Should I get a ipad?

[T2urtle]

I have a portable laptop and a nexus galaxy. I have one of the newer gen I touch that I don't use much.

Seems like I can save a good amount of money getting etext and iPad in the long run.

Most my courses offer a online etext for $100. Compared to a real book which is $175-275, which I normally can sell for $100-150 if a new edition doesn't come out.

My main reason is saving money. I also fear that the iPad might be like my itouch and just sit there after. I know I can sell it later for like $100. I don't know why I don't use my itouch more. I think maybe its because my nexus is always with me and only one device can win.

I'm borrowing my gf's iPad 2 for two weeks and see if I can do it. She isn't happy because she uses her iPad very often. But I told her if I end up wanting one I'll get hers and buy her a iPad 3/4

 

[shortylickens]

no


next question?

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Another vote for NO.

I've got both - iPad and Nexus. Will be switching to a Nexus or Android tablet when I decide I want a new tablet.

The Apple ecosystem and being tied to iTunes is just too cumbersome to deal with compared to Android. And Google just offers a better overall product/service offering with their Google Apps suite.

 

[Strk]

I wouldn't since the MS tablets are so close to being released. Even the ipad mini is getting close to being released.

 

[zerogear]

Wouldn't using book rentals be generally cheaper than both buying etext and books?

 

[MCZ]

Strk and fuzzybabybunny do bring up very valid points. This is the time of year where new hardware is on the horizon so it although I believe we still have about 6 months before we see anything new from Apple if they stick to their current release schedule.

Using iTunes is in any environment (that is not MacOS) is an experience I do not wish on anybody. I actually created a virtual environment that I installed nothing but iTunes in, just so it wouldn't contaminate my clean OS, and would still allow me to manage my iPhone/iPad.

Despite these issues, I still own an iPad and use it all the time primarily to read on (novels, graphic novels etc..), to record music (Garageband) and to stream media to my TV from my PC. I have no experience with Android tablets but several friends highly recommend them.

Hope this helps

 

[Tom]

This isn't 100% settled with me but a couple of points..

refurb ipad 2 is $319 direct from Apple, when they're not sold out.

Couple that with ipad resale value and the net cost isn't too bad.

I don't think any tablets except Apples have enough resale value to be a factor in a purchase decision.

 

[cl-scott]

Unless you absolutely need an iPad for some reason, I'd consider one of the cheaper tablets out there. There's the Nexus 7, Amazon's new Fire lineup, etc. Assuming the books are just distributed as PDF files, if your aim is to save money, there's no real point buying an iPad. You may even want to look at the Kindle DX unless you know you need color. It is about as much as the refurb iPad mentioned, but you'll be getting battery life measured in days or even weeks rather than hours, and a much better reading experience.

 

[MrX8503]

Testing out the iPad 2 first is a good idea. The top tablets right now is the ipad3 and kindle fire HD.

I would look into if you can get e text on an ereader. If not, get the ipad3 or Kindle.

If you want something cheaper than $500, get the nexus 7 or kindle fire 7.

 

[Aikouka]

I don't get what you people do to iTunes to make it so volatile with your systems. I run it on Windows 7 without any problems. It does seem to cache a lot of junk in memory, which means I close it when I see it above 600MB or so (it opens using around 150MB). I'm not a huge fan of the whole using browser pages in software (Steam does this as well, and I don't care for it too much there either), but eh... it works.

 

[shortylickens]

I dont think its volatile but I dont care for it, too clunky compared to just copying files over.

 

[HeXen]

I would hold off for the W8 tablets until there is some decent apps worth having for it, probably at least a year. Plus anyone who knows MS will know that they drop quality and/or support if you look at them cross eyed. Next year, they'll likely just be made of plastic and cheaper manufacturing techniques with little to no further development in key software areas cause that is how MS marketing dept rolls. They always put a crap ton of money, marketing and R&D time to gain initial interest, then later they drop sofware support and go cheap on everything else until the next bandwagon comes.

Ipad 3 definitely wins in the resolution and smooth operation area with an OS designed specifically for the hardware. Transformer prime if you want more control and micro sd support and can tolerate a multi hardware cell phone designed OS with its quirks.
Either one you at least have the apps, unlike you will with Surface. However there is a reason besides marketing as to why Ipad is most popular, more to a tablet than just apps.

If saving money is really a concern, you probably should not buy a tablet. A good one....which is the only type worth having really, is going to be pricey

 

[T2urtle]

Wouldn't using book rentals be generally cheaper than both buying etext and books?

You would think so. But case and point for one of my class. Book plus online labs ran $250 a package. $175 book and $100 for lab access. Lab access came with etext via the publishers apple app. So I just tested the app today. Hence this thread.

 

[Strk]

You would think so. But case and point for one of my class. Book plus online labs ran $250 a package. $175 book and $100 for lab access. Lab access came with etext via the publishers apple app. So I just tested the app today. Hence this thread.

Is it Apple only? If so, i'd at least wait to see how the mini is next week, since it should be getting announced on the 12th. I'd also look at their refurbs. An ipad2 for $320 is a pretty good deal.

 

[bearxor]

I don't get what you people do to iTunes to make it so volatile with your systems. I run it on Windows 7 without any problems. It does seem to cache a lot of junk in memory, which means I close it when I see it above 600MB or so (it opens using around 150MB). I'm not a huge fan of the whole using browser pages in software (Steam does this as well, and I don't care for it too much there either), but eh... it works.

I don't even install iTunes anymore. I don't know where this notion that you HAVE to have iTunes if you own an iPad or iPhone is coming from. Even when I had to install iTunes, I only used it for software upgrades.

 

[T2urtle]

Is it Apple only? If so, i'd at least wait to see how the mini is next week, since it should be getting announced on the 12th. I'd also look at their refurbs. An ipad2 for $320 is a pretty good deal.

It says apple and others. I wonder if android phones and android tablets have access to different software. I didn't find it via my nexus phone. Maybe on a tablet.

 

[Red Storm]

I don't even install iTunes anymore. I don't know where this notion that you HAVE to have iTunes if you own an iPad or iPhone is coming from. Even when I had to install iTunes, I only used it for software upgrades.

How do I get videos and music onto the device without iTunes?

 

[Ravynmagi]

It's hard to say for someone else if they should spend $500 on a tablet.

I have a iPad 3 and a Nexus 7. And I still love my iPad, the retina display is really amazing and text always looks so clear. Nexus 7 has pretty good DPI, but for some reason text doesn't always look as clear. And overall I'm pretty disappointed with the quality of the Nexus 7 screen. But a big thing going for the Nexus 7 is it's light, very comfortable to hold, and for Android it's quite speedy.

You might hold off a week and see if the iPad mini is anything that will interest you if you think a 7 inch screen will be okay for your text books. But for that type of thing you might prefer a larger screen.

I wouldn't consider a Windows RT tablet, the app selection is just pathetic. And the Windows 8 tablets I think are coming afterwards near the end of the year. Plus they'll be more expensive, chunkier and heavier, but nice if you want a tablet/laptop all in one.

But I think the iPad 3 is still a great choice even half a year or so after it's launch.

 

[ControlD]

How do I get videos and music onto the device without iTunes?

You can use something like copytrans manager for basic media, and there are other options if you are jailbroken. For normal media management however I haven't found anything that I would call a full replacement for iTunes as much as I dislike the program.

 

[ericlp]

nexus 7of course...


Posted from Anandtech.com App for Android

 

[Aikouka]

I don't even install iTunes anymore. I don't know where this notion that you HAVE to have iTunes if you own an iPad or iPhone is coming from. Even when I had to install iTunes, I only used it for software upgrades.

I use iTunes so I'm not forced to upgrade my universal apps on multiple devices using separate downloads. iTunes also makes it easier to organize the billions of icons that I have.

 

[Rottie]

T2urtle….Have you MADE a decision yet?

 

[soccerballtux]

I hate typing on tablets or doing anything I do on PC such as chatting with friends on gchat or posting to anandtech. So, no, shiny toy, waste of money.

 

[HeXen]

I hate typing on tablets or doing anything I do on PC such as chatting with friends on gchat or posting to anandtech. So, no, shiny toy, waste of money.

they make keyboards for tablets ya know, though most owners do more than Neff

 

[bearxor]

How do I get videos and music onto the device without iTunes?

Download them? I mean, if you've bought movies and music off the iTunes store, you can simply download them to the device. I've not bought any music off the iTunes store though. I've bought a couple of the free tracks and a few comedy albums when I was driving. I use Rdio though, so that actually manages my music.

I use iTunes so I'm not forced to upgrade my universal apps on multiple devices using separate downloads. iTunes also makes it easier to organize the billions of icons that I have.

I can understand that, but for me, the hassle of hooking a device up to a computer is just too much effort. It's easy enough for me to fire up the app store every so often before bed, click update all and then let it do it's thing overnight.

But yes, the icon arrangement feature on iTunes is nice if you have a lot of apps. I usually keep my devices pared down, no more than 4 pages or so with no folders. I know some people are pack rats, but every so often I'll flip through pages and if I haven't used an app in a couple of months, it's gone.