3G or MiFi?

[S1njin]

Apple's not about moving downward on battery specs. You won't see "4G iPad, now with a 5-hr battery!" When you do see 4G on an iPad it'll be because they have a beefier battery.

No, that's for certain it will. Apple makes great products; I would just imagine you'd get even greater life out of one connected to a MiFi rather than funnelling juice into a WWAN card. That's all.

To me it comes down to:

Pro MiFi
Able to use w/ multiple devices
4G now

Cons MiFi
Contract
Extra Device to cart around

 

[Wolfpup]

Apple's not about moving downward on battery specs. You won't see "4G iPad, now with a 5-hr battery!" When you do see 4G on an iPad it'll be because they have a beefier battery.

I hope not, though the battery on the iPod is PATHETIC.

They're so obsessed with tiny/thin I woudln't put anything past them. I'd gladly take an iPad that's twice as thick (or more) and has what would be what, 3, 4x the battery life, if not more? (And that's with the iPod being grotesquely underpowered...it needs at LEAST 512MB and a dual core A9.)

 

[jsh1120]

Apple's not about moving downward on battery specs. You won't see "4G iPad, now with a 5-hr battery!" When you do see 4G on an iPad it'll be because they have a beefier battery.

I strongly suspect you're correct. And that's why I'm a little skeptical that the iPad 3 will have 4G support. The contrary argument, however, is that Apple has "beefed up" the battery for the iPad 3 (according to some media reports) which may enable them to support 4G.

----------

Another thing to consider-even if you don't use the 3G service, the 3G models have GPS hardware, the wifi ones don't...
I liked the idea of not having to "toss" the 3G hardware if I upgrade my iPad, but then went 3G anyway for the GPS hardware it includes.

Apart from the higher cost of mifi connectivity, balanced in many cases by the 4G connectivity and multiple device support, the biggest advantage, I think is the GPS feature. In fact, I think that Apple may have agreed to leave it out of the wifi model specifically to help out their cell phone carrier partners.

In my case my Android phone has better GPS functionality (including turn by turn navigation) than the iPad. And since I need that functionality primarily when I'm driving I don't want to be consulting a map on the iPad while trying to drive, anyway. Others, of course, may have a different view or needs.

 

[jazzer15]

Another thing to consider-even if you don't use the 3G service, the 3G models have GPS hardware, the wifi ones don't.

I'd be really curious to hear how your Virgin Mifi's doing! I'm debating between buying one of those or doing service on my Verizon iPad when I go on a trip. Virgin's service is obviously the best deal when you use a lot of data, coverage between the networks of course just depends where you are.

I liked the idea of not having to "toss" the 3G hardware if I upgrade my iPad, but then went 3G anyway for the GPS hardware it includes.

Yeah, the GPS is something to consider also, although I'm not sure how likely I am to use that. I have a portable GPS in the car and don't imagine I would use the large iPad screen for that.

As far as the Virgin MiFi, the only reason to go that route IMO is if you are going on a long trip and need to be using multiple devices. My unit itself is a little touchy (you turn it off and it sometimes turns itself back on, so you have to be careful and sometimes turn it off again).

The service/reception has been so-so (although I'm using it now and it's just fine) and my experience with their customer service has been pretty bad. There was a period of about a week or so when I couldn't connect to their server and thought something was wrong with the MiFi. I spoke to customer service, who ran me through a bunch of tests, then told me someone would call me back within 3 days. I did actually get a call back (It took 3 days), but I wasn't there, so they left a message with no return number. They called back the next day and when I didn't answer the phone (I was at work) they closed the matter out. I called them back and they told me someone would call me again (this time nobody called) -- they refused to give me a number to call them. Anyway, after all of that, it started working again. So the problem was on their end, but they didn't even know enough to tell me that.

I suspect Verizon service is better and available in more locations, but YMMV.

This is one of the reasons I am really considering a 3G device. I think the service will be better and given the amount of data I think I will likely use the cost would be close to the same as what I pay now and I would get a greater data allowance. A "hotspot" plan through another carrier would cost a good bit more than I am currently paying.

 

[BergerFan]

I bought the Three PAYG MiFi 2 days ago, and it's great. It came with 3GB of data, which I must use up by December the 21st, before topping up again.
In London, the 3G/HSPA+ coverage is excellent, so much so, that I turned off 3G and mobile data on my iPhone(via Settings, not via carrier).
The only downside, is that the MiFi's battery only lasts 4 hours, but it charges fully in 2 hours.
Other benefits, are that images aren't compressed, unlike when using 3G on my iPhone(O2).
The only way I'll chew through my data, is if I go overboard with YouTube videos, etc.
Basically, it confirms my not needing a 3G iPad, as I don't require the GPS, and I also save my iPhone's battery, by not using the 3G radio.

 

[jazzer15]

Got a Verizon 3G

The MiFi is definitely a great option, but other than the Virgin Mobile plan that I have, and given my expected usage generally, the MiFi plan prices don't make sense for me.

I decided to pay a little more now and get a 3G iPad 2 for the added convenience of having everything in one device. Hopefully if/when I upgrade down the road I will get some of the additional money I spent back on resale, but if not, I guess it is the price of admission for some added convenience.

I opted for the Verizon model, but I must say I'm still not completely settled with my decision. I don't think international 3G use is something that I will need or miss (most places I go have wifi), but one never knows. I decided on Verizon because it seems to have a better track record of reception in many place in the US (which will be the vast majority of my use) and because the plan I expect to use (1 GB) is a little cheaper than the plan I would need to get if I went with AT&T (although I would get more data). I guess I have two weeks to try it out and change my mind ...

Thanks for all of the input.