It's been a very long time since I've written anything on this blog so I thought I would share some thoughts about the latest consumer debacle I found myself in when Apple launched two new iPads this month.
When the iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina Display were announced at the end of October, I thought it was a no brainier as to which iPad I would be purchasing. At the time of the announcement I was using a 4th generation, full-sized iPad. The iPad mini was my tablet of choice before that but I found myself thinking that I needed some extra screen real estate so I wanted to go back to the full 9.7" screen. As many have realized, I found the 4th gen iPad to be way too heavy to comfortably handle with one hand. I was so used to using the mini and the full-sized tablet seemed like a clunky device from yesteryear in comparison. Sure, the Retina Display screen was beautiful and having the extra real estate was nice, but I feel like I didn't want to do anything with the full-sized iPad except for sit on a couch. I didn't feel like I could take it anywhere else since it was so uncomfortable to hold.
On announcement day I was stoked to get my hands on an iPad Air on November 1st. The device seemed to meet all of my needs: lightweight, with all the screen real estate I could ever want or need while still being light enough to take with me on the go. I went to bed at 10:00 PM on Halloween and woke up at 1:00 AM mountain time on the 1st and ordered my 32 GB WiFi iPad Air for pick up later that morning. I was thrilled that I didn't have to wait up all night outside in the cold at the Apple Store. The personal pickup option made this one of the easiest devices to pick up on launch day that I've purchased. I also picked up one of the new blue Smart Covers. I'm a fan of the Smart Cover, but it typically spends a lot of time detached from the iPad and sits on my desk. It only goes on when I'm out and about with my iPad in hand.
My initial impressions of the iPad Air were very positive. It is considerably lighter than the previous generation and also had a noticeable performance boost. After a few days of having the WiFi model, I decided that I wanted to get a cellular version since T-Mobile promoting 200 free megabytes of data each month to new iPad owners. I'm on WiFi most of the day but it's nice to have the additional megabytes for emergency internet access (if one can indeed call needing the internet an emergency). I returned the WiFi model and purchased the 32 GB Verizon model. Since the Air isn't locked to a carrier, I went to a T-Mobile store later that day and picked up a nano SIM starter kit for ten bucks and was off and rolling with two SIM cards for two different carriers. I planned to cancel my Verizon service after the first month and just continue with the 200 MB on T-Mobile when needed. With this setup, I felt that I could never want anything else.
I was wrong. I had spent a lot of time playing with the iPad Air and sadly found it to still be too heavy. I know, one pound is not heavy and I should stop complaining. Apple created this beautiful device and packed a ton of power into it and did so with very limited space. I'm amazed at what they were able to accomplish. However, the large screen size made the device a bit top heavy when typing on it in portrait mode. The length of the screen makes it a bit cumbersome, especially when using it on the go. As time passed, I couldn't see myself using the Air away from the house since it was most comfortable to use while sitting on the couch.
All the while I was using the Air, I was constantly checking blogs and Apple's site for any news of the release of the iPad mini with Retina Display. I tried to convince myself that I didn't want another mini but I just couldn't get the thought of it out of my head. Suddenly, a rumor was announced on November 11th that the Retina mini would go on sale the next day. Some scoffed at the rumors, but later that night Apple's online store went down, which typically signals the launch of a new device. I didn't care enough to stay up all night to see if the mini would indeed launch so I went to bed, still pretending that I was happy with the iPad Air.
On the morning of the 12th I checked Apple's store, just for kicks, and low and behold, there was the iPad mini with Retina Display. Available for purchase for delivery only. No in-store pickup options were available at that time. A few days went by and I kept watch on Store.Apple.com to see if the mini would ever be available for pickup at my local store. I became a bit obsessed, checking the site once every few hours. While doing one of my evening checks, I noticed that the mini was available at my store for pickup that same day. Without much hesitation, I bought it and went to the Apple Store the next day since the store was only open for a few more hours when I ordered it.
The pickup process was very easy. I was in and out in under ten minutes. I unboxed my new, 32 GB iPad mini with Retina Display for Verizon and it instantly felt comfortable. The first generation mini was a delight to use and I favored it over the full-sized iPads, even with it's inferior screen and slower processor. For how much I favored and was impressed with the first gen mini, I felt exponentially more impressed with the Retina mini. Handling the iPad Air still feels clunky in comparison and requires me to move my hands around the device too much to reach all parts of the screen. The Retina Display mini fits nice in my hand and allows me to be quick when navigating around the screen. The text is sharp and the mini is still just as fast and powerful as the iPad Air.
I kept both the iPad Air and iPad mini with Retina Display on hand for a day or so to really take some time to compare the two to make a final decision on which one I would keep. The Air lost that battle and was subsequently returned to the Apple Store. I had returned so many iPads to the Apple Store at this point that I became embarrassed to even show my face in there again to return yet another device. But I figured that if I'm going to be spending this much on a device, I wanted to test and try just about everything I could to make sure I was completely satisfied.
As I've written this post, I realize that this decision is fairly ridiculous and is very much a first-world problem. I feel very fortunate that this was the biggest decision I had to make this month. I am happy with my decision to stick with the iPad mini with Retina Display and I don't see myself buying a full-size iPad again in the future. To those who have had a mini in the past, the upgrade to the Retina mini is an obvious choice. For those who are buying an iPad for the first time or are replacing an older iPad, the decision gets more difficult. Both devices are great and get the job done, but anyone who values a device that is easy to use on the go and has all the power needed for just about any task, the Retina mini is the clear winner. I love it, it's the perfect device for my needs and I look forward to using it from here on out. That is until Apple releases the next generation.
No comments:
Post a Comment