Looking into New iPad. Which Model Though?

[jaeb0922]

So, take a look here for my current situation... I lost my iPad Air 2...

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/time-to-vent-lost-my-ipad-air-2.2046964/#post-24603853
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/time-to-vent-lost-my-ipad-air-2.2046964/#post-24603853
So, I am looking at getting a new iPad, but dont want to spend a lot right now upfront, or at all really, as I newer iPad Pro will be coming out shortly, so why hop into a payment plan for one that will be "older" in 6 months or less?

I use my iPad mostly for media consumption, playing games, showing clients websites and marketing stuff (thats what I do for a living), emails, texting, and so on. I do use it daily, even more that my phone (iPhone 7 Plus).

So, were looking at either a new iPad, iPad Pro 9.7, or an iPad mini 4, all hooked to Sprint. All iPads have a $100 off promotion, minus the mini 4 which has a $200 off. All iPad require $100 down, plus taxes.

New iPad - $100 down, $30/month
iPad 9.7 - $100 down, $35/month
iPad Mini 4 - $0 down, $13.25/month

Seeing soon as the new iPad comes out, Ill pay this off and upgrade, I think this is the right choice to hold me over until the new iPad Pro is released. Sorry if I babbled a bit. Im tired... HAHA.

Comments?

 

[44267547]

If you plan on eventually purchasing this newly rumored iPad and you don't want to invest into a lot of money into the current lineup. I would ask yourself a few things.

If you opt for the iPad 9.7 pro, do you want the Pro features with the quad speakers, Tru- tone display, and Apple Pencil support. That's basically what you're getting with the 9.7 Pro. If You don't really have an appreciation for the Pro features, but I'm not sure if You can justify the extra price point.

If You opt for the 2017 9.7 iPad, it sounds like this might be more of a fit for what you're looking for, being you primarily use yours for media based tasks. Also, it's the cheapest of all of them and would be the more logical choice if you plan on upgrading to the new iPad when it launches, which will likely be relatively soon.

 

[Tapiture]

The 9.7 Pro is fantastic. I got it for 150 off at BestBuy in February and I absolutely love it. If you can get 100 off on that that's what I would advise you to get. You won't be displeased.

 

[dominiongamma]

The 9.7 Pro is fantastic. I got it for 150 off at BestBuy in February and I absolutely love it. If you can get 100 off on that that's what I would advise you to get. You won't be displeased.

I did this purchase at best buy but returned it because the 2gb of ram wasn't helping. It should have came with 4 gb of ram

 

[masotime]

I did this purchase at best buy but returned it because the 2gb of ram wasn't helping. It should have came with 4 gb of ram

What were you doing that required more than 2 GB of RAM? Genuinely curious.

 

[gobikerider]

What were you doing that required more than 2 GB of RAM? Genuinely curious.

If you keep a lot of apps open and use safari religiously you will see the limit of 2gb of ram quickly, this is a issue with iPad still as I use my MacBook and have usually everything just sorta open with Safari and 6-8 tabs on top of that on a busy day, the iPad needs more than 2gb to be the computer replacement a lot of people want.

 

[bufffilm]

If the iPad will be used partly by your child, a strong argument can be made for the new iPad.

 

[Tapiture]

I did this purchase at best buy but returned it because the 2gb of ram wasn't helping. It should have came with 4 gb of ram

What? You don't need 4 GB of ram. The 9.7 has really good spec and I've never ever maxed the ram or found myself limited by the ram. The ONLY reason the 12.9 has 4 GB is because it has a much bigger display to run. Seems like you're one of those people who think RAM = power and it's not true, especially with iPad.
[doublepost=1495642418][/doublepost]

If you keep a lot of apps open and use safari religiously you will see the limit of 2gb of ram quickly, this is a issue with iPad still as I use my MacBook and have usually everything just sorta open with Safari and 6-8 tabs on top of that on a busy day, the iPad needs more than 2gb to be the computer replacement a lot of people want.

I wholly disagree. Do you have a 9.7 Pro? Or some other iPad? IPP 9.7 simply isn't limited by its RAM because of its amazing processor and processing spec. RAM is not a universal indicator of power because it depends entirely on the spec behind it.

 

[gobikerider]

What? You don't need 4 GB of ram. The 9.7 has really good spec and I've never ever maxed the ram or found myself limited by the ram. The ONLY reason the 12.9 has 4 GB is because it has a much bigger display to run. Seems like you're one of those people who think RAM = power and it's not true, especially with iPad.
[doublepost=1495642418][/doublepost]
I wholly disagree. Do you have a 9.7 Pro? Or some other iPad? IPP 9.7 simply isn't limited by its RAM because of its amazing processor and processing spec. RAM is not a universal indicator of power because it depends entirely on the spec behind it.

I have an iPad Air 2 as my computer for 98% of what I do, and yes 2gb of ram is limiting when I am trying to write and research paper with Safari open with a bunch of tabs, things will reload and it isn't nearly as easy an experience as using my Macbook Pro. Another issue is the screen is real small to do certain things with, so I am waiting for a 12.9inch refresh. As for your comment on ram, no one said it equaled more power, but it certainly does yield a far smoother experience free of stutter or reloading tabs or other apps. My Macbook Pro has 16gb of ram and it runs nice and buttery, it would be turtle slow if it had 4gb of ram in it still. Your logic is flawed, as the extra ram in the 12.9inch gives it a performance edge, see ram feeds the processor data, so if you have a fast processor and not enough ram there is a bottleneck, both the Air 2 and iPad Pro 9.7 would have benefited from 4gb of ram, that is why you have a lot of people screaming for it. You must not do much on your iPad for you to seem oblivious to the issue.

 

[bufffilm]

I have an iPad Air 2 as my computer for 98% of what I do, and yes 2gb of ram is limiting when I am trying to write and research paper with Safari open with a bunch of tabs, things will reload and it isn't nearly as easy an experience as using my Macbook Pro. Another issue is the screen is real small to do certain things with, so I am waiting for a 12.9inch refresh. As for your comment on ram, no one said it equaled more power, but it certainly does yield a far smoother experience free of stutter or reloading tabs or other apps. My Macbook Pro has 16gb of ram and it runs nice and buttery, it would be turtle slow if it had 4gb of ram in it still. Your logic is flawed, as the extra ram in the 12.9inch gives it a performance edge, see ram feeds the processor data, so if you have a fast processor and not enough ram there is a bottleneck, both the Air 2 and iPad Pro 9.7 would have benefited from 4gb of ram, that is why you have a lot of people screaming for it. You must not do much on your iPad for you to seem oblivious to the issue.

Be that as it may, don't be surprised if the pending iPad 10.5 comes with 3gb RAM.

I know everyone would like to see 4gb, but...

 

[Tapiture]

I have an iPad Air 2 as my computer for 98% of what I do, and yes 2gb of ram is limiting when I am trying to write and research paper with Safari open with a bunch of tabs, things will reload and it isn't nearly as easy an experience as using my Macbook Pro. Another issue is the screen is real small to do certain things with, so I am waiting for a 12.9inch refresh. As for your comment on ram, no one said it equaled more power, but it certainly does yield a far smoother experience free of stutter or reloading tabs or other apps. My Macbook Pro has 16gb of ram and it runs nice and buttery, it would be turtle slow if it had 4gb of ram in it still. Your logic is flawed, as the extra ram in the 12.9inch gives it a performance edge, see ram feeds the processor data, so if you have a fast processor and not enough ram there is a bottleneck, both the Air 2 and iPad Pro 9.7 would have benefited from 4gb of ram, that is why you have a lot of people screaming for it. You must not do much on your iPad for you to seem oblivious to the issue.

Ah an Air 2. Maybe the RAM is limiting on an Air 2 but it isn't on a Pro 9.7.

 

[bufffilm]

Ah an Air 2. Maybe the RAM is limiting on an Air 2 but it isn't on a Pro 9.7.

I'll pretend I didn't see that...

 

[Tapiture]

I'll pretend I didn't see that...

What, you find yourself limited by the Pro 9.7's spec?

 

[bufffilm]

What, you find yourself limited by the Pro 9.7's spec?

I disagree with your previous post.

It's naive to say that the Air2 might be affected by the 2gb ram, and then say the Pro 9.7 is free of such issues in the same sentence.

The truth of the matter is you don't know enough about the conditions w/the Air2 and it maybe performing poorly...and whether the 'poor performance' condition can be verified.

 

[Tapiture]

I disagree with your previous post.

It's naive to say that the Air2 might be affected by the 2gb ram, and then say the Pro 9.7 is free of such issues in the same sentence.

The truth of the matter is you don't know enough about the conditions w/the Air2 and it maybe performing poorly...and whether the 'poor performance' condition can be verified.

I was replying to someone who made a statement that the 2gigs of RAM wasn't enough in iPad, blanketing the 9.7 IPP in that assessment, even though they have an Air 2 and not a 9.7 IPP and couldn't know if the 9.7 IPP was underpowered in RAM.

 

[jaeb0922]

Looks like this thread turned into a "Spec Fest". Lol.

I thank you all for your input. I don't need a lot out of an iPad. I don't use it as a main machine persay, as my iMac is. It is my main "mobile machine", but mostly only for media and emailing. Taking notes. Little things. I don't plan on making the next DoD grade defense war ship with it. The 2GB of ram is fine. I never had an issue on my Air 2. My son happened to be using mine at the time and doesnt often. He actually has an iPad 2. He's 6, and a hell of a smart kid.

I ended up getting the iPad Mini 4 for one reason only. It was 200 off cellular model bringing the total to $37 out the door and $13 a month.

Both the New iPad and iPad Pro were about $200 out the door and $35 a month.

I could not justify getting into the larger iPad at this moment seeing when the new iPad Pro drops in a few short months, I'll be all over it.

The mini 4 will be fine until then. $329 hooked to cellular vs $800? It was a no brainer for me seeing my overall goal come the late fall.

 

[gobikerider]

I was replying to someone who made a statement that the 2gigs of RAM wasn't enough in iPad, blanketing the 9.7 IPP in that assessment, even though they have an Air 2 and not a 9.7 IPP and couldn't know if the 9.7 IPP was underpowered in RAM.

I've used both the Air 2 and 9.7 Pro will bottleneck identically and start refreshing apps the same time if you go test it. The processor difference only allows the iPad Pro to reload the apps slightly quicker but it still has the fundamental issue of kicking things from memory because 2gb of ram isn't enough for 8+ safari tabs and a bunch of apps in the background. Your acting like yours is so different when in fact the issue is identical on both.

 

[Tapiture]

I've used both the Air 2 and 9.7 Pro will bottleneck identically and start refreshing apps the same time if you go test it. The processor difference only allows the iPad Pro to reload the apps slightly quicker but it still has the fundamental issue of kicking things from memory because 2gb of ram isn't enough for 8+ safari tabs and a bunch of apps in the background. Your acting like yours is so different when in fact the issue is identical on both.

I kind of see what you're saying (I went on to safari and clicked on a bunch of old tabs) but I don't think an extra gig of RAM will fix that, and I think the same thing occurs on the larger Pro because of the amount of ram being dedicated to running the large display. Also, the tabs load up in .5 of a second so it's not a big deal anyway.
[doublepost=1495675700][/doublepost]

Looks like this thread turned into a "Spec Fest". Lol.

I thank you all for your input. I don't need a lot out of an iPad. I don't use it as a main machine persay, as my iMac is. It is my main "mobile machine", but mostly only for media and emailing. Taking notes. Little things. I don't plan on making the next DoD grade defense war ship with it. The 2GB of ram is fine. I never had an issue on my Air 2. My son happened to be using mine at the time and doesnt often. He actually has an iPad 2. He's 6, and a hell of a smart kid.

I ended up getting the iPad Mini 4 for one reason only. It was 200 off cellular model bringing the total to $37 out the door and $13 a month.

Both the New iPad and iPad Pro were about $200 out the door and $35 a month.

I could not justify getting into the larger iPad at this moment seeing when the new iPad Pro drops in a few short months, I'll be all over it.

The mini 4 will be fine until then. $329 hooked to cellular vs $800? It was a no brainer for me seeing my overall goal come the late fall.

Good decision! The mini 4 is a great device and I don't think you'll ever have any "deep regrets" considering the deal you got. Hope you like your new device!

 

[McPaul]

Try not to put yourself into debt over an iPad. I know it's tough, my iPad Air 2 died on me a few months ago and boy I know it's hard. But going into debt for an iPad is just as bad as Louis CK's bit about renting a lamp. Doesn't make sense.

 

[gobikerider]

Try not to put yourself into debt over an iPad. I know it's tough, my iPad Air 2 died on me a few months ago and boy I know it's hard. But going into debt for an iPad is just as bad as Louis CK's bit about renting a lamp. Doesn't make sense.

Personally I will never finance a electronic.

 

[jaeb0922]

Seeing it's "financing without a finance fee so it's at 0%, with $200 off", that's a no brainer to me. It's $13.75 a month. LOL. Total cost after 24 months, $329.

Buying it outright would have been $529.

Yep, I'll finance when it makes more sense to do so, as in this case.
[doublepost=1495681394][/doublepost]

Try not to put yourself into debt over an iPad. I know it's tough, my iPad Air 2 died on me a few months ago and boy I know it's hard. But going into debt for an iPad is just as bad as Louis CK's bit about renting a lamp. Doesn't make sense.

Tell me how paying $329 total at $13.75 a month with zero percent financing for 24 months for a total of $329 ($200 off the retail price of $529) without an access fee and hooked to my unlimited family plan is going into dept, and I'll listen closely.

Buying an iPad Pro 9.7 when a newer model is coming in less then 6 months would be a mistake, at least in my eyes. I'd rather something inexpensive that I can pass down to my child or sell or whatever when that new iPad comes makes way more sense.

Thanks for all your thoughts and opinions though. Seems some need to have the latest and best at any cost while some are more conservative and can wait with something of less punch. I guess I am the conservative type here.
[doublepost=1495681730][/doublepost]Let me say this, if there WAS a finance fee or it was $529, and not $329, I would have opted for the new iPad or the Pro 9.7. That's for sure.

 

[F1Mac]

Seeing it's "financing without a finance fee so it's at 0%, with $200 off", that's a no brainer to me. It's $13.75 a month. LOL. Total cost after 24 months, $329.

That's exactly why I got an Air 2 yesterday ($18.75/month - canadian dollars - in my case). $0 upfront, no intererest and $18.75/month for 24 months... I will be using it exactly like you (email, media, web) and it will also make for a very nice additional control surface for Pro Tools and Logic... I'm happy

 

[ayres]

i have the 9.7 pro... i don't have a tv, at least not hooked up, anyway. so any shows or media i watch tends to be on the iPad, and i have done it this way for a while.

i've owned a lot of iPads, and the one thing i LOVE about my pro is the speakers. it sounds so much better than any of my prior iPads. the 9.7 pro is the first iPad i've owned where i didn't mind NOT using headphones.

just a tidbit i thought i'd add.

 

[jaeb0922]

i have the 9.7 pro... i don't have a tv, at least not hooked up, anyway. so any shows or media i watch tends to be on the iPad, and i have done it this way for a while.

i've owned a lot of iPads, and the one thing i LOVE about my pro is the speakers. it sounds so much better than any of my prior iPads. the 9.7 pro is the first iPad i've owned where i didn't mind NOT using headphones.

just a tidbit i thought i'd add.

I would have been all over the iPad Pro 9.7 but June is here, and they are going to announce the new iPad Pro we all believe so Id hate to stick my money there, right now. In 4 months... absolutely!

 

[baconcow]

What? You don't need 4 GB of ram. The 9.7 has really good spec and I've never ever maxed the ram or found myself limited by the ram. The ONLY reason the 12.9 has 4 GB is because it has a much bigger display to run. Seems like you're one of those people who think RAM = power and it's not true, especially with iPad.
[doublepost=1495642418][/doublepost]
I wholly disagree. Do you have a 9.7 Pro? Or some other iPad? IPP 9.7 simply isn't limited by its RAM because of its amazing processor and processing spec. RAM is not a universal indicator of power because it depends entirely on the spec behind it.

This video shows more an extreme test where 2GB RAM can limit (due to having less memory to store previously-opened Safari pages) the 9.7" iPad Air 2 versus the 4GB RAM in the 12.9" iPad Pro. I've also seen another video that shows the same issue with many opened applications. Not a major issue, but still a limitation. I am hoping the 10.5 will come with 4GB.