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Which iPad 2? 16GB-64GB?

A

AlaskaMoose

macrumors 601
Original poster
Apr 26, 2008
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Alaska
My wife, who never asks for anything because she is extremely thrifty, asked me for an iPad 2 recently. She wants it for Christmas, but I will be ordering it probably by “Black Friday” or so with the hope of getting a discount. Otherwise I can buy a refurbished one from Apple, or just a new one if everything else fails.

The questions I have for you will help me decide which iPad 2 I will buy. But first I will explain how my wife plans to use it: to surf the net, but only occasionally, to check her E-mail, to communicate with our family and friends at Facebook every now and then, and to download an eBook or two to her computer for storage, and read them on the iPad. More than likely she won’t use it as a reader, so this is just a possibility. Sometime in the future she may use it while visiting her parents, but since they nor my wife have no idea how to set their router for Wi-Fi and such, my wife can use temporary (30-day) 3G service from AT&T. That’s the only time or location she will need the 3G feature.

I will also download and install a couple of useful apps (Pages, for example), or any other app that won’t fill space too much. It’s also possible that she would like some of her music installed on the iPad, but not more than 5GB or so.

My question is as follows:

Which iPad “GB size + 3G” should I buy (16GB, 32GB, or 64GB) and why?

I sincerely appreciate your input, and thank you in advance.
 
I use my iPad for college, and have found the 16gb version is plenty of room. It helps limit me to the useful apps, so I don't overload it with apps that won't get used after a while.

On my iPad, I have a couple textbooks, a few apps (including some games like Infinity Blade and Plants vs. Zombies), and I still have room left over.

However, I have found with my iPhone that if you want to have a comfortable amount of memory, then 32gb is the way to go.
 
For the use you describe, 16GB should be enough.

Problem is, these things are not upgradeable. If you find you need more room, you can always sell it and but another one with more space.

Doesn't sound like she's into movies, or music, or games. Those are the things that eat up the most space. Some games are over 1GB now. EACH. But since she's into none of that, then 16GB is enough. But, like I said, if she GETS into any of this later (like she starts taking videos of anything that moves), then you can always buy her a bigger one.
 
ZBoater said:
For the use you describe, 16GB should be enough.

Problem is, these things are not upgradeable. If you find you need more room, you can always sell it and but another one with more space.

Doesn't sound like she's into movies, or music, or games. Those are the things that eat up the most space. Some games are over 1GB now. EACH. But since she's into none of that, then 16GB is enough. But, like I said, if she GETS into any of this later (like she starts taking videos of anything that moves), then you can always buy her a bigger one.
Click to expand...
Thanks.

She is not into movies nor games. She just wants the iPad for convenience since she can check her mail or surf the net, etc, while she is in the living room (for example) and does not want to use her computer at the computer room we have. I use a Macbook Pro for the same reasons, and was going to give it to get as a present, but she thinks it's too cumbersome (heavy, bulky, hard to hold-on to). When I offered her the new Macbook, that's when she said, "no, but I would take an iPad 2 if you want." :D

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ZBoater said:
For the use you describe, 16GB should be enough.

Problem is, these things are not upgradeable. If you find you need more room, you can always sell it and but another one with more space.

Doesn't sound like she's into movies, or music, or games. Those are the things that eat up the most space. Some games are over 1GB now. EACH. But since she's into none of that, then 16GB is enough. But, like I said, if she GETS into any of this later (like she starts taking videos of anything that moves), then you can always buy her a bigger one.
Click to expand...

Thanks, ZBoater.

It seems that a 16GB one is a good choice. Besides, I can always buy a 32GB iPad 3 next year if I have to. Maybe I "buy it for her for me to use" since she is not into trying to keep-up with technology.
 
AlaskaMoose said:
She is not into movies nor games. She just wants the iPad for convenience since she can check her mail or surf the net, etc, while she is in the living room (for example) and does not want to use her computer at the computer room we have. I use a Macbook Pro for the same reasons, and was going to give it to get as a present, but she thinks it's too cumbersome (heavy, bulky, hard to hold-on to). When I offered her the new Macbook, that's when she said, "no, but I would take an iPad 2 if you want."
Click to expand...

Even if she got into games, 16GB will be more than sufficient for a lot of the simpler (Angry Birds) games and several movies too. Also Best Buy is definitely having $45 off of any iPad 2, but you may be able to find better deals for this Friday.

edit: Didn't realize this was an old thread.
 
Last edited:
doboy said:
Even if she got into games, 16GB will be more than sufficient for a lot of the simpler (Angry Birds) games and several movies too. Also Best Buy is definitely having $45 off of any iPad 2, but you may be able to find better deals for this Friday.

edit: Didn't realize this was an old thread.
Click to expand...
Ah, don't feel too bad. I posted here same as you did, and it's not that old to begin with. Black Friday hasn't come and gone yet. :cool:
 
AlaskaMoose said:
Which iPad “GB size + 3G” should I buy (16GB, 32GB, or 64GB) and why?
Click to expand...
As with any thread asking about which capacity to buy you should buy whatever capacity suits the user's needs and fits your budget. There's really nothing in your OP that addresses those 2 points so it's impossible to tell you which one to get. 16GB sounds sufficient but there's no way for us to guarantee that her usage won't change once she actually gets the iPad and starts using it.

If you're like me and don't want to worry about space limitations you buy the one with the most capacity.
 
takeshi74 said:
As with any thread asking about which capacity to buy you should buy whatever capacity suits the user's needs and fits your budget. There's really nothing in your OP that addresses those 2 points so it's impossible to tell you which one to get. 16GB sounds sufficient but there's no way for us to guarantee that her usage won't change once she actually gets the iPad and starts using it.

If you're like me and don't want to worry about space limitations you buy the one with the most capacity.
Click to expand...

Exactly. I got a 16GB iPad 1 last year and figured it was enough. After I got my iPad, I found so many uses for it that the 16gb filled up quickly. I've got a 32 GB iPad 2 now and even that's almost full.
 
For what she will be doing with it 16GB is plenty. Really the storage only becomes an issues when you start putting a lot of music and maybe movies on them. Apps/Books typically don't eat much space at all. Of course there are some exceptions, but nothing she would probably worry about.

I would offer one thing. If she will only need 3G in that one location, perhaps go with WiFi only and add tethering (that is if she has a capable phone) before she goes. You can turn it off when she is back. I know with AT&T I can turn it on and back off in as little as a few days and I am only charged for that time. I am not sure if the 3G service via the iPad is that granular.

Saves $130 for the device.

Also, you could get a 32GB due to the savings of the device.
 
32GB.

More space means you don't need to delete stuff as often, room to explore.

16Gb might last you a year, but eventually...

And congrats!!
 
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