Doubts on choosing an ipad. I need advices.

Hello everybody.

I need to buy an ipad. New. The budget is 500 euros. I don't know what to choose. I only think that 9.7 inch seems like the right size, so no mini-ipads.
I also noticed that ipad pro are too expensive so they're out too.
I just want to understand what's the difference between a normal ipad and an ipad air. When it comes to mac, the mac air is generally thinner and with less stronger technical details.
Also is it worth buying the cellular version? Does that mean that you can use the network of your smartphone or you have to pay a separate monthly fee to have mobile data?

Thank you.

britpoprule said:

Hello everybody.

I need to buy an ipad. New. The budget is 500 euros. I don't know what to choose. I only think that 9.7 inch seems like the right size, so no mini-ipads.
I also noticed that ipad pro are too expensive so they're out too.
I just want to understand what's the difference between a normal ipad and an ipad air.

Click to expand...

I think I can help make things much clearer. Since you've already elliminated the iPad Pro and the iPad Mini...the only thing left is the 9.7" "iPad". There no longer is an iPad Air model (they were recently discontinued). Basically all you need to decide on is:

- color
- storage amount
- wifi or wifi + cellular

If your budget has a max. of 500 euros (440 British Pounds)...then you only have these two choices:

- 32gig wifi only model (339 pounds)
- 128gig wifi only model (429 pounds)

Anything else is over your budget. Lowest cost 9.7" iPad with cellular is 469 pounds (over-budget).

- Nick

pigoo3 said:

I think I can help make things much clearer. Since you've already elliminated the iPad Pro and the iPad Mini...the only thing left is the 9.7" "iPad". There no longer is an iPad Air model (they were recently discontinued). Basically all you need to decide on is:

- color
- storage amount
- wifi or wifi + cellular

If your budget has a max. of 500 euros (440 British Pounds)...then you only have these two choices:

- 32gig wifi only model (339 pounds)
- 128gig wifi only model (429 pounds)

Anything else is over your budget. Lowest cost 9.7" iPad with cellular is 469 pounds (over-budget).

- Nick

Click to expand...

Thanks a lot for your answer. It made things much easier.
I was wondering....or at least I would like to know how it works in the UK (which I guess is the same in the rest of Europe), if you buy the cellular version, does the sim card that you buy for the ipad, use the data of the sim card on your smartphone (as if they connect) or you have to pay a separate monthly fee?
Also, do you think 32GB go quite quickly? So 128GB would be more ideal?
Many Thanks

I have no idea how that works in the UK or Europe, but I believe if you purchase a cellular iPad you will also need some sore of data plan or add on to your current iPhone plan. You can choose whichever carrier you wish for the cellular iPad. If it's the same as your iPhone, you will likely have to pay an additional fee. It's best to ask those questions to your carrier not here since we have no idea what they will or will not charge.

I have a cellular iPad here in the US and my carrier (T-Mobile) allows 200MB of free data every month. If I go over that, I have to pay extra. I also have my iPhones with same carrier but that plan is separate.

do you think 32GB go quite quickly? So 128GB would be more ideal?

Click to expand...

Unless your uses of the iPad are modest, you'll find that 32GB will be used up very quickly. Once you allow for the iOS, it doesn't leave a lot of room for lots of apps - or photos and music which tend to consume a fair amount of storage.

One of the "nuisances" of iOS devices is that the app may only be, say, 50MB but its usage quickly builds up associated data of, for example, 400MB - and there is no way of deleting the "scruff" and data without deleting, then reinstalling, the app.

So, my advice would be to go for 128GB.

It's within budget.

Ian

Yeah...Apple is making things somewhat difficult for us when choosing a storage amount with the "regular" 9.7" iPad. There used to be a 64gig version (32gig, 64gig, 128gig).

It's very possible Apple is trying to push folks looking to purchase a regular 9.7" iPad towards the 10.5" iPad Pro...where the storage choices are 64gig, 256gig, and 512gig (if someone REALLY wanted just 64gig of storage).

Of course the 10.7" iPad Pro with 64gig of storage still costs quite a bit more than the regular 9.7" iPad with 128gig of storage ($649 vs. $429).

- Nick

p.s. In the comparisions above...all models are WiFi only.

I don't know about rest of Europe, but in Slovenia, you can use your existing data plan from your phone. You just have to get a second sim card from your carrier. Prices for this option varies from 0-10 €/month, depending on your existing plan or carrier.
The second option would be to get separate data-only plan or a prepaid data-only plan (if you don't need cellular data regularly).

For myself, it would be redundant to purchase a cellular iPad since I now have iPhones. When I originally purchased my iPad 3 cellular device I was still using a flip phone. Most US carriers do have separate plans for an iPad or as I stated above, you can add another data plan for your iPad to your current iPhone data plan. All costing extra of course.

I'm not the expert these guys are, but I do know that getting an iPad with cellular is more expensive, and frankly, I don't see the necessity. You can make & receive phone calls on your iPad if you have an iPhone and enable that function. Running apps (or at least the ones I use the most) eat cellular data like crazy. But if money is no object, go for it. And hey - take their advice and buy the most GB you can possibly afford; that's a much better use of money than cellular.

I think all questions have been answered but as it sounds like you are planning to use this iPad as a stand alone device i.e. not sync and remove loaded data as required via another device (computer) then I would definitely second what has been said about storage. If you can possibly afford 128Gb go for that. My wife has an iPad Mini 32Gb which she uses for day to day stuff and Borrowbox downloads of magazines and books. These are quite large files but she regularly removes and stores them via sync to her MacBook Pro 500Gb. If you dont mind this sort of remote storage of data or eg. iCloud online storage 32Gb is quite adequate.

My 10.5" iPad Pro has a storage capacity of 64GB and is WiFi only. Based on my past experience and usage of an iPad (iPad 3) that will more than suffice for me. My iPad is not a replacement or substitute for my iMac or a MacBook Pro if I owned one. The only add on that I bought was the Apple Smart Keyboard cover which has turned out to be a very good investment in my opinion. If I need cellular, I have my iPhone7+ which has a ridiculous 128GB of storage (which I will never use). I'm waiting to see what enhancements iOS 11 will bring when it's released sometime in September or early October.

My iPad mini is wifi only but away from home I use my phone to create a cellular hotspot for the iPad if needed. My SIM-only deal from UK supplier 'Three' allows me to do this within my package. Just come back from a week-long river cruise in Portugul where there was no free wifi so I used the hotspot function to upload my holiday photos to the iPad from my wifi camera. It does, however, gobble up a lot of data allowance.

Sue if you intend to do this on a regular basis you might find it worthwhile to invest in a transfer device. There are portable devices available that will allow you to store and transfer data from one Lightning Bolt connected device to another. Have a look at the Leef iBridge 3. http://www.macworld.co.uk/feature/iphone/best-external-storage-for-iphone-ipad-2017-3579792/
This one is very cool because it allows you to transfer your camera shots direct to the device.

chscag said:

My 10.5" iPad Pro has a storage capacity of 64GB and is WiFi only. Based on my past experience and usage of an iPad (iPad 3) that will more than suffice for me. My iPad is not a replacement or substitute for my iMac or a MacBook Pro if I owned one. The only add on that I bought was the Apple Smart Keyboard cover which has turned out to be a very good investment in my opinion. If I need cellular, I have my iPhone7+ which has a ridiculous 128GB of storage (which I will never use). I'm waiting to see what enhancements iOS 11 will bring when it's released sometime in September or early October.

Click to expand...

My 10.5" Pro is the same as yours, 64GB and it's fine for all I do on an iPad. Mine is Wifi only also.

Rod Sprague said:

Sue if you intend to do this on a regular basis you might find it worthwhile to invest in a transfer device. There are portable devices available that will allow you to store and transfer data from one Lightning Bolt connected device to another. Have a look at the Leef iBridge 3. http://www.macworld.co.uk/feature/iphone/best-external-storage-for-iphone-ipad-2017-3579792/
This one is very cool because it allows you to transfer your camera shots direct to the device.

Click to expand...

Used it for the first time on this trip because of circumstances (wifi 5€ an hour!) but usually I do the upload via wifi when away. I had an SD card reader way back but it failed after one of the iOS updates and, looking at Apple prices for a replacement, I chose to buy a wifi SD card instead. Now I have both card and wifi camera.

My cellular supplier was very good to me when I realised I was running out of my data allowance and gave me another 1gb free. I was using the phone frequently for browsing/social media as well as the hotspot but I did notice a big difference in consumption compared with a trip to New York last year when I was using google maps on the phone all the time to get around the city.

I am awed at what we can do with all this consumer technology!

One of the 600+images from my travels. Panorama from Lamego Cathedral, Portugul.

i bought my first ipad...got a good deal on the 'new' 2017 ipad...
but when i went into a local best buy and compared it to an ipad pro (even last yrs) the lack
of anti glare was a killer for me...so am selling it...just bought
an ipad 9.7 128gb in great condition....i was also considering
the new 10.5 but refresh rate / faster chip and such makes little diff
to me as i just use it for casual browsing, reading, youtube etc.

I’m unsure of what $699 US dollars would equate to in your currency but I was able to catch a flash sale on amazon recently for a new iPad. I wanted one that supported the Apple Pencil and that was also cellular. So those two things I required definitely put the new iPad Pro 10.5 out of my range as far as my budget for one but the iPad Pro 9.7 is still a very very good iPad as it was just recently discontinued on apples site. It has plenty of power. Lots of features. It’s 9.7 so it’s very easy to port around everywhere with you. Plus it supports the Apple Pencil.

So I jumped on amazon and thought I’d check and see how much the iPad Pro 9.7 was in cellular and I actually caught it on sale at that time and was able to get a 256g cellular iPad Pro 9.7 for a total of $699 US dollars. I’m not sure if this is over your budget or not because I’m unsure of the exchange rate or different currencies.

If I had bought the same exact model from Apple that I got which was a 256g with cellular version I would have ended up paying $1029 US dollars so I ended up saving almost half of what it would regularly cost. I’d keep an eye out for one on amazon or their amazon warehouse deals where basically it’s just an open box tbat someone returned and they discount it heavily.

The other option is to check B&H out and when you click on the iPad it will have a link to what they call their used selection which they use.a grading scale from 1 to 10 and OB as open box being the very best and I’ve bought things from them that had a 9 grading scale for great discounts before and even at a 9 grading it still was brand new and cane in the original box with all the contents included.

Right now the best iPad you can get for the money is the iPad Pro 9.7 as it’s a powerhouse device and I plan to use mine for years to come because for all intensive purposes, it’s still a very relevant and current Apple device. The only reason they stopped selling it was because it would have hurt the sales of the current iPad Pro 10.5 because they are so similar spec wise.

If you shop around you can find a iPad Pro 9.7 for about 50 percent off the retail price which is a steal for that iPad. Hope this helps.