iPad mini iPad mini experience

[jaydee24601]

The Mini is Terrific!

Just picked up a 16gb mini from Target in black ... so far it's amazing. I love the black back and the blended tool masterworked side and bezel. The display looks almost identical to my New iPad (3) with retina display ...

Crazy sounding I know, but the smaller, more compact, screen makes the pixel desnity and appearance seem very dense and clear! Borderline retina-like, if you ask me!!!! Even when I pinch out on a word of text it seems just as clarified as the ipad 3 retina!

It handles like a dream and fits wonderfully in the palm of my hand and/or hands! It's very light and the adonized back has a lovely textured feel and ethereal matte finish. The black does show some slight fingerprinting but the black overall design has a beautifully-rich stealth look!

Feels very well made ... Not at all cheapy or slapdashed like some plastic competitors ... Nice and SOLID and is almost iPhone 5 light!

 

[Mjmar]

Does it charge faster than the iPad 3? I know it only comes with a 5 watt charger so probably not.

 

[Rogifan]

I purchased one as a gift for someone and can't open it. Glad to hear the good reviews. Makes me feel better about my purchase.

 

[d123]

How are magazines and comics on it? Is it too small?
If anybody could load up Empire Magazine and some comics in a video I would be much obliged.

No video, but screen shots if it helps:

Magazine

Ebook from Google Play Book app (the Nexus 7 £15 free credit had some use )

 

[Techwriter]

I love mine, I got the 32GB Black....and the smart cover fits perfectly. I also bought a soft padded case that will fit the mini with smart cover, plus stylus....

It's rude to hijack threads, so I'm sorry to ask this here. But can you tell me what soft padded case you found? Then I'll know that someone found one that actually fits the mini with the smart cover on.

Thanks in advance!

 

[roken]

iPad Mini - Positive first impressions

Got a white 32GB for my little boy today, wanted to share some initial thoughts on the mini with you all.

As many are repeating the screen is far better than iPad 2 and not as great as retina.

However to me the screen seems to be the sweet spot in terms of gaming. I always struggle with the larger iPad with faster games like Sonic or Rayman, as well as some controls. On the Mini you appreciate more of what's on the screen and I feel platformers are certainly easier to play.

I was also glad to see that it'll happily accept 1080p videos from iTunes and play them smoothly to boot, I had feared it wouldn't sync them at all.

Indeed, the weight/feel/design is absolutely superb! Looks on par with the iPhone 5, if not better. Whether this makes up for another 12 months of no retina mini is up to you.

Judging from the forum its easy to get carried away with negativity on the internet, IMO, go to a store and try it for yourself.

Hope some of you found that useful, happy to answer any questions or take pics!

 

[GeorgieAcevedo]

I find it very enjoyable using it landscape. This was never the case with my iPad 3.

 

[maflynn]

Just got mine, and the iTunes restore has completed.

Overall, I cannot believe how light it feels, how great it looks. The display is ok, I'm not saying its great nor am I saying its poor.

I own an iPad-1 and a kindle. As I mentioned in another thread, the Mini's display quality is not in the same league of the kindle but its on par with my iPad first gen. I wish apple opted for something that produced a better display.

I'll play with it over the next few days so I can fully discern how well this will meet my needs. Big pluses for this over a Nexus 7 is the fact it runs all my apps and is connected to iCloud. This is in of itself something that will help make the decision easier to keep

 

[tastycaramel]

Based on all of your reviews and experiences, it seem that the iPad mini is good but it doesn't have retina display?

Anyway, do you agree that iPad 3 is better than iPad mini?

 

[dthree36]

Purchased a black iPad mini this morning... whey... hell I don't really know why because I already have a 2. So.. my impression is that the device itself is well designed. I think typing on it is so much easier than its bigger brother. The screen isn't a big deal at all to me. I have already loaded all my favorite apps and am running through the tests.

So... am I blown away by this device.... .No. Is it a great form factor... YES! Will I keep this despite owning an iPad 2.... that is yet to be determined. I basically spent money for something I already had that is smaller lighter and has a better screen.

 

[tastycaramel]

Purchased a black iPad mini this morning... whey... hell I don't really know why because I already have a 2. So.. my impression is that the device itself is well designed. I think typing on it is so much easier than its bigger brother. The screen isn't a big deal at all to me. I have already loaded all my favorite apps and am running through the tests.

So... am I blown away by this device.... .No. Is it a great form factor... YES! Will I keep this despite owning an iPad 2.... that is yet to be determined. I basically spent money for something I already had that is smaller lighter and has a better screen.

Actually what is the reason Apple wanted to created a smaller iPad? I thought Steve Jobs said a 7-inch screen would be "too small to express the software" and that 10 inches was the minimum for a tablet screen or something like that?

 

[dfinecy]

Just got my mini and I love it!! The screen is gorgeous and definately much clearer than the iPad 2. But the first thing that struck me was how light the device it. I can easily hold it with one hand without any strain not to mention how good it feels in my hand...wonderful!!

 

[normwood]

I took a 1/2 day and drove over to the Ridgedale Mall Apple store. In and out in < 10 minutes with a 32gig black, smart cover, 30pin to lightning adapter and applecare. I wouldn't have taken 32gig white but they too only had 64gig left.

Syncing her right now, but this is going to be good stuff!

Steve

 

[tastycaramel]

Just got my mini and I love it!! The screen is gorgeous and definately much clearer than the iPad 2. But the first thing that struck me was how light the device it. I can easily hold it with one hand without any strain not to mention how good it feels in my hand...wonderful!!

Enjoy!

 

[dthree36]

Actually what is the reason Apple wanted to created a smaller iPad? I thought Steve Jobs said a 7-inch screen would be "too small to express the software" and that 10 inches was the minimum for a tablet screen or something like that?

Honestly.. .the main reason is to tap into those that think the iPad 2 or 3/4 is to big. The smaller form factor has its benefits and negatives. The other main reason is the price point is far less than that of the bigger siblings. The mini itself is very nice but when you already own an iPad... having 2 very similar devices doesn't make much sense. For those who don't already own one, it offers something to a broader audience.

Don't get me wrong... I really like the mini but I already have something that is the same. Now if it had retina display, that would be a different story because I don't already have that. Either way... I think Apple has a winner on their hands and just opened the door to many new customers.

 

[maflynn]

Anyway, do you agree that iPad 3 is better than iPad mini?

I don't agree. The major reason for my purchasing the mini was its size, and from that perspective I think the mini is better then the iPad 3. Sure the iPad 3 and 4 has the retina display but on my must haves, size was higher then the retina screen

 

[LanEvo]

Just picked up a 16gb mini from Target in black ... so far it's amazing. I love the black back and the blended tool masterworked side and bezel. The display looks almost identical to my New iPad (3) with retina display ...

Crazy sounding I know, but the smaller, more compact, screen makes the pixel desnity and appearance seem very dense and clear! Borderline retina-like, if you ask me!!!! Even when I pinch out on a word of text it seems just as clarified as the ipad 3 retina!

It handles like a dream and fits wonderfully in the palm of my hand and/or hands! It's very light and the adonized back has a lovely textured feel and ethereal matte finish. The black does show some slight fingerprinting but the black overall design has a beautifully-rich stealth look!

Feels very well made ... Not at all cheapy or slapdashed like some plastic competitors ... Nice and SOLID and is almost iPhone 5 light!

Did you get $40 GC?

 

[tastycaramel]

Honestly.. .the main reason is to tap into those that think the iPad 2 or 3/4 is to big. The smaller form factor has its benefits and negatives. The other main reason is the price point is far less than that of the bigger siblings. The mini itself is very nice but when you already own an iPad... having 2 very similar devices doesn't make much sense. For those who don't already own one, it offers something to a broader audience.

Don't get me wrong... I really like the mini but I already have something that is the same. Now if it had retina display, that would be a different story because I don't already have that. Either way... I think Apple has a winner on their hands and just opened the door to many new customers.

In fact, I had used the original iPad 1 that my dad gave me. It was very good at that time - 3G was quick and watching YouTube at night in an air-con room ftw!

 

[Frankied22]

Is anyone else with a Mini noticing quite a bit of sluggishness in the app store and iTunes?

 

[Rogifan]

Is anyone else with a Mini noticing quite a bit of sluggishness in the app store and iTunes?

I notice it sometimes on my 3rd gen iPad.

 

[Jimbo Asprilla]

I've had mine little over an hour and I absolutely love it, I sold my iPad 2 32gb with wifi for $390 yesterday, I've just finished restoring from that backup.

The size is ideal for me, it's so much lighter and so much easier to handle, the build quality is everything I expected form Apple, it's just superb.

My only negative is the screen resolution, to my eyes the screen resolution seems worse than my iPad 2, I'm sure we can all presume that the next version of the iPad mini will be with a retina display, then it will be absolutely perfect.

I am really impressed with it as a device and switching from my iPad 2 feels like a great move.

 

[Winepronecowboy]

That advice doesn't apply to everyone. You said you're not going to use it for reading much. Many other people are interested in the mini specifically for reading (like yours truly). I saw it in an Apple store today and wouldn't be able to live with the non-retina display.

Retina must make the rest of technology obsolete the way its talked about with such reverence in these legends.

 

[zhenya]

Retina must make the rest of technology obsolete the way its talked about with such reverence in these legends.

No, but it's the same sort of thing as going from a dumb phone to a smart phone, from a platter drive to a SSD, or from SD TV to HDTV. We lived with the old tech because that's all there was. It's not surprising people don't want to go backwards.

 

[Funnone]

I don't agree. The major reason for my purchasing the mini was its size, and from that perspective I think the mini is better then the iPad 3. Sure the iPad 3 and 4 has the retina display but on my must haves, size was higher then the retina screen

I totally agree......

 

[cardinalryan]

Retina must make the rest of technology obsolete the way its talked about with such reverence in these legends.

Every person that refers to the screen as "retina" shows just what a sucker for marketing terms they are.

I honestly can't control my laughter when I see people use the word as if it's some sort of magic potion that is splashed on the screen before shipment.

I bought the Mini this morning and I'm very impressed.