iPad for Christmas?

The ultimate question when it comes to Apple products... Buy now or wait? So here is my dilema, I am thinking about buying an iPad for someone for Christmas this year BUT since it is approaching the end of its life cycle would you wait to see what the iPad 3 looks like(wouldn't buy it as a gift anymore)?

I have always liked having the latest and newest products and usually hold out till the next release for things I buy for myself but I am not sure if the person I want to get this for really would care about that. I follow some rumors frequently(iPhone4S/5) but never for iPad so anyone with more knowledge or advice please shed some light for me. Thanks!

Not sure I see the point. If you don't buy it as a gift now, then Christmas will have come and gone and that is that. What would you get for them instead that would be as good as an iPad2? Or would you just tell them that their gift will be arriving late?

Doug

I'm thinking the same thing as "Doug b". If you want to purchase someone an iPad for Christmas...then the iPad2 is what you have to get.

If the iPad 3 is launched (for example) March, 2012...that's unfortunately not going to do someone any good on December 25th, 2011 when they look under the Christmas Tree!

- Nick

Doug b said:

Not sure I see the point. If you don't buy it as a gift now, then Christmas will have come and gone and that is that. What would you get for them instead that would be as good as an iPad2? Or would you just tell them that their gift will be arriving late?

Doug

Click to expand...

ditto

I say just get it. If the updated one comes out in March and it is really that much better, worst case is they sell it and buy the new one.

All I can say is...if someone wants to give me an iPad2 for Christmas...I'm not going to complain that they didn't wait for the iPad3 to come out!

- Nick

To add to what has already been said, if you constantly wait for the next model... You'd never buy anything!

If the iPad 3 isn't released in March, what then? Jus' do it man!

Thanks guys and I think you may have talked me into it, even though I have other ideas and they would just have to go on living without a free iPad (contrary to popular belief, this may be possible lol)

T_O_P12 said:

Thanks guys and I think you may have talked me into it, even though I have other ideas and they would just have to go on living without a free iPad (contrary to popular belief, this may be possible lol)

Click to expand...

If gift-giving for Christmas wasn't in the equation...and you weren't in a hurry...I would say wait for the iPad 3. When launched...if the iPad 3 doesn't "trip your trigger"...then you get an iPad 2.

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

If gift-giving for Christmas wasn't in the equation...and you weren't in a hurry...I would say wait for the iPad 3. When launched...if the iPad 3 doesn't "trip your trigger"...then you get an iPad 2.

- Nick

Click to expand...

Yep that's what I'm thinking too. Except it's a gift myself. ;p

same dilemma here...

i'm getting an ipad 2 for christmas, and am seriously thinking about waiting also. i bought an imac just months before lion was released, and an ipod right before the touch was released. i don't want to discover an awesome ipad3 after i just bought a 2. so, does anyone have a guess as to the release date for ipad 3? and yeah, i'm the one that wants the newest tech toy...

The conventional wisdom suggests that the iPad 3 will appear sometime around the 1 year anniversary of the iPad 2, so March/April 2012.

HOWEVER, Apple has been increasingly deciding to release products when they are ready and not necessarily stick to a slavish timetable. My spidey-sense is telling me that the iPad 3 will be a little (not a lot) late from the expected date, maybe just a bit closer to "grads and dads" gift season (IOW I'm thinking May). This is PURELY some idle speculation.

I'm kind of in the same boat as the OP. For my birthday, I was given an iPad 2 - although I appreciated the gift a lot, I asked to wait for the iPad 3.

Here is a rule I like to follow, and this is going off the assumption the iPad 3 will be released in March/April. If the date is within 6 months AFTER March/April, the you can go ahead and buy the current model. If it's within six months BEFORE March/April, you might wanna go ahead and wait. I know six months sounds like a long time, and if you want, you can tweak that rule of course.

I am waiting for the iPad 3. The beginning of March is less than 3 months away and the iPad 2 was released in early March.

What is it that you think will be in the iPad 3 that will make the iPad 2 a worthless piece of garbage exactly?

I hate to break it to some of you, but the iPad 2 was not a huge change from the iPad 1. And the iPad 3 is unlikely to be substantively different than the iPad 3. Oh sure, it'll be a bit faster and better overall -- hey it has to have a selling point or two -- but you guys talk about the iPad 3 as though it will be Jesus' own iPad. I have my doubts that this will happen.

The iPad 2 is kicking everyone's rear end as it is -- I just saw a review where the iPad 2 beat out (very substantively) the latest QUAD-CORE Android tablet (not that anyone's buying those). Apple does not have to do much to the iPad 3 to keep it king of the hill, so I imagine the improvements will be modest but solid.

chas_m said:

What is it that you think will be in the iPad 3 that will make the iPad 2 a worthless piece of garbage exactly?

I hate to break it to some of you, but the iPad 2 was not a huge change from the iPad 1. And the iPad 3 is unlikely to be substantively different than the iPad 3. Oh sure, it'll be a bit faster and better overall -- hey it has to have a selling point or two -- but you guys talk about the iPad 3 as though it will be Jesus' own iPad. I have my doubts that this will happen.

The iPad 2 is kicking everyone's rear end as it is -- I just saw a review where the iPad 2 beat out (very substantively) the latest QUAD-CORE Android tablet (not that anyone's buying those). Apple does not have to do much to the iPad 3 to keep it king of the hill, so I imagine the improvements will be modest but solid.

Click to expand...

I think "worthless piece of garbage" are pretty strong words to put towards the iPad 2. I'm not saying the iPad 3 will be so much better you should wait - I'm just saying that since the release of the iPad 3 is probably within 6 months, you should go ahead and wait. If you do - when you get the iPad 3 you will be up to date until 2013.

I think I am going to wait for the iPad4.
But then again, when that is released, I might decide to wait for the iPad5

neilf said:

I think I am going to wait for the iPad4.
But then again, when that is released, I might decide to wait for the iPad5

Click to expand...

Alright, cya in 2014!

TheCyclist said:

I'm just saying that since the release of the iPad 3 is probably within 6 months, you should go ahead and wait.

Click to expand...

Are there ANY Apple products you can think of that AREN'T within six months (as rumour would have it) of being upgraded?

Do you have any idea what would happen to Apple if everyone thought like that?

You know there will be a feeding frenzy when ipad3 comes out as there seems to be when anything Apple appears for the first time.At that point the media will make you feel your ipad 2 is that proverbial piece of garbage that you said.If you can avoid the hype you will be fine with an ipad 2.

chas_m said:

Are there ANY Apple products you can think of that AREN'T within six months (as rumour would have it) of being upgraded?

Do you have any idea what would happen to Apple if everyone thought like that?

Click to expand...

iPod - probably due for a update soon because Apple skipped the usual September update although I don't see where they can go with the Nano or Classic.

Macbook Pros - I believe these were updated in late February, most likely, I would say an update is due out early 2012.

iMac - These were last updated in early May, 2011 - I would say they are due for an update soon - most likely early 2012.

iPhone - we all know where this sits. The phone was released mid-October, probably won't see an update until mid 2012 at the earliest. Apple pushed this phone back from the usualy late-spring iphone launch time.

iPad - The iPad 2 was released in early March, 2011...about a month earlier that the original iPad release date in early April, 2010. I would say the iPad is due out sometime in March/ early April, but remember, this past year, Apple mixed up its release dates by pushing the iPhone back as well as the iPods.