All iPads: Is the iPad mini right for me?

[joshwithachance]

It seems like the iPad 4 (or 3rd Gen) would be the better choice for you.

[Esoom]

I think you should get a 3rd gen and a MiFi hotspot (or whatever kind of hotpsot works for you)

1.) you can get a great deal on a 3rd gen by looking around a bit
2.) retina display (I have a Mini and love it, but for your uses, I think 9.7" makes a lot of sense)
3.) Notes, I would go with handwritten and converting them, too hard to take hand written notes on an iPad, IMHO)
4.) Gaming is better (marginally) on a larger screen.

[AdonisSMU]

I have textbooks on my mini and they read just fine.

[Harrycooke]

Originally Posted by bobbysmith

I just don't see how that is possible.

http://i.imgur.com/cI7fM.jpg

On my mini the text in the box at the top is <1 mm tall, the text at the bottom just over 1 mm. That is half the height of the text in the actual book and simply too small for the mini's low resolution screen. It looks horrible and is very straining to read. It would be small even with a retina screen, but at least then the text would be clear.



Uh, so? How is that relevant at all?

I can read that on the size of an iPhone screen. You clearly have sight issues.

[Samtb]

What if your course has alot of field work or lab work where you'll be looking at notes, figures, diagrams etc. Then which is better - mini or 4?

[darngooddesign]

Originally Posted by Samtb

What if your course has alot of field work or lab work where you'll be looking at notes, figures, diagrams etc. Then which is better - mini or 4?

1. Buy the Mini
2. Use the Mini
3. Return it for the iPad 4 if the Mini doesn't work for you.

[Samtb]

Originally Posted by darngooddesign

1. Buy the Mini
2. Use the Mini
3. Return it for the iPad 4 if the Mini doesn't work for you.

But do you think the 4 is fine as well as I like the retina display.

[darngooddesign]

Originally Posted by Samtb

But do you think the 4 is fine as well as I like the retina display.

1. Buy the iPad 4
2. Use the ipad 4
3. Return it for the Mini if the iPad 4 doesn't work for you.

I think the 4 is great.

[Awakener]

Originally Posted by bobbysmith

I just don't see how that is possible.

It is not possible for serious comfortable reading. Yes you can just make out the print but why would you want to?

[Samtb]

Originally Posted by Awakener

It is not possible for serious comfortable reading. Yes you can just make out the print but why would you want to?

People do it on an iphone

[Awakener]

Originally Posted by Samtb

People do it on an iphone

So? It also isn't ideal for serious reading. But atleast it's retina.

[WilliamLondon]

Originally Posted by Awakener

So? It also isn't ideal for serious reading. But atleast it's retina.

What a retina bigot you are!<big grin>

I happen to read a lot of PDFs (mostly scanned articles and book chapters, journal articles from JSTOR, or general doc conversions into PDF for school) on my mini all the time and it's the most enjoyable experience for me. I hate reading anything of length on my iMac, or on my MBA, and my old iPad (full sized) was just too large to hold comfortably while reading.

Although I love my Kindle's size (for reading) most of all, it sadly doesn't display PDFs well, so for me the mini is the most enjoyable and ideal reading experience for my mostly quite serious reading. For fun/leisure reading I mostly choose my Kindle, except for magazines and RSS feed aggregations (via Calibre) which I read exclusively on my mini (via the Kindle app).

[Samtb]

Originally Posted by Awakener

So? It also isn't ideal for serious reading. But atleast it's retina.

Not ideal but its possible.

[BigBeast]

I LOVE my iPad mini. I have all my college textbooks on it (purchased via Aamzon or scanned), take all my notes on it, and game and surf on it when I'm bored. Ok, so the screen isn't Retina, but it's still a great screen. I mirror what a bunch of people have already said: readability of textbooks is fine, I don't have to "constantly zoom in and out" like other "users" do. I posit that these "users" probably don't have minis, are hard of seeing (not being rude), or are whiners (being slightly rude). I user PDF Expert to keep all my books and school material (syllabi, ppts which I've converted to PDF, etc.) on my mini with PDF Expert's excellent Dropbox syncing (other PDF software also has Dropbox syncing). I use the new Jot Pro by Adonit (with sound dampening tip purchased from Amazon) to take ALL my class notes. I don't use paper at all anymore, and by following Lifehacker's posts on keeping your computer linked to Dropbox, whenever I'm on my Retina Macbook Pro, all my files are synced in the background.

iPad mini + the Jot Pro + Lifehacker's Dropbox info + PDF Expert = Awesome.

BTW, I have the 16GB mini wifi, as I use my iPhone's wifi hotspot when I'm not at home or school, which both have wifi. Also, I can even fit the iPad mini in the front pocket of my jeans! I wear Express Kingston classic straight leg jeans- so they're not skinny jeans, nor are they baggy jeans.


Personally, I've used the iPad 4 and I just think it's WAY too bulky and heavy. The mini is the iPad Apple should've released from the beginning.

From someone who uses his mini for at least 5 hours a day- many times 7-10 hours a day, I am super happy I bought it! Hope this help dude. You can PM me if you have any other questions.

16GB iPad Mini Wifi =

[Samtb]

Originally Posted by BigBeast

I LOVE my iPad mini. I have all my college textbooks on it (purchased via Aamzon or scanned), take all my notes on it, and game and surf on it when I'm bored. Ok, so the screen isn't Retina, but it's still a great screen. I mirror what a bunch of people have already said: readability of textbooks is fine, I don't have to "constantly zoom in and out" like other "users" do. I posit that these "users" probably don't have minis, are hard of seeing (not being rude), or are whiners (being slightly rude). I user PDF Expert to keep all my books and school material (syllabi, ppts which I've converted to PDF, etc.) on my mini with PDF Expert's excellent Dropbox syncing (other PDF software also has Dropbox syncing). I use the new Jot Pro by Adonit (with sound dampening tip purchased from Amazon) to take ALL my class notes. I don't use paper at all anymore, and by following Lifehacker's posts on keeping your computer linked to Dropbox, whenever I'm on my Retina Macbook Pro, all my files are synced in the background.

iPad mini + the Jot Pro + Lifehacker's Dropbox info + PDF Expert = Awesome.

BTW, I have the 16GB mini wifi, as I use my iPhone's wifi hotspot when I'm not at home or school, which both have wifi. Also, I can even fit the iPad mini in the front pocket of my jeans! I wear Express Kingston classic straight leg jeans- so they're not skinny jeans, nor are they baggy jeans.


Personally, I've used the iPad 4 and I just think it's WAY too bulky and heavy. The mini is the iPad Apple should've released from the beginning.

From someone who uses his mini for at least 5 hours a day- many times 7-10 hours a day, I am super happy I bought it! Hope this help dude. You can PM me if you have any other questions.

16GB iPad Mini Wifi =

Does your course involve any diagrams, charts etc

[BigBeast]

Originally Posted by Samtb

Does your course involve any diagrams, charts etc

Many courses use charts, diagrams, graphics, etc. I convert them to PDF, and then write on top of them using PDF expert.

[charlituna]

Originally Posted by Defender2010

Why don't you just purchase one, use it for a while and see if it suits you? If not, return it! I find these these threads nauseating...one post said it is impossible to read in portrait mode, this depends on ones sight. What you are asking is completely subjective.

Agreed. The only person that can answer this is the user.

So buy it, try it, return it if it sucks and try the next option

[Relic]

I've never been a fan of iOS, some reasons are as followed; no file-manager, horrible media codec support meant to force users in purchasing all of their content from the iTunes store, sand-boxing (I much prefer my apps talking with each other and security concerns isn't enough good reason, I have never had a Malware or virus attack, ever, you can't select your default browser (which I guess doesn't matter as Apple forces everyone to use their Webkit), you can't simply plug a iOS device into a computer and have it mounted as a regular drive you have to use iTunes (lame), the UI feels old and tired (hasn't changed since 2007), no to very little UI customization except maybe wallpaper changes, no widgets, no NFC, no Mini SD which doesn't make it very future proof (this is so Apple can make more money on the hardware), there is no link to the Amazon Store in the Kindle app (this behavior can be found in a lot off apps and is a very nasty uncompetitive attitude), no side loading of apps, I can't backup the rom along with it's apps, files and settings, I can't access my servers, no Samba support for instance but I guess that doesn't matter as there is no file-manager to take advantage of it, iCloud isn't very good, no active digitized pen (a must for note taking).


Now I can go on and on but I think you get the picture, the apps are great though so there is that. I would say buy a Nexus 7 but now with the release of Windows 8 it's a now a no brainer. The Lenovo ThinkPad II or the new Dell Latitude 10 with it's removable battery and digitized pen make for the perfect college companion. I have the Lenovo and it's fantastic, the best tablet I have ever own.
This post was not intended to bad mouth Apple as I wouldn't be on this forum if I didn't enjoy their laptops, I love my Air and besides my new Google Pixle it's one of the best looking laptops ever. It's a real shame about iOS because OSX is my favorite OS besides Solaris. These are just my feelings and I'm sorry if I offended anyone.