If I get an iPad, which should I get?

A quick list of pros and cons.

3g pros:
easy data access anywhere
GPS

3g cons:
expensive ($130 premium)
monthly fee for data
data is provided by AT&T (inferior to Verizon)

WiFi pros:
less expensive
tether for 3g (Verizon > AT&T)
no monthly fee (other than current phone bill)
more money spent towards storage
available now

WiFi cons:
extra step for data access (more complex)
data may be unreliable
use of wifi tethered to phone may drain phone battery
no GPS

16GB:
May be content-limiting, especially for video storage
Cheap

32GB:
Sweet spot?

64GB:
Expensive. VERY expensive with 3g. $830 (A MacBook with student discount is $900)

thoughts:
The 64GB option is just too expensive to be justified, in my opinion. This is doubly so when you consider it with 3g. I’m not concerned about the 16gb storage limitation because I don’t envision putting music on the device, or even more than one or two films at a time. The 32gb might provide a bit more breathing room. The option of tethering to my phone for 3g access is attractive, especially because Verizon’s coverage is far superior to AT&T’s. I think I can reasonably eliminate any option with 3g, with the only real downside being lack of GPS and potentially missing out on a few “cool” apps that utilize the feature. However, I don’t see the iPad as being a viable option for in-car GPS, a walking map, etc. Its too expensive to carry around on pavement and risk breaking. Also, some apps can use WiFi to determine your location in a general area.

My main uses for the device would (will?) primarily be as a reader, some apps, and perhaps (but rarely) viewing movies.

Special thanks to @benjaminmingle for helping me compile this list of pros/cons while we both debate the merits of owning an iPad.

2010
04/06
CATEGORY
mac
personal
5 comments
  • Kazu

    A kick in the balls to you both imo….sheep

  • acmorton

    We just purchased two for our organization, both 16gb wifi only. The memory seems perfectly adequate for lots of ebooks, an occasional movie, etc. Personally I see no need to buy the 3g version unless you travel extensively and need network access on the road. As an aside, there will be no tethering between the iphone and ipad, which was revealed in a direct email to someone from Steve Jobs himself (at least on the non-jailbroken ipads). Good luck making your decision!

  • http://twitter.com/josh_hepworth Josh Hepworth

    I went with the 16GB wifi for the exact reasons you mention above. Pandora is the shit for music, and I have a home server for video in situations where I'll have wifi. But even still, as gizmodo mentioned, you can comfortably watch 1024×570 widescreen video on the iPad and that wont use a tremendous amount of memory. Anyway. Best buy still has 16GB wifi in stock in SC if you want to grab one today (I did).

  • http://twitter.com/bjshively Bradley Shively

    Josh,

    I called the SC Best Buy after my class and they said they had the 16GB in stock, but when I got there all they had left was the 64GB. I totally would have gone for the 32GB, but no way I can justify the cost of the 64. I'll have to just order online and wait. Slightly disappointing, but perhaps it will help me be more confident that I'm not just making an “impulse buy.”

    Glad to hear I'm not alone on my reasoning for not going with 3g. Since I have Verizon, I can easily hack my Droid into an awesome WiFi hotspot.

  • http://twitter.com/bjshively Bradley Shively

    Thanks for the input! I'm on Verizon and there is an app that can turn a (hacked) Droid into a Wifi hotspot for 5+ devices, which is pretty awesome. Hopefully I'll be able to take advantage of that with the iPad. I'm thinking my only real regret could be a killer app coming out that requires the GPS, but alas, I think its a worthwhile trade off.

    Let me know how your iPads work out!