iPad iPad Air 16 GB questions

[Silly John Fatty]

So, after having used my iPad, my grandmother wishes to get an iPad as well.
I was thinking of the iPad Air 16 GB.

But it's still a complicated choice.

1st – she has a PC laptop but doesn't like it and doesn't really know how to use it, that's why she wants the iPad, she finds it much more easier to use. But the thing is, at some point, she'll run out of space, and she won't have anywhere to backup her iPad. Is there some other solutions than iCloud, for example buying a small hard drive and somehow connected the iPad to it to back it up, without having a whole computer & screen?

2nd – is there any difference in speed between the smaller and largest iPads? (like 16 GB and 128 GB). From what I know, they use flash drives, and flash drives are faster the larger they are, apparently. My 128 GB iPad is so quick, but it would be a disappointment if she got the 16 GB and it was suddenly slow as hell.


Thanks

 

[FatPuppy]

So, after having used my iPad, my grandmother wishes to get an iPad as well.
I was thinking of the iPad Air 16 GB.

But it's still a complicated choice.

1st – she has a PC laptop but doesn't like it and doesn't really know how to use it, that's why she wants the iPad, she finds it much more easier to use. But the thing is, at some point, she'll run out of space, and she won't have anywhere to backup her iPad. Is there some other solutions than iCloud, for example buying a small hard drive and somehow connected the iPad to it to back it up, without having a whole computer & screen?

2nd – is there any difference in speed between the smaller and largest iPads? (like 16 GB and 128 GB). From what I know, they use flash drives, and flash drives are faster the larger they are, apparently. My 128 GB iPad is so quick, but it would be a disappointment if she got the 16 GB and it was suddenly slow as hell.


Thanks

Ok so:
-iPad air 1 is still powerful and I doubt your grandmother would see any lag or slowdowns
-16gb is never enough cause you get only 12gb so 32gb or even 64gb is a better choice
-having a bigger storage device does not make it faster at all. 16gb ipad has the same speed as 128gb
I hope this was helpful.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

Are you sure about the last point? We know that larger flash drives are faster than the same model in a smaller variation. I also know of people whose iPad Air is not as fast as mine, and I have the 128 GB one.

But else I know that it's powerful, just not sure how it will be when it's half or 3/4 full.

16 GB may not be enough, you're right. I'm not sure how much she will need. Mine right now has only 30 GB (without system) on it, that's 70 apps, 10 songs, 2500 photos and 200 videos I think.

I don't think she will use that much, not even nearly, and like I said that's 30 GB. But yes maybe 32 GB is the best, for some "air up there".


Backups are still a problem however.

 

[qcmacmini]

Is it possible to back up to a time capsule from an iPad?

I bought my mum a 16GB Air recently, and she loves it, she hasn't used her Acer laptop since getting the iPad. They are excellent value, if you don't need more than 1GB RAM, I don't see any point in buying the Air 2.

Also 16GB is fine for home users who don't take lots of photos and don't have music or video collections. My girlfriend and my Mum both have the 16GB and won't ever get close to running out of space based on the current usage patterns.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

That's my thought also, I have the first iPad Air too so 1 GB as well and I love it, I think it's perfect and don't need more. I don't really use a computer at all anymore, only the iPad for all those "normal things".

It would be interesting to know about Time Capsule, I'll research a bit. I have no idea about it sadly, never used it or read much about it. It would be a good solution of course. If there's a way to back it up then I say the 16 GB is definitely sufficient, the question then would be how do you get things back on the iPad or how do you choose what you want to copy on it from the Time Capsule… that sounds already a bit complicated so somehow doubt it will work, but we'll see!

 

[FatPuppy]

Are you sure about the last point? We know that larger flash drives are faster than the same model in a smaller variation. I also know of people whose iPad Air is not as fast as mine, and I have the 128 GB one.

But else I know that it's powerful, just not sure how it will be when it's half or 3/4 full.

16 GB may not be enough, you're right. I'm not sure how much she will need. Mine right now has only 30 GB (without system) on it, that's 70 apps, 10 songs, 2500 photos and 200 videos I think.

I don't think she will use that much, not even nearly, and like I said that's 30 GB. But yes maybe 32 GB is the best, for some "air up there".


Backups are still a problem however.

Again, storage capacity does not make any difference in speed when talking about the same model. Your device may run slow or sluggish when you have about 900 mb or less and even then the speed difference is barely noticeable especially with such a powerful device like the Air. You can also use cloud storage, OneDrive has very good prices and it gives you 30gb free from start.

 

[capathy21]

-16gb is never enough cause you get only 12gb so 32gb or even 64gb is a better choice

I would think the 16gb model is perfect for a basic user like the OP is discussing. I have a 16gb Air 2 and have over 5GB of storage available. I use it to watch Youtube and Netflix, Facebook, Email, iMessage and Web Surfing. For these basic tasks, 16 is more than enough. Of course it never hurts to have more storage. It really all depends on what an individual does with their iPad.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

Well, like I said, cloud solutions are not really a solution (she lives on the country side, has slow internet, so if she had to sync 5 videos she shot, that would take ages) and as for the speed, I understand what you said, but usually when one says something, they at least provide a source or something

I know that companies like Samsung actually tell you that their smaller flash storage is slower than their bigger one. For example with SSDs, the biggest speed difference is between 128 and 256 GB.


Edit: Posted at the same time capathy21, this message was for FatPuppy. But yes, I agree with you! Thanks for sharing your "results"

 

[Rodster]

So, after having used my iPad, my grandmother wishes to get an iPad as well.
I was thinking of the iPad Air 16 GB.

But it's still a complicated choice.

1st – she has a PC laptop but doesn't like it and doesn't really know how to use it, that's why she wants the iPad, she finds it much more easier to use. But the thing is, at some point, she'll run out of space, and she won't have anywhere to backup her iPad. Is there some other solutions than iCloud, for example buying a small hard drive and somehow connected the iPad to it to back it up, without having a whole computer & screen?

2nd – is there any difference in speed between the smaller and largest iPads? (like 16 GB and 128 GB). From what I know, they use flash drives, and flash drives are faster the larger they are, apparently. My 128 GB iPad is so quick, but it would be a disappointment if she got the 16 GB and it was suddenly slow as hell.


Thanks

Why couldn't she or someone install iTunes on her laptop? That way she could use the device for the iPad backups. That would be the easiest solution. In fact once iTunes is installed it's default settings has it automatically start whenever an iDevice gets plugged into any USB port.

 

[Silly John Fatty]

I think my aunt started using the laptop, my grandma never liked it and therefore never used it, I feel like her backups wouldn't be in a safe place there and I'm scared someone or something could delete them.

Also, I don't know how often you guys are doing backups, but she doesn't live anywhere near me so I'd have to do that for her and that would probably not be often enough.

 

[hamiltonDSi]

There are no speed differences between a 16GB and a 128GB iPad.

 

[s2mikey]

Even with slow internet, the backups can run overnight or whatever and shouldn't Impact her usage that much. What I'm saying is that the cloud is still the easiet and cheapest solution for her. The ipad will back itself up whenever it's been plugged in and charging for a short time. Like I said, that usually happens overnight while charging but you can control when it backs up.

Maybe see if she can initiate a backup during times when she won't be using the device for a while? It's an easy thing to do.

Just a thought.