Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
WiFi vs 3G
- Thread starter Captain Planet
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Wifi. No way in hell is ATT gonna get another $30 data plan out of me even if it is reduced from the normal $60 that they charge.
That said, if I didn't have an iPhone then I'd probably get the 3g.
That said, if I didn't have an iPhone then I'd probably get the 3g.
wifi. Wherever I take my Macbook I can easily hook it up to wifi. MacDonalds is actually great for this - free access to the Cloud, I just buy a coffee and you can sit in there for a good half hour. Good speeds too - far better than I thought. Even sitting in my flat in a suburb of Exeter, UK there is a wifi hot spot for BT Openzone. Must be coming from a local pub.
If I am somewhere without wifi then I can plug the laptop in to my Blackberry and use the Berry as a modem. This is on edge speeds though - so fast enough for browsing not enough for video/downloads.
I presume I could do the above with an ipad - and I can't wait
If I am somewhere without wifi then I can plug the laptop in to my Blackberry and use the Berry as a modem. This is on edge speeds though - so fast enough for browsing not enough for video/downloads.
I presume I could do the above with an ipad - and I can't wait
So I'm very much leaning towards the WiFi device... however the WiFi + 3G device has the GPS in it... even if I never use the 3G (I'm hoping to be able to tether with my phone.. jailbreaking if necessary) I think having the GPS chip is something I'm going to want to have.
Totally, there are so many free wifi hotspots out there I'm inclined just to go with these. Even in small towns in the UK wifi is everywhere - if other countries are anything like this then I can't see the sense in paying.
I'll take the wait and see approach. If people can tether their iPads to their iPhones, then that means I'll more likely settle for the 32 GB iPad. I don't I'll need 64GB considering my 3GS is at 32GB.
I should probably add - that I don't have an iPhone, and I don't have data on my smartphone currently, and the $15 a month is attractive to this non-AT&T person. I have no free wifi in the places i currently go to on a weekly basis.
However, i'll be reserving my judgement as time progresses in the next 90 days.
However, i'll be reserving my judgement as time progresses in the next 90 days.
WiFi for me.....if I need to look up something and I'm in a non-WiFi zone I've still got my iPhone.... Another thought I had was to get one of those portable Wifi devices and then I'd always be sure of having WiFi with me.....
I would like the 3G version. I already have a 3G mobile broadband sim, for use when I'm away from the office and need access to the net & emails. That being said I also have an iPhone and Netshare, so faced with 6 months wait to (end of june) July or 2 months wait for a wifi version is probably what will sway me.
Wifi for me.
I've already got a Sprint MiFi broadband card. No reason I won't have it with wherever I'm using the tablet and I can also use it to connect my other laptops & devices.
I've already got a Sprint MiFi broadband card. No reason I won't have it with wherever I'm using the tablet and I can also use it to connect my other laptops & devices.
The tech spec page makes it clear that GPS is only on the 3G model.
I'll probably go with the 3G, for three reasons:
1) I won't sign up with a contract with AT&T, but there are months when I'm traveling a lot for work, and it would be nice to just know I'll have access. Not having to sign a contract means paying for it when I need it and not paying when I don't.
2) I do want the GPS.
3) When I travel in Europe, it would be great if I could sign up for a month with a European provider to get data, saving me tons on data roaming charges for the bit of work stuff I have to do when I'm on vacation. (That's assuming some European carriers adopt the same policy of not requiring contracts and just doing month-to-month prepaid.)
Please correct me if I'm wrong, but can't you just swap the sim card from your iPhone into the iPad and use that for 3g if you really need it for some reason?
If this is true, then I will be ordering a 32gb 3g model. Otherwise I'll take the 32gb wifi. I doubt I'll need it a whole lot, but it's nice to know that it's an option, especially on vacation when not receiving a lot of calls.
Also, can anyone really confirm that the 3g model has true GPS? This is what Apple's tech specs for the iPad say:
So Assisted GPS would be the real GPS which locks on faster, like the iPhone 3g and 3GS, and not the triangulation that the first iPhone had? Knowing this will also help me to decide, thanks. $130 more is quite a bit to think about when one already has an iPhone 3GS.
If this is true, then I will be ordering a 32gb 3g model. Otherwise I'll take the 32gb wifi. I doubt I'll need it a whole lot, but it's nice to know that it's an option, especially on vacation when not receiving a lot of calls.
Also, can anyone really confirm that the 3g model has true GPS? This is what Apple's tech specs for the iPad say:
So Assisted GPS would be the real GPS which locks on faster, like the iPhone 3g and 3GS, and not the triangulation that the first iPhone had? Knowing this will also help me to decide, thanks. $130 more is quite a bit to think about when one already has an iPhone 3GS.
Are you saying that the 3g version won't come out until the end of June / beginning of July or did I just read your comment wrong? I thought that the wifi version was coming out in 60 days and the 3g version in 90 days, so only a month after the first one.
From the iPad site:
Could you please explain? I thought all sims were the same if they were from the same carrier, and should especially work since the iPad is unlocked? Thanks!
Not all of us live in the states. There a big world out there
Sorry, I guess I didn't realize that the iPad would even be available internationally at the same time for the wifi version. I guess I thought for some reason that they were all coming internationally this summer. Apple hasn't announced international pricing yet either, which might have been why I thought that.
MicroSim is a smaller verison of the current simcards. It's a micro version of it.
A SIM card is the little chip in a GSM cell phone that holds your subscriber information. A micro SIM, also known as a 3FF or "third form factor" SIM, is a smaller version of a SIM card that holds the same data, but is not physically compatible with larger SIM cards like the ones used by AT&T and T-Mobile.
3FF SIMs were developed by the European Telecommunications Standards Institute to fit into devices too small for a regular SIM. Where a regular SIM measures 15 millimeters x 25 mm, a 3FF SIM card measures 12mm x 15mm.
Not all of us live in the states. There a big world out there
I actually took it that there wasn't going to be plans in place for the rest until then. Did i miss him saying (the audio i was listening too was choppy) that it would not go on sale until June/July also? I thought the point was it will be available, but we don't expect to have the same type of options until then.
Hmmmmm.......