Would an iPad benefit me? I'm currently working this semester but will be going back to college next fall. I hate carrying around my 15" MBP and would like something smaller, however, I love the 15" screen size when I'm at home. I'm having a tough time deciding whether an iPad 2 would be of great benefit or if the Macbook Air would suit me better. The idea of an iPad 2 is really tempting, but I'd just like some input as to whether I'm making a mistake.
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I have a 15" MBP and iPhone 4...
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Also, I'm having difficulty deciding between a 16gb and 23gb model. My phone is 32gb and holds all my music (about 17gb, but it is growing almost daily). On the one hand, it would be nice to have all that music on there to play through the speaker just to show people, but on the other hand it feels like overkill. I have a couple movies but never really watch them, not really one to watch a movie by myself. Get bored too quickly. I get my video fix by watching tv shows on netflix.
I also have a 15" MBP and iPhone 4 currently. Used to have a 16GB 3G iPad that I bought on launch day, but sold after I bought my iPhone 4 later last year since I felt having all 3 devices felt redundant. But since then, some key parts of my lifestyle have changed.
I'm going to be picking up the iPad 2 this week because of a few reasons, which maybe you'll be able to relate to.
- I leave work at work now, on my work computer. No need to do processor-intensive tasks anywhere else.
- I travel more and want something lighter. On my last trip, I brought my macbook pro and only opened it once the entire trip simply because its so unwieldy in most places when I travel.
- No need to plug it into an outlet all the time. My MBP battery drains quickly now. It's an older one, and I really should replace it. But would rather take that money and put it towards the new iPad.
Now, between the iPad and a MBA, if I needed to do something like photoshop editing outside of work and I could justify spending that $1,000.00 minimum, then I'd pick up a MBA no doubt.
Good luck in your decision
I'm going to be picking up the iPad 2 this week because of a few reasons, which maybe you'll be able to relate to.
- I leave work at work now, on my work computer. No need to do processor-intensive tasks anywhere else.
- I travel more and want something lighter. On my last trip, I brought my macbook pro and only opened it once the entire trip simply because its so unwieldy in most places when I travel.
- No need to plug it into an outlet all the time. My MBP battery drains quickly now. It's an older one, and I really should replace it. But would rather take that money and put it towards the new iPad.
Now, between the iPad and a MBA, if I needed to do something like photoshop editing outside of work and I could justify spending that $1,000.00 minimum, then I'd pick up a MBA no doubt.
Good luck in your decision
I think I can relate to you in a way. I'll be transferring schools next fall to be closer to home, and I'll be about a 20 minute express bus ride from campus each day.
As for your battery, rspec7, I'm in the same boat with you. Got the last model with a replacable battery, and my current one lasts about 30 minutes. I ended up purchasing an authentic one on ebay for 90 bucks, but if you are okay with counterfeit, then there are plenty on their for 45-50 bucks. I've been connected to my AC Adaptor all day long for the past 2 months and was just so sick of it (even at home) that I just decided to buy a new one. It's still a great machine at nearly 2 years old otherwise, but the battery was driving me nuts.
I'm looking at the wi-fi iPad as my iPhone will be able to let me do what I want when I'm not near wi-fi (and it's tough to justify two data plans and the extra $130 for a student).
At the school I currently attend, I live on campus so I never had to bring my 15" MBP anywhere because it was always a 5 minute walk away, and, quite frankly, was a little heavy to carry in a backpack.
I'm your typical student: facebook, web browsing, music make up most of what I do on my computer. The VERY occasional photo and video editing that I do is done on my MBP.
I'm looking for this iPad to be the occasional note taker. I'm an engineering student so the easiest thing is still a pen and paper unless someone has any suggestions for a stylus and a note taking app. Does evernote support handwriting? And does anyone know how well a stylus on an iPad works for writing down formulas and such?
Also will be looking for my iPad to kill some time when I'm on campus all day because I won't be able to walk back to my dorm to just chill.
So basically I'm looking for a portable machine that will allow me to do what a college kid does on the computer, and I feel like the iPad 2 will be a great machine for that... now it's just to decide if I want the 16gb or 32gb. If I got the 16gb I would probably just not have any music on it, and if I got the 32gb I could store my entire library. Decisions decisions.
Now that I think about it, does anyone have any thoughts to share on note taking with a stylus on an iPad? Are there any apps that can combine typing and handwriting on the same sheet? Also feel free to share your advice on 16gb or 32gb. Any insight is appreciated!
Thanks in advance
As for your battery, rspec7, I'm in the same boat with you. Got the last model with a replacable battery, and my current one lasts about 30 minutes. I ended up purchasing an authentic one on ebay for 90 bucks, but if you are okay with counterfeit, then there are plenty on their for 45-50 bucks. I've been connected to my AC Adaptor all day long for the past 2 months and was just so sick of it (even at home) that I just decided to buy a new one. It's still a great machine at nearly 2 years old otherwise, but the battery was driving me nuts.
I'm looking at the wi-fi iPad as my iPhone will be able to let me do what I want when I'm not near wi-fi (and it's tough to justify two data plans and the extra $130 for a student).
At the school I currently attend, I live on campus so I never had to bring my 15" MBP anywhere because it was always a 5 minute walk away, and, quite frankly, was a little heavy to carry in a backpack.
I'm your typical student: facebook, web browsing, music make up most of what I do on my computer. The VERY occasional photo and video editing that I do is done on my MBP.
I'm looking for this iPad to be the occasional note taker. I'm an engineering student so the easiest thing is still a pen and paper unless someone has any suggestions for a stylus and a note taking app. Does evernote support handwriting? And does anyone know how well a stylus on an iPad works for writing down formulas and such?
Also will be looking for my iPad to kill some time when I'm on campus all day because I won't be able to walk back to my dorm to just chill.
So basically I'm looking for a portable machine that will allow me to do what a college kid does on the computer, and I feel like the iPad 2 will be a great machine for that... now it's just to decide if I want the 16gb or 32gb. If I got the 16gb I would probably just not have any music on it, and if I got the 32gb I could store my entire library. Decisions decisions.
Now that I think about it, does anyone have any thoughts to share on note taking with a stylus on an iPad? Are there any apps that can combine typing and handwriting on the same sheet? Also feel free to share your advice on 16gb or 32gb. Any insight is appreciated!
Thanks in advance
I was in the same situation minus the still being in school and I found it impossible to justify all 3 devices. I tended to either neglect the iPad or the MBP so I ended up getting rid of the iPad since the MBP is much more useful overall.
Now though I am giving the MBP to my wife and I will get iPad 2 for my mobile stuff and use iMac at home.
Now though I am giving the MBP to my wife and I will get iPad 2 for my mobile stuff and use iMac at home.
Thank you for that thread. Sounds like people are having success doing away with the pen and paper. That's good to hear.
Keys3rule, when you owned a MBP, iPad, and iPhone. Did you find yourself taking your MBP to alot of the places you went? My MBP is pretty much a desktop in that I don't like to take it out of the house unless I have to just because it is too big to be portable for me.
Keys3rule, when you owned a MBP, iPad, and iPhone. Did you find yourself taking your MBP to alot of the places you went? My MBP is pretty much a desktop in that I don't like to take it out of the house unless I have to just because it is too big to be portable for me.
I have an MBP15 also, and ever since getting the iPad I use it less and less. Essentially its my "making money" tool where I do my media work but practically everything else is done on the iPad now.
1) Home Sharing enables you to sync off your notebook now. So while I had about 20GB of music/video on my iPad before, I probably wont have as much now since I'll be streaming it around the house. This may not apply to you since you're on the go and college aged.
2) iPad apps tend to be much bigger than the iPhone counterparts. So if you plan on buying lots of iPad apps then you need lots of iPad space.
Personally, I think 32GB is the sweet spot but also you should consider the refurb last-gen models if you dont need a camera. If capacity and cost is an issue then $529 gets you 64GB iPad compared to $499 for 16GB iPad 2.
Two things to consider before making the decision:
1) Home Sharing enables you to sync off your notebook now. So while I had about 20GB of music/video on my iPad before, I probably wont have as much now since I'll be streaming it around the house. This may not apply to you since you're on the go and college aged.
2) iPad apps tend to be much bigger than the iPhone counterparts. So if you plan on buying lots of iPad apps then you need lots of iPad space.
Personally, I think 32GB is the sweet spot but also you should consider the refurb last-gen models if you dont need a camera. If capacity and cost is an issue then $529 gets you 64GB iPad compared to $499 for 16GB iPad 2.
Ya, not too interested in homesharing as I believe my computer has to be on and not asleep in order for it to work. Correct me if I'm wrong.
As for iPad apps taking up more space than iPhone apps... I had no idea this was the case. Looks like I'm leaning towards 32gb right now.
As for iPad apps taking up more space than iPhone apps... I had no idea this was the case. Looks like I'm leaning towards 32gb right now.