iPad 1 3G (AT&T) 64GB - activation question ?

[mjoshi123]

Yesterday I got ipad(1st gen 64GB) 3G from local bestbuy (no flamewar between ipad-1 and ipad-2 please) for $529 (pricematching with AT&T online price of $529). This is my first iPad and sole purpose of it is to help my younger one with special needs to learn. He is having issues with his fine & gross motor skills due to certain medical conditions and school is getting him iPad to work in classroom, they also recommended one for home.
Now my question is do I need to sign-up for AT&T monthly plan because I'm not intending to use it in near future. Can I use my iPad just on wi-fi and never activate it on AT&T ?
Also what would be good case for this iPad keeping in mind that it is going to be used by 7 year old kid so lighter case would be better but at the same time it needs to protect it well.

 

[Rafterman]

Yesterday I got ipad(1st gen 64GB) 3G from local bestbuy (no flamewar between ipad-1 and ipad-2 please) for $529 (pricematching with AT&T online price of $529). This is my first iPad and sole purpose of it is to help my younger one with special needs to learn. He is having issues with his fine & gross motor skills due to certain medical conditions and school is getting him iPad to work in classroom, they also recommended one for home.
Now my question is do I need to sign-up for AT&T monthly plan because I'm not intending to use it in near future. Can I use my iPad just on wi-fi and never activate it on AT&T ?
Also what would be good case for this iPad keeping in mind that it is going to be used by 7 year old kid so lighter case would be better but at the same time it needs to protect it well.

You are not required to activate cellular service (though it may bug you from time to time to do so). But it can work as a wifi device only. For the case, I actually used the original Apple case (opens like a book). I thought it protected it very well and wasn't complicated to use.

 

[poloponies]

Yesterday I got ipad(1st gen 64GB) 3G from local bestbuy (no flamewar between ipad-1 and ipad-2 please) for $529 (pricematching with AT&T online price of $529). This is my first iPad and sole purpose of it is to help my younger one with special needs to learn. He is having issues with his fine & gross motor skills due to certain medical conditions and school is getting him iPad to work in classroom, they also recommended one for home.
Now my question is do I need to sign-up for AT&T monthly plan because I'm not intending to use it in near future. Can I use my iPad just on wi-fi and never activate it on AT&T ?
Also what would be good case for this iPad keeping in mind that it is going to be used by 7 year old kid so lighter case would be better but at the same time it needs to protect it well.

3G is optional; you don't ever have to activate it, or you can choose to activate it in a year and discontinue it after a month. It's all up to you.

 

[kwajkat]

Wow, you are lucky, my best buy would only give me the rate that the AT&T store charged which was $629 and the store had to have some in stock. Said they do not price match online prices.

Anyway I went into the settings, cellular and turn everything off to ensure I would not turn on the 3G part by accident. Also turn off notifications and location services.

As for a case, the lightest one you can get is the apple case. Otherwise any other case would work and provide better protection when it comes to accidentaly drops.

 

[CAWjr]

Anyway I went into the settings, cellular and turn everything off to ensure I would not turn on the 3G part by accident. Also turn off notifications and location services.

I get turning the cellular data off, but why turn off notifications & location services? One of the benefits of the 3G models is that they have GPS while the wifi ones don't.

 

[mjoshi123]

Wow, you are lucky, my best buy would only give me the rate that the AT&T store charged which was $629 and the store had to have some in stock. Said they do not price match online prices.

Anyway I went into the settings, cellular and turn everything off to ensure I would not turn on the 3G part by accident. Also turn off notifications and location services.

As for a case, the lightest one you can get is the apple case. Otherwise any other case would work and provide better protection when it comes to accidentaly drops.

The best way to swing it would be just go and buy at regular bestbuy price and after eveything is done go and stand at customer service to get pricematch. Most of time that works compared to haggling with salesperson.

 

[mjoshi123]

Is it possible to use iPad 3G on other GSM network outside of US ?

 

[anjinha]

Is it possible to use iPad 3G on other GSM network outside of US ?

Yes it is. Just buy a local micro sim.

 

[NewbieVAGuy]

New Apple and Ipad user - I really appreciate all the help from the Forum. Here's a dumb question, can I use a Verizon Mifi hotspot with an At&t 3G Ipad?

 

[poloponies]

New Apple and Ipad user - I really appreciate all the help from the Forum. Here's a dumb question, can I use a Verizon Mifi hotspot with an At&t 3G Ipad?

Yes, Sprint and Verizon were both marketing their WiFi devices to iPad users and Verizon sold theirs bundled with iPads.

 

[dave006]

Yes, but you would only be using the WiFi capability on the iPad 3G when using the Verizon MiFi.

Dave

 

[NewbieVAGuy]

Thanks poloponies. So even though it may be an AT&T 3G Ipad, the Wifi part doesnt really matter. It can be used with any Hotpot?

 

[dave006]

Yes it is. Just buy a local micro sim.

You also have the option to use the AT&T International Data Plan but as the previous poster indicated the lowest cost will come from using a local SIM provider.

Also, it might not be a Micro-SIM but you can always cut a Mini-SIM down.

For example, in Singapore I used a SingTel local iPad Micro-SIM in my AT&T 3G iPad. Here is the pricing options that SingTel Offered me: One-time reg - $12.60 3 days unlimited
$10 for 2 Days
$24.60 for 7 Days
$49.50 for 30 days

Dave

 

[Ubele]

Wow, you are lucky, my best buy would only give me the rate that the AT&T store charged which was $629 and the store had to have some in stock. Said they do not price match online prices.

The AT&T store price seems to be up to individual store managers. On Saturday morning, I called the AT&T store closest to my house and asked if they'd match the $529 online price for the 64 GB 3G iPad. They said yes, and asked if I wanted to sign up for the data plan. I said no, and they didn't even try to make me sign up for a month of service. This morning, I told a coworker about this. She called four AT&T stores closer to her. Three said they wouldn't match the $529 price, that $629 was the in-store price. The other store said they'd sell her one for $529, but only if she committed to three months of data service. So she ordered one on line. If there's any official standard company policy for stores, it isn't being observed.