iPad Worth upgrading to an Air 1 from a 4?

[Jawnathin]

I've currently got a iPad 4 and came across a great deal for a similarly spec'ed Air 1. Would cost less than $100 out of pocket to make the switch, hopefully closer to $50. Just gotta do the wheeling and dealing and sell the 4.

As much as I would like an Air 2, that is closer to $400 out of pocket and therefore a lot more expensive.

I'm pretty happy with the 4 for the time I've had it, it did give me trouble on the initial upgrade to iOS8, but after a full restore its much better now. Its still not as fast as I would like but oh well.

Anyone move from a 4 to an Air 1? Is it worth the upgrade? I know that A7 is pretty killer, but the A6X isn't too shabby either.

Thanks.

 

[zhenya]

I have had both in the house for the past year or so. I would not say it's worth it for the speed alone. For me it was all about the weight - the Air is so much lighter and easy to hold that it changed how I viewed the device. We still use both every day and I would have a hard time telling the difference in day to day use as to which is faster.

Still, if it's only $100, that's a pretty good price for the upgrade.

 

[Jawnathin]

Thanks for that, I appreciate your feedback.

My biggest desire is improved performance. But it sounds like it might not be that noticeable. That is a bummer, the A7 was really fast in my 5S.

You bright up a good point, I do really like the Air form factor (the Air, Mini & iPhone 5 have the best design language from Apple IMO) and while I don't find my 4 to be a burden, I would appreciate the reduced weight and smaller size.

I still have some thinking to do...

 

[vgamedude]

I was very disappointed when I had the Air, I got a refund. The 1gb of RAM alone to me is enough to say no it doesn't warrant an upgrade.

 

[mrsean]

I own an Air 1. You should skip it and save enough money for an Air 2 instead.

 

[iF34R]

I've kept my 4 instead of getting an Air. The weight was the biggest benefit for me, but I held out until this new one was announced.

 

[mangomind]

It's not worth the upgrade to Air 1. It has the same 1GB RAM and the CPU/GPU upgrades aren't very noticeable. The Air 1 features focused on light/thin. Upgrade to Air 2, it should be called Air S, because it is focused on internal improvements, increasing its longevity. Speaking of longevity, you should have kept your iPad 4 on the iOS it came with, iOS 6, for performance longevity.

 

[Jawnathin]

Very interesting, I must say I am quite surprised at the feedback. I've always thought of the Air as a pretty significant upgrade over the 4.

New design language, much lighter, better battery life, and 2x the CPU/GPU of the A6X, without any downsides. Sure it only has 1GB of RAM but so does the 4. For $100 it seemed like a fair deal to trade up to.

The specs on the Air2 are killer. I had a pre-order in, but cancelled it. Based on the feedback here, maybe I ought to wait for a Black Friday deal and pick up an Air 2 instead and not worry about the Air 1...

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Oh, regarding keeping the 4 on iOS6, no can do. Speed trade off is well worth the continuity & handoff features. SMS Forwarding is awesome.

 

[dcorban]

I bought an iPad 4 at its release. I then bought an Air at its release. After a week, I returned the Air. It wasn't worth the upgrade to me. I did enjoy the smaller size and weight. I didn't enjoy the hollow tapping sound and lack of improvement in virtually every other aspect.

Now I'm ready for Touch ID and a lighter tablet, so the Air 2 is on the way.