iPad 4 or wait for the 5?

[ZacT94]

Hi everyone,

I'm looking at buying my first ever iPad and I don't know whether I should get the 4 or wait for the 5. I don't need one right away, but I hope to get one before the student offer ends 1st of April. So should I wait?

[Stewart21]

Originally Posted by ZacT94

Hi everyone,

I'm looking at buying my first ever iPad and I don't know whether I should get the 4 or wait for the 5. I don't need one right away, but I hope to get one before the student offer ends 1st of April. So should I wait?

Get a mini, best tablet ever.

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by Stewart21

Get a mini, best tablet ever.

I would, but I don't like smaller tablets. I've had a 7" tablet and it was a disaster. I prefer tablets that have a screen of around 10 inches. Thanks for the suggestion though.

[r0k]

Originally Posted by ZacT94

I would, but I don't like smaller tablets. I've had a 7" tablet and it was a disaster. I prefer tablets that have a screen of around 10 inches. Thanks for the suggestion though.

The iPad mini is not a 7 inch tablet. It's roughly half the area of an iPad. It's like a paperback book while the iPad is more like a hardcover. The only slight down side I found was that in some games where you have to touch an exact spot on the screen, it's a little harder to do on my iPad mini versus my wife's iPad 2.

I think some Apple gear is going to go to a half year refresh cycle so you run the risk of buying an iPad 4 and having the 5 come out in a month or two. The other risk is waiting and you wind up doing without for many months because those of us expecting an iPad this spring turn out to be dead wrong.

It comes down to what you need and when. If you pick up an iPad mini, you are getting a significantly larger screen than any 7 inch tablet. Notice that it is a little taller than the N7 but it is quite a bit wider. I suspect a lot of people like the iPad mini more than the Nexus 7 for the same reason a lot of people like the Galaxy S3 screen more than the iPhone 5: larger, better aspect ratio screen.

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by r0k

The iPad mini is not a 7 inch tablet. It's roughly half the area of an iPad. It's like a paperback book while the iPad is more like a hardcover. The only slight down side I found was that in some games where you have to touch an exact spot on the screen, it's a little harder to do on my iPad mini versus my wife's iPad 2.

I think some Apple gear is going to go to a half year refresh cycle so you run the risk of buying an iPad 4 and having the 5 come out in a month or two. The other risk is waiting and you wind up doing without for many months because those of us expecting an iPad this spring turn out to be dead wrong.

It comes down to what you need and when. If you pick up an iPad mini, you are getting a significantly larger screen than any 7 inch tablet. Notice that it is a little taller than the N7 but it is quite a bit wider. I suspect a lot of people like the iPad mini more than the Nexus 7 for the same reason a lot of people like the Galaxy S3 screen more than the iPhone 5: larger, better aspect ratio screen.
Image

I've had a play with the iPad mini, and I love how light it is, but I'd prefer to get a full sized iPad as it has a better CPU, GPU and RAM, as well as the retina display. The iPad mini is also very overpriced here in Australia.

[jvette]

I think with the improvements from the 3 to the 4 I would buy one if I wanted one. I really don't see much more improvement in what you call a 5 as far as speed. It's getting to the point Apple is getting fast to pull the trigger and people are jumping to buy the newest one so they will hold something out each time so they have a hook for a new one. If you wait for the 5 you might as well wait for the 6 and on and on. The iphone 5 isn't selling like they hoped and you could see the ipads do the same thing in the future with 6 month refreshes.

[designs216]

Get it now. There's always going to be a bigger better around the corner.

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by designs216

Get it now. There's always going to be a bigger better around the corner.

I'm mainly worried that if I get the 4 now, the 5 could come out in 2-3 months with a quad core processor.

[jmpnop]

If you don't want to wait, buy the iPad in February. That way you can return it when the new one comes out.

[Photoshopper]

I don't think the speed, etc. of the 5 will be noticeably better. What would make me want to wait would be the form factor-- I'd love a pad that was thinner, and esp. lighter than my iPad 3.

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by Photoshopper

I don't think the speed, etc. of the 5 will be noticeably better. What would make me want to wait would be the form factor-- I'd love a pad that was thinner, and esp. lighter than my iPad 3.

I agree with that too. Especially after feeling how light the Mini was. I would buy the mini, but as I've said before it's very overpriced here in Australia.

[Moonjumper]

I recently got an iPad 4. It is brilliant. Blazingly fast. I think the short update cycle to the 4 was a one-off so that the iPad didn't look outdated with the old connector, they just did a few other things while they were at it. You might be waiting a while for the iPad 5, just like iMac purchasers were last year.

[nightlong]

When a friend was about to buy an iPhone 4S, I suggested waiting for the 5. He said i don't care what some future phone might be, this does everything I want right now.

I felt the same when I bought the ipad4. It is superb ... Fast, beautiful screen, runs cool, and LTE works in Australia ... One reason why I skipped the ipad3.

So, keep it simple. If you don't need something now, don't buy it. If you do need it now, and you know it is an evolved product (which the 4 certainly is, as the 2 also was but the 3 was not) then get it, enjoy it and spare yourself the pointless anxiety about something better being in the pipeline. Because it surely is.

Well, maybe is. If all the changes being predicted for the 5 do happen, it might have new first-gen type problems.

[LaunchpadBS]

Get the Mini, I had 3 iPad's before buying mine and I'll never go back, it's truly absolutely portable, fits perfectly in the front pouches of various travel bags etc, the iPad was always a bit awkward.

I thought I'd miss the screen estate for browsing but I can honestly say I don't.

But that's just me.

[mono1980]

Originally Posted by LaunchpadBS

Get the Mini, I had 3 iPad's before buying mine and I'll never go back, it's truly absolutely portable, fits perfectly in the front pouches of various travel bags etc, the iPad was always a bit awkward.

I thought I'd miss the screen estate for browsing but I can honestly say I don't.

But that's just me.

That's because the "real estate" of the screen is the same. Same resolution, just a bit smaller.

[RedCroissant]

Originally Posted by ZacT94

Hi everyone,

I'm looking at buying my first ever iPad and I don't know whether I should get the 4 or wait for the 5. I don't need one right away, but I hope to get one before the student offer ends 1st of April. So should I wait?

Wait until the 5 comes out and then get the 4 at a discounted price.

[Gaelic2]

Wait for the iPad 7 or 8 if you are apprehensive about using one now. There will ALWAYS be a newer, better model in the future. You can miss out on all the fun if you wait for the next, best thing.

[ZacT94]

I think I will wait until March and then if there is no iPad 5 announced, I will buy the 4.

[fiddlestyx]

Originally Posted by ZacT94

I think I will wait until March and then if there is no iPad 5 announced, I will buy the 4.

If you don't need the iPad now, this makes the most sense. Although, no one likes waiting out these rumors to find out they were wrong.

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by fiddlestyx

If you don't need the iPad now, this makes the most sense. Although, no one likes waiting out these rumors to find out they were wrong.

Yeah I don't need it now. I'm buying it because I want one. I have a Motorola Xoom at the moment, but it's not handling my games at all anymore.

[deathcab]

Originally Posted by ZacT94

I think I will wait until March and then if there is no iPad 5 announced, I will buy the 4.

Buy now (or in a few days) at Target and use their "RedCard Debit Card" -- no credit credit check, just have to give them a check (and acts like just writing a check, just make sure you have funds in your bank account) and you'll get the normal return policy + 30 additional days + 5% off. That way, come March, you can either return or if nothing else is announced, you can keep it and didn't waste another month of use waiting.

If you wait til March and nothing is announced, the next sentiment will be wait until October.. etc. Apple is a never ending cycle. They always give you just enough to want more but withhold (and develop to some degree) other things to add to the next model to make you want another one in 6 -10 months.

I always opposed Apple products (and didn't use them for years) because of this mentality but have been quite happy since I switched over to the Apple Ecosystem because I've just not let myself buy into the hype and told myself I will buy the one product I want or need, use it until it doesn't work or is obsolete, and then replace.

That said, my 2010 Macbook Pro ($693 new from Amazon on clearance two years ago), iPhone 4 ($155 on eBay used 14 months ago with light-bleed , instantly replaced under warranty at Apple store after I bought it) that I run on PagePlus ($28.65 a month), and the iPad 3rd Generation I purchased yesterday at Target with the RedCard discount / extended return policy ($379.90) have kept me happy enough so far and I haven't had to remortgage my house (yet) to keep up with the latest product cycle.

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by deathcab

Buy now (or in a few days) at Target and use their "RedCard Debit Card" -- no credit credit check, just have to give them a check (and acts like just writing a check, just make sure you have funds in your bank account) and you'll get the normal return policy + 30 additional days + 5% off. That way, come March, you can either return or if nothing else is announced, you can keep it and didn't waste another month of use waiting.

If you wait til March and nothing is announced, the next sentiment will be wait until October.. etc. Apple is a never ending cycle. They always give you just enough to want more but withhold (and develop to some degree) other things to add to the next model to make you want another one in 6 -10 months.

I always opposed Apple products (and didn't use them for years) because of this mentality but have been quite happy since I switched over to the Apple Ecosystem because I've just not let myself buy into the hype and told myself I will buy the one product I want or need, use it until it doesn't work or is obsolete, and then replace.

That said, my 2010 Macbook Pro ($693 new from Amazon on clearance two years ago), iPhone 4 ($155 on eBay used 14 months ago with light-bleed , instantly replaced under warranty at Apple store after I bought it) that I run on PagePlus ($28.65 a month), and the iPad 3rd Generation I purchased yesterday at Target with the RedCard discount / extended return policy ($379.90) have kept me happy enough so far and I haven't had to remortgage my house (yet) to keep up with the latest product cycle.

I can't do the target RedCard Debit Card as I live in Australia and Target in Australia doesn't do that.

[jwjsr]

You could buy the 3 right now for helluva price and resell it without too much of a hit

[ZacT94]

Originally Posted by jwjsr

You could buy the 3 right now for helluva price and resell it without too much of a hit

But doesn't the 3 have overheating issues?

[jwjsr]

Originally Posted by ZacT94

But doesn't the 3 have overheating issues?

Not that I have heard, I use mine 3 or 4 hrs a day in case and haven't noticed any heat. We are just a little hot about the 4 coming out so soon. The 4 is supposed to be about twice as fast but my 3 is plenty fast though I have never used a 4