iPad Air 2 a good or bad buy, right now?

[JerTheGeek]

Wondering what everyone's opinion/thoughts are on this. Is the air 2 a good buy, or a bad buy right now, in terms of a new one coming out soon. If you can get an air 2 for a $100-$150 difference, is it a good idea to get one now, or is it worth waiting for the air 3? What does everyone think?

 

[BallparkDreamer]

I just ordered an Air 2 from Best Buy last night, and got $125 off. I get wanting the latest and greatest, but iPad Air 3 isn't even out yet, and probably won't be for 3 months or so. What would you use an iPad for?

 

[JerTheGeek]

I just ordered an Air 2 from Best Buy last night, and got $125 off. I get wanting the latest and greatest, but iPad Air 3 isn't even out yet, and probably won't be for 3 months or so. What would you use an iPad for?

Well I already have a mini 4, thinking about returning it for an air 2; I had an air 1 before I got the mini 4 last Friday. Anyway, I've discussed this decision between the two in other threads; I'm just trying to decide if an Air 2 would be a good decision or not, to buy now. I use my iPad as my textbooks for homeschool, Web browsing, YouTube, email, etc.

 

[masotime]

It seems like the iPad Air 2 might be the next "iPad 2" as a "long-term use" device. Even though it's more than a year old, it's still a supremely competent tablet with very fast performance, 2GB RAM, Touch ID, multitasking and fully laminated display.

There are very few scenarios where the iPad Air 2 is inadequate despite its age.

 

[JerTheGeek]

It seems like the iPad Air 2 might be the next "iPad 2" as a "long-term use" device. Even though it's more than a year old, it's still a supremely competent tablet with very fast performance, 2GB RAM, Touch ID, multitasking and fully laminated display.

There are very few scenarios where the iPad Air 2 is inadequate despite its age.

That's a great point; I guess if I want the bigger screen and my return period goes till Jan. 15, I may as well go for it and enjoy the air 2. Of course I still have to decide if I want to upgrade....
I just gotta get over the whole "latest and greatest" syndrome. If I want the air 2, it'll be great for a long while no matter what new one comes out.

 

[The Game 161]

Air 2 is never a bad buy, that said air 3 is set to be out in a few months. So if you want the latest and greatest maybe wait

Might be worth waiting if anything just so the price drops even more on the air 2

 

[JerTheGeek]

What do you guys think will be the best feature of the air 3? I'm not interested in the Pencil; maybe the screen red bump would be nice, but not necessary.

 

[BallparkDreamer]

What do you guys think will be the best feature of the air 3? I'm not interested in the Pencil; maybe the screen red bump would be nice, but not necessary.

Maybe 3D touch? Not anticipating a huge update. I don't think Pencil will be implemented for awhile, if ever, on iPad Air.

 

[bufffilm]

Air 2 is never a bad buy, that said air 3 is set to be out in a few months. So if you want the latest and greatest maybe wait

Might be worth waiting if anything just so the price drops even more on the air 2

When ithe next iPad will be out is pure speculation. It may be a March/April release or it may be in Oct.

Bottom-line, if you need it now and get $125 or more off... get it

 

[JerTheGeek]

Maybe 3D touch? Not anticipating a huge update. I don't think Pencil will be implemented for awhile, if ever, on iPad Air.

I think the Pro is the top of the line iPad for Apple, and they're probably gonna keep it the way till next October. And 3D Touch isn't that big of a deal for me on the iPad, can't see it being very useful.

 

[masotime]

When ithe next iPad will be out is pure speculation. It may be a March/April release or it may be in Oct.

Frankly a Spring release is extremely unlikely. There would be leaks by now of the shell at least. If there really is a Spring release, count on it being an extremely minor one, like the iPad mini 2 => iPad mini 3.

 

[JerTheGeek]

When ithe next iPad will be out is pure speculation. It may be a March/April release or it may be in Oct.

Bottom-line, if you need it now and get $125 or more off... get it

Great point; I honestly think October is more likely.

 

[bufffilm]

Great point; I honestly think October is more likely.

My money is on October release also.

 

[JerTheGeek]

My money is on October release also.

To me, in the keynote, Apple seemed to really be touting the iPad pro as a bigger, better iPad. Like they wanted everyone to buy it as the newest iPad. That to me points to an October launch.
Also, the march event appears to be Watch and Macs only based on last year.

 

[Cassady]

After reading through the above, some valid points raised on the Pencil...

It does interest me, but was curious on whether we might see it released on the Air 3 (hopefully in Spring)... But yeah – more likely October, and I guess they would be silly to allow the Pencil on the Air, with the former being the main difference (apart from the obvious) between Air and Pro...

[That being said, Apple's not scared of cannibalizing – so who knows, really...]....

 

[Badrottie]

I think Air 3 means nothing to you then you can go out and get an Air 2 now.

 

[BrettApple]

Congrats on the Air 2 Jer! For others seeing this thread soonish, I think the Air 2 is worth it with the discounts available. I've seen up to $125 off at Best Buy, and you can get around $200 off if you go the used route such as Swappa. I'd rather wait for a new one, but with the deals out there I'm ok with late 2014 hardware when I'm paying $400 for a mid tier model that would otherwise be $599.

I wouldn't get one at MSRP right now with the Air 3 coming sometime this year. But go for it if you need it and can snag a deal! I'll be using mine this semester for rental eTextbooks. Something I'd rather not wait till March (at the earliest according to some rumors) or later for.

 

[JerTheGeek]

Congrats on the Air 2 Jer! For others seeing this thread soonish, I think the Air 2 is worth it with the discounts available. I've seen up to $125 off at Best Buy, and you can get around $200 off if you go the used route such as Swappa. I'd rather wait for a new one, but with the deals out there I'm ok with late 2014 hardware when I'm paying $400 for a mid tier model that would otherwise be $599.

I wouldn't get one at MSRP right now with the Air 3 coming sometime this year. But go for it if you need it and can snag a deal! I'll be using mine this semester for rental eTextbooks. Something I'd rather not wait till March (at the earliest according to some rumors) or later for.

Thanks! Textbooks are excellent on the air 2! It's comfortable to hold and text is sharp.

 

[stulaw11]

Congrats on the Air 2 Jer! For others seeing this thread soonish, I think the Air 2 is worth it with the discounts available. I've seen up to $125 off at Best Buy, and you can get around $200 off if you go the used route such as Swappa. I'd rather wait for a new one, but with the deals out there I'm ok with late 2014 hardware when I'm paying $400 for a mid tier model that would otherwise be $599.

I wouldn't get one at MSRP right now with the Air 3 coming sometime this year. But go for it if you need it and can snag a deal! I'll be using mine this semester for rental eTextbooks. Something I'd rather not wait till March (at the earliest according to some rumors) or later for.

Or wait until the Air 3 should be announced in like 60 days, see what it is or has, and then decide. There will be plenty of used or even new discounted Air 2s at that point; even more than now.

Since the Air 2 hasn't been updated in over a year now which is an iPad first; it may bring some nice upgrades.

 

[bufffilm]

Or wait until the Air 3 should be announced in like 60 days, see what it is or has, and then decide.

And when March comes and goes with no announcement of an Air3, will you and others apologize here for fueling people's hopes up?

 

[triple-tap]

And when March comes and goes with no announcement of an Air3, will you and others apologize here for fueling people's hopes up?

They don't need to apologize. Being an informed, intelligent consumer means that you research your purchases and make you own independent decision with the factors of your individual situation. This thread should make up only a part of that research.

If the OP buys/doesn't buy an iPad Air 2, she should be looking at the FACTS as well as the opinions. And she should be checking those facts with other sources. Just because a poster says "This is a fact: blah blah blah," the OP shouldn't take it as Gospel.

In line with that same argument, OP should also recognize that absolutely NO ONE ON THIS FORUM KNOWS FOR SURE when the next iPad will launch. Heck, the title of the site is MacRUMORS.

So before you suffocate from holding your nose up where the air is thin, take a chill pill and appreciate the fact that none of us know if / when the iPad Air 3 will be launched.

 

[Dunbar]

IMO, it's always better to wait if you can but at $125 off for the Air 2, like Best Buy recently had, you can probably resell it for a ~$100 loss when the Air 3 comes out. The snappiness of the A9 chip and new fingerprint reader is pretty addictive once you've used it.

I'm waiting for the new Skylake retina Macbook to be released but if the right open-box deal came along (~$800 for the base model) I would be incredibly tempted to buy one. Worst case, it gets sold for $100-150 loss 6 months down the road which isn't that big of a deal.

 

[bnekic]

I can get a new iPad Air 2 64GB Wi-Fi for $400, is that a good deal?

 

[KadMac]

I can get a new iPad Air 2 64GB Wi-Fi for $400, is that a good deal?

I definitely think so. I just bought an iPad Air 2 16GB off eBay (excellent condition) for $357. To get the extra storage for just $400 is great in my opinion.