iPad New 2017 iPad (9.7) 32GB or 128GB?

[mdridwan47]

I've been thinking about getting an iPad for a while now. I never owned any apple devices apart from a 4th gen Touch which I still own. I'm really determined to finally get the new iPads. The new 2017 versions looks really nice but which version should I get? 32 or 128?

32GB seems barely enough but 128GB seems like an overkill. Does not leaving enough free space makes your iPad slow? Do you have 16 or 32 Gigabyte iPads? What's your experience of it? Did it become slow over time because of lower free space?

 

[merkinmuffley]

I'm thinking about one too, if I do get it will the 128gb model.

 

[Howard2k]

Lack of space is a pain. I don't know that it slows it down though.

My iPad isn't my primary device so 32GB is loads for me. I just upgraded from a 16GB iPad to give you some perspective though.

What are you looking to do on the iPad? Do you need to store your entire music and video collection on there?

 

[dominiongamma]

Always have extra space if you don't need it. Never know when you may need it.

 

[utilitas]

Go with the 128gb. Too much space won't bother you, less space will. And you will be able to upgrade space after you made your decision.

Also depends on what apps you want to install. If you have some 5gb apps installed plus some music and photos on your ipad, maybe some Netflix download movies, the space will be gone in a second.

Just my thoughts on iPad space as I am facing the same decision right now.

 

[SteveJobzniak]

32 GB is not 32 GB... It's 26 GB. (The OS takes up 6 GB).

Then, the apps take about a gigabyte each (modern games etc are fat).

And photos and videos? Yeah after the OS and apps you'll have something like 10-15 GB left and you'll fit a handful of movies and a few hundred photos.

Personally I'm a guy, I don't need many photos and videos and could live with 32 GB. But my wife is a woman (shocking, I know), and they love photos and videos. 32 GB would make her unhappy since she would constantly have to delete photo and video memories to make room.

So, I hope this helps: Guy with typical guy needs: 32 GB is easily survivable. Woman: 128 GB. No questions about it.

 

[joeblow7777]

If in doubt, better to go with the higher capacity if you can afford it. Having lots of unused storage will never cause you any stress. Not having enough will.

As with many things in life, it's better to have and not need than to need and not have.

 

[profets]

Agreed with the others - unless you're really constrained financially go for the 128.

Honestly, even with my iPhone I feel like 128 is a bit overkill, but somehow it has 100GB used at the moment.

 

[karmamule]

To look at it from a different angle, I'd say you're probably going to be able to live with the 32gb iPad if the following is true:

• You're not going to install many games
• You'll always or almost always have an internet connection so you can rely on having your photos/videos/music served to you on-demand as opposed to needing to store locally on your iPad
• The cost difference between 32gb and 128gb is significant to you and the higher price is on the edge or past your comfort zone for what to spend
• Your primary usages will have low storage requirements, e.g. you'll mostly use it to browse, interact on social services like Facebook/Twitter/etc, or watch videos via YouTube/HBO GO/Hulu/etc

 

[recoil80]

32GB is enough for the average user. I have the 64GB version Air 2 and I have about 20GB available, but I download a lot of apps, even some of my customer's app (more than 1GB each) have plenty of pictures and download many video podcast.
128GB is overkill in my opinion, unless one travels a lot and wants to download movies to watch while commuting, or have a lot of games installed.

 

[Sirmausalot]

When in doubt, go for more storage. But it is mainly for media: films (off line) photos, and your videos. Also content rich games. However, if you are absolutely sure you will be using it primarily for web browsing, streaming, and basic Office tasks, then you can save the money and get the 32GB. Also, you can manage your media and move items on and off the iPad as need be. Movies take about 2-3GB each as do the more graphics rich games. Still, for a hundred or so dollars more, the 128GB is worth it.

 

[mdridwan47]

Thanks for all you responses. I think I'll go for the 128GB version. This'll probably be a device I use for a looooong time. Better safe than sorry. Thanks for all the help!

 

[CausticPuppy]

I have a 32GB Air and it's been fine. My main iOS device is my 128GB iPhone 7+.

The thing taking up the most space on my current iPad is the Photos library, which I have set to "optimize storage" so it'll shrink if I need more room. I just freed up some space by deleted crap I don't use, that left me with about 4.3GB, and then the iOS 10.3 upgrade left me with 5.7GB free.

Since this is basically my "beater" device that the kids occasionally grab I'm just going to trade in my Air 1 for the 32GB iPad, total cost would be around $170 out of pocket (Best Buy quoted $160 trade in). And I can even use my existing smart cover!

 

[rui no onna]

I've been thinking about getting an iPad for a while now. I never owned any apple devices apart from a 4th gen Touch which I still own. I'm really determined to finally get the new iPads. The new 2017 versions looks really nice but which version should I get? 32 or 128?

32GB seems barely enough but 128GB seems like an overkill. Does not leaving enough free space makes your iPad slow? Do you have 16 or 32 Gigabyte iPads? What's your experience of it? Did it become slow over time because of lower free space?

Given the way flash storage works, even with both empty, 128GB is already faster than the 32GB.

For a primarily internet streaming device, 32GB is fine. If you need a bunch of apps, or plan on storing photos and videos, go higher.

Also, keep in mind OTA firmware updates require quite a bit of free space. iOS 8, iirc, was the worst offender requiring something like 5GB free space to install. On a 16GB iPad with only ~11-12GB user-accessible capacity, you almost need to empty your device just to install the update.