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iPad Air 2 today or wait till march?

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Ok so I have the iPad Air right now and the apple care runs out tomorrow. I really love having the peace of mind that apple care provides so not really happy about not being covered for over a month. I get my tax return and have been planning on upgrading to the air 2, but now with all the rumors that a new air will be out in March idk what to do. Im not someone who really needs the best and newest but even if I end up still getting an air 2 it will be cheaper once the 3 is released. Also I'm gonna be pissed if I do wait till march and there is still no new iPad Air. I am really up in the air, no pun intended, about what todo here. Any recommendations?
 

Raz0rEdge

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Based on MacRumors buying guide, the iPad Air is overdue for an update, so there's likely going to be a new one in March. If you're just going to buy the iPad Air 2 anyway and don't care about the price difference when the iPad Air 3 comes out, then by all means buy it.

The other thing to consider is if you plan on selling your iPad Air to purchase the new one, you're better of doing that now before the Air 3 comes out at which point you'll get less for the Air.
 
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I had similar dilemma before I bought a Air Pad 2. I was getting if for a present and probably could have waited. I'm in same boat on the Mac too. I see now you can wait for a long time and you will still be the last new thing when a new model arrives. IMO it has to do with the immediate need or if waiting for the new hardware updates will do more for you. Best of luck.

Kenny
 
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A March release for the iPad Air 2 will be a good strategy for Apple to bet on for 2 reasons: Firstly, casual tablet users will jump at its familiar form factor and rich app eco-system and make it a very popular upgrade. Demand has been building up ever since it missed its usual October slot last year in favour of the iPad Pro. Secondly, the more discerning and demanding power users would have clearly noticed that Apple is rolling out an enhanced software feature, touch pressure sensitivity, in stages across its platforms; it first appeared as Force Touch on the sapphire Apple Watch, then evolved a step further with 3D Touch on the iPhone's 6S variant. It's becoming pretty obvious, with the added capabilities of the iPad Pro, that when pressure sensitivity appears on that platform, it will do so a further step more enhanced than 3D Touch; in fact, I'm betting on the likelihood of its having a new name befitting its new capabilities (360° Touch, anyone?). For the above reasons and the fact that a lot of major 3rd party software has not yet rolled out iPad Pro software that is commensurate with its capabilities and form factor, power users are going to vote with their feet and wait for the next iteration of iPad Pro, which will most likely include hardware features that will enable variable force multitouch.
 
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Man i think the real question now is iPad air 2 now for 399 or iPad pro 9.7inch for 599 in 3 days. I am more indecisive now than i was the past month waiting for the new iPad. I have had iPads since the first model and have never had an issue with only 16GB so thats not really a big deal for me.
 

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Man i think the real question now is iPad air 2 now for 399 or iPad pro 9.7inch for 599 in 3 days.

Are you saying you can't wait 3 measly days!;)

- Nick
 
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lol i just don't know if the pro is really worth the extra 200 to me. I could use that 200 i save for apple care and still have 100 left over.
 

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lol i just don't know if the pro is really worth the extra 200 to me. I could use that 200 i save for apple care and still have 100 left over.

If the difficult part is the budget related…totally understandable. The earlier post (3 days) seemed mostly time related. $200 more is certainly something serious to think about.

- Nick
 
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lol i just don't know if the pro is really worth the extra 200 to me. I could use that 200 i save for apple care and still have 100 left over.

Hi Bran - I own the iPad Air 2 (and love the device), but just watched the Keynote presentation @ 1PM my time - the Pro 9.7" is an impressive upgrade IMO - plus, it has a greater future than what I own - in retirement, my wife & I 'eat out' a lot and $200 is about 2-3 meals for us - if that amount is not a 'life & death' issue, then don't hesitate and get the newest Pro offering - otherwise, you will regret your choice - but just my 2 cents - Dave :)
 
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yeah its not about the time at all now. I'm a student at the moment so 200 bucks is kind of a lot of money for me right now, but like RadDave said the pro probably does have a better future.
 

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Agree with RadDave that the 9.7" iPad Pro has more future to it…and could be a better buy given it's hardware upgrades. But then again it is the latest & greatest (just announced yesterday).:)

I happen to have an iPad 3…and it does everything I need it to do quite well. An iPad Air 2 is three iPad generations newer than my iPad 3…so an iPad Air 2 (for me) would be a nice upgrade.

Totally understand that the extra $200 is a lot on a student budget. The new 9.7" iPad Pro would be a "sweet" new device.

I think in the original post (back on February 9th) that your iPad Air's Applecare was running out the "next day" (which would make it February 10th). So at this point your iPad Air's Applecare has expired…and everything has been just fine for the last 5+ weeks.

Sounds to me that you REALLY don't need a new iPad…and the only reason you're thinking of a new iPad is for the Applecare. BELIEVE ME…YOU CAN SURVIVE WITHOUT APPLECARE!;) Just treat the iPad like its a dozen eggs!:)

Given that it would seem you don't NEED an new iPad…and being on a student budget…I would say just stick with what you have. Or at the most. Sell your current iPad…get an iPad Air 2…and call things a done deal. Maybe stretching the budget for a $599 iPad Pro is a bit much on a student budget. Sure you WANT a Lamborghini…but maybe you have to settle for a VW!;) Get the Lamborghini later…when you're making the Big Bucks!:)

- Nick
 
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Something else you should consider is Apple’s certified refurbished iPads. IMHO they are just as good as new, and they even carry the same 1 year warranty and are Apple Care+ eligible. With an additional $80 savings that puts you at a $280 difference between the Air2 and Pro. You could wait for the pros to go on refurb, but strangely I have yet to see the current Pro hit the refurb page, so there’s no telling when it will happen for the new one. When you do the math a base refurb Air2 is $36% cheaper than a full price Air2 was just 2 days ago, and $280 cheaper than the Pro.

I’m in the same position as pigo3: my wife and I both have iPad 3 models. We don’t do anything intense with them, so they suit our needs pretty well for the most part. But I decided to pull the trigger on an upgrade for a few minor reasons: our power cords are pretty mangled (my wife’s doesn’t always connect properly to charge) and they are getting a bit sluggish, and I’m guessing they won’t see another major update since the iOS 9 update was limited for the 4 year old model.

I was disappointed with the pro model and pricing, but the discounted Air2 was the silver lining. I would wait 6 months for hopefully an Air3 to show up, but with the discount and refurb price drop on top of that, the Air2 will be a nice upgrade for us at a lower price, and should last us 2-3 years. We just don’t need all those bells and whistles on the Pro, and would never get any of the accessories it can take advantage of
 
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So I went with the iPad Air 2 and I am very happy with the purchase. I can defiantly notice a speed bump probably because of the 2GB vs 1GB of ram I was use too. After really looking at the specs on the 9.7inch pro compared to the air 2. I couldn't justify the extra 200 dollars especially when it would have been another 100 for the pen, which is the only feature that was kind of appealing to me for possibly taking notes in class. I already have a bid on my air for 175 on eBay so I'm guessing it will sell for about 200 bucks, so the total cost of the upgrade was 300 with Apple care. If I went with the pro I would have been looking at 500 with Apple care plus I would have needed a new case, so probably another 50-100 and the pen for 100. So it would have been almost double the cost.
 

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Thanks for the update. Congrats on the new gear!:)

- Nick
 
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Apple launched the iPad Pro recently and one tablet that many had hoped for was the iPad Air 3. With the variant nowhere in sight, the word out is that the tablet could be among the devices set to be unveiled by the first quarter of 2017.
 

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