All iPads Which iPad to buy for FaceTime video?

[johannnn]

I'm debating to buy my aging parents an iPad each. Mainly for video calling with their grandkids.

What I think is most important is having a retina screen so they can see their grandkids in more pixels.

What I think is second most important is a good front facing camera, so my kids see their grand parents in more pixels, and that it looks good even in my parents' low lightning.

I'm looking to not buy them new, to save money. But I'm in Europe so any links to US refurbished products don't help.

Problem is, which model should I buy?? There are too many "iPad", "iPad Mini", and "iPad Air". Which one do you recommend? Which one gets me a good screen and good front facing camera, without costing too much?

 

[sracer]

All iPads that are currently supported by Apple have excellent screens and front-facing cameras. It's just a matter of the size of the iPad that they will find useful. I bought my elderly parents the 9.7" 6th Gen iPad for that very reason... video calls with us and their grandkids.

It has been working out very well for them. They like the size. It is easy to handle, easy to carry around, and a large variety of cases and covers to choose from.

Perhaps the greatest factor influencing the quality of the video call is the internet service on both ends.

So any 9.7 - 10.2 iPad would work very well... just find one for the best price in your area.

 

[johannnn]

All iPads that are currently supported by Apple have excellent screens and front-facing cameras. It's just a matter of the size of the iPad that they will find useful. I bought my elderly parents the 9.7" 6th Gen iPad for that very reason... video calls with us and their grandkids.

It has been working out very well for them. They like the size. It is easy to handle, easy to carry around, and a large variety of cases and covers to choose from.

Perhaps the greatest factor influencing the quality of the video call is the internet service on both ends.

So any 9.7 - 10.2 iPad would work very well... just find one for the best price in your area.

Thanks. But what do you mean by “currently supported by Apple”? Currently sold in their stores? Since I need to buy 2 iPads, I’m more interested in buying them used (local service sort of Craigslist). So I’m wondering how far back in time it’s ok to go before the compromises are too many.

 

[sracer]

Thanks. But what do you mean by “currently supported by Apple”? Currently sold in their stores? Since I need to buy 2 iPads, I’m more interested in buying them used (local service sort of Craigslist). So I’m wondering how far back in time it’s ok to go before the compromises are too many.

Currently supported as in, "any iPad that is currently receiving updates to iOS". You really don't want to go back too far because there is a possibility that the version of facetime supported on those very old devices is not compatible with newer devices.

 

[*~Kim~*]

iPad Air 3 and iPad mini 5 have the 7MP front facing camera, which will give a better FaceTime picture than the iPad, which I believe is a 1.2MP front facing camera. The Air 3 and Mini 5 are essentially the same specs wise, but the Air 3 has a smart connector to support a Smart Keyboard that the Mini doesn’t. The Mini can still be used with Bluetooth if desired. Between the Air and the Mini, I guess the question is are your parents likely to struggle with a small screen?

The Air has a slight risk of bright spot, but it doesn’t seem as prevalent as it was in the 10.5” Pro.

The iPad 10.2” probably isn’t about refurbished from Apple yet, as it’s only been out about 6 months. Depends if you wanted to buy from Apple or are happy to go elsewhere, and whether the you’re happy with the camera on that one. The 6th Gen iPad is essentially the same iPad as the 10.2” but in 9.7” and with 2GB RAM rather than the 3 (and without the smart connector.)

The iPad 5th Gen (9.7”, 2GB RAM again) is probably as far back as you want to go. It has the A9 (A8 is the earliest currently supported by Apple.) But if you want the best camera you can reasonably get, probably the Mini 5 or Air 3.

The iPad 3 and the Mini 2 were the earliest models with Retina - 2012 and 2013 so I don’t think you need to worry about the screen quality whatever you choose. These models would not be recommended, especially the iPad 3. The processor is underpowered for Retina. Anything pre 2014 only has 1GB RAM.

 

[secretk]

Have in mind that the front facing camera of the iPad is on the short side of the iPad. This means that it almost useless if they use the iPad in landscape orientation because their face won't be seen properly. Whether they will see their grandkids would depend on the orientation of the device the kids are using.

So here are two choices:

1. Your parents can hold the iPads in portrait orientation. The question is would it be OK for them to hold like this for longer periods of time iPads of size above mini.
2. You buy some stand that allows them to place the iPads in portrait orientation.

I personally would prefer the mini because it is easier to be held and can be used for Facetime calls anywhere. That is unless you think that they won't be able to see properly considering the smaller screen.

 

[rui no onna]

7MP is better for selfies but iirc, isn't FaceTime HD still limited to 720p anyway?

I recommend getting an iPad with at least Apple A10 chipset (iPad 9.7" 6th or 10.2" 7th gen). I don't know what codec FaceTime uses right now but Apple A9 only supports HEVC hardware accelerated decode while Apple A10 supports both hardware accelerated decode and encode.

I don't recommend the iPad mini. In general, most people I know who are 50+ find it too small for web browsing, etc. I'm sure your parents would appreciate the larger screen to see their grandkids.

 

[marty1980]

I say avoid the mini models for elderly. A larger screen (9.7 or bigger) will make a big difference. iOS has options for making all the icons and text larger.

The cheapest option is the basic iPad(7th gen) and it’s got a 10.2 inch Retina screen. In the US, you can find these brand new, on sale around $250. You may find the, used at a lower cost.

For $100US more you can get an iPad Air 3 which has the same resolution but the quality of the materials used on the screen are better than the basic iPad.

An iPad Air 2 or iPad 6th gen will also work fine for your needs and have similar differences compared to their respective newer models.

 

[AutomaticApple]

I'm debating to buy my aging parents an iPad each. Mainly for video calling with their grandkids.

What I think is most important is having a retina screen so they can see their grandkids in more pixels.

What I think is second most important is a good front facing camera, so my kids see their grand parents in more pixels, and that it looks good even in my parents' low lightning.

I'm looking to not buy them new, to save money. But I'm in Europe so any links to US refurbished products don't help.

Problem is, which model should I buy?? There are too many "iPad", "iPad Mini", and "iPad Air". Which one do you recommend? Which one gets me a good screen and good front facing camera, without costing too much?

The 3rd/4th gen iPad Pros have a few camera benefits compared to the home button iPads.

 

[Expos of 1969]

I don't recommend the iPad mini. In general, most people I know who are 50+ find it too small for web browsing, etc. I'm sure your parents would appreciate the larger screen to see their grandkids.

Please....how many people do you know 50+ who say this? How old are you?
I hope you interact with a wider group of "elderly people" than you are talking about in your statement. Do you think those of us who have one foot in the grave at 60+ (or the very few alive at 70+) are using magnifying glasses, quills and ink wells?

 

[rui no onna]

Please....how many people do you know 50+ who say this? How old are you?
I hope you interact with a wider group of "elderly people" than you are talking about in your statement. Do you think those of us who have one foot in the grave at 60+ (or the very few alive at 70+) are using magnifying glasses, quills and ink wells?

A small army of aunts and uncles (including extended family). We get together several times in a year and pretty much everyone uses reading glasses. Plenty of iPhone Plus (now XR, 11 or Max) and large Androids. Most are in the church choir and they often joke with the uncle who prints the lyrics sheets that the font should be bigger.

I often get asked for tech feedback and when discussing phones and tablets, so far, all my aunts and uncles I've talked to prefer at least the medium-sized iPads.

I have a lot of coworkers who are 60+ and some who are 70+ and they're still pretty energetic. Their eyes, however, are a different matter. I act as local tech support so I've seen their monitors and majority are in zoom mode with very large icons.

Mind you, I actually do have a co-worker who wears glasses and carries a magnifying glass in his pocket plus has another one by his computer.

 

[EugW]

I would just recommend getting the new 10.2” iPad 7th generation if budget allows. You don’t save much money by going with a 5th or 6th generation iPad, unless you go with crappy 3rd party refurbs or Craigslist. I know you mentioned those as possibilities, but I personally don’t trust them.

Please....how many people do you know 50+ who say this? How old are you?
I hope you interact with a wider group of "elderly people" than you are talking about in your statement. Do you think those of us who have one foot in the grave at 60+ (or the very few alive at 70+) are using magnifying glasses, quills and ink wells?

I am 50+ and I think the iPad mini is too small for comfortable web browsing. Presbyopia sucks.

YMMV, but even though it may work for you, it’s not something I would recommend to most in this age group unless they specifically need a small model for some reason. Plus, the iPad mini costs way more than the iPad anyway, unless you were to get a very old used/refurb model.

To put it another way, I’d take the iPad 7 with A10 SoC and 3 GB RAM over the iPad mini 5 with A12 SoC with 3 GB RAM any day, and I wouldn’t even consider the iPad mini 4 with A8 and 2 GB RAM.

 

[johannnn]

Thanks for all replies.

Another question, is it only the Mini that can't do split screen? I don't know how many times my grandmother have called me for help when she somehow got 2 Safari windows side by side. I'd love to get the elderly an iPad where this can't happen.

 

[EugW]

Thanks for all replies.

Another question, is it only the Mini that can't do split screen? I don't know how many times my grandmother have called me for help when she somehow got 2 Safari windows side by side. I'd love to get the elderly an iPad where this can't happen.

Split view works fine on the iPad mini 4 and later.

iPad mini 3 doesn't support split view, but that device is basically almost junk in 2020.

 

[secretk]

Split view works fine on the iPad mini 4 and later.

iPad mini 3 doesn't support split view, but that device is basically almost junk in 2020.

Weren't there some multitasking settings you can deactivate? Would this disable split screen. Or this is about other gestures.

 

[rui no onna]

Another question, is it only the Mini that can't do split screen? I don't know how many times my grandmother have called me for help when she somehow got 2 Safari windows side by side. I'd love to get the elderly an iPad where this can't happen.

You can disable splitview on any iPad via (iPadOS 13.5):

Settings - Home Screen & Dock - Multitasking

 

[johannnn]

You can disable splitview on any iPad via (iPadOS 13.5):

Settings - Home Screen & Dock - Multitasking

But can you really disable having two Safari windows side-by-side?

 

[rui no onna]

But can you really disable having two Safari windows side-by-side?

You can on 13.5.