iPad iPad Air, should I buy it or not?

[teeejay]

Hello guys,

I was about to buy the new iPad Air 32 GB Cellular. I love the sleek design and using iOS.

But then I read few articles (Anandtech, Apple forums) about x64 and potential problem with RAM limitation. I want to use my iPad Air at least for 2 years, without any problems. And 1GB RAM on 64-bit scares me. It could turn out in really serious problem. And we will be "forced" to buy next generation iPad Air, which will probably have 2GB RAM.


I will use it mostly for school, so Pages, Keynote, Numbers, Goodreader. Occasionally games, watching movies etc.

Damn, I was almost convinced to buy my first iPad and now, I am afraid to buy it.

What do you think? What is you opinion on this problem?


Thank You.

 

[maflynn]

Go for it, I have the rMini and that is a great tablet (it has the same amount of ram).

Use it and then see if the ram is an issue, I think for most people its a non-issue.

If Apple ups the ram next year for the iPad air 2, then sell this one and buy that, but I think you'll be happy with this model

 

[teeejay]

Go for it, I have the rMini and that is a great tablet (it has the same amount of ram).

Use it and then see if the ram is an issue, I think for most people its a non-issue.

If Apple ups the ram next year for the iPad air 2, then sell this one and buy that, but I think you'll be happy with this model

It is true, that Apple products got great resale value.

 

[s2mikey]

Go for it. The Air is a fine device and works great. Keep in mind that on forums like this most of the posts will be regrading problems since that's more interesting than reading about how great everything is working.

There IS an issue on some devices with Safari and iOS7 not playing well together. Most believe this is a software issue that will be sorted out by apple. I feel this way too.

 

[Chupa Chupa]

HI want to use my iPad Air at least for 2 years, without any problems. And 1GB RAM on 64-bit scares me. It could turn out in really serious problem. And we will be "forced" to buy next generation iPad Air, which will probably have 2GB RAM.
What do you think? What is you opinion on this problem?

Oh lord. That's what I think. 64 bit requires no more RAM than 32. Stop believing Internet memes. If you are truly concerned buy a heavy iPad 4 or Retina-free iPad 2. And no one is "forcing" anyone to upgrade or buy Apple products. I own two A7 devices. No issues whatsoever other than the Safari crash -- but that is most likely a s/w issue as it happens on my non A7 devices on iOS7 too.

 

[Zmanbaseball2]

The tasks you plan on doing with the iPad Air will run very well on the device. The iPad 1 can still watch Netflix and I use it to download movies for plane rides before I got my 32GB iPad air.
I say get the iPad Air that you want. It's the holiday season so if it does not perform to your needs you can return, I believe, in January sometime.

 

[maflynn]

Oh lord. That's what I think. 64 bit requires no more RAM than 32.

One thing is true, and that's memory structures, pointers and the like need to be bigger to handle the 64bit addressing, so there is increased resource utilization when it comes to 64bit operating systems and 64bit apps. Its not an internet meme, its basic computing.

Its like the jump from 8bit operating systems to 16bit. There's no way you can fit a 64bit memory address in a 32bit pointer - its 2x big. I'm not saying the apps or OS are 2x big, but there is additional overhead.

 

[mtneer]

If you have no iPad or an iPad older than the iPad 3; go for it.

If you have the 3 or the 4; you can save the money now and put it down for the Air 2; or whatever they will call it; next year.

 

[MartinAppleGuy]

Hello guys,

I was about to buy the new iPad Air 32 GB Cellular. I love the sleek design and using iOS.

But then I read few articles (Anandtech, Apple forums) about x64 and potential problem with RAM limitation. I want to use my iPad Air at least for 2 years, without any problems. And 1GB RAM on 64-bit scares me. It could turn out in really serious problem. And we will be "forced" to buy next generation iPad Air, which will probably have 2GB RAM.


I will use it mostly for school, so Pages, Keynote, Numbers, Goodreader. Occasionally games, watching movies etc.

Damn, I was almost convinced to buy my first iPad and now, I am afraid to buy it.

What do you think? What is you opinion on this problem?


Thank You.

WAIT WAIT WAIT 2Gb of RAM is a must if you knew to bring it up.

 

[patseguin]

RAM has never been an issue on my Air and I'm ecstatic about it. I'd say go for it.

 

[teeejay]

Oh lord. That's what I think. 64 bit requires no more RAM than 32. Stop believing Internet memes. If you are truly concerned buy a heavy iPad 4 or Retina-free iPad 2. And no one is "forcing" anyone to upgrade or buy Apple products. I own two A7 devices. No issues whatsoever other than the Safari crash -- but that is most likely a s/w issue as it happens on my non A7 devices on iOS7 too.

So, you basically say, that Anandtech made that up?

It is same on PCs, 64-bit systems require more RAM, but also can benefit from more.

----------

Thank You for your opinions. I am convinced to buy one this week. Hopefully it will be in perfect condition.

 

[Fattytail]

I've experienced the crashes that many other people complain about but it's nowhere near frequent enough for me to recommend people to wait another generation. And I'm not entirely convinced that this isn't something that can't be fixed by a software update.

 

[FrankB1191]

So, you basically say, that Anandtech made that up?

It is same on PCs, 64-bit systems require more RAM, but also can benefit from more.

----------

Thank You for your opinions. I am convinced to buy one this week. Hopefully it will be in perfect condition.

Anand seems to be uncertain about 1GB of RAM on the Air. He says it's not a problem now, and iOS is designed to run with less hardware. He also said that his experience was better with 7.0.3, and he never says that the Air's RAM is a deal breaker. I haven't had any real problems, with the exception of a Walmart page closing Safari, and a Facebook page of pics closing last night. I tend to have 4 tabs open in Safari, and open apps without closing them. The Safari closing/crashing opens right back up without loosing any info, and Anand seems to think that's a software issue. At least it seems that he thinks it's a software issue, as he's not quite sure what to think.

Enjoy your Air, and let us know how it works for you.

 

[JGWolven]

Buy it and enjoy it. It's hard not to.

 

[JoeRito]

Oh lord. That's what I think. 64 bit requires no more RAM than 32. Stop believing Internet memes. If you are truly concerned buy a heavy iPad 4 or Retina-free iPad 2. And no one is "forcing" anyone to upgrade or buy Apple products. I own two A7 devices. No issues whatsoever other than the Safari crash -- but that is most likely a s/w issue as it happens on my non A7 devices on iOS7 too.

I agree, great device, very happy with the Air. iWork and iLife for free puts it over the top. Safari crashing is the only problem I've experienced and I'm hoping an update will address this soon. I can use Photoshop Touch without a problem, it seems the RAM choice is not ideal but definitely acceptable.

 

[teeejay]

Once more, thank you for your opinions, you were most helpful!

 

[Chupa Chupa]

One thing is true, and that's memory structures, pointers and the like need to be bigger to handle the 64bit addressing, so there is increased resource utilization when it comes to 64bit operating systems and 64bit apps. Its not an internet meme, its basic computing.

Its like the jump from 8bit operating systems to 16bit. There's no way you can fit a 64bit memory address in a 32bit pointer - its 2x big. I'm not saying the apps or OS are 2x big, but there is additional overhead.

So, you basically say, that Anandtech made that up?

It is same on PCs, 64-bit systems require more RAM, but also can benefit from more.


----------

Thank You for your opinions. I am convinced to buy one this week. Hopefully it will be in perfect condition.

I was inartful in my original post. I did not mean to suggest 64bit systems generally can't benefit from more RAM than 32bit but rather the 64bit iOS devices in my own use are fine w/ 1GB. I do believe arguments about the new iPads needing more than 1GB RAM are overwrought b/c iOS doesn't support true multitasking & very few apps are 64bit now & even when ported are not all that complex. I've yet to have any app other than Safari crash on me, but that crashed on my 32bit mini as we'll.

And, no I don't doubt Anandtech. They are tops at benchmarking & dissection. But they shot for the moon, not what most people use there iPad for. My point is that, sure 2GB would be great but just because it doesn't have that amount is no reason to not by a 5s, rMini, or Air.

 

[JeffiJers]

I use my air very lightly. Only for entertainment purposes.

Besides 2 dead pixels

-Safari
-Xfinity GO
-HBO GO
-Facebook

Crash regularly on my 16gb Wifi air.


But, none of these crash regularly on my 5S. Go figure. I am not sure what the cause it as this point but I also don't gamble with my money. Only reason I will keep it is because of the 50$ off being offered right now.

 

[nostresshere]

Stop listening to all the crap here. Go buy one, at a place that allows returns and test it yourself. Pretty sure you are gonna find out you will do just fine.

 

[ZBoater]

What do you think? What is you opinion on this problem?

My opinion is that this problem exists within a reality distortion field called iPad forum where problems tend to get exaggerated.

Go buy an iPad and make up your own mind. Buy it from Apple and you'll have until January 7 to decide.

 

[Saturn1217]

*shrug* I do believe that Apple should have used 2gb of ram but I still bought one. I've had some crashes in Safari and reloading of tabs but I still enjoy using the iPad. I returned it but just so that I could upgrade to the 32gb version because I decided that I'll probably try to keep the iPad for longer than a year (originally I was going to get the 16gb version and sell it after a year).

Crashes and reloading do suck a bit yes but as long as the UI performance doesn't get noticeably sluggish due to lack of ram (aka like my old 2012 Nexus 7 or my Gnex) I think I will be ok.

If the iPad air ends up aging badly I'll just sell it which shouldn't be too hard for a product that probably won't get a visible redesign for a while.

 

[c.hack]

I have 2 Nexus 7s and have noticed they are sluggish even when running 4.4. Even the trim capability doesn't help much.

I've also had the iPad 1, 3 and now the Air. They do not slow down over time. Newer iOS versions may slow them down though. Knowing that, the iPad Air should be very future proof. It supports 64bit and uses a new instruction set. Besides that it's incredibly fast.

I got the 32GB Air because just my apps take up 20GB (mostly games). My iPad 3 is 64 GB so it's great for my photo collection.

I don't think you can go wrong with the Air.