I think that I'd look for a set of small, bluetooth speakers if I wanted better sound. It would improve battery life on the iPad as well. I do have bluetooth headsets but sometimes speakers are nice. I wonder if there's a clipon or dock speaker. They had those for iPods a long time ago.
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iPad mini Real thoughts on iPad mini 5?...
- Thread starter Kal-037
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sracer
macrumors G4
What do you mean by "true stereo speakers"? The Mini 4 has stereo speakers. I would expect the Mini 5 to as well.
mine's had four hours of real use, mostly re-organizing my folders, signing into apps to download/restore purchases, playing around with GarageBand, Korg Gadget and Noise apps and reading a comic book. First impressions:
Good:
Eh:
Neutral:
Good:
- its been maybe 2 years since I've owned a mini, I think my last one was a version 2 64g I sold 2-3 years ago and I MISSED the size of this thing. its the perfect middle-ground between a phone and workstation iPad. comics, books, sites, perfect for sitting on the couch-- I have a cat and with the 11" iPad he'd try to get just enough attention to make me uncomfortable, now he can chill and I can still read.
- might be confirmation bias of a new toy but I don't remember my iPad 2 retina looking this good. ppi is the same I think but the colors seem brighter or something.
- I tried using Gadget, GarageBand and Noise and it's very very easy and fast. Keys are smaller but super comfortable compared to an iPhone size/UI. I also tried exporting some GarageBand tunes and it's fast. no surprises really. psyched.
- I'm not taking this out of the house until I get a case but it's coming tomorrow and after that its going everywhere with me and I'll see what I think at that point. can't wait.
Eh:
- I don't "need" it, like at all. not even in the sense that I don't "need" any mobile computer past my phone. I have my iPP and this is a pure luxury and a complete bonus device I can not have to think about and feel privileged/lucky/mild guilt over owning. I have no justification for this device except I like it and it will see use. liking it/using it is fine enough justification, but also the fact that it's unnecessary is just enough to have me considering returning it.
Neutral:
- no new updates to the hardware-- for me this is a good thing. I like the old model, kinda don't like faceid at all just as a concept, and the older hardware is lowkey/less conspicuous. I always feel self-conscious bringing a shiny new toy to a Starbucks or on a train, either because it feels ostentatious or because it feels like its potentially attracting a thief. I'm pretty sure this isn't going to have that problem. or at least I won't feel that way.
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I think that he means that they would be on the left and right if you're holding it in landscape mode.
Quad speakers were the feature I was hoping for most on the mini 5, since my only major complaint about my mini 4 was regarding the speakers—being on one side, they are sometimes both blocked depending on how I have the device situated, and they could stand to be louder in general. But the addition of pencil support is definitely welcome. I think I would usually prefer my 12.9 for most of my pencil uses, but writing/drawing on the mini will probably be useful in some situations. And the hefty internals update should prove to keep the mini up to date software-wise for many years to come, so that is appreciated, although I was kind of expecting it.
Edit- Oh and apparently the mini 5 has touch ID 2 so that is also very appreciated. As well as the storage increase of course. I don’t have any experience with truetone, and I never had complaints about colors (I don’t use my mini for serious movie/tv watching), so I’ll see how much I appreciate those display improvements.
Even more than a speaker upgrade, I wished the mini had a size reduction for comfortable for one-handed holding, but that isn’t realistic.
I haven’t gotten the mini 5 yet. I was planning on holding onto my mini 4 since the mini 5 didn’t get a speaker upgrade and otherwise the mini 4 still works well, but there are two reasons I’ll probably go ahead and get the 5: 1) I have a family member who would appreciate inheriting my mini 4, and 2) I realized that my mini 4 probably won’t last me until the mini 6, assuming the 6 comes another 3-4 years from now. So if I’m not skipping a generation, there’s probably no point in delaying buying the mini 5. Since a mini 5 purchased two years from now and a mini 5 purchased now will lose support at the same time, I will only stand to lose two years of enjoying the advantages of the mini 5 over the 4.
Edit- Oh and apparently the mini 5 has touch ID 2 so that is also very appreciated. As well as the storage increase of course. I don’t have any experience with truetone, and I never had complaints about colors (I don’t use my mini for serious movie/tv watching), so I’ll see how much I appreciate those display improvements.
Even more than a speaker upgrade, I wished the mini had a size reduction for comfortable for one-handed holding, but that isn’t realistic.
I haven’t gotten the mini 5 yet. I was planning on holding onto my mini 4 since the mini 5 didn’t get a speaker upgrade and otherwise the mini 4 still works well, but there are two reasons I’ll probably go ahead and get the 5: 1) I have a family member who would appreciate inheriting my mini 4, and 2) I realized that my mini 4 probably won’t last me until the mini 6, assuming the 6 comes another 3-4 years from now. So if I’m not skipping a generation, there’s probably no point in delaying buying the mini 5. Since a mini 5 purchased two years from now and a mini 5 purchased now will lose support at the same time, I will only stand to lose two years of enjoying the advantages of the mini 5 over the 4.
I wish Apple made a Nexus 7-sized ios reader! It was THE perfect width for holding with one hand.
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Ladybug
macrumors 68000
iPad Mini 5 Silver 64gb WiFi ...my thoughts so far after 1 day of use
It’s so tiny and cute.
Very light, I had forgot how light these were.
Ideal for reading my Kindle books
Awesome for media consumption.
AirPods make a great accessory, or earbuds even
Bezels do not bother me..in landscape they make great handles
Battery life is what you would expect on an Apple device
Speakers are probably the one thing I think could be improved
Laminated screen is both bright and beautiful
Apple Pencil works just as well as it does on my 10.5 Pro
To sum it up I am happy with my device. My intended use is for media consumption, reading, and the web. It will be easy to grab for some reading time out on my patio or when I leave the house. It makes a great companion device. Did I mention how cute it is? 🙂
It’s so tiny and cute.
Very light, I had forgot how light these were.
Ideal for reading my Kindle books
Awesome for media consumption.
AirPods make a great accessory, or earbuds even
Bezels do not bother me..in landscape they make great handles
Battery life is what you would expect on an Apple device
Speakers are probably the one thing I think could be improved
Laminated screen is both bright and beautiful
Apple Pencil works just as well as it does on my 10.5 Pro
To sum it up I am happy with my device. My intended use is for media consumption, reading, and the web. It will be easy to grab for some reading time out on my patio or when I leave the house. It makes a great companion device. Did I mention how cute it is? 🙂
Light: Yup.
Kindle: Yup.
Media: Yup.
Airpods: Nope.
Bezels: Yup.
Battery life: No idea.
Speakers: Nope.
Screen: Yup.
Pencil: No idea.
I hope you get much pleasure out of it.
profmjh
macrumors 68000
Because I’ll be replacing an iPad Pro with four speakers for an iPad Mini with two. Just how much worse is it going to be? Will it be a dealbreaker?
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This is reassuring 🙂
One short (but relevant) first impression: After three hours of regular use, the battery life is absolutely crushing what I was getting from the Mini 4. The Mini 4’s battery was at 94% health, FYI. So far, the 5 is in a whole different league...the more efficient processor must make a big difference.
HeadphoneAddict
macrumors 65816
You get so little stereo separation on a device that size that I really don't believe it to be that important. For my part, I'll either use a fairly decent pair of wired headphones or listen over a speaker via AirPlay; that last being far more satisfying but obviously not always practical.
I compared the speakers in the Mini 2, Mini 5 and iPhone 7+. The Mini 5 and 7+ put out the same amount of volume but the 7+ shows distortion at higher volumes while the Mini 5 does not - that should be expected due to the larger size and maybe mass. The Mini 2 definitely puts out less volume than the other two without any distortion but that's to be expected due to the lower volume output.
I'm finding that I reach for the Mini 5 at home instead of my 7+. The bigger screen is just nicer. It is faster too but not enough to make a difference. With the Mini 2, I can wait for seconds or even a minute for something to load while I don't on the Mini 5. The Mini also fits in my jeans pocket though obviously not when I'm sitting down.
I'm finding that I reach for the Mini 5 at home instead of my 7+. The bigger screen is just nicer. It is faster too but not enough to make a difference. With the Mini 2, I can wait for seconds or even a minute for something to load while I don't on the Mini 5. The Mini also fits in my jeans pocket though obviously not when I'm sitting down.
For me, at any rate, it hits a sweet spot, at least for certain activities, vis-à-vis larger tablets in the same way I'm more likely to pick up a paperback than a hardcover despite the fact the latter is oftentimes more aesthetically pleasing.
kazmac
macrumors G4
Knowing me and Apple products speakers, death metal will either sound great or like crap. 😀 Hoping for the former tomorrow.
Enjoy your Mini 5.🙂
I’ll post with drawing tests in Procreate and Sketches Pro as soon as I can, I have to go to work after picking the Mini up.
My 2018 iPad was worth $175 for trade in and I received a pro-rated refund on its Apple Care of $47, so $222 toward the Mini, another Pencil and AC.
I want it so bad, been itching to draw since Tuesday.
I'm going to get back to reading books with the Mini 5. I have The Misbehavior of Markets on it now and a sample of a textbook on Fractal Geometry. I wanted to buy The Fractal Geometry of Nature but it's only available in hardcover and it's a big book so I looked around for something else that's on Kindle and found a more modern textbook. I still would like to read the classic text but it's really hard to overcome the convenience of taking a normally large book and carrying it around on a small and light device like the Mini 5.
I imagine that the Kindle has been responsible for a resurgence in reading books. I haven't read a book in a few years - it's a lot more technical reading, news, articles, etc. Reading books can be technical too but it can also be fun and relaxing.
I own a Paperwhite, but I much prefer reading on a tablet. Not only can I see more text, I also find the text clearer. Additionally, a great advantage is the speed at which I can find out something. Thus, for example, some time ago I was reading a Swedish crime novel in which a certain town in Northern Sweden was mentioned. I was intrigued to see what it actually looked like. A few seconds later I was checking it out on YouTube. My whim satisfied, I returned to the book. I also am a fan of Kindle X-Ray and immersion reading. Moreover, everything is considerably faster on a tablet. Consequently, I find is so much easier to go back and forth in text.
Ladybug
macrumors 68000
Hope you get your Mini soon. Please post your sketches in the sketching thread. I hung onto my iPad Pro, I plan to still use it in the future.
I like the mini5. My biggest gripe:
Memory upgrade at $150! almost 40% of the price of the mini when I barely need more than 64 GB. I'd say Apple should add blocks of memory at no more than $100 price increments.
Memory upgrade at $150! almost 40% of the price of the mini when I barely need more than 64 GB. I'd say Apple should add blocks of memory at no more than $100 price increments.
kazmac
macrumors G4
I played with a Mini briefly at one of the dud Best Buy stores in NYC.
Tried split screen with notes and safari, it’s tight, but I suspect it should be okay for me for drawing.
Drawing in notes was fine. The Mini was very responsive, and the size and weight are perfect for everything else.
It took so much will power not to buy one at Best Buy today.
More tomorrow, but I think it will definitely work for me.
Tried split screen with notes and safari, it’s tight, but I suspect it should be okay for me for drawing.
Drawing in notes was fine. The Mini was very responsive, and the size and weight are perfect for everything else.
It took so much will power not to buy one at Best Buy today.
More tomorrow, but I think it will definitely work for me.
I would be grateful if somebody could confirm if the home button is a physical button or haptic like the iPhone 7 onwards?
That’s really disappointing but unsurprising; my last iPad had an issue with the home button outside warranty and I can’t see why Apple, having discounted face ID, decided to put old tech instead of the “latest” version of old tech....