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All iPads Is there anything an Air 2 can do that an Air, Mini 2, or 4 cannot?

J

Jawnathin

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Sep 10, 2009
271
117
Just wanted to be sure I wasn't overlooking something, is there a list of things an Air 2 can do that an Air 1, Mini 2 or iPad 4 cannot? I didn't include the Mini 1, 3, 2, or 1 in here, as those seem to have dropped off the feature road map already.

I know the hardware improvements between these generations, all very impressive, but that's not what I mean. Not really considering TouchID either as its just a different way of unlocking. I'm talking about unique functional features that isn't available on another device.

An example of what I mean is on the iPhone6, you have NFC so you can do ApplePay. No other iPhone has that capability. That is a unique functional feature.

The only thing I can think of are the camera improvements - Time Lapse and Slo-Mo. Anything else? I think all of them got all of the continuity, handoff, and AirDrop features.
 
It can use Apple Pay within apps since it has an SE ship. So does the iPhone 6, 6 Plus and iPad mini 3. But not any other iOS device.
 
Jawnathin said:
Just wanted to be sure I wasn't overlooking something, is there a list of things an Air 2 can do that an Air 1, Mini 2 or iPad 4 cannot? I didn't include the Mini 1, 3, 2, or 1 in here, as those seem to have dropped off the feature road map already.

I know the hardware improvements between these generations, all very impressive, but that's not what I mean. Not really considering TouchID either as its just a different way of unlocking. I'm talking about unique functional features that isn't available on another device.

An example of what I mean is on the iPhone6, you have NFC so you can do ApplePay. No other iPhone has that capability. That is a unique functional feature.

The only thing I can think of are the camera improvements - Time Lapse and Slo-Mo. Anything else? I think all of them got all of the continuity, handoff, and AirDrop features.
Click to expand...

Other than being thinner and faster and touch ID, there isn't anything unique to the Air 2. Which is why I'm keeping my 4 and waiting for the Pro.
 
aside from the touch ID there is also the following items in the iPad Air 2 that are not in the previous models

A8X Chip - fastest chip yet
8MP Camera, the iPad Air and mini's have the 5MP camera.
Burst Mode on the Camera
Slo Mo on the Video camera
WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac iPad Air and minis only do WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n
Apple Sim, which lets you change carriers without changing out the sim card.

There is probably a few other things as well
 
It seems to me that the jump from an iPad air to the Air 2 is much larger than from the 4th Gen to the Air. You don't really notice a faster processor, but the better camera, better display, Touch ID, more RAM are all noticeable improvements. I'm now motivated to upgrade from my iPad 4. For me, the single biggest reason is the laminated screen. I've been waiting two years for this and I'd upgrade for it alone if I had too.
 
ScottNWDW said:
aside from the touch ID there is also the following items in the iPad Air 2 that are not in the previous models



A8X Chip - fastest chip yet

8MP Camera, the iPad Air and mini's have the 5MP camera.

Burst Mode on the Camera

Slo Mo on the Video camera

WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac iPad Air and minis only do WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n

Apple Sim, which lets you change carriers without changing out the sim card.



There is probably a few other things as well
Click to expand...


2gb of ram as well to boot . The A8x also is a 3 core cpu I think from reading around
 
Yes. Squeeze through a mailbox slot that's 6.2mm thick.

Other than that, not really.
 
Ok, so no, I'm not missing anything. Thanks for the information.

Besides ApplePay via TouchID (you can check out the normal way though) and the time lapse/slo-mo camera stuff (which may be available on 3rd party apps) there doesn't seem to be anything truly unique to the Air 2. I guess maybe AppleSIM but I don't know how often any of us switch carriers for it to be of benefit and its not really difficult to switch SIMs either.

I'm sure down the line the 4 and Air/Mini2 will drop off the features list in future iOSs but for now it looks like the primary benefits would be form factor changes and general speed improvements. Maybe this is why sales have dropped, no compelling reasons to upgrade unless you've got something very old.
 
Jawnathin said:
Just wanted to be sure I wasn't overlooking something, is there a list of things an Air 2 can do that an Air 1, Mini 2 or iPad 4 cannot? I didn't include the Mini 1, 3, 2, or 1 in here, as those seem to have dropped off the feature road map already.

I know the hardware improvements between these generations, all very impressive, but that's not what I mean. Not really considering TouchID either as its just a different way of unlocking. I'm talking about unique functional features that isn't available on another device.

An example of what I mean is on the iPhone6, you have NFC so you can do ApplePay. No other iPhone has that capability. That is a unique functional feature.

The only thing I can think of are the camera improvements - Time Lapse and Slo-Mo. Anything else? I think all of them got all of the continuity, handoff, and AirDrop features.
Click to expand...

One guy has a Mercedes. The other guy a 1980 Yugo

Is there anything the Mercedes can do that the Yugo can't? They both have a steering wheel. A radio, 4 tires. They can both take me to the same place. Why bother getting a Mercedes? I have a Yugo.
 
ipadlvr said:
One guy has a Mercedes. The other guy a 1980 Yugo

Is there anything the Mercedes can do that the Yugo can't? They both have a steering wheel. A radio, 4 tires. They can both take me to the same place. Why bother getting a Mercedes? I have a Yugo.
Click to expand...

So the answer is no?
 
consider that the performance increase will be better every 12 months

so basically rather than asking can i do this 0.5 second faster, i would go back to the original question

can i do this or i can i not
 
Jawnathin said:
So the answer is no?
Click to expand...

The question is what can an Air 2 do that the other iPads can't.

Then you list the things it can do the other can't . Then you say, so that's it right? It is basically the same?

Haha

It'll be more obvious once people with iPad Air 2 start being able to do things on their apps that you can't do because of the Air 2's updated hardware.
 
Last edited:
ipadlvr said:
The question is what can an Air 2 do that the other iPads can't.

Then you list the things it can do the other can't . Then you say, so that's it right? It is basically the same?

Haha
Click to expand...

I think the items I listed are up to interpretation and I only mentioned them to comment on them. Personally I don't think there is anything functionally unique about using TouchID to buy something online because I can still buy it using the standard checkout process on the iPad. You can already do 'One Click' buying on Amazon and Apple, which is arguably easier than ApplePay. Or the video Slo-Mo because there is probably an App that does that already.

An example of something I was looking for is something solely unique to that device and not reproducible on something older. An example would be the AirDrop feature or Continuity/Handoff that the 4 and later got, but not available on 3s and earlier. Or Siri/Dictation on the 3 and later, but not on the 1 or 2. There is no replacement or alternative to that to my knowledge.

I'm still undecided about the Air2 and I was hoping to find some information that could push me one way or another.
 
Both Continuity/Handoff and Siri/Dictation are convenience features, much in the same way unlocking via TouchID and Applepay are convenience features. None of them actually "add" features in the way you are looking for, simply make it much easier to do things you were already able to do, albeit much clunkier.

If having a processor that is significantly faster than your current one, having double the ram, a better screen, slimmer form factor, better camera, and TouchID don't interest you, then there is no reason to upgrade. This interests me as well as many others.

I also expect over the next few months we will see Air 2 specific applications that really take advantage of the extra power, and perhaps multitasking since there is the overhead power wise to do so. That is all speculation of course, and could never come, or get added when the Air 3 is released. It also is a significant spec jump over the Air/4 and likely will be supported for quite a while to come, similar to the iPad 2. Ignoring even that, having the latest and greatest is nice, and I am upgrading from my Air simply as it will be nice to do everything it was already doing, slightly better :) And contrary to popular opinion here the TouchID in itself is worth the upgrade to me personally. Having a device that is very secure, while still being able to unlocked instantly for me is priceless. If I was in the market for an 8" tablet, I would purchase the Mini 3 over the Mini 2 simply for this. Different strokes for different folks, I know that's not the popular opinion on the forums.
 
I think the 2 GB of RAM is unique to the iPad Air 2. I'm setting up mine now. Just for fun, I loaded up websites on 10 tabs, including a tab with a form filled out. I was able to toggle between all the tabs and not cause safari to reload. The form remained filled out! That wasn't really possible with my original iPad Air... or any of the previous iPads for that matter.
 
AlterZgo said:
I think the 2 GB of RAM is unique to the iPad Air 2. I'm setting up mine now. Just for fun, I loaded up websites on 10 tabs, including a tab with a form filled out. I was able to toggle between all the tabs and not cause safari to reload. The form remained filled out! That wasn't really possible with my original iPad Air... or any of the previous iPads for that matter.
Click to expand...

This. It's quite sad that apple took so long but this is the killer feature, browsing the Internet and actually being able to use tabs an other apps.
 
Nothing in particular that Air 2 can do that others can't. Probably touch ID, faster performance, faster internet, and golden beauty. Sort of like ipad air S.
 
All iPads are the same op. just faster, that's all. They are not unique in any serious ways. Don't drink the koolaid. It's just the same device with better insides and it has been since the first one.
 
AlterZgo said:
I think the 2 GB of RAM is unique to the iPad Air 2. I'm setting up mine now. Just for fun, I loaded up websites on 10 tabs, including a tab with a form filled out. I was able to toggle between all the tabs and not cause safari to reload. The form remained filled out! That wasn't really possible with my original iPad Air... or any of the previous iPads for that matter.
Click to expand...

Do they stay even after switching to other apps?
 
perezr10 said:
It seems to me that the jump from an iPad air to the Air 2 is much larger than from the 4th Gen to the Air. You don't really notice a faster processor, but the better camera, better display, Touch ID, more RAM are all noticeable improvements. I'm now motivated to upgrade from my iPad 4. For me, the single biggest reason is the laminated screen. I've been waiting two years for this and I'd upgrade for it alone if I had too.
Click to expand...

I do think so. The Air 2 has some features that many people simply couldn't care less about. touch ID and camera updates are nice but don't seem to resonate with that many iPad users. Tha faster chip will only be really noticed under certain use cases. The "better" screen does NOT have more pixels but only a laminated screen to reduce glare. Nice, but hardly essential.

And, the one mm difference in thickness and minuscule amount of saved weight are hardly worth mentioning.

The Air 2 is a nice tablet but if you own an Air it's barely a "real" upgrade, IMO.
 
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