Ipad

[Sue1016]

I'd like to buy my son a tablet or Ipad so he may start learning letters, etc and also for a our long train ride to disney. Any suggestions? i do not want the Ipad mini. too small in my opinion. any great deals for back to school? budget is no more than $500 at very very very most. (it was a bonus i've been saving to get this for my son)

 

[havaneselover]

I thought I saw target had the iPad Air $100 off this week.

Buy a good case.

 

[kcp1377]

Check out refurbished on the Apple Store. You save a lot and they are in perfect condition. I buy refurb all the time and have had no issues. You could also check swappa for a gently used iPad. It's my new favorite site for tech purchases.

 

[hsmamato2]

groupon was selling a few versions last week for around 150(?) after discount codes.... groupon has some great deals lately...

 

[SandyinMonterey]

We just got an IPad for our daughter for school. Only to find out afterwards that the teacher recommends the Kindle. Wish I knew that before. Looked into it, seems really good and I especially like the idea you can download so many books. Great for when your child is either beginning/learning to read or already reading. I believe the top of the line Kindle is called the Fire, has all the bells and whistles, for around $500. I'd at least check it out, wish I did.

 

[havaneselover]

Check out refurbished on the Apple Store. You save a lot and they are in perfect condition. I buy refurb all the time and have had no issues. You could also check swappa for a gently used iPad. It's my new favorite site for tech purchases.

It really depends. I got my mini 2 cheaper at Best Buy than what apple was selling refurbished ones for. And an Air 2 wifi 16 gb refurbished is $40 more than the new model at Target. I've never found their prices to be that good.

 

[Sue1016]

thanks for all ur replies. i saw groupon has a 32gb ipad air for $399 is that a good deal? what's it mean 'unlocked gms' i'm not too familiar with all this tech stuff

 

[Anthony1971]

For a child you can gat Samsung tab E or A 9.6 inch same size as the IPAD... Best Buy had and may still have the TAB E for 169.99 for there 50th anniversary special.
The lower end Samsung's have a lesser screen than Apple but most adults will never see the difference performance wise they are very similar with a few things missing that again most will never use nor notice. If Apple is the only one.. buy the latest version you can The target deal was good for the AIR 2... The older Ipads will get slower over time due to the ever changing more demanding apps. You may want to look at the Mini's --they are 8 inch tablets -- Samsung makes the same size as well they are by far not to small for a child and more likely a better choice as it is easier for them to hold. Also in the future depending on your school district and how much Money they have.. a lot are giving all students Ipads in 4th or 5 the grade to use for the year (it is a loan) They also make smaller 7 inch tablets geared and set up for children with protective cases.. they can be had for under 100 mostly less... My advice Buy what you will not get upset if it gets dropped and the screen cracks... there is plenty of time as they get older (in the 10-12 range) for you buy a better tablet that they should then be able to use some of the capabilities.

 

[havaneselover]

thanks for all ur replies. i saw groupon has a 32gb ipad air for $399 is that a good deal? what's it mean 'unlocked gms' i'm not too familiar with all this tech stuff

Personally I'd get a 16 gb iPad Air 2 from target for $300. Or buy the Air refurbished for $319. At some point in the future the Air 2 may be able to get iOS updates that the Air can't. Also the Air 2 has a better screen, better processor, better camera, etc.

 

[Bree]

We just got an IPad for our daughter for school. Only to find out afterwards that the teacher recommends the Kindle. Wish I knew that before. Looked into it, seems really good and I especially like the idea you can download so many books. Great for when your child is either beginning/learning to read or already reading. I believe the top of the line Kindle is called the Fire, has all the bells and whistles, for around $500. I'd at least check it out, wish I did.

You can download the Kindle app onto the iPad. You can download books into the app.

 

[havaneselover]

You can download the Kindle app onto the iPad. You can download books into the app.

Yep. That's how I read on my iPad mini.

 

[mfly]

Personally I'd get a 16 gb iPad Air 2 from target for $300. Or buy the Air refurbished for $319. At some point in the future the Air 2 may be able to get iOS updates that the Air can't. Also the Air 2 has a better screen, better processor, better camera, etc.

I agree 100% with @havaneselover. Your best options are, as she says above:
(1) 16 GB iPad Air 2 - $299 from Target or
(2) 32 GB iPad Air - $319 (Refurbished) from Apple.

Both iPads should be able to receive software updates from Apple for quite some time; the iOS update that will come out this fall is compatible with devices all the way back to the iPad 4.

Your decision is going to be mostly based on storage capacity: will you be saving a lot of games/movies to the iPad? If so, you'll want the larger capacity. If you just plan on a handful of games and/or streaming movies, you'll be fine with the 16 GB. For reference, most of the Disney movies we own are between 1.5 and 4 GB each, so you can roughly estimate how much capacity you'll need based on that.

This is personal preference, but I would also strongly suggest investing in some type of insurance for the device. For us, AppleCare+ has been a lifesaver. The initial cost is $99, which extends the warranty coverage from 1 to 2 years, and it also adds accidental damage coverage for those 2 years for up to 2 incidents (each of which will require a $49 deductible for device replacement). Again, it's totally up to you, but based on our experiences, I would never get a child an iPad without it.

 

[usnuzuloose]

groupon was selling a few versions last week for around 150(?) after discount codes.... groupon has some great deals lately...

I saw they had an macbook air computer for 650 not long ago. If I would have had the money I would have bought one. I need to check groupon.

 

[Sue1016]

thank you all ! i purchased the Ipad Air 2 64 GB at target - it was $100 off which i thought was a pretty good deal. They only had gold and though this is for my son, i doubt they will see the color anyway cause i plan to purchase a very very sturdy case for it...... any suggestions on best cases for a kid? he is 1.5 years old plan to use on train / car rides maybe restaurants if he gets too rowdy. i don't want him to be one of those kids with heads in ipad all the time. but some places it's needed (train and car I think most)

needs to make sure screen doesn't crack, shock proof ad maybe splash or water proof. any and all suggestions welcomed. thanks again!!

 

[Ciandella915]

I don't know how sold you are on it being an iPad, but one of my staff bought a Kindle that is apparently child proof for her three year old for Christmas. She said it's got a one-year guarantee on it for any damages due to the kid breaking it. It sounded really great from what she was saying. She's pretty much tired of handing her phone over and risking damage to it.

 

[KarenAylwood]

We have an older iPad that my husband got me almost 4 years ago and we have it in an Otterbox case and love it. Our 3 year old uses it on long car rides and on trips, we don't generally let him use it around the house much. We got the case when he was 1 and it works perfectly!

 

[auralia]

both of my kids have minis and prefer it to my larger ipad because it is lighter and more portable with same abilities and battery life... they are 9 and 5 and have had them for about 3 years, they have little interest in my full size ipad at all. I prefer it for portability as well.

 

[auralia]

ah you already bought one.. only case i trust is an otterbox defender.... yes they are expensive but my kids minis are now over 3 years old and still going strong despite multiple drops from hight on hard surfaces and my ipad once dropped about 7 feet onto concrete in one ... it just bounced and scratched the case a bit no damage to ipad.

 

[Night Huntress]

Otterbox cases are good but I always buy Lifeproof. Check best buy. (and other stores online). But many times best buy has some amazing deals on lifeproof cases online. I got my case for my ipad mini for $35 on their website and another time the case for my iphone for $40.

 

[kristenrice]

I have a Lifeproof case on my iPhone and an Otterbox case on my iPad. The main difference is that the Lifeproof is waterproof and the Otterbox is not. I don't take my iPad out in the rain or in the shower, but my phone does get exposed to water. I love the Lifeproof products, but the Otterbox works just fine for my iPad.