All my cars have factory Nav systems except for an S2000 which I have a Garmin unit for. All of these are much better at navigation than an iPad.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Ipad wifi vs 3G
- Thread starter fairlysteady
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
All my cars have factory Nav systems except for an S2000 which I have a Garmin unit for. All of these are much better at navigation than an iPad.
is wifi and 3G GPS the same thing?
No. The WiFi iPad uses Skyhook type technology to determine where you are. Sometimes wifi location can not work or be in a completely different area. Also, it's approximate. The 3G iPad uses A-GPS which is a real GPS chip.
SpudRacer said:
I also have a pure GPS system (Magellan actually). I won't use the iPad as a navigation system per say, but plenty of apps depend on location to get full use, and I just don't want to get locked out of anything. It's my own personal thing. I've relegated myself to the fact that I'm definitely waiting for the 3G iPad for a number of reasons now.
I think it would be incredibly fun to be a passenger in a car and have a 10" map in your hand.
I originally ordered with WiFi, but changed my order 2 days later to 3G.
I currently have a Verizon MiFi which costs me $60/month. I travel a lot, so for me it is worth it. What I do not know yet... is if the iPad will be "good enough" or maybe even "better" for personal use while I am traveling. I will not know until I have used one for a while.
I decided that the first time I was someplace and wanted to turn on 3G... I would be pissed at myself for not spending the extra $130. I also decided that if in fact the iPad meets (or exceeds) my needs for travel... that I would be missing on the opportunity to save $30/month compared to my MiFi.
I do applaud the previous poster who stated that if both were available simultaneously, that he would buy the 3G. I value honesty in a person! I suspect that there are a lot of people who would not admit that.
/Jim
I currently have a Verizon MiFi which costs me $60/month. I travel a lot, so for me it is worth it. What I do not know yet... is if the iPad will be "good enough" or maybe even "better" for personal use while I am traveling. I will not know until I have used one for a while.
I decided that the first time I was someplace and wanted to turn on 3G... I would be pissed at myself for not spending the extra $130. I also decided that if in fact the iPad meets (or exceeds) my needs for travel... that I would be missing on the opportunity to save $30/month compared to my MiFi.
I do applaud the previous poster who stated that if both were available simultaneously, that he would buy the 3G. I value honesty in a person! I suspect that there are a lot of people who would not admit that.
/Jim
My iPhone got stolen and for the time being I am going to get a blackberry on Sprint. Do you know if I will be able to use the 8530 as a hotspot?
For starters... an iPhone fits my overall computing architecture which is quickly becoming 100% Apple. The value of Apple is that everything works well together. I am not switching from an iPhone to anything else.
Secondly... Using an iPhone as a personal hotspot currently requires jailbreaking which in my experience makes the iPhone unstable. I tried once, and I will not do that again.
For me... the question is: Verizon MiFi (or equivalent) at $60/month... or an iPad at $30/month. The jury is still out if the iPad will meet my travel needs... but if it does, then I will save money by switching from my MiFi to my iPad.
/Jim
This is exactly how I felt.
But I ordered a wifi-only version anyway. The strain of waiting for this thing is becoming a mental health issue.
Another honest soul.
I actually considered the same thing... especially as I could give the WiFi model to my wife next month and buy a new 3G.However... as soon as the Gen 2 is released next year (or whenever)... I still want to have the opportunity to waterfall my Gen 1 iPad to her... but I have a hard time retiring a unit that is only 1 year old. Instead, I decided to wait the 30 days and get the 64GB 3G model to hold me off until the Gen 2 is available... at which point she gets her first iPad.
I think this could be a sustainable model... buying a new Gen N iPad every year for myself. Waterfall the N-1 technology to her... and retiring the N-2 model. Luckily for me, she is content with N-1 technology.
/Jim
You may want to check out the forums. I used to own an 8530 for a short period of time. I'd be surprised if you could do this.
I don't own an iPhone, so I can't comment on that issue. I do know, with the Droid, that rooting does not remotely affect its stability, so I'd be surprised if it does so to the iPhone.
Most places where I'd use an iPad will have WiFi. I can foresee needing to access 3G with the iPad once or twice a month. This kind of usage makes even the $15 dollar plan a poor value for me. Using my phone as a wireless modem for these situations is the ideal solution. I suppose if you are planning heavy 3G usage, then it would make more sense to go with a dedicated 3G unit.
is wifi and 3G GPS the same thing?
No. As mentioned above, Skyhook Wireless is used by the wi-fi in the phone/iPad to find known, previously recorded wi-fi access point in their system. If you go back to the original iPhone 2G threads you'll see a huge number of complaints about how badly it worked on that phone since it didn't have GPS in it. It's just a locater services that works some of the time and has nothing to do with GPS. A big problem is that Skyhook doesn't account for people who moved with their wireless routers. When I used my 2G iPhone there were times I'd suddenly jump states away on the map because someone obviously moved but Skyhook still had their old location information. Even local moves will send you all over the map not to speak of the thousands of access points that aren't mapped with Skyhook which will do you no good.
Are you sure you didn't have the 8350? That was a curve, I had it a while back as well. The 8530 JUST came out and it is wifi enabled so I figured somehow it would be.
I'm one of those people who got an iPod Touch, and was constantly annoyed by needing to have a WiFi hotspot to use it. So I got an iPhone.
I've decided that I'm not going to make the same mistake with the iPad, so it's worth the $130 to me.
If I NEVER use the 3G, then great, but I don't want to be without it.
I've decided that I'm not going to make the same mistake with the iPad, so it's worth the $130 to me.
If I NEVER use the 3G, then great, but I don't want to be without it.
There's tons of reasons.
Opening and connecting to MyWi every time you want to read an email or check an RSS feed is ridiculously inconvenient.
Tethering is not supported in the US, and on other countries it just eats up the data you have for your iPhone.
You have to always have your iPhone with you everywhere if you ever want to access the internet, at any time, outside your house.
Depletes the battery of the iPhone very quick.
Have to jailbreak.
Actually a supported feature.
I could go on. Much more convenient for those of us who can spare some money a month.
I mean, it's only $130 of a $500+ purchase. You're not even stuck on a contract. Don't use it? Cancel it. Big whoop.
I was just thinking about the tethering issue. We had the 3GS release promise of AT&T tethering of the iPhone and then nothing. Then the iPad surfaces with its own special deal. Did Jobs make a deal to shelve tethering in favor of working a deal with AT&T for the iPad and hope the thought of phone tethering just fades away. It seems like a distraction and a way for Apple to give AT&T another way to make a buck.
Tethering was going to cost money. We all knew that. It's still coming I believe. However, I don't want one battery powered device dependent on another battery powered device. That is my main problem with tethering. What if after a whole day of use with my iPhone, I'm out somewhere with my iPad and need to use the Internet (situation not likely lol but what if
). I don't want to use the remaining juice in my iPhone to power minutes of use with my iPad. Like I'm thinking what if I go to a theme park and use my phone all day and then on the way home i want to use the internet. Or some scenario like that. I realize I have get a car charger, etc. . Anyway, my point is, I'd rather it all be in my package. That makes it worth it to me. I was tethering this week to see how it was working with my Macbook Pro and it wasn't too great. I had some software problems with MyWi. I don't want to rely on my iPhone to power the Internet on my iPad.
My point of my thoughts regarding a "deal" was that if tethering existed the user would go through much more data with a notebook tethered than an iPad alone with 3G. It seems odd that AT&T can come up with a new, unique data package for the iPad release yet the promised iPhone tethering still remains silent. It's been said that AT&T is concerned about the extra burden iPhone tethering would place on the the network yet here's a whole new device, a whole new data plan and more load on the network.
I was originally going to get the WiFi-only version. I've since decided to get the 3G iPad. $130 is a small price to pay for having the 3G available when you want it and/or need it!
It's also worth the extra time waiting.
It's also worth the extra time waiting.
I think this has been discussed several times before...
I went WiFi as I have a $15/mo Unlimited Plan with a MiFi so 3G version would be pointless for me.
I also think those that have can share WiFi through phones are better off without 3G. I know some people keep mentioning convenience and that it's only $130 more, but there is also the monthly fee to consider. I don't see the point to pay two data plans, but each his/her own.
I went WiFi as I have a $15/mo Unlimited Plan with a MiFi so 3G version would be pointless for me.
I also think those that have can share WiFi through phones are better off without 3G. I know some people keep mentioning convenience and that it's only $130 more, but there is also the monthly fee to consider. I don't see the point to pay two data plans, but each his/her own.
I agree. I don't want that either. Also, I read somewhere that creating the hotspot will drain the battery on the iPhone even if you have it plugged in and charging. That doesn't sound like a convenient go to method when you need to be connected. At least not convenient enough for me.
I actually think the $130 extra is more of a "down payment" on the data plan so they could get it to $15 and $30 dollars. Instead of making it a contract you pay them an extra $130 whether you use 3G or not.
Obviously I could be wrong it it could go towards the hardware, but I don't think it would cost another $130
Obviously I could be wrong it it could go towards the hardware, but I don't think it would cost another $130
For those folks advocating tethering, I am curious how badly this affects your phone battery life? I work on the road quite a lot, and I actually use my smartphone to make phone calls as well as all the other functions, so how much talk time would I be losing if I am counting on it as a wifi hotspot as well?