Are iPads Really Yearly Upgrades?

[The Great Boony]

Seem to be loads of folk worried about when to upgrade and holding onto the their iPad 1 for the iPad 2s/3 launch...

Can see this being a problem myself, I just upgraded to an iPad 2 from an iPad 1 (launch day purchase) and couldn't be happier.

I think my upgrade pattern will be:

iPhone: Yearly upgrade, new hardware as soon as released
iPad: Upgrade every two years.
Mac: Upgrade every 4/5 years

To be honest I think the battery was my main reason for upgrade, and Facetime.

What are your ideal upgrade cycles?

 

[GoCubsGo]

Not too sure but based on history it is very possible.
It came out 4/2010, upgraded in 3/2011 and now we're a few months shy of a year. If I were you I'd buy it if it suits you now and you need it but if not, perhaps waiting until March 2012 is best. Ideally for me and the iPad, upgrading every other year is good for me unless there was some ground-breaking change that I just had to have. Slightly faster, thinner, and a camera didn't do it for me.

 

[palpatine]

i plan to upgrade every year (sell old and buy new). it works out to a few dollars a month in "rent", so it's no big deal. i need the fastest thing i can get with the clearest display. if the ipad 3 fails (no reason to think it will) i will go android. maybe the asus prime.

 

[OllyW]

What are your ideal upgrade cycles?

When I need (or want) to.

I upgrade my phones when the contract ends so I should be upgrading my iPhone 4 sometime next summer. I've only recently bought the iPad 2 so I won't be getting the next model.

My MBP is 5 years old but has more or less been replaced by the iPad and my iMac is 3 years old. I've no plans to upgrade either of them in the next 12 months.

 

[*LTD*]

My MBP is 5 years old but has more or less been replaced by the iPad

Congrats. That's quite progressive.

 

[The Great Boony]

Not too sure but based on history it is very possible.
It came out 4/2010, upgraded in 3/2011 and now we're a few months shy of a year. If I were you I'd buy it if it suits you now and you need it but if not, perhaps waiting until March 2012 is best. Ideally for me and the iPad, upgrading every other year is good for me unless there was some ground-breaking change that I just had to have. Slightly faster, thinner, and a camera didn't do it for me.

I think I'll be upgrading in 2013 to what ever iPad comes out then, so I guess I'm on an 18 month upgrade cycle.

 

[Blakjack]

My pattern will be to get one new device a year. Next up for me is the iPhone 5. Next year will be the iPad 4 or what ever it will be called.

But I will definitely be tempted to buy the iPad 3 this year more than likely.

 

[PlaceofDis]

i am still using the original iPad. i wont upgrade unless there are enough new features that i feel an upgrade is worth it. the added cameras weren't enough for me with the iPad 2. however, an updated screen resolution would push me over to the next iPad.

my iPhones i upgrade every two years with my contract.

and my iMac i try to upgrade every two-three years. i figure if i can sell it while it still has Applecare i can get more for it and then lower the cost of a new one.

 

[greg555]

I'm still happily using my first gen iPad. The iPad 2 didn't offer anything I needed (or strongly wanted). Depending on what the iPad 3 offers I will probably update which would put me on a 2 year upgrade cycle.

 

[wrkactjob]

I had V1 and now have V2 as appreciated the thinner lighter and faster.

I will upgrade next year as feel the Retina jump will be a biggie worth forking out for, it will probably be accompanied by a further upgraded processor even though I will not need that element.

Thereafter though?....I think it may plateau, it can only get so lighter and slimmer and its fast enough for my needs, so its getting close to perfect for me just like the iphone will be once it goes 4" ;-)

 

[poloponies]

Don't judge the world by this forum. Not every buyer runs out for a new version when it's released. While Apple would certainly love it if all iPad owners upgraded with each new release, it's a new enough market where the majority of buyers are happy enough with the one they bought and not worrying about updating to the newest model.

 

[palpatine]

Don't judge the world by this forum. Not every buyer runs out for a new version when it's released. While Apple would certainly love it if all iPad owners upgraded with each new release, it's a new enough market where the majority of buyers are happy enough with the one they bought and not worrying about updating to the newest model.

true. i am doing work on my ipad, so i can justify the yearly purchase (to myself, at least). if i wasn't using it all day, every day, then i'd probably still be quite satisfied with my ipad1. it all depends on you. in contrast, i will probably go through several product cycles before i upgrade my mbp.

 

[thelookingglass]

true. i am doing work on my ipad, so i can justify the yearly purchase (to myself, at least). if i wasn't using it all day, every day, then i'd probably still be quite satisfied with my ipad1. it all depends on you. in contrast, i will probably go through several product cycles before i upgrade my mbp.

Yep, me too. My iPad is a critical part of my daily workflow. For all this talk about the iPad not being a laptop replacement, the funny thing is a laptop couldn't replace my iPad. I'm in for yearly iPad upgrades.

My iPhone, on the other hand ... still happy as a clam with my iPhone 4 and will skip the 4S for next year's version.

 

[Ayemerica]

Phone: Normally every two years, but i bought the iP4S i'll be buying the iP6
iPad: Every 2 years
Mac: Whenever i need too, i have a iMac 2009,2010, and a Mac mini 2011, so i'll be good for another 3-4 years.

 

[Hamburger]

same here as many others.

iPhone: upgraded after two years in September from 3Gs to 4s, will probably stick to this 24-month cycle.

iPad: bought first gen on release day in Germany. After a few weeks it more or less gathered dust, but thanks to a few apps such as my newspaper its in daily use again. Unless third gen has an amazing must-have feature (Siri, camera and retina display aren't for me) I will stick to current device.

Mac: replaced my late 2008 alu MB 13" with a late 2010 MBA 11" for portability. Now I have a 24" ACD via ebay and it serves as a desktop. I expect this combo to last a few years with my needs.

But one day I may have to replace my 80GB iPod Classic from 2007, when the battery finally dies. I can stick it onto my stereo and it loads every time. Not good for the battery, I guess...

 

[roberthodgson]

I have upgraded my IPhone every year so far and have done the same for my IPad. I hope to be able to upgrade to the new IPad 3 but it will depend on the budget.

 

[Menel]

iPhone 4 Screensize is perfect for usability, one handed thumb can reach all over. Retina screen is superb clarity. Horsepower is great, features are great. 3-5Mbps 3G in metro Atlanta streams pandora and youtube videos perfectly.

I've seen nothing from the 4S or 5/6 rumors that interest me at all. LTE, Siri, larger screen, more cpu, big all MEH! I can't see any reason to upgrade until this guy completely stops being functional long after contract expires.

iPad 2 Neeeeed retina and more space. 16GB was a mistake, I didn't anticipate how gaming would take off with multiple 1GB games. Retina 32GB iPad and I will be set for several generations.

PC
Built my Core 2 Duo system in 2006. Still a trooper marching along. Upgraded in summer to a 560TI for Witcher 2. Played that great on high at 1920 res, and playing Skyrim great at 1920 res. I see no need for more system... and other than video card, it's 5 years old.

I'm as equally comfortable doing work over VPN on my home Core2 as I am at work on my corp issued i5 workstation beast. I see no need for all the new horsepower. So many other things in life to spend money on.

 

[ChristianVirtual]

My argument from iPad 1 to iPad 2 was mainly main memory, smart cover and nicer design.
I'm sure the next arguments will be retina and Siri. So that makes me a slave of the annual cycle.
iPhone is more on the biannual cycle because it's a company phone and they don't intend to support my addiction. But every two year is also fine.

 

[spiderman0616]

My iPad goes with me everywhere and I use it for everything. For that reason, I will get every *important* upgrade that comes out. A retina display on the iPad? Yes, please!

I'm thinking back to when I first saw the iPhone 4 in person and how shocked I was at how amazing the screen looked. And now I'm thinking how amazing it's going to be to see that kind of quality on the iPad screen. I absolutely cannot wait. I already have a buyer lined up for my iPad 2 and am counting on some Christmas money to cover the difference. I will pre-order iPad 3 as soon as it goes live.

 

[Sodner]

I completly incapable of NOT getting Apple's latest and greatest when it comes to the iPhone and the iPad. I'll be in line for the iPad 3 just like I was for the 2 and the 1.

I am however less of a nut on the Mac side. No plans to get anything new there. Unless of course they change the look of the iMac.

 

[The Great Boony]

I completly incapable of NOT getting Apple's latest and greatest when it comes to the iPhone and the iPad. I'll be in line for the iPad 3 just like I was for the 2 and the 1.

I am however less of a nut on the Mac side. No plans to get anything new there. Unless of course they change the look of the iMac.

I think that's where I sit... I think I will defo be skipping the next iPad, but 2012 will defo be the year for a new Macbook Pro or iMac, and the next iPhone.

 

[ditzy]

For me I change iOS devices every other year. I used to change my PC's every 18 months, but I've had my mac for three and a half years. I'm getting a new one at the next update though.

 

[DerfBWH]

iPhone: I've established a 24-month upgrade cycle for this. Went from the iPhone 2G to the iPhone 3GS and now to the iPhone 4S. (Although it kind of sucks being on the "S" upgrade cycle, to be honest.)

iPad: If I had an iPad I'd certainly have found no reason to upgrade it with the iPad 2, and I can't imagine the 3 would convince me either at $499 a pop. It'd probably be more like a 3-year upgrade for me.

Mac: This is really less specific for me - basically I've bought a new computer whenever I've felt that it was "time". I bought an iMac G3 in 2001, then a Mac mini G4 in 2005, a MacBook Pro Core Duo in 2006, and now finally a MacBook Pro i7 in 2011. So it's pretty erratic, but 3 or 4 years is a happy average I'd say.

 

[vitzr]

As with everything else "Apple" that I buy, it depends on a few factors. In recent years Apple's willingness to rush a product to market had caused me to change my buying habits.

For many years, I could trust Apple to ship well designed, properly assembled, reasonably bug free products.

Then the iToyz division with it's mass market mentality, became Apples first priority due to even more addictive profits. It's now all about shipping in great volume. Quality, while better than some other mfgs, is not what Apple built it's reputation on.

Now I take a wait and see approach to my annual purchases. I'm done being a beta tester for free. I wait & see what reports come in before making any purchase.

That said, my intentions are to buy iPad 3 if it's free of significant problems.

 

[MrXiro]

Seem to be loads of folk worried about when to upgrade and holding onto the their iPad 1 for the iPad 2s/3 launch...

Can see this being a problem myself, I just upgraded to an iPad 2 from an iPad 1 (launch day purchase) and couldn't be happier.

I think my upgrade pattern will be:

iPhone: Yearly upgrade, new hardware as soon as released
iPad: Upgrade every two years.
Mac: Upgrade every 4/5 years

To be honest I think the battery was my main reason for upgrade, and Facetime.

What are your ideal upgrade cycles?

You are very smart and frugal... I just updated my iPad to the deuce as well. Got myself a used one that saved me a few bucks and is just 3 months shy of a full warranty.

I don't think I could do a Mac update every 5 years though... it's about every 2 for me on those as well...