Mac mini vs tablet for joe soccer mom/dad

[crazzapple]

What would you recommend to someone that wants to use email, facebook, solitaire, internet, and look at photos?

Mac mini entry level $499 + monitor + mouse + keyboard

vs.

$200-$500 tablet (ios or android)

 

[6r4ff3r]

iPad air 2

 

[CausticPuppy]

IPad Air 2 with 64GB.

Or the first iPad Air in 32 or 64. Just avoid the 16GB models.... Save yourself some future frustration with OS updates not having enough space because you'll be the one supporting it!

 

[cinealta]

iPad Air 2 (64 - 128 Gb)

 

[indychris]

I'm surprised no one has asked about preferences like portability, screen size, watching movies, etc. I wouldn't necessarily default to an iPad though it may certainly be the best option. There are still some other considerations.

 

[majkom]

I'm surprised no one has asked about preferences like portability, screen size, watching movies, etc. I wouldn't necessarily default to an iPad though it may certainly be the best option. There are still some other considerations.

with given use case, there is no better option than ipad air 2

 

[Micky Do]

Mac Mini, if portability is not important, because

- you get to use a decent sized monitor of your own choice

- you get to use a proper keyboard of your own choice

- it's set up, ready wake from sleep and go any time

- it's easy to load photos from a camera

- lots more storage, and can easily add more using USB or Thunderbolt

…… and lots more.

 

[corvus32]

iPad Air.

There's really no way I would recommend someone buy a new $499 Mini + $250 monitor + $60 keyboard and mouse. Once you add that up, you're in MacBook Air territory. Since they both share the same weak internals, it only makes sense to buy the portable version.

For $499, I would recommend something like this instead of the Mini:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883156025

You get a real quad-core i5 processor, 8GB of ram, 1TB HDD, comes with keyboard & mouse, and you can put a real graphics card in there later if you wanted (just do your research beforehand).

I bought my nephew a previous version of that computer with an i3 processor a year ago, and he's on it everyday. This Christmas I'll buy him a graphics card for it so he can play newer games.

 

[indychris]

with given use case, there is no better option than ipad air 2

That's kind of my point. I'm not sure all of the pertinent questions have been asked. What are the users accustomed to? How much e-mail do they do. My goodness, I handle in excess of 50 emails/day, many with detailed info. If I had to do all of those on my iPad, I'd go NUTS!

Don't get me wrong, I love my iPad, but it's clearly not enough at times.