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Is iPad Mini 3 still a good buy?

TechnicallyTee

TechnicallyTee

macrumors 68020
Original poster
May 14, 2013
2,112
3,184
Atlanta
I see that Best Buy has a sale that offers $100 off the iPad mini 3. I didn't see myself getting an iPad when I had my 13" rMBP but as of yesterday I upgraded to the 15" and the portability has decreased. Now I can justify getting an iPad for when I am casually browsing the forums.

Im not worried about it only being 16GB as I don't plan to store information up there besides apps and I don't use that many. I am not worried about having the latest and greatest iPad but wondering was it still a good buy that this point and especially with the sale going on.

Thanks!
 
For many, the iPad mini 3 was never a good buy. The only differences between the 2 and the 3 are the Touch ID and the availability of a gold version. So, if you can find a mini 2 for cheaper than the 3, or find a higher capacity 2 for the same price as the 3 you're looking at, I would go that direction. I love my mini 2, which I bought off of swappa in excellent condition for just over $200 back around Christmastime.
 
tobefirst said:
For many, the iPad mini 3 was never a good buy. The only differences between the 2 and the 3 are the Touch ID and the availability of a gold version. So, if you can find a mini 2 for cheaper than the 3, or find a higher capacity 2 for the same price as the 3 you're looking at, I would go that direction. I love my mini 2, which I bought off of swappa in excellent condition for just over $200 back around Christmastime.
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Yeah I was going to say that people actually thought it was never a good by with its minimal upgrades over the mini 2. Just thinking for casual browsing since I'm heavy on forum sites. But I see what you are saying. Thanks for the input. I also have a 6+ so I was debating against the actual size difference as well.
 
No, because 1 gb or ram, all new devices from now will have 2 gb of ram, if you buy it you will miss a lot of new features
 
Tee00max said:
I see that Best Buy has a sale that offers $100 off the iPad mini 3. I didn't see myself getting an iPad when I had my 13" rMBP but as of yesterday I upgraded to the 15" and the portability has decreased. Now I can justify getting an iPad for when I am casually browsing the forums.

Im not worried about it only being 16GB as I don't plan to store information up there besides apps and I don't use that many. I am not worried about having the latest and greatest iPad but wondering was it still a good buy that this point and especially with the sale going on.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
I would call that price "fair." The lowest I've seen it was $249 at Best Buy not too long ago. That price was a steal! But with the performance improvements coming to A7 and A8 devices in iOS 9 due to Metal, I think people will not complain about it as much. If you wait four months for the new one to be released, they will probably just lower the price of the iPad Mini 3 to $299 and discontinue the other two, so it might be worth buying it today.
 
Andres Cantu said:
I would call that price "fair." The lowest I've seen it was $249 at Best Buy not too long ago. That price was a steal! But with the performance improvements coming to A7 and A8 devices in iOS 9 due to Metal, I think people will not complain about it as much. If you wait four months for the new one to be released, they will probably just lower the price of the iPad Mini 3 to $299 and discontinue the other two, so it might be worth buying it today.
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Thanks for the advice. Yeah I am debating it and I know how my usage will be on the iPad and I'm totally fine with it. I will sit here at work and decide what I'm going to do.
 
Tee00max said:
Thanks for the advice. Yeah I am debating it and I know how my usage will be on the iPad and I'm totally fine with it. I will sit here at work and decide what I'm going to do.
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Yeah, no problem. With the iPad Mini 4 case leak from a few weeks ago, it's a pretty safe bet that it will be like an iPad Air 2 but with the mini's form factor. As long as you wouldn't mind not having that device at $399, then you'll be fine!
 
Andres Cantu said:
Yeah, no problem. With the iPad Mini 4 case leak from a few weeks ago, it's a pretty safe bet that it will be like an iPad Air 2 but with the mini's form factor. As long as you wouldn't mind not having that device at $399, then you'll be fine!
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yeah but now at this time I am thinking about the Air 2 at this point lol.
 
It was a good buy for me because I wanted 128GB but of storage and that wasn't available on the mini 2. Touch ID was a bonus but one I've become so used as I also use it on my iPad Air 2 and iPhone 6 plus. I expect it will become even more useful now that Apple pay is launching in the UK.
 
Tee00max said:
yeah but now at this time I am thinking about the Air 2 at this point lol.
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I think the best time to get an iPad Air 2 would be around Black Friday, since it will be $399 with $100 gift cards like they do every year. That would technically save you $200 if you wait until then.
 
Andres Cantu said:
I think the best time to get an iPad Air 2 would be around Black Friday, since it will be $399 with $100 gift cards like they do every year. That would technically save you $200 if you wait until then.
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Cool I gotcha. I am still debating it but I might just got sit down somewhere since I'm not sure how much I will use it alongside my Apple devices that I have now.
 
Tee00max said:
I see that Best Buy has a sale that offers $100 off the iPad mini 3. I didn't see myself getting an iPad when I had my 13" rMBP but as of yesterday I upgraded to the 15" and the portability has decreased. Now I can justify getting an iPad for when I am casually browsing the forums.

Im not worried about it only being 16GB as I don't plan to store information up there besides apps and I don't use that many. I am not worried about having the latest and greatest iPad but wondering was it still a good buy that this point and especially with the sale going on.

Thanks!
Click to expand...
ipad mini 3 is the same as ipad mini 2, the only difference is touch id, but ipad mini3 is $100 more expensive. On this side, ipad mini 3 is not a good choice, ipad mini 2 is obviously cheaper.

But you said ipad mini 3 got $100 off, I'm not sure whether it means ipad mini 3 is same price as ipad mini 2? If this happens, I think mini 3 is a good choice for the larger screen than 6+.
 
Shanghaichica said:
It was a good buy for me because I wanted 128GB but of storage and that wasn't available on the mini 2. Touch ID was a bonus but one I've become so used as I also use it on my iPad Air 2 and iPhone 6 plus. I expect it will become even more useful now that Apple pay is launching in the UK.
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The idea of using iphone for apply pay is quite cool. Similar size as a credit card, and with touch ID for security.
But using an iPad for apply pay? I'm afraid the size is too much. And I think no one will put an ipad in the pocket. If I have to open my backpack, take out my iPad, I would prefer to use credit card.
 
Its so fast, thin ... and battery its great than my prevoius 4 gen Ipad..., ... and touch id is a bonus!!!!!!!!
 
Matheew944 said:
Its so fast, thin ... and battery its great than my prevoius 4 gen Ipad..., ... and touch id is a bonus!!!!!!!!
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Thank you! Somebody who actually appreciates Touch ID on the Mini 3! Sure, we could have got more, but that doesn't make the Mini 3 a bad tablet. And aside from maybe the display, Touch ID is the main reason why the Air 2 is better than the Air anyway. And on the topic of the Air, where is the hate for that? People are saying the Mini 3 is just the Mini 2 with Touch ID, I could just as easily say, the Air is just the Mini 2 but bigger. Same hardware, same software, same apps. And no, I'm not criticising the Air, but nobody seems to get it.
 
nj-morris said:
Thank you! Somebody who actually appreciates Touch ID on the Mini 3! Sure, we could have got more, but that doesn't make the Mini 3 a bad tablet. And aside from maybe the display, Touch ID is the main reason why the Air 2 is better than the Air anyway. And on the topic of the Air, where is the hate for that? People are saying the Mini 3 is just the Mini 2 with Touch ID, I could just as easily say, the Air is just the Mini 2 but bigger. Same hardware, same software, same apps. And no, I'm not criticising the Air, but nobody seems to get it.
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He is talking about the Air 2. lol. Look at the above posts.
 
terryk said:
The idea of using iphone for apply pay is quite cool. Similar size as a credit card, and with touch ID for security.
But using an iPad for apply pay? I'm afraid the size is too much. And I think no one will put an ipad in the pocket. If I have to open my backpack, take out my iPad, I would prefer to use credit card.
Click to expand...
You can use Apple pay to make online purchases on the iPad mini. It doesn't work in physical stores.
 
nj-morris said:
Thank you! Somebody who actually appreciates Touch ID on the Mini 3! Sure, we could have got more, but that doesn't make the Mini 3 a bad tablet. And aside from maybe the display, Touch ID is the main reason why the Air 2 is better than the Air anyway. And on the topic of the Air, where is the hate for that? People are saying the Mini 3 is just the Mini 2 with Touch ID, I could just as easily say, the Air is just the Mini 2 but bigger. Same hardware, same software, same apps. And no, I'm not criticising the Air, but nobody seems to get it.
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Great point, but the iPad Air does have the better color gamut (which many people care about). I feel like they had the perfect opportunity to fix that screen in the iPad Mini 3, some people would have considered it if they had.
 
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