iPad iPad 3 vs. iPad 4 - which one?

[palpatine]

I've got a 3, I love it, and I probably won't upgrade anytime soon. I don't know who was complaining when it came out, or what they were complaining about, but I have had a great experience with it from day 1.

That said, if I didn't have the 3 and was going to buy something now, I'd definitely get the 4. I cannot see the value in spending hundreds of dollars for a piece of outdated tech, when just a few dollars more would get me the newest version.

It doesn't matter if you are playing games or not, the faster the better, in my opinion. I read a lot of PDFs on the iPad, and even an extra 1 second per page load (large files of scanned books take a while to render sometimes) would be greatly appreciated.

 

[soulreaver99]

At Best Buy, the were selling new in the box iPad 3 64GB LTE for $545. That's a pretty huge savings considering that the new iPad 4s with equivalent configurations come at $829. Check Best Buy's clearance!

 

[Medic311]

At Best Buy, the were selling new in the box iPad 3 64GB LTE for $545. That's a pretty huge savings considering that the new iPad 4s with equivalent configurations come at $829. Check Best Buy's clearance!

damn that's sweet. are you sure about that? on the website it listed it as $679 (same price as the Apple refurbs). of course now the iPad 3 64GB LTE models have been dropped to $629 on Apple.com

dammit...i overpaid by $50

 

[soulreaver99]

damn that's sweet. are you sure about that? on the website it listed it as $679 (same price as the Apple refurbs). of course now the iPad 3 64GB LTE models have been dropped to $629 on Apple.com

dammit...i overpaid by $50

I bought it at the Pasadena store in SoCal.

 

[Medic311]

I bought it at the Pasadena store in SoCal.

that's so sick dude LOL

i'm envious

 

[Southern Dad]

It comes with a lighting cable do you mean an adapter for your accessories, if you do it only costs about $20, pretty cheap.

A lot of accessories just don't look right with the adapter. The iHome in particular, my keyboard stand, the connection block on my television, etc.

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At Best Buy, the were selling new in the box iPad 3 64GB LTE for $545. That's a pretty huge savings considering that the new iPad 4s with equivalent configurations come at $829. Check Best Buy's clearance!

I came close. Brandsmart had it for $599 for the same iPad. My local Best Buy's didn't have any 3rd Gens left.

 

[Technarchy]

If you have an iPhone 5, I'd get an iPad 4.

Uniform cables is a blessing.

 

[Medic311]

if you have an iphone 5, i'd get an ipad 4.

Uniform cables is a blessing.

^^^ that that that that

 

[baypharm]

Of course, you would love Ipad 2. Its so loveable. Everything about it is so balanced which is the best Ipad to date imo.

And why would u even consider getting discontinued Ipad 3? Its heated, battery is bad and for only 60 cheaper, Ipad 4 is a clear winner.

Even better than the 4G model?

 

[Peter K.]

If you have an iPhone 5, I'd get an iPad 4.

Uniform cables is a blessing.

I agree with this concept; HOWEVER, at this point, I would be waiting for the 5.

 

[raccoonboy]

Even better than the 4G model?

In my opinion, i think so. More balanced i would say.

i wrap my ipad very good so i dont want it to get heat up when playing with.

 

[Medic311]

And why would u even consider getting discontinued Ipad 3? Its heated, battery is bad and for only 60 cheaper, Ipad 4 is a clear winner.

1) the overheating issue was overblown due to a few bad defects
2) the battery is great - less than iPad 2 but even the iPad 4 is less than the iPad 2 as well (in real world tests)

the iPad 4 i used to have actually ran warmer than my iPad 3 refurb. both get warmer than the iPad 2 - there is no escaping that. so the claim that the iPad 4 somehow was an improvement that runs cooler is nonsense. the A6X is a more efficient chip but it does nothing for heat and again as i stated - the iPad 4 i used to have ran warmer than my iPad 3 refurb. probably due to a defect which all iPads can suffer from

the best value right now is an iPad 3 16GB wifi for $379. to get an iPad 4 refurb it will cost you an extra $70 ($449). i would rather save the $70 and put it towards the iPad 5 when that comes out, as you will never see an extra $70 in resale value over the iPad 3 when eBay is flooded with iPad 4's prior to the iPad 5 launch. a lot of people actually desire the older 30 pin port and i predict that will actually help the resale value of the iPad 3 a year from now.

 

[AppleDeviceUser]

A lot of accessories just don't look right with the adapter. The iHome in particular, my keyboard stand, the connection block on my television, etc.

Yeah I know but I'd take a better iPad even if It means I have to use a little adapter, I was actually really happy when Apple released Lighting, 30-Pin was old and outdated.

 

[Southern Dad]

Yes but I saved $230 purchasing a 3rd gen over a 4th gen... That and the little adapter makes it a good decision for me.

 

[Medic311]

I was actually really happy when Apple released Lighting, 30-Pin was old and outdated.

i know that it is old (it's been around for a little more than a decade), but just out of curiosity can you explain why you feel it is outdated?

i find the Lightning cable to be more of a PITA, solely for the fact that i am entrenched in 30 pin cables. buying adapters, even more cables, etc...is more of an inconvenience than how the 30 pin cable can only be inserted 1 way (not reversible)

 

[AppleDeviceUser]

i know that it is old (it's been around for a little more than a decade), but just out of curiosity can you explain why you feel it is outdated?

i find the Lightning cable to be more of a PITA, solely for the fact that i am entrenched in 30 pin cables. buying adapters, even more cables, etc...is more of an inconvenience than how the 30 pin cable can only be inserted 1 way (not reversible)

Well for one thing, it's huge compared to most other cables nowadays. Plus Apple obviously thought it was outdated because they replaced it. Yeah I understand your situation, I have the same thing there are over 20, 30-Pin cables in our house and a bunch of accessories that use it, I am still happy they went with lighting however.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Well if you want it for some time go with the 4.

Agreed, I would also get the iPad 4.

 

[iAll]

I too have a bunch of 30 pin stuff, but I now have the ip5 and the ipad 4 and totally like the lightning cable over the 30pin. I never was thrilled with the 30 pin since day 1. I always felt it was a clumsy connector that left too big a hole in the device for crap to collect and I would surely break it at some point.

 

[thadoggfather]

I think Medic and I are the biggest iPad3 fans here

 

[scorpio1973]

Was able to score the same $545.99 deal the above poster did at my local Best Buy. I just couldn't pass it up. Going to pick it up tonight!

 

[SDColorado]

Was able to score the same $545.99 deal the above poster did at my local Best Buy. I just couldn't pass it up. Going to pick it up tonight!

I scored that deal as well, and actually returned the iPad 4 I had purchased to replace my iPad 2. While there was a lot to like in the iPad 4 as an upgrade over my iPad 2, there wasn't enough of a difference between the iPad 3 and iPad 4 to warrant the $275 price difference between $554.99 and $829.99.

Had it only been $60, even $100, I would have kept the iPad 4, but for a savings of close to $300 (with the difference in tax), I will wait for the iPad 5 or 6.

 

[scorpio1973]

I scored that deal as well, and actually returned the iPad 4 I had purchased to replace my iPad 2. While there was a lot to like in the iPad 4 as an upgrade over my iPad 2, there wasn't enough of a difference between the iPad 3 and iPad 4 to warrant the $275 price difference between $554.99 and $829.99.

Had it only been $60, even $100, I would have kept the iPad 4, but for a savings of close to $300 (with the difference in tax), I will wait for the iPad 5 or 6.

Completely agree with everything you said. The almost $300 savings made my decision pretty clear. I'll be waiting for the iPad 5 or maybe even later.

 

[AllergyDoc]

I've owned a 1, 3, and 4. The 4 is faster than the 3, especially when loading web pages. I've no issues with heat but my wife's 4 had to be returned as the whole thing got way too hot.

But, now that Best Buy is selling the 3 for $315, it's a whole different question. Had I not been used to the 4's speed I would've returned it and picked up the 3 to save $185. (16GB model)

 

[SDColorado]

But, now that Best Buy is selling the 3 for $315, it's a whole different question. Had I not been used to the 4's speed I would've returned it and picked up the 3 to save $185. (16GB model)

You could always spend that fraction of a second counting the $185 you just saved

Just kidding, but I honestly didn't find the iPad4 to be appreciably faster in loading web pages over the 3 I just picked up. Honestly I am one of those folks who tend to get buyers remorse, and for the first few days, I kept looking for excuses to take the 3 back to Best Buy and re-purchase the 4, but I just couldn't find any issue with the 3 to warrant spending $300 more for the 4. Lets put it this way, if the 4 was any faster loading web pages, I don't recall that it was a few days removed from returning it, so I can live with that

 

[AllergyDoc]

I think the point is mute anyway; I don't see any $315 iPad 3s on Best Buy.com