iPad mini I just returned my Mini and here is why

Mac... nificent said:

The the A5 processor is one big difference

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In what way?

but there are other differences between the two like the mini has two speakers, and the unibody shell is more rounded on the back and edges.

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Sure, but that goes against the argument of the iPad mini "lacking" in comparison.

There are other differences but they are small (pun intended) like SIM card size.

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How is this either a quality or feature difference? There are obviously differences, but the question I am asking is what is the basis of claiming that the iPad mini under-delivers compared to any other iPad?

gatearray said:

All this talk about "last year's tech" really bothers me. If you note the benchmarks, the iPad 2, iPad 3, and iPad Mini all bench around 770 or so.

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Yep. Until November 2, the A5 was the best-performing Apple tablet SOC. The part number isn't even 9 months old yet.

Geez Louise!

Some folks are returning the Mini for the 3rd or 4th gen. If one thinks it is just because of the screen I really don't know what to say to that truly.

gatearray said:

All this talk about "last year's tech" really bothers me. If you note the benchmarks, the iPad 2, iPad 3, and iPad Mini all bench around 770 or so. The iPad 3 came out in March of this year and was the cutting edge until Apple surprised us with a new revision.

If the iPad 4 wasn't released 5-6 months early, would we even be having this conversation?

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But the iPad 4 did come out, and it has doubled the benchmarks. iiPad 4 has made Pad Mini, iPad 2, iPad 3 outdated.

lianlua said:

In what way?

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In the obvious way that the iPad4 has the A6 The mini will get the A6 too once they add the Retina screen, but it IS a difference which is what you asked for.

Sure, but that goes against the argument of the iPad mini "lacking" in comparison.

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I agree with you, and as I said before, I think screen and processor aside, the mini is the real winner.

How is this either a quality or feature difference?

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If you're referring to the new shape then this is no small thing. Hold both in your hands for 30 minutes and you'll soon see that the iPad4 feels more awkward and the mini still feels completely natural. Apple did a great job with the minis shape. I see this as a big improvement over the full sized tablet, which was already good. The mini is hands down the most comfortable tablet on the market.

I think the iPhone 5 and the iPad mini are too close a product to own both. I think the logical direction to go with someone that owns an iPhone 5 is the full sized ipad

Awakener said:

But the iPad 4 did come out, and it has doubled the benchmarks. iiPad 4 has made Pad Mini, iPad 2, iPad 3 outdated.

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Not true. Just because the iPad 4 is faster doesn't automatically make the others outdated That will depend on the apps requirements and I don't know of any app that requires the iPad4 processor. The A5 still handles apps perfectly well and only when apps require more horsepower will the A5 truly be outdated.

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AppleChampagne said:

I think the logical direction to go with someone that owns an iPhone 5 is the full sized ipad

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That's personal preference. I know that if I had an iPhone I would still prefer the mini to the full sized iPad. I used my tablet mostly on the road and the mini is the correct size

AppleChampagne said:

I think the iPhone 5 and the iPad mini are too close a product to own both. I think the logical direction to go with someone that owns an iPhone 5 is the full sized ipad

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You would think so, but that doesn't look to be the case. Just because someone has the iPhone 5, that doesn't change where/how you would use the iPad Mini.

I've seen far more people with the 5/Mini combo compared to 5/full-sized iPad.

Mac... nificent said:

In the obvious way that the iPad4 has the A6 The mini will get the A6 too once they add the Retina screen, but it IS a difference which is what you asked for.


I agree with you, and as I said before, I think screen and processor aside, the mini is the real winner.



If you're referring to the new shape then this is no small thing. Hold both in your hands for 30 minutes and you'll soon see that the iPad4 feels more awkward and the mini still feels completely natural. Apple did a great job with the minis shape. I see this as a big improvement over the full sized tablet, which was already good. The mini is hands down the most comfortable tablet on the market.

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Hmm not sure about the comfort thing. Nexus 7 better for thumb typing.

Mac... nificent said:

Not true. Just because the iPad 4 is faster doesn't automatically make the others outdated That will depend on the apps requirements and I don't know of any app that requires the iPad4 processor. The A5 still handles apps perfectly well and only when apps require more horsepower will the A5 truly be outdated.

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There are already performance differences with current tasks and as app developers target the iPad 4 those differences will grow.

Awakener said:

There are already performance differences with current tasks and as app developers target the iPad 4 those differences will grow.

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There is a difference between an app requiring the new processor and an app that runs slower on the older processor. There currently aren't any of the former, and whether you are annoyed by the latter is the reason why you upgrade any computer.

darngooddesign said:

There is a difference between an app requiring the new processor and an app that runs slower on the older processor. There currently aren't any of the former, and whether you are annoyed by the latter is the reason why you upgrade any computer.

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Well stated. Thank you! +1

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Awakener said:

as app developers target the iPad 4 those differences will grow.

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Yes they will, and at THAT time perhaps the A5 will become outdated, but that time has yet to come.

Mac... nificent said:

Well stated. Thank you! +1

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Yes they will, and at THAT time perhaps the A5 will become outdated, but that time has yet to come.

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Of course it's yet to come it was just released.

Just decided to return mine... I like the Mini just fine but I can't seem to sell my iPad 3 at a decent price. Ultimately I've decided that it's just plain unnecessary for me to have the Mini if I can't sell the 3.

On top of that after a few weeks the chamfered edge of my Mini has begun chipping off. That's very discouraging because I've had the smart cover on the iPad and a sleeve on the whole shebang whenever I took it anywhere.

Sad to say... but that's my story.

The chamfered edge seemed rough and always catching on clothing.

MrXiro said:

Just decided to return mine... I like the Mini just fine but I can't seem to sell my iPad 3 at a decent price. Ultimately I've decided that it's just plain unnecessary for me to have the Mini if I can't sell the 3.

On top of that after a few weeks the chamfered edge of my Mini has begun chipping off. That's very discouraging because I've had the smart cover on the iPad and a sleeve on the whole shebang whenever I took it anywhere.

Sad to say... but that's my story.

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What qualifies as not enough?

I have both too and really like them but I don't think I can give up my retina. And I'm getting used to mini portability.

I guess you only had the wifi one. I'm waiting for the cellular version and this will replace my full sized iPad 3 with Cellular.

thadoggfather said:

What qualifies as not enough?

I have both too and really like them but I don't think I can give up my retina. And I'm getting used to mini portability.

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Zero bites on CL in 2 weeks and 425 for my LTE model on eBay is too low.

Mac... nificent said:

In the obvious way that the iPad4 has the A6 The mini will get the A6 too once they add the Retina screen, but it IS a difference which is what you asked for.

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There are plenty of differences. I asked for a feature that was missing or made the mini deficient in some way as of the day before it was announced.

If you're referring to the new shape then this is no small thing. Hold both in your hands for 30 minutes and you'll soon see that the iPad4 feels more awkward and the mini still feels completely natural. Apple did a great job with the minis shape.

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I agree with what you're saying, but it's not a different in quality or features. It's a difference in design. Again, the subject of my comment pertains only to the argument that the iPad mini is "dated" or "deficient".

It has the same feature set as the full-size iPads and if the A5X isn't dated, neither is the A5r2.

light bleed along the bottom edge (while in portrait)
it's going back this weekend

Lianula,

You play on the word "feature", I'll reverse your train of thought.

What does the Mini offer you feature wise over the 3 and 4? Zero, so why if you have either of those do you get a Mini or prefer it? Size and weight? That wasn't an issue before, if it was then why did people keep those to begin with if that was such a big deal?

The screen isn't as good, the processor isn't as good, I rather watch a movie or play games on the 3 or 4, I rather web browse on those rather than the Mini. Should I continue?????

How about the Mini price of $329? One could have gotten an iPad 4 at a great price on Black Friday OR an andriod tablet with better specs than the Mini for less which was another option.

I GUARANTEE some folks selling the bigger better brothers will regret it! And I did say SOME.

MrXiro said:

Zero bites on CL in 2 weeks and 425 for my LTE model on eBay is too low.

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I have found that listing your CL item on a Thursday night yeilds much better results.

lianlua said:

There are plenty of differences. I asked for a feature that was missing or made the mini deficient in some way as of the day before it was announced.

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I own an iPad 2 which I'm still happily using, but if it were released as a new product alongside the iPad 4 I would consider it dated and somewhat deficient when compared to the iPad 4. Its slower, has half the RAM, and the screen isn't as good. I can't say if its noticible in real world usage because I don't have a 4 to put alongside it. Then again, if I had never driven a Camaro I wouldn't necessarily consider a Chevy Cobalt to be dated or deficient.

I take the ease of use and portability of a Mini over being able to open and close apps slightly faster and have a retina display any day of the week.

What people fail to understand is not specs that make your device great, its ultimately how you are actually able to use it.

Borjan said:

I take the ease of use and portability of a Mini over being able to open and close apps slightly faster and have a retina display any day of the week.

What people fail to understand is not specs that make your device great, its ultimately how you are actually able to use it.

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Bravo! Exactly, I sold my 3 and got a mini and never looked back. I have an iPhone 5 and retina MacBook. The screen doesn't bother me one bit, as the lightness and size make up for it. Such babies here trying to belittle the Mini (no pun intended). I am not in such a rush that 1 sec difference in opening an app makes any difference whatsoever. A5 is a great chip and the device is solid and fast.

For me what it boils down to is the fact that I don't take my ipads out of the house unless I am going on a long trip. Therefore I don't really need a smaller, lighter iPad which is why I am just keeping my 3. Most of the time I am sitting or laying down when using my iPad, not walking around. After using both, I realized that you eventually end up propping them both up against something, so why not enjoy the larger retina display? I do like the mini's form factor but will wait for the same form to come in the 9.7inch screen. Again this is only for my uses, if I wanted a tablet to bring with me almost all the time I would hands down be keeping the mini, but for me, thats what my iPhone 5 is for.