iPad Why "Don't buy" an iPad Air2?

[Kajje]

I wouldn't worry about what some article says. The main thing is this: if the price is right then ANY iPad can be a great buy. In other words, I wouldn't advocate buying an Air 2 for full price right now but if you can score a deal then by all means go for it. Same for an Air or even an older iPad. No one really knows what the Air 3 will bring anyways. Life's too short. Get a tablet and enjoy it.

Let these wise words be a lesson for every person in doubt of buying or waiting. The worst that can happen is that you enjoy it.

At the right price, I'd even open my wallet for an iPad2.

It's not that the Air2 - or even the Air1 - will become a useless product in 1 or 2 years time from now.

 

[Liquinn]

http://en.yibada.com/articles/63199...se-in-october-tablet-better-than-ipad-pro.htm

The rumours seem to be saying October now. I guess we'll find out for sure. But the buyers guide says no update until 2016... which is it?

 

[Kal-037]

http://en.yibada.com/articles/63199...se-in-october-tablet-better-than-ipad-pro.htm

The rumours seem to be saying October now. I guess we'll find out for sure. But the buyers guide says no update until 2016... which is it?

Look at the sources. Yibada is not a accredited source or website from what I've seen. Despite what anyone says, I personally think it is possible we could see a silent bump for the Air 2. But no one really knows except Apple. I plan to wait until Mid-October before doing anything. But that's because I'm not in need of a full (regular) sized iPad for a few more weeks. If you want to wait that's cool, if not then the Air 2 is still a beast and can handle anything thrown at it. I plan to buy it myself if no Air 3 is announced.


Kal.

 

[newellj]

I wouldn't worry about what some article says. The main thing is this: if the price is right then ANY iPad can be a great buy. In other words, I wouldn't advocate buying an Air 2 for full price right now but if you can score a deal then by all means go for it. Same for an Air or even an older iPad. No one really knows what the Air 3 will bring anyways. Life's too short. Get a tablet and enjoy it.

This ^^^ is excellent advice all the way around.

 

[newellj]

Look at the sources. Yibada is not a accredited source or website from what I've seen. Despite what anyone says, I personally think it is possible we could see a silent bump for the Air 2. But no one really knows except Apple. I plan to wait until Mid-October before doing anything. But that's because I'm not in need of a full (regular) sized iPad for a few more weeks. If you want to wait that's cool, if not then the Air 2 is still a beast and can handle anything thrown at it. I plan to buy it myself if no Air 3 is announced.


Kal.

Exactly, Yibada is a great source - if you want confusion.

 

[sracer]

I wouldn't worry about what some article says. The main thing is this: if the price is right then ANY iPad can be a great buy. In other words, I wouldn't advocate buying an Air 2 for full price right now but if you can score a deal then by all means go for it. Same for an Air or even an older iPad. No one really knows what the Air 3 will bring anyways. Life's too short. Get a tablet and enjoy it.

Excellent advice.

Along this line, Staples is currently running a sale on iPads this week.

Example:
Air 2 128GB = $599
Air 2 64GB = $499

I just ordered a 128GB Space Gray.

 

[khaosuser]

I was considering updating my iPad but I think I'll hold off for now. There could be an iPad redesign and I'd rather get a regular iPad with Pencil support and 3D touch.

 

[newellj]

I'd bet my eye teeth the 9.7" don't get stylus support. Timing, 3D Touch, etc., I am not going to try to guess at.

 

[bpeeps]

MY comment was Air vs. Air 2 and why I bought an Air 2: for SplitView, which the Air doesn't support.

We can hope/expect that devs will update their apps to allow SplitView. Otherwise the whole thing is at best a half-baked cake.

This is exactly why I sold my Air and I'm going for the Air 2.

 

[VesselA]

Having waited for Apple's latest media event to decide if now is a good time to buy an iPad Air, I've learnt that an upgrade is not due till fall 2016. So why would the Buyers Guide recommend "Don't Buy"? They surely don't expect buyers to wait 12 months?

apple could upgrade to the Air 3 in the January media event - they will probably do an event 1st quarter next year to introduce updated macbook pros with skylake processors then also. they might put force touch on the Air 3 which is pretty minor, or make it lighter, I can't seem them adding pen ability as there would be nothing to distinguish the pro model then

 

[Kal-037]

IF there is an Air 3 in the next month or next year it won't have hardly any of the "Pro" features. Having those defeats the Pro's purpose.
I imagine Air 3 could or will have:
A9X Processor (at a lower clock speed)
Slightly better Cameras
perhaps 3-4 gigs or RAM (this is a big stretch)
Bluetooth 4.2
Same thinness
perhaps slightly lighter or heavier by a gram or two.

There are other cool things Apple could add, but I doubt they will, (3d touch, 4 speakers (unlikely,) 4k video capture, 4k screen, ect, and etc)


Kal.

 

[newellj]

Agree. Update, if it happens at all, would seem likely to be more like the iPad 3 or the Mini 3.

Of course, this is Apple, I could be completely wrong.

 

[pat500000]

Having waited for Apple's latest media event to decide if now is a good time to buy an iPad Air, I've learnt that an upgrade is not due till fall 2016. So why would the Buyers Guide recommend "Don't Buy"? They surely don't expect buyers to wait 12 months?

It's based on rumors...so buy system failed. So go buy

 

[pat500000]

It's now on yellow "caution"... is it safe to buy or should I wait?

I say buy it. Rationale: It has 2gb of ram. That's a beast technology. Wait later and you will have buyer's remorse. If you need it, get it. Based on your statement, you don't appear to be in need for it.

 

[Andres Cantu]

I would only have suggested you buy one if it would have gotten either a storage upgrade or a price decrease. Since neither happened, in my opinion it is not worth buying, since you could have gotten an exact same one for the exact same price almost one year ago. If you can find one for $399 somewhere, then it's a decent deal.

 

[ZhenyaF]

Staples has a deal right now $150 off. For me, it was enough to upgrade from Air to Air 2. I typically upgrade my iPads every 3 years

 

[Supermallet]

I'd wait at least through October as that is the month some new iPads have been introduced in the past.

Yet, as to whether to buy it or not... aren't there still several issues with the iPad Air 2?

1) Speaker vibration.

2) The loss of the side slider for rotation lock or mute.

3) The battery life being less than the original Air (some reviewers said substantially less; others reported little difference).

A substantially discounted Air 1 would thus have some things going for it, although with its older processor, it won't be as future-proofed.

1. The speakers do vibrate a little, but it's not a deal breaker. Given that the current thinness makes this the easiest, most comfortable 9.7" iPad to hold, it's a trade off I'm willing to take. Having a 6 Plus and the Air 2 makes the Mini completely obsolete, IMO. With the Air 2 I get the benefits of the larger screen with the lightness of a smaller tablet.

2. This is also a trade-off for thinness, but those features are now in the control center and they're not coming back as a physical button. Apple isn't going to make the iPad Air 3 thicker just to include those buttons when the vast majority of users have no problem with them being in the control center.

3. The battery life on the Air 2 is great, and any slight difference between the Air and the Air 2 is more than made up for in the massive performance gains.

A substantially discounted Air 1 is not as good of a deal as the current Staples deal on the Air 2. I had the Air 1 and the A8X processor and the 2 GB of RAM make a huge difference in performance for the Air 2.

Honestly, even if the Air 3 gets 3D Touch AND stylus support, I'm not going to upgrade. The Air 2 is that good. It's a phenomenal tablet at full price and with the current Staples sale it should be a must buy. The iPad 2 was sold for years and was a huge popular seller. The iPad Air 2 will have that kind of longevity. It's got the right tech to keep up with the next several OS upgrades and even if it won't have all the bells and whistles of future iPads, it's going to be a reliable workhorse that keeps on chugging.

 

[jev425]

I got in on the staples deal for an air 2. I picked up a mini 4 today and now not sure which one I like better. The mini form factor is really nice but the air 2 bigger screen and amazing performance is great. I almost want to keep both, leaving the air 2 for home and mini 4 for on the go...

 

[Badrottie]

Tim Cook is doing survey on MacRumors users to buy iPad Pro or not for next year iPad Air Pro.

 

[richfromroch]

Picked up a 64GB Air2 in space gray at Staples. The price is actually $449 not $499 as earlier stated. At that price I had to open the wallet. I was going to grab a Mini 4 at some point, but the Air 2 is a much better deal. Better hurry. The Staples stores here in Rochester, NY are very low in inventory. Staples' inventory on-line seems to be OK, though. I think sale ends 9/26.
Rich
Webster, NY

 

[RebornProphet]

I've been chugging along on my iPad 3 with high hopes to upgrade to an Air 3 after 3.5 year. Of course, this year is the first year that there is no 9.7" iPad. The Air 2 is still a fast and powerful tablet, but I will not buy 2014's A8X in 2015 with the A9 and A9X already out.

I got burned too bad by my iPad 3. I don't want any features taken from me. When I upgrade, it will be because Apple announced an iPad Air 3 with an A9/A10 series chip. I'd love Apple Pencil and 3D touch capability, but I suppose these features will have to trickle down from the Pro.

I too was burned by the iPad 3, thankfully I ditched it for the iPad 4 and subsequently the Air and Air 2.

There is no comparison between both devices in terms of getting "burned". The Air 2, right now, is the optimal 9.7" iPad model, there's very little Apple could do with it for now given that the Pro is out. Had Apple not planned the Pro, it would have been business this usual this year with an A8 Mini 4 and A9X iPad Air 3, but I think next year we will see the A9X go into next years Air 3 when the A10X goes into the Pro 2.

So, with that in mind if you stick with the 9.7" model next year you'll still be getting a year old chip (2015 chip in a 2016 device, as opposed to your example of a 2014 chip in a 2015 device).

Don't worry about getting burned with the Air 2, it's in nowhere near underpowered like the iPad 3 was.

 

[newellj]

Yes. The iPad 3 (I got burned, too) was marginal when shipped. The Air 2 was at least a year ahead of the existing iOS demands when first shipped and there's very little that takes anything near full advantage of the Air 2's A8X and GPU today. I think it's still a safe buy and at these prices it's really a no-brainer.

I too was burned by the iPad 3, thankfully I ditched it for the iPad 4 and subsequently the Air and Air 2.

There is no comparison between both devices in terms of getting "burned". The Air 2, right now, is the optimal 9.7" iPad model, there's very little Apple could do with it for now given that the Pro is out. Had Apple not planned the Pro, it would have been business this usual this year with an A8 Mini 4 and A9X iPad Air 3, but I think next year we will see the A9X go into next years Air 3 when the A10X goes into the Pro 2.

So, with that in mind if you stick with the 9.7" model next year you'll still be getting a year old chip (2015 chip in a 2016 device, as opposed to your example of a 2014 chip in a 2015 device).

Don't worry about getting burned with the Air 2, it's in nowhere near underpowered like the iPad 3 was.