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iPad Considering ipad 2 - need some opinions

M

mlody

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 11, 2012
1,592
1,220
Windy City
Hello,

I am looking for some advice regarding ipad. I am interested in buying a refurbished ipad 2 mainly to save money. In our household we already have 3 ipads; ipad 3 cellular, ipad 3 and ipad 2 - all 16 gb. The problemis is that the current ipad 2 is shared between two kids: one is under 3 and the other 10. Without investing too much money, We would like to give them another one and here is my problem - should I go with 2 gen and does it make sense to buy it in 2013? I am familiar with both (2nd and 3rd gen's) and i know my kids wont care for things like retina display or even faster cpus; but my concern is about future iOS'es. Can we say that because the ipad 2 is still offered for sale, it will see at least iOS 7 or perhaps limited edition of 8?

Has anyone recently considered ipad 2 and bought one, is it still a smart buy even in 2013 when the hardware is technically 2 generatinons behind?

I appreciate any input.
Thank you
 
lokster

lokster

macrumors 6502
Feb 7, 2010
365
3
get an ipad mini, its cheaper than an ipad 2:cool:

or better yet, get a 2nd hand ipad 1! kids wouldnt know the difference, i heard an ipad 1 goes for 100-120$
 
M

mlody

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 11, 2012
1,592
1,220
Windy City
lokster said:
get an ipad mini, its cheaper than an ipad 2:cool:

or better yet, get a 2nd hand ipad 1! kids wouldnt know the difference, i heard an ipad 1 goes for 100-120$
Click to expand...


The older daughter does not want mini (we already asked and checked it out at an apple store) and ipad 1 does not have a camera and i know that both of them like to mess with camera and have fun in photo booth. Another thing is, if the little one notices that the other one has something that is even slightly different, hers ipad might no longer be cool for her and she would one the other one instead, so considering that, i definitely want to get something that has the same shape/size. At one point was also thinking to setup a facetime between the two ipads so they could even have more fun with the idevices :)
Great suggestions though.
Thank you
 
R

richardmu

macrumors 6502a
Oct 10, 2007
582
32
Bristol, UK
mlody said:
The older daughter does not want mini (we already asked and checked it out at an apple store) and ipad 1 does not have a camera and i know that both of them like to mess with camera and have fun in photo booth. Another thing is, if the little one notices that the other one has something that is even slightly different, hers ipad might no longer be cool for her and she would one the other one instead, so considering that, i definitely want to get something that has the same shape/size. At one point was also thinking to setup a facetime between the two ipads so they could even have more fun with the idevices :)
Great suggestions though.
Thank you
Click to expand...

I can thoroughly recommend the iPad 2. It is the best of all iPads past and present IMO.

I had the 1 then bought the 2 on release. Writing this post on it now.

I have tried the 3, 4 and mini and returned them all as I preferred my 2. See if you can get an Apple refurbished. Best deal of all.
 
A

AppleRobert

macrumors 603
Nov 12, 2012
5,726
1,132
richardmu said:
I can thoroughly recommend the iPad 2. It is the best of all iPads past and present IMO.

I had the 1 then bought the 2 on release. Writing this post on it now.

I have tried the 3, 4 and mini and returned them all as I preferred my 2. See if you can get an Apple refurbished. Best deal of all.
Click to expand...

I'd be all over the iPad 2 on the cheap if it just had a bit better resolution and ppi. Easily the best bang for buck amongst current iPads.
 
R

richardmu

macrumors 6502a
Oct 10, 2007
582
32
Bristol, UK
AppleRobert said:
I'd be all over the iPad 2 on the cheap if it just had a bit better resolution and ppi. Easily the best bang for buck amongst current iPads.
Click to expand...

Sure the retina on the 3 and 4 was nice but they were a tad thicker and heavier than the 2, plus the cost to change.

Decided my preferred option was to stay with the 2 until later this year when a thinner, lighter version with retina will debut.
 
7thson

7thson

macrumors 65816
May 13, 2012
1,357
1,469
Six Rivers, CA
Your kids don't care about specs or retina, but you are concerned about future iOS revisions. It seems future proofing your purchase dictates a 3. However, like others have stated there is nothing wrong with the 2, so I'm not just giving biased opinions. Maybe your kids, or the younger one at least, won't care about future iOS updates, either, unless of course the older one goes out of their way to brag about how awesome it is, making sure the younger child know who has the better iPad. Pure speculation on my part.
 
A

Aspasia

macrumors 65816
Jun 9, 2011
1,345
101
Halfway between the Equator and North Pole
I'd go for the iPad 2 and give it to the 10-year old. It has the same chip as the mini. Also, if all your iPads use the 30-pin connector, that means one less charging cord to misplace since the new 3 uses the lightning connector.

I purchased my iPad 2 on launch day and it runs every app I've chosen - and mine is still on iOS 5.1.1. It's a workhorse and I've little reason to replace it since it's 32GB and 3G.
 
P

pat park

macrumors 6502a
Nov 29, 2011
716
26
California
for the OP's situation, I would reccomend she find a used iPad2. eBay and Craigslist prices vary. Expect to pay anywhere from $150-$250.
 
Z

Zcott

macrumors 68020
Oct 18, 2009
2,307
47
Belfast, Ireland
For kids, the iPad 2 is great. They won't miss a retina display, it's a cheap device and it's still great for simple games and web browsing.
 
M

mlody

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 11, 2012
1,592
1,220
Windy City
Thank you all for the great information. This helps me to reaffirm that going with ipad 2 route is still a good choice. I am going to watch the official apple refurbished store where i could get one for $350 with 1 year warranty, shipping and tax. I randomly checked ebay and the prices are all over the board with most of them in 300-400 price range while anything under $250 seem to be broken or not working properly. Generally,i avoid craigslist as there is too many scammers etc and i do not feel like risking getting mugged while trying to save few bucks.
 
M

mlody

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 11, 2012
1,592
1,220
Windy City
Thank you all for the great input. I was sold on ipad 2 untill I found out that the friend of mine had a spare otterbox case that he gave me for free. It isnt pink as I originally wanted to buy, but it was free. Long story short, with the extra $50 or so in my pocket, I had decided to get ipad 3. At the end of the day, I spent the same amount of money for a better hardware and almost the same protective case I wanted in the first place. Thanks again.
 
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