To iPad Mini...or Not!

Let's talk iPad Mini...

The iPad has gone from a “why do I need” this device, to a “I can’t live without it” device in an incredibly short period of time.  Now with the release of the iPad mini, your choice has been made all the more complex.  With this blog posting, I hope to make your decision on which iPad mini to purchase, just a little bit easier and more enjoyable.  It is truly an amazing device!

The mini does not skimp on features

The mini is considerably more compact than it cousins, iPad 2 and the New iPad, coming in at just above 7 inches. It weighs in at a svelte .68 pounds for the wi-fi only version, and 0.69 pounds for the wi-fi + LTE. The screen resolution on the mini has left me scratching my head.  Now don’t get me wrong, I am very happy with the iPad 2‘s screen resolution of 1024 x 768,  however, given that Apple has had a retina display available on the iPhone since last year, (it’s graphics come in at 1136 x 640) and the New iPad since earlier this year, (the New iPad graphics come in at 2048 x 1536!)  it is  disappointing that the mini’s display only matches that of the iPad 2, coming in at half that of the New iPad, in my opinion, an strange step backwards. 

Because Apple choose the lesser display, they also went with a lessor processor.  Like the iPad 2, it comes with Apple’s dual-core A5 processor.  The iPad mini also comes in two flavors,  wi-fi or wi-fi + LTE (4G’s, successor, stands for  Long Term Evolution, which is the fastest connectivity currently offered by the major carriers). If you choose to go with the wi-fi + LTE, as with the iPhone and new iPad, you have your choice of carriers, AT&T, Verizon and Sprint (new to the iPad). As they did with the iPhone 5, Apple has chosen to cover the back of the iPad mini in black slate or silver. Like it’s iPad cousin, the New iPad, Apple put a FaceTime HD camera on the front, and 5 megapixel camera on the back that records HD Video. Finally, the iPad mini would not be complete without my dear friend, Siri.  Apple has stuck to their guns and made the mini available in the same three storage capacities as the iPhone and the previous iPads, 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB. The iPad mini is compact, it’s extremely light, has nice resolution, a nice camera, and excellent battery life, and can be yours, starting at only  $329 (16GB wi-fi only version). 

So which one should you purchase?  Continue on and I try to break it down to help you make your decision a little easier.

How do you plan on using your mini?

So, I’ve provided you with the specs, now YOU need to ask yourself,  how would you plan on using your iPad mini? Do you create, read, play, watch, all of the above?  The thing to think about is which one you do the most, or plan to do the most. Try this for size,  give a percentage to each category, for example, 50% of the time I find myself reading on my iPad, 25% of the time I catch up on the latest TV episodes of Son’s of Anarchy, 5% of the time I’m playing  games, and the other 20% of the time I’m actually creating something (document, presentation, movie etc).  Understanding the power of the iPad, is crucial in deciding whether the iPad mini is the right choice for you.

Now, take the features of the mini, and how you plan on using it, and see if it makes sense for you.  In the previous paragraph, the majority of my fictitious usage went toward reading (50%). With that in mind, I again looked  at what the mini has to offer. It’s compact, light, fits comfortably into my hand.  I can easily hold it as if it were a book, it fits my briefcase, and if I owned one, it would fit very nicely into my purse.   Finally, match the other features with how you plan on using your new mini.   You may surprise yourself  and find that mini has more to offer than you originally thought.  

There it is folks!

Apple has spoken!  They have made it crystal clear (in their minds at least!) that there is an iPad for everyone. Are you an the iPad mini, iPad 2, or New iPad with Retina display? Apple would like nothing more than to see at least one iPad in the hands of everyone. Coming in at $329, there is a lot love about the iPad mini.   It’s a smaller, lighter version, of the incredibly  popular full size iPad.   I hope this helps make your decision easier, if not, feel free to contact me via email at geoff@themacmentor, if you still need some help making your decision.  Have fun!