My mini is coming via UPS supposed to be tomorrow before 10a but currently shows "exception, missed scheduled connection", in Kentucky and "delivery rescheduled" but still shows tomorrow delivery. Just my luck...
Regarding all the resolution talk.
I LOVED my iPad1 and had one the minute they were available, I'd been testing every small tablet along the way and knew from the 1st minute that this product would change the world. Compared to a laptop, or any other previous attempts, it was really a magical experience.
I LOVED the iPad2 it was a great evolution of a great product, the form factor was even better.
I had mixed feelings on the iPad3, the screen initially wasn't that big a deal, but when side by side comparing it to iPad1 and 2 it really was a visable improvement which I grew to love. But the HUGE battery and the quietly slipped in huge increase in charge time left me somewhat cool on the 3. I have found that I tend to carry it less due to the heft of it. I felt like the iPad2 was really a better all around product for it's price/performance.
I ordered a Verizon Mini and a 4 this pass. But after reading all of the noise on displays, went to an Apple store and played with a mini. The display is pretty good to me, it's better than the 2, certainly not at all "horrible" as others claim and the form factor is killer. After the hands on I cancelled the 4 order for now as I believe the mini will be my all around keeper as it's so markedly portable.
Should they pop out a retina mini, I'd jump to it but charge time does matter and big retina displays eat power so I'd hope they do better than the 2 to 3 battery situation. If the iPad5 gets lighter with a decent charge time, I'd most likely get one as well for customer presentations on the larger screen.
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I wasn't sure about the Mini until I got to touch one and OMG it makes the original look like a dinosaur, it's like half the weight, very thin and not much smaller than it's big brother.
Now just to clarify the WiFi only one doesn't come with GPS so can affect how you use the maps right? I was planning on getting WiFi and tethering it to my iPhone for mobile data when away from WiFi hot spots.
Only the cellular models have a GPS radio. I would HIGHLY recommend that you get a cellular model even if you don't plan on using it. The GPS will work even without a plan active and yes it really makes the mapping programs usable especially the off-line versions like CoPilot and Garmon.
having the ability to activate the cellular in a pinch is very handy, I ended up keeping mine active as it is pretty darn usefull in the field. I prefer the Verizon models because of the free hotspot capability.
Also with an active cellular connection (or your phone tether should you not activate cellular on the pad), mappers like CoPilot Live will display a live look-ahead traffic bar and automatically offer you re-routing options on the fly as you drive, very cool! I drove thru the heart of Los Angeles and missed long delays by having faith in the realtime routing, it was great. I had Nav on the iPads but due to their size seldom used them, preferring the iPhone instead. The Mini may work out better, we'll see.