I am trying to decide but is paying the extra money worth it? I saw my friend's play with their iPad and they had the wifi version and it seemed to be really fast.
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Is 3g really worth it?
- Thread starter macswitcha2
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It's less about speed and more about availability. If you need an internet connection outside of wireless hotspots, 3g is probably for you.
It all comes down to where will you be using the device and if those places you will be using it will require you to have internet access.
At first i was gonna get a WIFI model BUT what happens sometime in the future you wish you could use it out and about and you would have to live with that regret . Thats why i recommend going with 3G you get the best of both worlds.
I was going to pass on the 3G, but I realized that one of the main reasons I'm buying the iPad is for travel. And hotels have wifi, but often you have to pay $10 a day to use it. $10 a day adds up quickly, and if I have the option of paying $15.00 a trip to turn on my 3G, I think I'll be happier overall....
So I'm waiting! I hope it comes soon!!!
So I'm waiting! I hope it comes soon!!!
Me too. But if I'm really somewhere that has no wifi, and want to be on the web for any extended period of time, the iPhone really isn't that great....
Wifi is widespread. Even when I was in the backwoods Poconos I found a wifi hotspot. The iPhone covered the rest of the time.
I feel exactly the same way. Maybe I’ve had poor luck with hotel Wi-fi, but it seems like every hotel/resort I stay at has terrible Wi-Fi (no matter if it’s free or paid). I typically get like one or two bars because the hotel/resort doesn’t have multiple WAPs, etc.
I usually end up paying $10-15 per day for Wi-fi and only being able to use it in the hotel lobby.
The 3G eliminates that problem for the most part.
And the GPS is a bonus.
Since I will upgrade my 3G iPhone this summer to either a 3GS or the new phone that will come out I decided to jailbreak my 3g. I use the mywi app that turns my phone into a wireless access point. It works pretty well.
If you are like me and need 3g access once in a great while then this maybe an option if you get the wifi ipad
If you are like me and need 3g access once in a great while then this maybe an option if you get the wifi ipad
I live out in the country and the only place wifi is of any use to me is in my home. For me 3G is the only way to go. I'll second the comment that hotels have lousy wifi. Even if you can connect it's dog slow.
I find myself second guessing whether or not I should have gotten the 3G version not because of the 3G network but because of the GPS. I wonder what apps I am going to miss out on due to the fact that I didnt get a GPS. I wonder if the GPS on board is worth $130 (or 180 now hehe)
I think it is, but I'm the kind of person that loves having internet available wherever I am. Fact is, even in the 3rd largest city in America, my current home, Wi-Fi is far from ubiquitous and the service is often spotty. Ultimately, you're still left looking for a hotspot. You need to go inside a store or cafe and stay there to use the service. I want to be able to fire up the internet while I'm stopped in my car, at client locations with no WiFi, in parks where there's no WiFi, etc. Since so many apps I plan on using require an internet connection, it's a no brainer for me. I know if I had a Wi-Fi model, there would be situations several times a week where I would notice this limitation.
Sure, I have my iPhone 3GS, and I do wonder how often, when I'm out an about, I'll choose to use the iPad over the iPhone. But still, I think it's an important option to have. And for an extra $130, it's no big deal. Over the course of the next year, it adds $10 a month to the base cost of the device.
Sure, I have my iPhone 3GS, and I do wonder how often, when I'm out an about, I'll choose to use the iPad over the iPhone. But still, I think it's an important option to have. And for an extra $130, it's no big deal. Over the course of the next year, it adds $10 a month to the base cost of the device.
If I'm traveling it is usually for business, since I would need wifi to login via my work laptop and VPN they would cover the costs of the wifi fee. I already have a 3G aircard from AT&T, I do not need to give them $30 on top of my already $200 per month current bill.
At work I always have my aircard in my MBP, I just use internet sharing and share out to my iPad. While its only WEP encryption (sharing doesn't allow WPA for whatever reason), it at least needs a password to join which keeps it from giving away access.
I will mainly use this at home, in my office, and in a hotel when I'm traveling. The AA flights I have taken recently have wifi onboard now too, your 3G modem is useless at 30k.
In any city I have found wifi spots to be plentiful, some free, some not. Most are free, and quite honestly I don't need access via my iPad all the time. I can use my iPhone for GPS or finding things outside of a wifi point. I know if you have a AT&T aircard you get free access to any AT&T hotspot, and there are plenty around in every major and some not some major locations.
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I need the 3G anyway, but I've been recommending the 3G until because of the GPS. There will be some killer apps released that can utilize the GPS, I wouldn't want to miss out. Also, with the multitasking coming, the iPad has a better battery life to run navigation programs.
I went with the Wifi version. I find myself reading magazines and books more often than not. I have little need for the Internet so far. At home I use it to surf alot, but when I'm out, I like to read. I did spend 45 minutes online with it today but that was more to test how well my iPhone battery held up (tethering with MyWi). MyWi will work for me when I need an Internet connection, but at the moment, I don't really use it online outside of home. I'm sure this will change once I get finished reading my magazines.
not worth it and way overpriced for the service. with as many wifi hotspots that are popping up, 3g is slowly becoming worthless. in fact 3g doesn't work very well anyway so you could argue that it is worthless as it is.
I'm almost ashamed to admit it, but I'm a future 3G convert. I thought wifi was going to be enough for me. In reality, I think the truth lies somewhere between being in a hurry to get my hands on it, and not really knowing how I was going to implement it in my daily life.
After carrying it with me every day, I quickly realized how badly it needs a data-anywhere connection. I cannot plan where I'm going to be every moment of my day, and whether it'll be a place with wifi. Therefore, I need my own connection.
Like a lot of others, I no longer have an iPhone or a mobile-hotspot capable phone. The 3G is going to be the only way I can fill my data need without drastically altering some other aspect of my mobile life.
After carrying it with me every day, I quickly realized how badly it needs a data-anywhere connection. I cannot plan where I'm going to be every moment of my day, and whether it'll be a place with wifi. Therefore, I need my own connection.
Like a lot of others, I no longer have an iPhone or a mobile-hotspot capable phone. The 3G is going to be the only way I can fill my data need without drastically altering some other aspect of my mobile life.
It will cost you $130 to pay for the convenience of being able to use your iPad once you get out of a wifi hotspot. No contract.....cancel or initiate the coverage right from your iPad on a month-to-month basis. You may never need it. Or someday you might wish you had it. Almost everywhere I go I have wifi, but to me it was more than worth it to pay the $130 just in case I might want to use it some day out of range.
Plus the GPS, which the wifi version doesn't have. Nice to have that map display on a full size tablet instead of a iPhone screen.
I guess I neglected to say that I have wifirouter running on my phone so actual internet isnt an issue, just the GPS. Maybe I shall swap if I can get rid of the return fee.
It is worth it if you are going to need to use your iPad on the go as you can't always count on being near a WiFi hotspot.