Why do people post this kind of response... because they can only imagine it held up to an ear? I thought the Apple mantra was "think different"???
iPad Mini LTE + earbuds with mic + talkatone works great as an alternative to an iPhone. Save about $1000/yr over iPhone tolls without missing much. If you really don't need phone service everywhere, consider the jiwire free wifi app and you can save the LTE for only when you really need it and can't locate some free wifi. For example, if much of your time is within a free wifi bubble (maybe work & home or school & home), you may find you don't even need continuous LTE.