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All iPads Is there a big enough difference with screen quality of the iPad Mini and the iPad 3?

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Pinkstiletto66

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 12, 2010
501
1
New York City.
Got my first ipad, which was the ipad mini yesterday, a few things got to me. Mainly was the screen quality while looking at videos on youtube, and while zooming in at pictures on my favorite online clothing sites. I am however starting to feel that the models are blurry mainly on this one particular site.

Anywho, is there a big enough difference with the retina on the Ipad 3, and the ipad mini? Is there a big enough difference in the two overall? A part of me wanting an ipad for so long and finally getting it, feel a little unsatisfied. I think it's mainly coming from hearing how great the retina is in comparison, and HD/Retina screens are better.

I say Ipad 3 because I mainly bought this for my son to use, but still wanted to enjoy it as well. I had intentions on then buying a second ipad, which would be the retina ipad mini when it comes out, but now with the possible soon release of the new ipads I am not sure if I should return the mini and wait, keep the current mini, or get the ipad 3 refurbished. I am mainly attracted to apple vs android due to more apps offered with apple.

I was also looking at some android models, like the nexus 7 because of the screen quality, but it lacking a rear facing camera, which was a bit of a deal breaker, however any android under $400 preferably under $300 is still in the running.
 
Dekard

Dekard

macrumors 6502
Sep 7, 2011
394
2
Dallas, Texas
BIG is subjective. Best bet is to go to a Best Buy or local tech shop and see for yourself.

I love my ipad mini.. and it works for me for what I need it too; yes there's about a 2x more pixel density ratio with the retina screen real estate. It's a ton less noticeable with the ipad mini because of the screen size but the ipad mini currently is the same resolution as the ipad2.
 
chrisrosemusic1

chrisrosemusic1

macrumors 6502a
Jan 31, 2012
696
21
Northamptonshire, England
I have the 3rd gen and have been pondering the mini for a while, but after a solid 45min play with a friends last weekend it cemented the fact the screen just doesn't do it for me - After having the iPhone, iPad and retina macbook going to a lower PPI is a deal breaker. Also, colours and brightness just don't seem to be as vibrant as the bigger iPads screens.

I'm now waiting on the re designed iPad 5 or a retina iPad mini.
 
Mr. Buzzcut

Mr. Buzzcut

macrumors 65816
Jul 25, 2011
1,037
488
Ohio
Pinkstiletto66 said:
Got my first ipad, which was the ipad mini yesterday, a few things got to me. Mainly was the screen quality while looking at videos on youtube, and while zooming in at pictures on my favorite online clothing sites. I am however starting to feel that the models are blurry mainly on this one particular site.

Anywho, is there a big enough difference with the retina on the Ipad 3, and the ipad mini? Is there a big enough difference in the two overall? A part of me wanting an ipad for so long and finally getting it, feel a little unsatisfied. I think it's mainly coming from hearing how great the retina is in comparison, and HD/Retina screens are better.

I say Ipad 3 because I mainly bought this for my son to use, but still wanted to enjoy it as well. I had intentions on then buying a second ipad, which would be the retina ipad mini when it comes out, but now with the possible soon release of the new ipads I am not sure if I should return the mini and wait, keep the current mini, or get the ipad 3 refurbished. I am mainly attracted to apple vs android due to more apps offered with apple.

I was also looking at some android models, like the nexus 7 because of the screen quality, but it lacking a rear facing camera, which was a bit of a deal breaker, however any android under $400 preferably under $300 is still in the running.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure why folks always want to correlate screen quality with the image quality when zoomed in. When you zoom on an image, you are either inspecting the fine detail of the image itself or scaling a vector or text. It's when you are zoomed OUT that you are seeing the screen's ability to resolve fine detail.

That said, it really depends on what you want to do. I think pictures and games are probably fine on the mini. It's small web and magazine fonts that make it an issue for me. You have to love zooming and panning to love a mini for those uses, I think.

I had an iPad 1 and the mini is really more of the same. I could not use the iPad 1 in portrait mode for web browsing and magazines and that was my only real complaint about it. The iPad 3 is much better IMO. Text is crisp and clear to the limits of my vision, which is still good for pretty tiny fonts.
 
I

iono11200

macrumors regular
Mar 9, 2012
141
23
I have an ipad 3 that I got at Launch. Bought the GF an ipad 4 last November. I'd like the mini form factor, But the screen, for me anyway, is a dealbreaker. Might consider one when Retina comes to the Mini, but for now, the Retina display is just too superior for me to do without. I like my ipad 3, but the ipad 4 is even just a little bit better. If the screen seems to bother you, it will NEVER go away. Without Retina, I doubt you'll be satisfied. Its just that more superior in my opinion.
 
L

luqtotheman

macrumors regular
Jun 14, 2012
198
3
The ipad mini screen is like using a iPhone 3gs. Especially when it comes to fonts.

If someone says they can't tell the difference, they are delusional.
 
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Pinkstiletto66

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 12, 2010
501
1
New York City.
Thank you all. So minus the size difference, what is worth more bang for it's buck? I'm looking at either the refurb for $379 or the price I paid at $329 (although I just heard that Walmart is selling them for $299 and apple will price match if I REALLY want to go through the hassel.) I think that extra cash can go towards a good case.
 
A

acorntoy

macrumors 68010
May 25, 2010
2,003
2,221
Pinkstiletto66 said:
Thank you all. So minus the size difference, what is worth more bang for it's buck? I'm looking at either the refurb for $379 or the price I paid at $329 (although I just heard that Walmart is selling them for $299 and apple will price match if I REALLY want to go through the hassel.) I think that extra cash can go towards a good case.
Click to expand...

You seem like you have already made up your mind.
 
Medic311

Medic311

macrumors 68000
Jul 30, 2011
1,659
58
i think in the long run you will be more pleased with the iPad 3. you can view web pages without even having to zoom in which is solely due to the fact that the screen has such a high resolution that your eye cannot determine individual pixels at the appropriate viewing distance.


the iPad 3, 16GB wifi refurb for $379 is an excellent value. i bought the iPad 3 64GB LTE refurb for $679. it's been great and i have no regrets even when the iPad 4 came out. in fact, i originally bought the iPad 4 but had a lot of issues with it and couldn't justify the $829 price tag when i could get a refurb for $150 less. the iPad 4 i had suffered really bad screen light bleeding, it got VERY hot, and the speed difference between the A5X and the A6X was negligible to justify the extra expense. app folders opened a fraction of a second quicker. when i saw Apple lower the price of my iPad 3 model to $679 it was a no brainer to make the switch.

heck, now Apple lowered the price of my model iPad 3 to $629
 
joshwithachance

joshwithachance

macrumors 68010
Dec 11, 2009
2,003
938
MASSIVE difference to be honest. The crispness of the display, and especially text, is immediately apparent. The mini is a pixelated mess, while the iPad 3/4 is like looking at digital print.
 
R

raccoonboy

macrumors 6502a
Oct 22, 2012
918
5
I wouldn't get both.

Budget wise, Ipad 3 would be a better choice but if u are getting brand new. Ipad 4 is a better pick.

I already decided against the mini the moment i found out the adaptor they included.
 
J

jhr3uva90

macrumors newbie
Feb 7, 2011
22
0
I have both

I have both an iPad 3 and an iPad mini. It just so happened I was using both devices side by side yesterday. There is a difference between the screens, but the difference isn't tremendous to me. It is up to your preference.
 
Peanut207

Peanut207

macrumors 6502
Mar 2, 2010
498
119
Was a difference to me and a huge downgrade in terms of screen quality. Returned the mini and stayed with the big beautiful retina iPad 3. :)

Looking forward to the iPad 5 with the new mini design. I prefer the bigger screen. I have my iPhone 5 for mobility and its also pocketable unlike the mini.
 
TyPod

TyPod

macrumors 68000
Nov 2, 2006
1,745
18
Minneapolis, MN
It's too personal of a judgement to not see for yourself. Go to an Apple Store or Best Buy and see for yourself. Personally, I don't think it's that big of a difference, but you shouldn't take my word for it.
 
F

Fruit Cake

macrumors 6502a
Mar 31, 2012
597
20
It's a step back in quality but that might not matter if u don't read or care much for screen clarity and resolution. For some the weight was more of a deciding factor then quality. If you watch lots of movies, you won't notice a difference.
 
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Pinkstiletto66

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Dec 12, 2010
501
1
New York City.
Ok thanks again all. I have made my decision of what to do. I will play with it, and if I am unsatisfied I still have a few days to return. I will be keeping my eye on rumors. I'm hearing the 2 might be out this month or next month, either way, I'll figure it out before my return period is over.
 
M

mattfab

macrumors member
Dec 9, 2012
34
0
I have looked at the ipad 3 and the mini in the store, and I have an ipad 4, but honestly, the retina just looks way better. The pixels are kind of easy to see if you look up close to the mini, and the retina just has better colors and blacks too
 
J

jojoba

macrumors 68000
Dec 9, 2011
1,584
21
I find the screen quality of the mini to be a deal breaker. I'll get one when it comes with retina. I read a lot of pdfs on my 3 gen iPad so having crisp font is really important to me. Obviously there's not set answer to this so at the end of the day you need to figure out your own preferences.
 
M

MauerFan

macrumors regular
Mar 9, 2012
223
0
Don't have a 3, but I just got my mini and the screen is really nice. I imagine there is a difference, but the mini is really not bad.
 
DesertEagle

DesertEagle

macrumors 6502a
Jan 10, 2012
609
8
/home @ 127.0.0.1
You're the only one who knows the answer to that, since you're the one who is going to use it. Who else would be in position to tell?

IMO, there's a huge difference when reading text but not when watching videos.
 
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