So you might have remembered the great iPad throwing incident of Fall 2017 - when my son (then 7) got mad at a game he was playing and hurled his iPad.
Well, the damage was more than cosmetic. I replaced the screen and digitizer but whatever damage was done was deeper than the front two pieces of glass since the thing only boots to a screen of flickering lines. At Christmas, he got a Switch, so that has eased the pain…but now I’d like to replace his iPad (wait for it…!)
But of course…that means Daddy gets the NEW iPad and Kai gets Daddy’s old iPad (LOL…the one perk of having kids…the “hand me down” excuse - oh…Kai will need a computer with a better graphics card, so Daddy really needs that SLI 1080 setup…)
Anyway. With my new “ultrabook”, I don’t have a really pressing need for a big iPad I don’t think - I’d probably mostly use it for reading Kindle books and occasionally filing flightplans on the fly and stuff. Any opinions? I mean, I guess it is down to the iPad 4 Mini and something else…but I don’t know what all the regular size versions are about as far as processors and speeds. Those of you that have the mini size vs. the regular size though…any thoughts on it?
Then Goldilocks tried the 12.5" iPad pro and said, “This is too big. It will never fit in my flight bag.” The she tried the iPad mini and said “This one is too small, I can barely make out the flight plan info without zooming a lot.” And then she tried the 10,5" iPad Pro and said, “This one is just right.”
I’m going through a similar scenario @BeachAV8R . My 7 year old’s iPad 2 can no longer run all of her school apps and Minecraft crashes often. Minecraft? Yes, so it’s the only multiplayer game that daddy and daughter can connect with over WiFi and keep both of us somewhat entertained. She doesn’t need an online account to do this. Using Apple family sharing, I can buy stuff and install it on her iPad without buying it again.
Will probably end up giving her my 9.7 2017, but for myself, I’ve been advised to wait, because the next gen displays will have edge to edge on the 9.7. That is the perfect size for a tablet, IMHO.
Don’t worry about my 9.7 in the hands of a 7 year old. It will be encased in a massively indescribable rubber gummy case.
Agree that it is the perfect size for travel. When I worked, I had one that I could prop up on my steering wheel. I would Skype my wife or watch movies if/when I got caught in rush hour traffic on the way home.
Now I’m retired so no work = no rush hour traffic…I gave it away.
I surprised myself for growing so fond of pencil support – it is a “must have” in my book. In my volunteer work (Chairman of the Hampton Clean City Commission…this post is being written with recycled electrons) it makes note taking at meeting much faster than trying to type it in (I never got beyond two finger typing).
Plus I use FS Widgets QuickPlan (blatant plug) for all my FSX flight planning…most on my iPad. The pencil lets you “tap” at precise coordinates.
Well, I went to the Apple Store (that is an interesting place…LOL…you could really probably write a small book about the people milling about in there…) and put hands on all of the iPads there. I actually found the Mini 4 to be the best fit with regards to my main use for it…reading things. I can hold it comfortably with one hand…don’t necessarily have to prop it up, and the resolution of the display was pretty awesome. Given that I’ll be totting around my new Ultrabook as well, I figure I really don’t need more screen real estate or I’ll pull that out of its sleeve.
Only just starting to explore the Mini. I got the 128 GB WiFi only model. Thanks for the thoughts and suggestions (even if I didn’t end up getting the one you might have been rooting for)…!
The reason Apple makes different sized iPads is because they recognize that one size most definitely does not fit all. They are all great devices IMHO.
Yes. At our work, we had the traditional size iPads for ForeFlite for years. Then we “upgraded” to the Mini…and I actually like it better for strapping to my knee (the Citation doesn’t have enough room to have a permanent mount unfortunately) than the larger iPad…
I did settle on the Speck Style Folio type case for it. Pretty small an unobtrusive, it retains the small form factor of the Mini and offers a tiny bit of protection. I’ve found I’m not very rough on iPads though…so I don’t think I need Otterbox type protection anymore…
Good to hear feedback from commercial pilots using ForeFlite on the Mini. I just bought a new 9.7 128 GB Wi-Fi version after reading that the 10 and 12 were the only ones expected to be edge to edge at the next refresh. I use mine to consume a lot of streaming content, but been contemplating a ForeFlite subscription.
