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IanGahagan

macrumors member
Original poster
Jun 11, 2012
86
0
Montana
So I know asking storage size questions on this forum is like beating a dead horse for some, so please bear with me...

I sold my nexus 7 to a friend for $150 due to the fact that it was not as cross compatible with my other Apple devices so now I am looking into getting an Ipad Mini to fill the gap. The nexus was 16GB btw.

As far as doing the same things with the mini as the n7 is 16GB enough for:
Reading(Nook app, Kindle app, Dropbox app for pdfs/docs), Games(Infinity Blade2, Dead Space, Bastion, maybe a few more small ones), Some to no music(I have a 32GB iPhone that stores my music which is about 5.5GB), And the occasional movie for a trip? I do use Netflix and Amazon Prime to stream mostly.

I don't really plan on keeping things on the device that are not being used every other day or so.

Thanks!
 

Ann P

macrumors 68020
Jun 29, 2009
2,311
9
California
For your needs, 16GB (13.5 really) will suffice. Watch out for those games though, most of the "high-end" titles are 1 to 2GB these days. They could creep up on you.
 

tazz3

macrumors regular
Apr 26, 2013
129
1
Sure if had 16 gigs on the nexus then you can get away with 16 gigs on the mini
I got a refurbed iPad 4 32 gig for 499 from the apple store.
 

Shadowbech

macrumors G3
Oct 18, 2011
9,038
5,894
Thanks for the feedback, I will pick up a 16GB Mini and try it out.

Keep in mind that most apple store has a 14 day return policy and depending on where you live. So you can always check it out and test it and if you think you need more space then you can always go back and return the device and get a 32 GB model.
 

azure247

macrumors 6502
Sep 9, 2008
255
25
I never see the point of 32GB unless you are traveling a lot and away from a computer. Regarding game apps, after you finish a game its very unlikely you will touch it again, like infinity blade. Also storing dozens of apps make the screen clutter-y. 16GB is the best bang for your money too.
 

tazz3

macrumors regular
Apr 26, 2013
129
1
16 gigs is way to small allways go 32 its better to have more space then to run out
 

HiDEF

macrumors 68000
Jun 23, 2010
1,706
394
Miami, FL
With most services using the cloud (Dropbox, iCloud, Google, etc.), its ok only getting a 16GB. You can just stream just about anything.. Spotify for music, iCloud or Dropbox for photos and documents, and so on.

So don't sweat it and just enjoy your purchase.
 

vmaniqui

macrumors 6502a
Mar 8, 2013
562
1
California
16GB should be enough for your normal usage. not unless you want to keep some movies, more games and some music, and some apps then you might want to go to 32GB. but you'll be ok with 16GB.
 

HiDEF

macrumors 68000
Jun 23, 2010
1,706
394
Miami, FL
If you are around Wifi all day.

Not trying to be condescending but how often does someone find themselves without WiFi throughout the day?

EDIT: so after some thought, I guess you won't have WiFi at airports (unless you pay for it)... But how often is the OP at a airport or somewhere that doesn't have free WiFi?
----------

If you are not into gazillions of apps then I think you are okay. We found out this morning the Pinterest app ate 2GB. I'll spare you the drama.

Out of curiousity I checked the pinterest app in the app store and it states that its only 26mb..

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/pinterest/id429047995?mt=8
 
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Eckscaliber

macrumors 6502a
May 30, 2012
816
87
So I know asking storage size questions on this forum is like beating a dead horse for some, so please bear with me...

I sold my nexus 7 to a friend for $150 due to the fact that it was not as cross compatible with my other Apple devices so now I am looking into getting an Ipad Mini to fill the gap. The nexus was 16GB btw.

As far as doing the same things with the mini as the n7 is 16GB enough for:
Reading(Nook app, Kindle app, Dropbox app for pdfs/docs), Games(Infinity Blade2, Dead Space, Bastion, maybe a few more small ones), Some to no music(I have a 32GB iPhone that stores my music which is about 5.5GB), And the occasional movie for a trip? I do use Netflix and Amazon Prime to stream mostly.

I don't really plan on keeping things on the device that are not being used every other day or so.

Thanks!

Those games are 1 gigabyte each. I tried using your same logic when I bought my 16GB iPad 3. It only took me a couple of weeks to realize that I should have bought a 32GB.
 

darngooddesign

macrumors P6
Jul 4, 2007
17,913
9,415
Atlanta, GA
Not trying to be condescending but how often does someone find themselves without WiFi throughout the day?

Maybe you travel a lot.

Maybe you spend your time in places that have wifi, but its really slow and/or overloaded.

A lot of high security jobs are ethernet only.

My last job had wifi, but they asked us not to stream audio/video because it would drag down the bandwith if everyone did.

There are many reasons why you might not have access to your office's wifi for streaming on your iPad.

So, if you're around wifi all day cloud solutions can work. But if you're not, the $100 or $200 is a paltry amount compared to two years, the average amount of time people keep ipads, of bigger and more expensive data plans.

I think that 32GB is the best compromise, and amortized over two years is less than a cup of Starbucks a month. Can you really not afford <$5 a month for the extra space which will be nice to have should your needs change over the course of two years.
 
Last edited:

HiDEF

macrumors 68000
Jun 23, 2010
1,706
394
Miami, FL
Maybe you travel a lot.

Maybe you spend your time in places that have wifi, but its really slow and/or overloaded.

A lot of high security jobs are ethernet only.

My last job had wifi, but they asked us not to stream audio/video because it would drag down the bandwith if everyone did.

There are many reasons why you might not have access to your office's wifi for streaming on your iPad.

So, if you're around wifi all day cloud solutions can work. But if you're not, the $100 or $200 is a paltry amount compared to two years, the average amount of time people keep ipads, of bigger and more expensive data plans.

I think that 32GB is the best compromise, and amortized over two years is less than a cup of Starbucks a month. Can you really not afford <$5 a month for the extra space which will be nice to have should your needs change over the course of two years.

All good points..
 

takeshi74

macrumors 601
Feb 9, 2011
4,974
68
So I know asking storage size questions on this forum is like beating a dead horse for some, so please bear with me...
It is beating a dead horse. For the usage you describe 16GB is enough for some and not enough for others. Usage varies by person and you're the best person to answer questions regarding your usage. Take a look at what you're using now and factor in some room for growth.
 
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