Mini Retina or the Air? Why?

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elleana

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Title says it all, really. The smaller weight and increased portability of the Mini will probably encourage me to bring it out more, but I can't help thinking I'll miss the bigger screen on the Air. Anyone successfully transitioned to the previous generation mini from a full sized iPad and what did you feel about the reduced screen?

Have the iPad 3 (i think it is 3, retina non-lightning).
 
I have the original Mini, and I think it's just fine.

My old iPad 1 also still works great, though it's on OS life support.
 
I'm seriously considering getting a Mini this holiday over the air because of the portability.
 
Meh I was all set to get the mini @$329 but at $399 I'm thinking of getting a refurb mini now. $70 isn't a big deal but I didn't like that they raised the price with minor upgrades.
 
elzeus said:
Meh I was all set to get the mini @$329 but at $399 I'm thinking of getting a refurb mini now. $70 isn't a big deal but I didn't like that they raised the price with minor upgrades.
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uh, retina is anything but a minor upgrade..
 
elleana said:
uh, retina is anything but a minor upgrade..
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Sorry maybe I could have worded that better. I'd consider the standard A-series chip and a resolution change standard yearly upgrades. Yet they raised the price and didn't include the fingerprint scanner, wireless AC or a possibly a flash on the back camera.
 
The Air is an actual computer, and the two devices are not even in the same league functionality wise.

If you need and will use a computer, buy the Air.
 
Op is referring to the iPad Air which just came out yesterday.
 
elleana said:
uh, retina is anything but a minor upgrade..
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Still should have remained the same price though, the originally Mini is just overpriced.

I have no idea why you would upgrade from an iPad 3, it's not like you gain anything other then a bit of weight savings when going to either the iPad Air or iPad MiniR.
 
elzeus said:
Meh I was all set to get the mini @$329 but at $399 I'm thinking of getting a refurb mini now. $70 isn't a big deal but I didn't like that they raised the price with minor upgrades.
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You do realize that they lowered the price of the 1st gen mini to $299 now, right?:rolleyes:
 
cc2096 said:
You do realize that they lowered the price of the 1st gen mini to $299 now, right?:rolleyes:
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Because everyone should want iPad 2 hardware in a smaller form factor for $299, what a steal! People who were waiting for a retina Mini aren't going to buy the original at any price point.
 
ND40oz said:
Because everyone should want iPad 2 hardware in a smaller form factor for $299, what a steal! People who were waiting for a retina Mini aren't going to buy the original at any price point.
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That wasn't my point. The OP said they were going to get a refurb now since the base price went up on the retina, but they can get the same device brand new for $299. They obviously didn't care about the retina screen that much if they were considering going refurb now.
 
cc2096 said:
That wasn't my point. The OP said they were going to get a refurb now since the base price went up on the retina, but they can get the same device brand new for $299. They obviously didn't care about the retina screen that much if they were considering going refurb now.
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Until they see the prices of the refurb'd Mini's and realize they still won't buy it at that price point either.

http://store.apple.com/us/browse/home/specialdeals/ipad/ipad_mini
 
Two different devices for different uses (between the ipad mini and the MBA).

What do you do with your ipad3? I'm an android person myself, but having gone from a 10" tablet to a 7" tablet, I don't think I'd ever want a 10" tablet ever again (well, maybe if it were a Windows tablet I wouldn't mind, because then it's more of a proper computer). It was a chore to lug the 10" tablet around, but I hardly think about my 7" tablet now.
 
teh_chem said:
Two different devices for different uses (between the ipad mini and the MBA).

What do you do with your ipad3? I'm an android person myself, but having gone from a 10" tablet to a 7" tablet, I don't think I'd ever want a 10" tablet ever again (well, maybe if it were a Windows tablet I wouldn't mind, because then it's more of a proper computer). It was a chore to lug the 10" tablet around, but I hardly think about my 7" tablet now.
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I made the same mistake. He's not talking about the MBA, but the iPad Air which is just the new iPad 10"
 
I may spring for a new Mini with Retina closer to Christmas, but I want to see the air and mini side-by-side. I know I always preferred the mini to the larger iPad, but now with the newer form factor that may change for me.
 
elleana said:
Title says it all, really. The smaller weight and increased portability of the Mini will probably encourage me to bring it out more, but I can't help thinking I'll miss the bigger screen on the Air. Anyone successfully transitioned to the previous generation mini from a full sized iPad and what did you feel about the reduced screen?
Click to expand...

If was going iOS it would be Retina Mini all the way.

I don't own any tablet yet. I played with a bunch in store.

I think 8" screen is the sweet spot for this kind of device.

7" like the Nexus 7, really feels too small. It feels too much like a phone to me.

But 8" especially at 4:3 like the mini is a MUCH fuller experience. It really feels like 80% of the full iPad at half the weight.

Unlike other complaints. I expected the Retina Mini to increase in price and think at $400 it is quite fair. The Retina Mini is a Kick ass tablet.
 
im actually looking to sell my iPad 4 to pick up a retina mini in a week or so.
 
ND40oz said:
Still should have remained the same price though, the originally Mini is just overpriced.

I have no idea why you would upgrade from an iPad 3, it's not like you gain anything other then a bit of weight savings when going to either the iPad Air or iPad MiniR.
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The 3 sucks in iOS7.
 
W.Feather said:
im actually looking to sell my iPad 4 to pick up a retina mini in a week or so.
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This. I'm kinda bummed they thinned the sides out on the 5 though.... I always / only use it as landscape, and sometimes it'll be sitting on my clothes, bedspread etc. A good 3/4" of the edge can be covered up, which was fine, until this new one - there's the potential the actual screen will be covered up. Bad move IMO.
 
ND40oz said:
The 3 is fine with iOS, feels no different then the iPhone 5. What sucks with iOS 7 is the 2. Have you updated to 7.0.3 yet?
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Vanilla iOS 7 was awful on my ipad 3, but 7.0.3 really seems to have sped things up. Having said that, I still plan to upgrade to the Air, simply because it will be out first and I'm going on a weeklong trip and would like to have it with me. If I was more patient, I would wait for the mini retina, since it's basically the exact same device in a smaller, easier to hold form.
 
ND40oz said:
The 3 is fine with iOS, feels no different then the iPhone 5. What sucks with iOS 7 is the 2. Have you updated to 7.0.3 yet?
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I haven't upgraded to 7.0.3 yet. I used a friends 3 under 7 for a few hours and I didn't like it at all so I kept my device at 6.
 
I am so happy the mini is just a smaller specd Air, I am definately getting one to replace my iPAD 2 64GB model, 10" is just not comfortable to hold in the hand for extended periods of time been waiting for the new Mini announcement since last year. Already have a friend who owns nothing Apple also picking it up too.
 
I'm going to sell my iPad 4 16GB as soon as possible. And I'll probably replace it with a iPad Mini 32GB.

I'm picking the iPad Mini because I like the smaller and lighter size and it has the same resolution and specs as the iPad Air, but $100 cheaper. So I can get the 32GB Mini for the price I would pay for a 16GB Air.
 
Personally I would get the mini, but that is because I want the portability.

The thing is, no one can tell you which one is better for you. I tend to take my iPad everywhere (I have an iPad 2, purchased when iPad 2's were new, long before the Mini), and if I had to make the choice now, I'd get the Mini Retina, no question. I'm also the person that would rather have an 11" MBA over a 15" MBPr.

Those are my choices and decisions. They can't also be yours because your requirements are different. Do you need the larger size? Or do you need enhanced portability? No one in this thread can make that choice for you.
 
I have been debating whether or not to sell my iPad 3 and get the new iPad Mini. The $400 price tag makes me double take though. For $100 more an I can get a 5. Damn you Apple.
 
DNAlevelC said:
I have been debating whether or not to sell my iPad 3 and get the new iPad Mini. The $400 price tag makes me double take though. For $100 more an I can get a 5. Damn you Apple.
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It's funny because I have also seen people complain that iPad Air is now overpriced because you get all the same parts in the Retina Mini, for $100 less.

It seems priced appropriately for the parts difference (screen,case, battery).
 
DNAlevelC said:
I have been debating whether or not to sell my iPad 3 and get the new iPad Mini. The $400 price tag makes me double take though. For $100 more an I can get a 5. Damn you Apple.
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The cost shouldn't be the relevant part. It's finding what works for you.

You can spec out the MBA to cost more than a base level MBPr. However if you need/want the portability of the Air, it doesn't matter about the larger size of the MBPr. This is much the same way.

I suppose another way of looking at it is that the size in-and-of-itself is a feature.
 
cc2096 said:
That wasn't my point. The OP said they were going to get a refurb now since the base price went up on the retina, but they can get the same device brand new for $299. They obviously didn't care about the retina screen that much if they were considering going refurb now.
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I did care about the retina screen if it was at the same price point ($329). Now refurbs are $249 and come with a full year warranty, basically brand new (apple refurbs are no joke). So it comes down to $249 for last years model or $399 for this years model with only 2 upgrades.
 
elzeus said:
I did care about the retina screen if it was at the same price point ($329). Now refurbs are $249 and come with a full year warranty, basically brand new (apple refurbs are no joke). So it comes down to $249 for last years model or $399 for this years model with only 2 upgrades.
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Those "only 2 upgrades" are pretty significant.
Double the resolution and an A7 processor isn't anything to rub your nose at. The iPad Mini is still using a processor from the now almost 3 year old iPad 2. In terms of tangible things that you could actually upgrade on a tablet device, that $150 increase gives you literally both of them. The thing that you spend all your time looking at and how fast it works.

Fingerprint ID, and all that other stuff is really just fluff in comparison. Garnish, if you will.

If price is important rather than your time. You could just wait for iPad Mini Retina refurbs to start popping up. Might be 6 months, but then I suppose you could have your cake and eat it too.
 
UnknownSouljer said:
Personally I would get the mini, but that is because I want the portability.

The thing is, no one can tell you which one is better for you. I tend to take my iPad everywhere (I have an iPad 2, purchased when iPad 2's were new, long before the Mini), and if I had to make the choice now, I'd get the Mini Retina, no question. I'm also the person that would rather have an 11" MBA over a 15" MBPr.

Those are my choices and decisions. They can't also be yours because your requirements are different. Do you need the larger size? Or do you need enhanced portability? No one in this thread can make that choice for you.
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I guess a more proper formulation of my question is, anyone went from a full size iPad to last years' mini, and how did they deal with the reduced screen size?

Side note - I also have a 15" rMBP, and am waiting for a retina 13" MBA.
 
UnknownSouljer said:
The cost shouldn't be the relevant part. It's finding what works for you.

You can spec out the MBA to cost more than a base level MBPr. However if you need/want the portability of the Air, it doesn't matter about the larger size of the MBPr. This is much the same way.

I suppose another way of looking at it is that the size in-and-of-itself is a feature.
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We are talking about iPad air not the MacBook Air. iPad Air costs $500 and the Mini retina costs $400.
 
DNAlevelC said:
We are talking about iPad air not the MacBook Air. iPad Air costs $500 and the Mini retina costs $400.
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I understand that. Please reread his post, and then in addition reread my post. The principle regarding the smaller vs bigger in terms of laptops still holds true with tablets. My point illustrates that cost isn't and shouldn't be the determining factor, in this case when discussing size, it's about size.

If you're too lazy and want to pull a tl;dr, he said that he's frustrated by the fact that there is "only" a $100 price difference between the iPad Mini and the iPad Air. My response to reiterate was geared towards the concept that the price difference shouldn't matter. He should instead purchase whichever tablet meets his needs more, whether that is the smaller size and increased portability or the increased real estate with slightly increased price.
 
The extra 100.00 is very worth it for someone who wants that bigger display, tbh if i didnt already own a iPAD 2 or never had a pad device I would opt for the Air because I would be like I would rather have a bigger display but most people dont think about portability if they have never had a tablet before. I think the new mini will sell out as fast as the gold 5S and I probably wont get it till next year...with not annoucing a preorder date yet that scares me they dont have enough to even come close to fullfillment of potentional orders....
 
I have an iPad 3 currently and I would go with the retina mini. Low res was my main concern with the old mini,but that price is to high imo.
 
I currently have a Mini and am contemplating going with the iPad Air myself. With that said, I will wait until the local Apple store has them in stock to to check it out in person and see if I would like the extra weight. Granted the Air is lighter than the 3 and 4 before it, but it is still heavier than the Mini, and if the differences don't add up properly, I'll pick up a Mini Retina instead.

To those that said the Retina screen and A7 chip are minor upgrades: you really do not understand just how BIG of upgrades these two specs really are. When reading books or webpages, I have to zoom in slightly in order for the aliasing to be tolerable on the Mini - the Retina screen will easily remedy this. As for the A5 chip in the original Mini (and iPad 2), let's just say my iPhone 5, with its A6 chip, is significantly faster in the same apps/games. Going directly to the A7, which is even faster, would just be a marvelous delight.

The only thing I am not looking forward to, moving away from my current Mini, is losing my jailbreak as I do use XBMC to wirelessly stream movies and shows from my media server. Here's to hoping something will be out shortly, in the coming months.
 
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