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Thinking of getting an iPad for the parents.

Dr McKay

Dr McKay

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Aug 11, 2010
3,683
937
Kirkland
My parents arent the most tech savvy people out there, infact I'm still waiting for the day my Dad rings up and asks a question along the lines of 'How do I computer?'. They have an antique Acer in the corner, with a 2.3Ghz Dual-Core processor, with a gobsmacking 1GB of RAM, running that Black Hole of Suck that is Vista, and it's awfull to use.

They only really use it for putting family pictures on, browsing the web, ebay and checking mail, and I thought an iPad would be an ideal replacement for most of these tasks,

Does anyone here know how people not familiar with Tech are responding to the iPad? Anyone bought their parents one?

If so, what do they think of it? Do they find it easy to use? Do they use it often?
 
My dad is totally computer illiterate. He doesn't touch their PC at all, my mum does the 'driving'. But after 5 minutes with my iPad he said he'd love one. It was so much simpler for him to use. No confusion about left or right click or single and double click or folders and files and all the other garb you get with a computer.

Best bet is to let them have a go for a while and see what they think.
 
Old Folks and Ipad

My wife is 65 and is definitely not computer literate. I got the Ipad and after she played with it she wanted one. She loves hers. In fact she uses it more than I use mine.
 
I'm 70, and I think it's great. I'm sure they'll get on fine with it if they already can use a computer.
 
They only really use it for putting family pictures on, browsing the web, ebay and checking mail, and I thought an iPad would be an ideal replacement for most of these tasks,
Click to expand...

And how, without a REAL computer in the background, do you intend to put those pictures on the iPad?

Also, the iPad's on screen keyboard is HORRIBLE to use for real typing. I'm a very fast typist and the so-called keyboard was the first show stopping feature of the iPad that I've encountered. It does not even have cursor keys, which is a real issue for me and copying and pasting things is a nightmare with the touch interface.

People who think about replacing a real computer with an iPad should actually first use an iPad for a couple of days before they make that suggestion. Depending on what you want to do with it, you might be VERY disappointed by the device and all its artificial restrictions.


They have an antique Acer in the corner, with a 2.3Ghz Dual-Core processor, with a gobsmacking 1GB of RAM, running that Black Hole of Suck that is Vista, and it's awfull to use.
Click to expand...

When I compare this to actual specs of current entry-level Macs, this "antique" Acer does not look too bad. Add a fistful of RAM into it and it'll be a fine enough machine for everything. And if you don't like Vista, put Ubuntu 10.04 on it and your parents will probably not be able to tell the difference to a Mac. (And if you really put Ubuntu on it, you might not even need additional RAM.)
 
Winni said:
And how, without a REAL computer in the background, do you intend to put those pictures on the iPad?

Also, the iPad's on screen keyboard is HORRIBLE to use for real typing. I'm a very fast typist and the so-called keyboard was the first show stopping feature of the iPad that I've encountered. It does not even have cursor keys, which is a real issue for me and copying and pasting things is a nightmare with the touch interface.

People who think about replacing a real computer with an iPad should actually first use an iPad for a couple of days before they make that suggestion. Depending on what you want to do with it, you might be VERY disappointed by the device and all its artificial restrictions.


When I compare this to actual specs of current entry-level Macs, this "antique" Acer does not look too bad. Add a fistful of RAM into it and it'll be a fine enough machine for everything. And if you don't like Vista, put Ubuntu 10.04 on it and your parents will probably not be able to tell the difference to a Mac. (And if you really put Ubuntu on it, you might not even need additional RAM.)
Click to expand...


Well, it'd be a replacement for Browsing the Web, Doing Ebay items, viewing the photos and such, obviously the PC would need to remain to sync, but they hate using it, if the iPad can reduce the PC usage by 90%, thats a brilliant Christmas gift IMO, Im not sure if you meant it, but I got the impression from your tone you think Im bias against Windows, I assure you I'm not. I just hate their machine because it's slow.

My own machine is this. http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/packard-bell-ipower-i9723-06323861-pdt.html

And I love it.
 
GadgetGeek71 said:
The last time I synced my iPad was for the OS upgrade. Thank God for the cloud...you don't need a REAL computer...:rolleyes:
Click to expand...
Haha so true, the last time I synced was when I got it. I went nuts and downloaded all these apps.
I guess I should sync soon just in case I need a back-up.
Im running AirVideo (Mac and Windows) and TVersity (Windows) so no need for refreshing media.
I would love to get my parents this but my parents are hooked on their damn ethnic web chan and they require WMP :p
Oh well, they dont require any horsepower at least :)
 
My wife is not PC savvy either & she rarely got on the computer because it was such a hassle, blah, blah & blah.

She wanted a net book so she could look up things on the web like sports scores, library books, news items & such without having to touch the Desktop PC.

I got her an iPad. An iPad is the perfect answer for her & probably your parents.

Its always on, theres no boot up, crash & burn, blue screens, weird notices that your pc is trying to dial out, no anti virus worries (mostly) & she can just do her thing & enjoy it without all the crap that is a PC.

I take care of anything she needs done as far as syncing & such. Ive added about 500 books, a couple of games, a weather app, the WNBA app, hooked her up with her favorite home page & she LOVEs it & is on it all the time. Absolutely Priceless! ;)
 
doodude said:
...And she LOVEs it & is on it all the time. Priceless!;)
Click to expand...
As much as Im still a Mac Computer purist, I think Apple has hit a home-run with this tech.
yes its an over-sized iPod/iPhone but honestly you cant beat the facts.
I love this thing sitting on my dining table in the morning.
Im actually reading again thanks to the iPad :)
 
There's just something magical about that 9.7" screen...

Seriously though, there's just something about using an iPad that's a whole different (and good) experience than using an iPhone or iPod touch. The large screen really seems to support that point.
 
It's great for the non tech savvy parents. I got my mom one for mothers day and she took to it very very well. She docent know how to use a cellphone, or turn on a computer. I taught her in like 30min, and she is now on it every day. It's a truly amazing thing, she looks up recipes, surfs the web and watches tv on the abc app.
 
Dr Kevorkian94 said:
It's great for the non tech savvy parents. I got my mom one for mothers day and she took to it very very well. She docent know how to use a cellphone, or turn on a computer. I taught her in like 30min, and she is now on it every day. It's a truly amazing thing, she looks up recipes, surfs the web and watches tv on the abc app.
Click to expand...

Same here. My mom is 70 years old and she's wanted a computer for the last few years. She wanted to "get on the Internet and do email". The problem is she struggles with the TV remote and wouldn't last 30-mins on a real computer. I bought her an iPad and after just a short orientation she is sending email, surfing the web, searching for stuff on Google and generally becoming very good at using it and the apps.

The functionality of the iPad for her has far exceeded my expectations.
 
sounds like a good idea to me.

My wife has her work laptop for her business needs but for her eveyday computer consumption I know that for her it is iPad or nothing.

She gets me to sync it for her and keep it u[dated but she is on it all the time for surfing the web, listening to music, email, facebook, reading books on the Kindle app. and watching videos.

Thats all her daily computer needs and the iPad serves her very well. We have a fairly new iMac and a new MBP and she's used the iMac once since she's had the iPad and never even touched the MBP.

If you can get them all synced up on their computer (it has to run the latest version of iTunes) and keep them updated then I think they will really enjoy an iPad.
 
Fully recommend it for your parents. It's just so easy to use and uncomplicated. They just might have to get used to the keyboard but I really don't think that will be a problem. I like it a lot. Good luck.
 
I purchased an iPad for my 65 year old mother to replace her Mac Mini that she never used (she thought it was to complicated). She absolutely loves her iPad. I email her pictures of her grandchildren, she posts on facebook, reads the USA Today, and she just bought her first ebook. I am actually surprised how well she has taken to it.
 
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