iPad Pro New or old

[mac1086]

I’m looking at buying an I pad and will only have a couple hundred bucks to spend. I need it for videos, music, notes,internet, pictures and I’m wanting to use it like a kindle too. Or maybe I should just get both idk. What do you guys think is the right I pad for me? I put pro because I like the look of them. I’ll also be running a home camera on it through the Wyze app. I need something that will last a long time. Also was thinking about getting an i disk and a smaller memory to start if that is in fact the cheaper way to go.

 

[floral]

The only iPad that you *can* buy for a couple hundred bucks is the iPad 9th generation.

If you can spend a little more, the 10th gen includes an even better chip, no bezels, a landscape front camera, a better back camera, USB-C, support for 5G (though not sure why'd you want to use it), and support for the Magic Keyboard Folio, all for just $50 more than the 9th gen. A real bargain.

 

[bondr006]

I’m looking at buying an I pad and will only have a couple hundred bucks to spend. I need it for videos, music, notes,internet, pictures and I’m wanting to use it like a kindle too. Or maybe I should just get both idk. What do you guys think is the right I pad for me? I put pro because I like the look of them. I’ll also be running a home camera on it through the Wyze app. I need something that will last a long time. Also was thinking about getting an i disk and a smaller memory to start if that is in fact the cheaper way to go.

Don't know if you have looked at the iPad prices lately, but. Now, you can find sales or buy used but an iPad for a couple hundred bucks is going to be a tough find. Even the cheapest iPad(8th gen) at the Apple refurb store is $349.00.

 

[mac1086]

Why would somebody want a pro over a standard I pad? Should I order from Apple or just get one off Amazon?

 

[one more]

Why would somebody want a pro over a standard I pad? Should I order from Apple or just get one off Amazon?

It depends. Some people here use their iPads as their main devices or for specific tasks, so Pro might be more suitable for them.

I am personally happy with iPad Air, but if I needed to replace it today could also consider a new “regular” iPad, starting at $449, as it looks almost identical to Air and 11” Pro.

Pro have a double screen refresh rate, more RAM, the latest M2 chip and some other perks. However, for light use, you may not notice or benefit from them. If you have a chance, try to test some of them in your nearest shop?

It does not really matter where you buy it from. If it is new, you would still have a standard Apple warranty for it. If you buy it second-hand, refurbished, etc. - just check the warranty with the seller.

 

[rui no onna]

Why would somebody want a pro over a standard I pad?

Because of features not available on the standard iPad. Smoother performance, too (3-4GB RAM results in too much reloads or app crashes for my liking).

At work, I have an employer-provided Windows desktop. At home, I'm 99% iPad. Hence to me, getting a nice iPad is worth the premium since it's something I use 6-12 hours every single day.

There's also the longevity factor. I used to upgrade iPads every year. Ever since the 2017 iPad Pro (A10X/4GB), I've been keeping my iPads longer. RAM is a limiting factor for my usage. The M1 Air 5 or M-series iPad Pro, I could see myself using for at least 4 years easily. The 3-4GB RAM iPads, I actually don't like using them even now.

Should I order from Apple or just get one off Amazon?

Note, the iPad 9th gen often goes on sale for $249-269 at Amazon, Costco, Best Buy, etc.

 

[mac1086]

Because of features not available on the standard iPad. Smoother performance, too (3-4GB RAM results in too much reloads or app crashes for my liking).

At work, I have an employer-provided Windows desktop. At home, I'm 99% iPad. Hence to me, getting a nice iPad is worth the premium since it's something I use 6-12 hours every single day.

There's also the longevity factor. I used to upgrade iPads every year. Ever since the 2017 iPad Pro (A10X/4GB), I've been keeping my iPads longer. RAM is a limiting factor for my usage. The M1 Air 5 or M-series iPad Pro, I could see myself using for at least 4 years easily. The 3-4GB RAM iPads, I actually don't like using them even now.




Note, the iPad 9th gen often goes on sale for $249-269 at Amazon, Costco, Best Buy,

Because of features not available on the standard iPad. Smoother performance, too (3-4GB RAM results in too much reloads or app crashes for my liking).

At work, I have an employer-provided Windows desktop. At home, I'm 99% iPad. Hence to me, getting a nice iPad is worth the premium since it's something I use 6-12 hours every single day.

There's also the longevity factor. I used to upgrade iPads every year. Ever since the 2017 iPad Pro (A10X/4GB), I've been keeping my iPads longer. RAM is a limiting factor for my usage. The M1 Air 5 or M-series iPad Pro, I could see myself using for at least 4 years easily. The 3-4GB RAM iPads, I actually don't like using them even now.




Note, the iPad 9th gen often goes on sale for $249-269 at Amazon, Costco, Best Buy, etc.

Can I get a keyboard for the last one you mentioned? And how long before it’s completely obsolete?

 

[mac1086]

Would I be better off getting a windows tablet for longevity?

 

[rui no onna]

Can I get a keyboard for the last one you mentioned? And how long before it’s completely obsolete?

There's the Apple Smart Keyboard available for the 9th gen as well as a Logitech Combo Touch (keyboard+trackpad). It's also compatible with any bluetooth keyboard.

I expect the 9th gen will get firmware support for at least 4 more years. Likely more.

Just to give you a point of reference, I'm not happy with 5th gen (2017) and 6th gen (2018) performance for multi-tab web browsing. They're more than fine for Kindle, Netflix, YouTube, etc. though. Mind, I can be quite picky about performance.

Would I be better off getting a windows tablet for longevity?

The cheap Windows tablets tend to have awful performance and battery life. They may get longer OS support but frankly, I doubt you'd be happy using one (think Atom netbooks).

 

[culo77]

My old iPad 6th gen (2018) was passed down to my pre-teen who is a heavy user of it and still going strong. I think if you are able to find a good deal on a used 8th gen at a great price (Stay away from the 32gb storage ones) you will be set.
Even if you can find a 7th gen on a steal, it is a great jumping point to see how you will use it. If you want an iPad as your only computer device then I strongly recommend getting one that is usb-c over lightning port.

 

[mac1086]

There's the Apple Smart Keyboard available for the 9th gen as well as a Logitech Combo Touch (keyboard+trackpad). It's also compatible with any bluetooth keyboard.

I expect the 9th gen will get firmware support for at least 4 more years. Likely more.

Just to give you a point of reference, I'm not happy with 5th gen (2017) and 6th gen (2018) performance for multi-tab web browsing. They're more than fine for Kindle, Netflix, YouTube, etc. though. Mind, I can be quite picky about performance.




The cheap Windows tablets tend to have awful performance and battery life. They may get longer OS support but frankly, I doubt you'd be happy using one (think Atom netbooks

My old iPad 6th gen (2018) was passed down to my pre-teen who is a heavy user of it and still going strong. I think if you are able to find a good deal on a used 8th gen at a great price (Stay away from the 32gb storage ones) you will be set.
Even if you can find a 7th gen on a steal, it is a great jumping point to see how you will use it. If you want an iPad as your only computer device then I strongly recommend getting one that is usb-c over lightning port.

Can I get a keyboard for the models prior to 9? What about the lightning port is bad?

 

[mac1086]

Can I get a keyboard for the models prior to 9? What about the lightning port is bad?

 

[culo77]

Can I get a keyboard for the models prior to 9? What about the lightning port is bad?

Yes we have a Bydge keyboard for it, makes it look look a mini MacBook. Amazon has dozens of other keyboards you can add.

The lighting port is not bad at all, it’s great. USB-C is just easier experience if plugged into an external monitor, more options for usb-c dongles too. But you can get a lightning to AV adapter which we have for the 6th gen base iPad.

Our home monitor we have a bunch of peripherals connected to a random usb-c hub. It’s easy for any of us that need a bigger screen to plug in and have a quick desktop experience.

 

[MikeG17901]

Ipad Air 5th gen - M1 processor and second / external (not mirroring) monitor support. Attach a keyboard and mouse and you have a desktop / laptop replacement useable by 90% of the computing community.

 

[rui no onna]

Ipad Air 5th gen - M1 processor and second / external (not mirroring) monitor support. Attach a keyboard and mouse and you have a desktop / laptop replacement useable by 90% of the computing community.

In fairness, even smartphones can handle most people's personal computing needs (browsing, social media, online banking, etc).

I know at my workplace, a lot of folks had to buy new laptops when the pandemic started so they can work from home. A lot of them used only their smartphones for personal computing needs (and the work desktop on occasion for stuff that can't be done on smartphone).

 

[darngooddesign]

Can I get a keyboard for the models prior to 9?

You can get the Apple Smart Keyboard for it. I've had the same keyboard for seven years on my 9.7" iPad Pro and I like it a lot**. It's very light weight and doesn't take up much space on the desk because there isn't a trackpad but really that doesn't bother me because I could use a BT mouse if I needed to. I can also fold it into triangle so the iPad lays flatter if I am doing something like drawing. It's also water proof.

Only things I wish it had were key-backlighting, caps-lock light, and function row of media keys like volume and play/pause/forward/backwards.

Other companies make keyboards for it as well like Logitech

Logitech Combo Touch for iPad (7th, 8th and 9th generation) keyboard case with trackpad, wireless keyboard, Smart Connector technology - Graphite

Some ideas just click. Introducing the game-changing Combo Touch trackpad case for iPad—a case that combines a full-size backlit keyboard with a precision multi-gesture trackpad. Navigate iPad with familiar gestures and easily edit spreadsheets, documents and more. A flexible design with detachab...

www.amazon.com

What about the lightning port is bad?

The negatives are minor in my opinion.

Doesn't use USB-C. This didn't bother me because I already have many Lightning cables. If I travel I have to bring more than one cable with me so it doesn't matter if one of them is Lightning. Moving forward, if you get an iPhone with USB-C you will need two styles of cable.

Slower data transfer. This didn't bother me because I seldom transferred large data from it. Its worth mentioning that the 10.5 iPad Pro and 1st and 2nd 12.9 iPad Pros had Lightning with USB 3.0 speeds.

 

[mac1086]

My old iPad 6th gen (2018) was passed down to my pre-teen who is a heavy user of it and still going strong. I think if you are able to find a good deal on a used 8th gen at a great price (Stay away from the 32gb storage ones) you will be set.
Even if you can find a 7th gen on a steal, it is a great jumping point to see how you will use it. If you want an iPad as your only computer device then I strongly recommend getting one that is usb-c over lightning port.

Could I get an i disk for the 32gig in order to expand the memory? Or should I stay away from the 32 gig all together?

 

[rui no onna]

Could I get an i disk for the 32gig in order to expand the memory? Or should I stay away from the 32 gig all together?

iPadOS firmware uses around 8GB nowadays. Add another 7-12GB for "Other" system data and you're down to ~10-15GB free before installing any apps.

My 32GB iPad 7th gen think is sitting at ~20-25GB used. This is on my dummy iCloud account so it barely has any pics in the photo library (just ~200MB worth of screenshots). Oftentimes, I'd need to delete ~5GB worth of data (hard to do when most of it is just "Other") just so I can update the firmware.

External storage support is pretty limited on iOS. OK for pics and DRM-free media but it can't be used for installing apps or storing app data.

 

[mac1086]

Oh damn so what should I get as far as gigabytes at a minimum?

 

[rui no onna]

Oh damn so what should I get as far as gigabytes at a minimum?

64GB is okay as long you don't plan on storing a lot of media or installing a lot of apps (especially big apps like games).

Iirc, Genshin Impact uses like 20+GB (3GB initial App Store download + 18GB in-app download). I pretty much had to empty my iPad 9th gen in order to play that.

Buying an iPad for someone like my mom or dad right now (with an eye towards them using it for 5+ years), I find 128GB to be the sweet spot.

 

[mac1086]

Ok I’ll do the 128 gig route then. Is that an ok price? How long will this 2017 model last?

 

[rui no onna]

View attachment 2149202 Ok I’ll do the 128 gig route then. Is that an ok price? How long will this 2017 model last?

A9+2GB RAM.

Apple already dropped iOS support on iPhones with that combo (6s: A9/2GB, 7: A10/2GB). I'm guessing they'll probably be dropping support for iPad 5th gen (2017) and iPad 6th gen (2018) with the next major firmware update.

The iPad should still work with most apps for the next 2-3 years or so, though. After that, you'll likely have issues with app support.

Frankly, I'd rather take the $250 64GB iPad 9th gen over that despite the storage limitations.

 

[mac1086]

View attachment 2149202 Ok I’ll do the 128 gig route then. Is that an ok price? How long will this 2017 model last?

iPadOS firmware uses around 8GB nowadays. Add another 7-12GB for "Other" system data and you're down to ~10-15GB free before installing any apps.

My 32GB iPad 7th gen think is sitting at ~20-25GB used. This is on my dummy iCloud account so it barely has any pics in the photo library (just ~200MB worth of screenshots). Oftentimes, I'd need to delete ~5GB worth of data (hard to do when most of it is just "Other") just so I can update the firmware.

External storage support is pretty limited on iOS. OK for pics and DRM-free media but it can't be used for installing apps or storing app data.

Can videos also be stored on an external storage? Pictures videos and what other things?

 

[mac1086]

A9+2GB RAM.

Apple already dropped iOS support on iPhones with that combo (6s: A9/2GB, 7: A10/2GB). I'm guessing they'll probably be dropping support for iPad 5th gen (2017) and iPad 6th gen (2018) with the next major firmware update.

The iPad should still work with most apps for the next 2-3 years or so, though. After that, you'll likely have issues with app support.

Frankly, I'd rather take the $250 64GB iPad 9th gen over that despite the storage limitations.

Hmm ok. Walmart has it for 269. I can’t seem to find cheaper other than ebay

 

[rui no onna]

Can videos also be stored on an external storage? Pictures videos and what other things?

DRM-free videos (your own creation/rips or downloaded from less than legal sites), yes.

In-app video downloads for Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, etc, no.

As for other stuff, it depends on the apps you're using whether they support external storage or not.

Hmm ok. Walmart has it for 269. I can’t seem to find cheaper other than ebay

I think the $250 was at Costco. You might need to wait a bit before it drops to that price again.