest]

You're a year behind.

I returned my E93 hardtop convertible as it had tons of status but an insufficient amount of space for my growing boys and their football equipment.

I now own an E90 328i with the M-Sport Package, having learned that its about performance and status, not just status. The car is extremely fast, no need for the troublesome twin-turbo that spends half its time in limp mode.

If you have an issue with my car, go on over to BF and take it up with me there. While you may have a point about my choice of car, you don't have a point about my 3G/64GB/$829. Sorry I didn't spend another $7,500 for a 335i. If it were only $100, yeah, I'd have gotten it. No excuse for you. And, please, like I need to take crap from you? You've only got a 32GB iPad. Back of the bus. I'll PayPal you the $100 if cash is that hard to come by, chief.

BJ

Posted from my ///M328i

How do I join your 3G Elitist Club? I have a 64GB 3G. Am I in?

 

[boltjames]

How do I join your 3G Elitist Club? I have a 64GB 3G. Am I in?

Congratulations! Please copy/paste this in your sig, and welcome aboard!

iPad 3G Elitist Club® Member

BJ

Posted from my McMansion

 

[tmarks11]

3G in Annapolis, MD rocks. I was astonished by the performance. Except for when it is raining, the ABC player streamed some nice looking high resolution tv episodes. I pretty much burned well beyond 250gb in the first days.

I just activated the 3G to see what it was like, but now I intend to keep it. VZW is losing a HTC TP2 data customer.

 

[antiprotest]

Congratulations! Please copy/paste this in your sig, and welcome aboard!

iPad 3G Elitist Club® Member

BJ

Posted from my McMansion

I don't want to get flamed. Maybe you will let me hide behind your BMW?

 

[antiprotest]

3G in Annapolis, MD rocks. I was astonished by the performance. Except for when it is raining, the ABC player streamed some nice looking high resolution tv episodes. I pretty much burned well beyond 250gb in the first days.

I just activated the 3G to see what it was like, but now I intend to keep it. VZW is losing a HTC TP2 data customer.

Yes, AT&T 3G has never let me down, although I do not doubt those who claim they have problems.

 

[rman726]

I'm honestly surprised so many people bought the WiFi only model to begin with. To me, the iPad is a toy. It's not replacing my phone. It's not replacing my notebook. It's just a toy for me to play games on, browse the internet when on business travel, read emails, etc... It shocks me to learn that $130 really breaks people who bought the iPad. Are there really people out there that bought the iPad, that didn't have expendable cash sitting around? To each his own though...

 

[boltjames]

I'm honestly surprised so many people bought the WiFi only model to begin with. To me, the iPad is a toy. It's not replacing my phone. It's not replacing my notebook. It's just a toy for me to play games on, browse the internet when on business travel, read emails, etc... It shocks me to learn that $130 really breaks people who bought the iPad. Are there really people out there that bought the iPad, that didn't have expendable cash sitting around? To each his own though...

You nailed it.

BJ

Posted from my iPad 3G/64GB/$829

 

[wombat888]

A lot of people bought the wifi-only model because they considered it and decided that fit their needs, for one reason or another - either they plan to use a myfi or tethering, or they think they have wifi access enough for it not to be an issue, or they don't want to pay the $130 + $30/month for (as you say) a toy.

Others bought the wifi model because it was the first to come out and omg they couldn't wait, and many of those people are now either buying 3g models, or are pretty touchy about the topic.

 

[rman726]

A lot of people bought the wifi-only model because they considered it and decided that fit their needs, for one reason or another - either they plan to use a myfi or tethering, or they think they have wifi access enough for it not to be an issue, or they don't want to pay the $130 + $30/month for (as you say) a toy.

Others bought the wifi model because it was the first to come out and omg they couldn't wait, and many of those people are now either buying 3g models, or are pretty touchy about the topic.

Honestly, the WiFi version probably fit my needs. I just figured, I'm already paying $699 for the 64GB version, that I might as well give myself the option of having it, since $130 extra hardly breaks the bank, and I go on periods where I go on business travel for 2 weeks at a time, so paying $30 for that month will probably be well worth it. Not to mention, as a sports fan, I feared what not having a GPS would do to a program like MLB At Bat would do, as the iPhone version requires it for streaming video. So it was also "future-proofing" myself incase I needed the 3G or GPS in the future... future-proofing for one year until a new one comes out at least... lol.

But you are probably right. It is probably mostly people who had to buy the iPad when it first came out that have the WiFi only version, which is resulting in these "fights."

 

[random person]

Well I bought the wifi version because that's the one that was available on launch day. I admit, I had no self control! I had a trip just a few days after launch day and wouldn't have traded my iPad for anything -- I was so glad to have purchased it!

I also reasoned that wifi would meet most of my needs as wifi is available just about everywhere I go these days. Indeed I've wished for 3G only while at a resort with no wifi at the restaurants! So for me clearly the wifi version was the better choice at the time. In fact, at the time it was the ONLY choice!

The other thing is that I'm fairly certain the wifi only model continues to outsell the 3G by a WiDE margin, or at least at the current installed base is higher for wifi. I say this because of the numbers at the various apple iPad forums, where threads and visitors for the wifi only models far exceed the numbers for 3G. The shortages of 3G in particular probably reflect the fact that apple produced far fewer of them, anticipating lower demand, and the idea that many buyers intend to used their ipads mostly at home.

There are also those among us who hate AT&T and simply hate the idea of giving them any more money. That's the reasoning behind ilounge's lower rating if 3G models. It is also true that in many parts of the country AT&T performance is appallingly bad -- in fact as I sit here in Vermont there is no 3G almost anywhere in the state. Even in Boston where I spend most of my time AT&T 3G performance is quite variable.

For some it may have been a financial decision but apple made wifi only models for a reason beyond price point -- people like to pay only for the features they believe they need. If 3G is not on that "need or want" list then why not buy the wifi models instead? And if money is tight for some, what's wrong with those folks deciding to same some coin in the process?

Of course, all that said I bought a 64 3G model as a gift for a friend and I have now decided to keep it! Had this model been available at launch day for sure I would have bought it.

I figure 3G is a cheap insurance policy and it will go fabulously well with my trouble-free twin turbo 335xi BMW. My buddy will be happy with the wifi model!

 

[eMagine]

the 3G model can do everything the WIFI model can do, plus more - without even activating the AT&T 3G Service.
why can't people just realize that fact?
Denial.

 

[Gav2k]

I have to say that the author is wrong. I've been using air video to watch shows from my drobo at home over 3g and the picture quality is fine with no stutters.

I've tried it on 3 mobile uk and o2 uk without a hitch!

 

[Chupa Chupa]

If you have an issue with my car, go on over to BF and take it up with me there. While you may have a point about my choice of car, you don't have a point about my 3G/64GB/$829. Sorry I didn't spend another $7,500 for a 335i. If it were only $100, yeah, I'd have gotten it. No excuse for you. And, please, like I need to take crap from you? You've only got a 32GB iPad. Back of the bus. I'll PayPal you the $100 if cash is that hard to come by, chief.

BJ

Posted from my ///M328i

Honestly, I could not care less what kind of car you drive. It's your car. Just making the point that you ironically chide people for buying a more expensive model of Product A while you then mock people for buying a less expensive model of Product B.

Personally, I'm wildly happy with my 335i and 32GB iPad just like I knew I would be -- actually I'd rather have a 16GB, but they were out of stock. Glad you are happy with your combo too. But back of the bus? Ha. Ha. Sorry a 335i will leave a 328i right about at the back of the bus. Fact. You are following me -- from a far distance, of course. Meanwhile, all iPads are exactly the same speed.