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undecided if I would buy a gen II again

G

glen e

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Jun 19, 2010
2,619
2
Ft Lauderdale
Got my ipad2 last night and put it thru all it's paces I would buy again, but there is not a lot of diff between the ipad 1 and 2 upon close inspection:

1. yeah it's thinner, but not surprisingly thinner - not so much people can notice until I point it out
2. its faster, but does not make the old pad look slow
3. I do 75 slide presentations using keynote and for this it's faster - and the sole reason I'm keeping it. The mirroring is also nice with my ipad 1 vga adapter.
4. don't care about the cameras
5. do like the smartcover but it's not a case

So I'll keep it, but the diff is not overwhelming. Not so much that I need to replace my wife's Gen I unit....
 
glen e said:
1. yeah it's thinner, but not surprisingly thinner - not so much people can notice until I point it out
2. its faster, but does not make the old pad look slow
Click to expand...

Regarding 1: to my hand it's both noticeably thinner and appreciably lighter, and to the point I like to use it naked. Anyone that has to be told it's thinner and lighter never owned a 1. The iPad 2 is heavier than a Kindle, I'll give you that, but that's like comparing feathers to Smart Cars.

Regarding 2: try Garage Band. If you get deep into it w/ the 1 the 1 will choke. Now you may not be into GB, I'm not either, but it's a great demo app to showcase the power of the iPad 2. More apps are going to start harnessing this power now that it's available (most iPad apps now are iPad 1 "legacy" apps) and then you will notice the difference.
 
OP, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I'm an iPad 1 owner who is on the fence about upgrading to iPad 2. I don't care much about the lighter weight and cameras. The only feature I am interested is the faster processor and larger RAM, and I was curious how much the "faster" hardware suppose to make a difference. After reading your post, I gather the answer is "perhaps not"...

iPad 2 owners: could you please sharing your experience if your find the faster hardware of the new iPad makes a significant improvement on the apps that you use, besides Garage Band.
 
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So then why'd you buy it? At this point, all the specs, benchmarks, and reviews are out there so there should have been no surprises therefor no disappointment or you really didn't need one.
 
If a person didn't have an iPad1, then going to the iPad2 is a great buy but speaking as an iPad1 owner, I didn't see enough to tempt me to make the change. Sure its a little heavy and doesn't have cameras but I never make video calls and the weight didn't stop me before. I actually like the Apple Case for the first gen iPad, it protects the device well and the stand angles are great. Maybe 3rd gen will make me switch...
 
I completely agree. I would say that the differences between the iPad 1 and iPad 2, at this moment in time, is negligible. That is to say once apps start being written for the new power, we will be able to notice the difference like GarageBand. The one reason I bought an iPad 2 was because my wife wanted my iPad 1.

That being said, I absolutely love the new physical form factor, and the smart cover, and I'm very careful with the back and use a Targus 10" iPad sleeve most of the time. :)
 
Perihelion said:
If a person didn't have an iPad1, then going to the iPad2 is a great buy but speaking as an iPad1 owner, I didn't see enough to tempt me to make the change.
Click to expand...

This. It's getting old seeing all the iPad 1 owners complain about the iPad 2. Face it, it's faster, lighter, and better all around than the iPad 1. If someone didn't own an iPad 1 they'd be overjoyed with it, but is it worth upgrading to if you already owned one? It might be or it might not be, that's up to the person to decide.
 
It didn't occur to me anyone is complaining the iPad 2. Instead, useful information, insightful thoughts and 1st hand experience were exchanged. I found these posts to be very useful in helping me, and other iPad owners to decide whether they should upgrade or not.
 
mloffa said:
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_3 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8F190 Safari/6533.18.5)

So then why'd you buy it? At this point, all the specs, benchmarks, and reviews are out there so there should have been no surprises therefor no disappointment or you really didn't need one.
Click to expand...

get a grip....no one's complaining - I buy everything apple makes in ipads and phones - I love their stuff and retired off apple stock. I hope they sell a million of them. My point is that I own two pads - my wife won't be able to tell a diff in the grand scheme of things. I wrote my observations for those that may be thinking of replacing their pad for general home use. For that I don't think you have to. it's that simple.

And I agree about the increased ram and more apps will take advantage of it - then the diff will be worth it more....
 
silverblack said:
It didn't occur to me anyone is complaining the iPad 2. Instead, useful information, insightful thoughts and 1st hand experience were exchanged. I found these posts to be very useful in helping me, and other iPad owners to decide whether they should upgrade or not.
Click to expand...

You are right, not as much in this thread, but it's been happening a lot in other threads and most of the time it's from people who already owned an iPad. If someone cant justify spending more money for an iPad 2 then don't buy one. But if you do don't complain that it isn't worth the money. It is worth the money no matter how you look at it.
 
For most people there is no compelling reason to upgrade from an iPad 1. I got an iPad 2 because I like to have the newest tech.

It is considerably thinner - it makes the original feel a little bulky. But beyond that I would be hard pressed to pick out any difference. I ran the 1 and 2 side by side for a performance test and while there was a difference it was small. It is a big advantage to have double the RAM to improve Safari performance and multi-tasking.

The cameras are terrible. Just about passable for FaceTime for you'd get better still from a 2005 Nokia burner.

So while I certainly don't regret my purchase (I think the performance difference will grow more apparent as apps appear to take advantage of it) I wouldn't recommend happy iPad 1 owners rush out to buy one.
 
The difference is similar to iPhone 3G/3GS but I'm a first time buyer so the decision was simpler for me.
 
I recently bought two iPads mainly due to the fact that my mother has become seriously ill. As the folks live some distance away they don't get a chance to see the grandchildren as often as they like.

For me the iPad2 with its cameras was a deal breaker. Its really easy for them to use and has sufficient battery life that I know that when I call it there will be some juice that will allow us to video conf.

Now if it wasn't for the above, I wouldn't have upgraded. Dont get me wrong, I am not complaining I love the iPad2 but I also loved the iPad1. As stated in this thread its not a huge leap forward. Yes there are some speed improvements but to me its not drastic enough to warrant the price of an upgrade.

So if the cameras don't mean that much, and you already have an iPad1 I personally wouldn't recommend the upgrade.

If you don't have an iPad1 and can afford the extra then get the iPad2, either way you won't be dissapointed.
 
I have gone back and forth on here with the iPad 2

I first said I was not
Then I ordered it online
Then I cancelled it

I went to a local Apple Store and played with it some more and just didn't see or feel a big difference. Now, I already had played with a friends iPad2 for several days.

But, like the OP said...the thinness and speed are better but not that MUCH for some like myself
 
I don't really care if there are multiple threads on the same subject but there seem to be a lot of threads on the same subject, even prior to the ipad 2 coming out. I read and did research on it because I was considering buying a refurbished ipad 1 instead. Most of the consensus on tech websites was that it wouldn't be a compelling upgrade for current ipad 1 owners.
 
silverblack said:
OP, thanks for sharing your thoughts. I'm an iPad 1 owner who is on the fence about upgrading to iPad 2. I don't care much about the lighter weight and cameras. The only feature I am interested is the faster processor and larger RAM, and I was curious how much the "faster" hardware suppose to make a difference. After reading your post, I gather the answer is "perhaps not"...

iPad 2 owners: could you please sharing your experience if your find the faster hardware of the new iPad makes a significant improvement on the apps that you use, besides Garage Band.
Click to expand...

I don't own an ipad 2 yet, but this is a general rule in technology, with faster hardware comes better software. Right now you'll see relatively minimal increases in speed with current apps, but there will be new apps that take advantage of that extra oomph the ipad 2 offers. I know from using an ipad 2 and watching videos on the internet that the multitasking is also much more responsive and snappier on ipad 2.

That being said, if all you want to use your ipad for is surf the web, check email, watch videos, etc. then yeah there's not a big reason to upgrade. But if you're interested in multitasking, playing the more serious games, using it as more of a productivity tool (digital art, music creation, video editing, etc.) then an upgrade might be worth it.

My advice to someone with an ipad 1 is to avoid upgrading at all costs if you can, because there's going to be an ipad 3 and if you're happy with what you have upgrading is really kind of a waste of money. Basically if there's any doubt that you should upgrade, you probably don't need to. But if the thought of the extra power and what that offers is appealing enough, and you have the disposable income, go for it.
 
I have both a 2 and a 1 and I am completely confused how anybody that has held both of these units doesn't feel that the iPad is noticeably thinner. Its a huge difference.
 
I'm currently a noPad user but FedEx tracking indicates iPad 2 arrival this week. Will I notice a significant difference?
 
PhoneI said:
I have both a 2 and a 1 and I am completely confused how anybody that has held both of these units doesn't feel that the iPad is noticeably thinner. Its a huge difference.
Click to expand...

Ditto. To me, I am most impressed with the thinness of the 2 and its lighter weight. Very noticeable.
 
Sodner said:
Ditto. To me, I am most impressed with the thinness of the 2 and its lighter weight. Very noticeable.
Click to expand...

I don't disagree, if you hold them side by side naked in your hands - but put both of them in a protection cladding like the portenzo or marware and the diff becomes much less noticeable...I don't run the units naked....
 
glen e said:
I don't disagree, if you hold them side by side naked in your hands - but put both of them in a protection cladding like the portenzo or marware and the diff becomes much less noticeable...I don't run the units naked....
Click to expand...

Good point. Having my iPad 1 in the Apple case all this time, I can't imagine myself using iPad 2 without a case to protect the back, if I ended up getting it.
 
PhoneI said:
I have both a 2 and a 1 and I am completely confused how anybody that has held both of these units doesn't feel that the iPad is noticeably thinner. Its a huge difference.
Click to expand...

I know this may be hard to believe, but I don't really care.

iPad1 is thin enough for me, and has more space inside.
Heck some people might have liked an iPad2 in the same case but with a 16 hour battery instead.

I'm not saying thin is bad, but there is more to a product than how thin it is.

Actually seeing the screen issues and how flexible it is, I may even suggest the iPad2 is too thin, it's so thin it's made it weak.

Again, thin is nice, as long as you don't start incurring other issues because of it.

Apple's problem is, now they have make is this thin, as the moment it's not stiff enough any more. Perhaps they need some internal bracing to stiffen it back up in the future.

They might just of gone a bit too far.
 
Only thing that's thrown me about the iPad2 is the speaker. It's placement and quality just seem off from the iPad1. It draws my attention to one side and seems quieter.

The thinness is nice. Can't say I noticed the speed differential yet. I do like the built-in cameras for Skyping but I'm not happy about their cheap quality.

I upgraded partially as an excuse to get more storage space (I was maxing out with my old 32GB) and partially out of a sheep-like "It's Apple latest greatest toy" mentality. If I had to do over again, I don't know I would.

I ordered the iPad2 online the day purchasing began mostly out of frustration I couldn't get one in the store. For a week I obsessed over it. Then I acquired an iPad1 16GB refurb model and my excitement turned a bit more realistic.

I really doubt I'll be upgrading to iPad3 next year. My 1 & 2 are fine for my needs. My next upgrade path will probably run to a different manufacturer with better hardware specs.

I think if anyone is buying now, I'd recommend first a refurb iPad1 from Apple. While supplies last there are same damn good buys. Once that sells out you can go for the iPad2. I just don't think the sound is gonna be as satisfactory.

My iPad1 was my 'go anywhere' TV. No headphones or external speakers needed. With the iPad2 I feel compelled to shop for speakers. And the thinness kinda makes it feel more like a toy.
 
daneoni said:
The difference is similar to iPhone 3G/3GS but I'm a first time buyer so the decision was simpler for me.
Click to expand...

Wow, that big of a difference? To me the 3G was unbearably slow switching between and loading apps... and doing anything else for that matter. The 3GS was a huge jump in just about everything speed wise. I remember being extremely impressed with the difference.

I don't find that my iPad is slow at many things, though faster is always better.
 
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