iPAD Air 2

[TheForce]

Got a notice from local Best Buy of a sale $75 off on the 32GB Air 2 so I sprung for one. They also had open box one for $100 off.

Looks like we can retire my iPAD ver 3 now.

I had planned on getting an iPAD Pro but after spending some time with one, decided against it. Just not worth the additional money for my needs.

 

[rad]

Did you check out the 9.7" iPad Pro? BB also has those on sale, $100 off the 128GB WiFi model.

 

[navychop]

Still decidedly uncheap.

 

[TheForce]

Did you check out the 9.7" iPad Pro? BB also has those on sale, $100 off the 128GB WiFi model.

Yes. For a second, but I had already made up my mind that I didn't need nor want the Pro version as what was offered in that I would never use. I've owned iPAD's since the day they were released. My first one was a 64GB. The most I ever used was 24GB. My wife has it now and she uses even less. My iPAD3 was a fully loaded 64GB with Verizon and I don't have anymore than 20GB on it. I never use the Verizon data on it either.

However, My go to platform I use when traveling is a Surface Pro tethered to my iphone 6+ when traveling. I have the 128GB internal with about 90GB in use. I also have a high $peed 256GB card in it for my media storage along with a spare if I need more. It runs Vegas Pro editor as well as Grass Valley Edius, Windows 10 and my Microsoft Office. Full keyboard and mouse. And as of this week, I got the new Chrome RDP working so I can access my home computers while aboard a cruise ship. Logmein ended their free version and wanted $149 a year for the same service. Chrome RDP is even better and faster and free.

Everybody's needs are different. I love the iPAD for what it is and will be taking the new iPAD Air 2 for what it does well. But when I need a serious travel computer for Excel spreadsheets, or editing my 3D video with oodles of storage, external hard drive connection, full SD card, multiple USB connections, the Surface Pro is far superior.

I'm also thinking of dropping the older iPAD3 from my Verizon account. It's only $10 a month but why pay it if I haven't used data from LTE in over a year? I plan to visit a Verizon specialist before deciding to be sure dropping it won't screw my account in other unknown ways. I have the share data plan and own my phones and we really only use data on the two iphones. The new SE is on a new 2 year contract but my 6+ is now month to month.

 

[navychop]

I dropped the cell data plan on our iPad3 after months of it not working and Apple and ATT pointing fingers at each other. Works fine tethered to our personal hotspots.

 

[lparsons21]

Over the years I've considered getting the next tablet with cell data service, but usually end up taking a pass on it as the cost is not worth it to me on Apple gear. I do have a Verizon ZenPad Z8 Android tablet that cost me $100 with a 2 year contract and since I'm locked into Verizon because of the deal on the iPhone 7 trade-ins last month anyway it made sense.

Don, I own a Surface Pro 2 and had both a Surface Pro 3 & 4 but just couldn't live with the poor battery life and twitchy wifi. The SP2 is the same way but I bought it used for a song.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[TheForce]

I have the original Surface Pro with keypad, a USB switch (not a hub) and an external blue ray recorder. It works great and never had an issue with wifi or battery life. But, mostly I use it with power.

The iPAD Pro, to my surprise is more like a regular ipad with too many limitations. For some reason, I had the idea that the difference would be the Pro was more like the iMAC supporting external memory expansion and a mouse as well as ability to load imac software. Instead, it is just a glorified ipad. The couple hours I had with the ipad Pro was nothing but frustration.

My ipad air 2 should be here today. Looking forward to it.

 

[lparsons21]

Yeah, the iPad Pro is a bigger iPad with more memory and faster processor than previous models. But it is at its heart just an iPad with all the good and bad of all iPads. It fits me fine as I can do all but my music engraving on it quite easily, and since I'm very much cloud based, it all works great.

The SP2 I have is fine if I keep it on power, but it isn't very good for music engraving as the screen is just too darned small. Of course it does have more pro level applications for it, I just don't need them. For my music engraving I use an HP All-in-One with touch and a 23" screen. Works quite well for that.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[rad]

Remember the iPad Pro comes in both the bigger size and the regular 9.7" size.


Sent from my iPad using the SatelliteGuys app!

 

[klang]

Remember the iPad Pro comes in both the bigger size and the regular 9.7" size.


Sent from my iPad using the SatelliteGuys app!

Not clear which one Don was trying out. I have the 9.7" and the Pro designation is really just marketing. It was a decent upgrade from my original iPad Air.

 

[TheForce]

Both were available but for transport purposes, I chose the 9.7" and focused my time working with that model. I also reviewed the ipad mini but my wife prefers the 9.7" anyway.

I got the impression the ipad Pro is really great for people in the field of design. I was really impressed with it's 3D drawing manipulation and the stylus accuracy, but a reality check is that none of that stuff is useful for my travel needs.

Not sure I mentioned this but The ipad Air 2 will be mostly used by my wife to read the local news paper in digital download form daily. Most of the time I use the Surface Pro these days when traveling.

I'll be parking the old ipad 3 in the home theater for use there. Our original ipad 1 will probably stay in the car, loaded with games and a few movies for the grandkids when my wife picks them up from school 3 days a week.


Edit- ipad Air 2 just arrived!

 

[rad]

Not clear which one Don was trying out. I have the 9.7" and the Pro designation is really just marketing. It was a decent upgrade from my original iPad Air.

It is a bit more then just marketing. The 9.7" Pro vs. the Air 2 has faster processor, coprocessor, 12MP camera, wide color photo capture and True Tone flash, 4K video recording, four audio speakers just to name a few.


Sent from my iPad using the SatelliteGuys app!

 

[klang]

It is a bit more then just marketing. The 9.7" Pro vs. the Air 2 has faster processor, coprocessor, 12MP camera, wide color photo capture and True Tone flash, 4K video recording, four audio speakers just to name a few.


Sent from my iPad using the SatelliteGuys app!

IMO that stuff is a natural progression of new and improved features. They could just as easily called it an Air 3. No biggie I bought one.

 

[TheForce]

I got the Air 2 setup with Google Chrome and Remote desktop which works very well. I used Logmein on my old ipad3 and it worked but was a bit sluggish. Logmein did away with their free version and the paid version is prohibitively expensive. Google Chrome RDP is just as good.

The pro would have cost me double for features I really had no use for. I'd rather put the money toward a new Apple watch. I could use the water proof feature. But, that will have to wait until next year. Done with Apple upgrades for 2016. Wife has a new iphone SE and we have a new ipad Air 2.

 

[Foxbat]

Don, if you're looking for a nice case for your new iPad Air 2, the Sena Vettra Folio Case for iPad Air is a very nice (albeit pricey) leather case. We bought a brown case for my Mother-in-law last Christmas and she loves it. However, I don't know if Air 2 is close enough in size to the original Air that it would be interchangeable. It's available from the Apple store but is back-ordered (2-3 weeks out). The photos on the Apple Store don't show all the variations, either, because you can switch to portrait orientation and there is another case position that allows you to type on-screen with a 15% angle. You can see those if you select the iPad Air 2 version.

 

[TheForce]

Thanks Roland- I did get one and it fits perfectly. Keeps with the thin feature My old 3 was way too think.

Amazon product ASIN B00OKSMA6A

 

[Foxbat]

Hmmm, even though the Amazon link doesn't show up in Safari, even with AdBlock disabled, I was able to see it using Chrome. I hadn't thought about Apple replacing the Mute/Screen Lock slider with the additional microphone and moving the volume rocker towards the top on the iPad Air 2 which would cause problems trying to use the original Air case on the Air 2.

My Father-in-Law wants to replace his iPad 3 (battery life is only a couple of hours now) and was looking at the Apple Refurbished Store for an iPad 2. I said that he should wait to see what Apple announces on Oct. 27 just in case, though new iPad(s) may not be until the Spring event. Right now the Refurb options are limited to 128 GB Cellular models which would be more than a new 32 GB WiFi-only model.

 

[TheForce]

Glad I got mine before they ran out. Originally, I ordered from a local Best Buy and in a couple hours they ran out so mine was shipped in from upstate NY. It wasn't a refurb, just an inventory close out. The "open box option would have saved me an additional $25 but I decided not to risk an open box for $25 savings. My wife is using the older ipad3 now. It still holds the charge fine and is still on my Verizon account. Haven't had the time to remove it.