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iPad Air 3, Mini 4 or Pro for a PhD student?

I have been to the Apple store this weekend and played with an iPad Pro and the current Air2 and Mini4. The screen on the Pro is very nice, but the overall size and the size of icons and space on the screen feels weird. I'm not sure if I can handle the size when it does not sits on a desk. Seeing that, I'm gonna wait for the iPad Air 3 announcement because the size feels good and I can't justify spending almost the double amount on the Pro. Concerning a laptop, I have one from the university but I personally really like the feel and workflow of an iPad. The different file management is natural to me, so a very pricy Macbook (although it does looks and feels nice) is not made for me. I hope the Air 3 gets pencil support, that would make the perfect iPad for me (for now).
 
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suburbanwar said:
I have been to the Apple store this weekend and played with an iPad Pro and the current Air2 and Mini4. The screen on the Pro is very nice, but the overall size and the size of icons and space on the screen feels weird. I'm not sure if I can handle the size when it does not sits on a desk. Seeing that, I'm gonna wait for the iPad Air 3 announcement because the size feels good and I can't justify spending almost the double amount on the Pro. Concerning a laptop, I have one from the university but I personally really like the feel and workflow of an iPad. The different file management is natural to me, so a very pricy Macbook (although it does looks and feels nice) is not made for me. I hope the Air 3 gets pencil support, that would make the perfect iPad for me (for now).
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The size is something you get over VERY quickly... then it flips. When I pickup my Air now it feels like a _toy_ and I wonder how I ever used that tiny thing :)
 
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CaptMarvel said:
just what type of trousers are people wearing to insert an iPad mini in their pockets?! :eek:

maybe a blazer or sports coat?
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It fits, barely, but it bulges out. Definitely not ideal for storing, but a nice option to have when you need your hands free and don't want to/can't set it down.
 
friedmud said:
The size is something you get over VERY quickly... then it flips. When I pickup my Air now it feels like a _toy_ and I wonder how I ever used that tiny thing :)
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Yes, exactly. For me, the most important thing was when I opened up a document on the iPP and actually started working on it. It was sooooo much better than working on the iPad Air. At that point, I was still feeling awkward about the size of the iPP, but I was like, "if writing on the iPP feels this good, I'll put up with the awkward size." Now, like you say, I pick up the Air and it feels too small.
 
I'll be controversial, its best not to bring an umbrella to a gun fight...
Go with the rMBP or rMP or even MBA, they are much more suited to this type of work vs the iPad regardless of screen size.
 
CaptMarvel said:
just what type of trousers are people wearing to insert an iPad mini in their pockets?! :eek:

maybe a blazer or sports coat?
Click to expand...

I thought I was the only one thinking that way after reading that many transport their minis in their trousers. :D

AFEPPL said:
I'll be controversial, its best not to bring an umbrella to a gun fight...
Go with the rMBP or rMP or even MBA, they are much more suited to this type of work vs the iPad regardless of screen size.
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If reading articles and annotating pdfs are important to you, then you are better off with a tablet and a stylus imho. But if this is going to be your only device, you are right then, the notebooks are much more suited. (but OP has a laptop already anyway)
 
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OP has an iPad too already.
Either iOS device will be obsolete before a laptops, OS X devices have much better longevity and better resale values too.
 
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AFEPPL said:
OP has an iPad too already.
Either iOS device will be obsolete before a laptops, OS X devices have much better longevity and better resale values too.
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Yes, OP already has an iPad, but he wants a newer and faster one, because he likes the workflow on it.
For OPs needs and the things he wants to do, the iPad is much better. (this is just my two cents, not a fact)
Not everybody cares about resale value or longevity and maybe OP doesn't either. I'd rather buy a machine which fits my needs now and will be replaced in a few years then buy something else, which is so-so for my needs and will be kept a few years longer. It doesn't mean that an iPad is better or worse than a notebook. It just means that not everyone does, needs and wants the same thing.
 
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AFEPPL said:
OP has an iPad too already.
Either iOS device will be obsolete before a laptops, OS X devices have much better longevity and better resale values too.
Click to expand...

The OP asked for advice on selecting from the three ipad sizes. They didn't ask for advice on whether they should get an iPad or laptop. Seeing they already own both, I'm thinking they already know about the capabilities of both platforms, including how long they are likely to last.
 
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Regarding the choice of an iPad or a Macbook, I feel that this is a very personal choice. A lot of my friends and colleagues are using a Macbook Air or Pro and find that they fit their needs. I bought a Macbook Pro in 2010 and love how it worked perfectly through college, but I find myself preferring the iPad since the original came out. This, I guess, has something to do with the form factor (just a light portable screen) and the fact that the reading experience is far better. My master thesis is written on my Macbook and iPad, but currently the only use it gets is when I need to download a movie or doing a back-up. My desk at work has a 23 inch screen and a new Dell laptop, so I have a perfect place to write and a laptop when I need it. Reading articles and websites at work and at home, consuming media, presenting in class and doing work while commuting is in my eyes a far better experience with an iPad. That is why i want to replace my aging and crashing Mini1 with something that better suits this. Your advice is welcomed - and i sure would want a Macbook Retina just because it is gorgeous - but my decision with a tight budget is made. I rather spend the money on an iPad (€499 for an Air, €919 for an Pro) than on a Macbook (€1099 Air, €1449 Macbook/Pro) when this does everything I currently want. Even if money was no objection, I would buy an iPad. Call me crazy but they really designed it for me :)
 
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suburbanwar said:
Call me crazy but they really designed it for me :)
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That is exactly how I feel about iPads!

Your usage patterns sound a lot like mine, including using iPad to work during commutes. When I first saw the iPad Pro, I thought it will be too big to use on the bus/train, and it'd probably just stay at home. But then I discovered that pulling out the iPP on the bus and tapping away on it is doable if the bus isn't crowded, and I tend to take the bus at times when it isn't crowded. So not only am I taking the iPP along with me every time I go to work, but I'm getting a lot of work done while on the bus. I ended up exchanging for the cellular model, and getting the T-Mobile 5GB for $10 for 5 months special deal. With the iPad Air, I'd sometimes do work on the bus when there was something urgent that just had to be done, but with the iPP, doing work while commuting has become a regular part of my work flow. Coming from the mini, an Air would be a step up in productivity -- and a Pro would be a giant leap. It all depends on whether you have enough space during your commute to feel comfortable pulling out the Pro.
 
AFEPPL said:
Wait and get the iPad 3 Air with a pencil.
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I bet iPad Air 3 would not work with the pencil. Doing so would effectively kill the sales of the iPP. Apple won't do something so stupid, not until they have sold a critical mass of iPP to warrant a healthy dev community to write iPP apps.
 
I'd suggest you wait for the iPad Air 3 to make your decision. I suspect the Air 3 will have pencil support. The argument against it has been it will kill iPad Pro sales, but iPad Pro sales are hardly robust. The benefit of allowing the Air 3 to work with pencil will mean more Air 3 sales, and also more pencil sales (and pencils are high margin products). I also suspect Apple will release a type cover for the Air 3, which will be another high margin product.

More iPad Air 3 sales, and more high margin accessories for Apple is my reason for believing the Air 3 will have pencil support.
 
businezguy said:
I'd suggest you wait for the iPad Air 3 to make your decision. I suspect the Air 3 will have pencil support. The argument against it has been it will kill iPad Pro sales, but iPad Pro sales are hardly robust. The benefit of allowing the Air 3 to work with pencil will mean more Air 3 sales, and also more pencil sales (and pencils are high margin products). I also suspect Apple will release a type cover for the Air 3, which will be another high margin product.

More iPad Air 3 sales, and more high margin accessories for Apple is my reason for believing the Air 3 will have pencil support.
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Yeah, the iPad Pro is born to be niche in the handheld space after all with its physical size. The screen size might amplify the experience of the pen in certain uses, but that's it. The focus of it is IMO more likely not gaining highest but valuable sales in various industries. Specifically, the creativity and business iPad Pro app ecosystem won't suddenly grow just because 1 million average Joe buy it, but because content creators and professionals buy it on purpose and trust it.

On the other hand, the support of Pencil is a compelling driving factor of upgrading, thus potentially helping declining the iPad Air line. You got a mass of students and average Joe here that might want to write or draw without compromising the lightness and size they used to.
 
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Trahearne said:
Yeah, the iPad Pro is born to be niche
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One niche that the iPP is likely to be popular is in is among Senior citizens. Both my mom and my boss took one look at the iPP and they had to have it. They love the bigger screen and the zoomed in display mode, which are very good for weak eyesights and shaky hands. Not sure if that market is big enough to make a significant impact on overall sales numbers, but I'd recommend the iPad Pro over the smaller iPads for anyone with mobility problems.
 
The zoomed display.. but only to YOUR comment.
"They love the bigger screen and the zoomed in display mode"

Its a simple point, you don't need an IPP to get a bigger or zoomed display for those with "weak" eyes.
 
AFEPPL said:
The zoomed display.. but only to YOUR comment.
"They love the bigger screen and the zoomed in display mode"

Its a simple point, you don't need an IPP to get a bigger or zoomed display for those with "weak" eyes.
Click to expand...

Have you ever tried the zoomed accessibility mode? It just shows part of the screen, you have to keep panning left and right and up and down to see anything. It's just a downright ugly, cumbersome way to interact with a device.
 
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