Every single iPad I've owned, going all the way back to the original iPad has been a cellular one. I use it a lot on the go and love not having to worry about finding a wifi hotspot. A year or two ago, when I switched cellular plans to one that allowed tethering, I considered switching to a wifi only iPad, but after playing around with it for a little while I discovered that it was too much of a pain to enable the hotspot on the phone, then connect to it from the iPad each time I wanted to access data on the iPad when I was away from wifi.
But iOS 8 has me reconsidering. Now it's possible to leave the phone in my pocket and connect to it's hotspot from the iPad without too much effort. I turned off cellular data on my ipad a day or two ago and I'm hoping to use it that way for a few weeks to see if it's something that I can do long term. Here are the advantages and disadvantages that I see right now:
Advantages:
-Save money. It's an additional $130 to get a cellular capable iPad and in my case, an extra $10 per month to add it to my data plan, so if I buy a new iPad every year, this will save me $250 per year. Buying a new iPad every two years I'll save $185 per year.
-OK, maybe that's the only advantage, but saving a couple hundred dollars a year is a pretty big one
Disadvantages:
-It's still somewhat less convenient. iOS 8 doesn't automatically connect to the personal hotspot on the phone, so if I'm away from wifi then I'll need to go into settings and manually connect to the hotspot whenever I want to use data. Not really a big deal and it only takes a few seconds, but still less convenient than it was. It also means that I won't always have current email and other notifications because the iPad may not have a data connection all the time. Finally, it doesn't automatically switch off of the personal hotspot once a known wifi network is available. If I'm not careful I may wind up burning through cellular data when I could have been on wifi.
-Big blue personal hotspot active banner on the phone whenever the iPad is connected
-I'm not sure how much this will affect battery life on the phone. I'm sure it will have an impact, but I'm not sure how significant it will be
-The iPad is easier to use since find my iPad will only work if it has a wifi connection. Granted I've never lost an iPad, but with a cellular capable device I know that it will be findable in a lot more places as long as it can get a cellular signal. Of course, along the same lines, if I save $185 or $250 per year, then it will only take 2 or 3 years until I could pay for a new iPad to replace a lost one with my savings.
So, after all that, has anyone else made the switch or is considering making it? Any advantages or disadvantages that I've missed or other thoughts?
But iOS 8 has me reconsidering. Now it's possible to leave the phone in my pocket and connect to it's hotspot from the iPad without too much effort. I turned off cellular data on my ipad a day or two ago and I'm hoping to use it that way for a few weeks to see if it's something that I can do long term. Here are the advantages and disadvantages that I see right now:
Advantages:
-Save money. It's an additional $130 to get a cellular capable iPad and in my case, an extra $10 per month to add it to my data plan, so if I buy a new iPad every year, this will save me $250 per year. Buying a new iPad every two years I'll save $185 per year.
-OK, maybe that's the only advantage, but saving a couple hundred dollars a year is a pretty big one
Disadvantages:
-It's still somewhat less convenient. iOS 8 doesn't automatically connect to the personal hotspot on the phone, so if I'm away from wifi then I'll need to go into settings and manually connect to the hotspot whenever I want to use data. Not really a big deal and it only takes a few seconds, but still less convenient than it was. It also means that I won't always have current email and other notifications because the iPad may not have a data connection all the time. Finally, it doesn't automatically switch off of the personal hotspot once a known wifi network is available. If I'm not careful I may wind up burning through cellular data when I could have been on wifi.
-Big blue personal hotspot active banner on the phone whenever the iPad is connected
-I'm not sure how much this will affect battery life on the phone. I'm sure it will have an impact, but I'm not sure how significant it will be
-The iPad is easier to use since find my iPad will only work if it has a wifi connection. Granted I've never lost an iPad, but with a cellular capable device I know that it will be findable in a lot more places as long as it can get a cellular signal. Of course, along the same lines, if I save $185 or $250 per year, then it will only take 2 or 3 years until I could pay for a new iPad to replace a lost one with my savings.
So, after all that, has anyone else made the switch or is considering making it? Any advantages or disadvantages that I've missed or other thoughts?
