Are Ipads really worth it?

[Keira1387]

Add the to the list of IPAD lovers! I take it with me everywhere. Don't know what I did without it.

 

[MickeyHereWeCome!]

We have two, and they are constantly being used! If they already have iPhones, they won't need to buy a ton of apps right away, since they can just sync the ones they already have onto the iPad. You can even get a pages app to do some basic word processing (and I think they have one for numbers..to do spreadsheets etc.). We've used ours for music, movies, games, e-mail, word processing, organizing pictures (we aren't thrilled with the quality of the camera, so we don't really use it to take the pictures), messaging, Facetime, etc.

The only necessities would be a decent case or cover and a screen cover.

I think they would like it! You are extremely generous

 

[Dizfan4life]

I personally don't think they are. Have you checked into a tablet instead? My hubby and I are in the market for something similar and the tablets are outweighing the ipads big time! In fact, my brother and his wife were determined to get an ipad, but chose a tablet instead. Before you spend the money on the ipad just check into the tablets if you haven't done that yet.

 

[StuckInKS]

I have played with one, but I think the Touchpads we got for $99 are just as good. We mainly use them for the kids' (ReadingEggs, SmartTutor, ClickNRead, BrainPOP and Starfall all work great on them) and once in a while for playing games that we downloaded for the app store. Even if we didn't have the Touchpads, we would not be able to justify a $600 price tag for any tablet (without dipping into our vacation funds -- not happening since we'd need at least two). I think that kind of money is better spent on an actual laptop (and you can get pretty good ones for $600.) Even if your children already have laptops, they may be happy with a new one. I bought mine less than a year ago and am already looking to upgrade. If I was in the market for a tablet, I'd look into buying a NIB Touchpad for half the cost (or less) of an iPad.

 

[plummer925]

We can't imagine traveling without it anymore. Another plus, is it doesn't have to be taken out of the bag when going through security since it is not a laptop.

That is a HUGE plus!!!

 

[luv2mickey]

Definitely worth it!!!

 

[QVCshopper]

I have an iPad and an iPad 2. I won both locally in a contest and a raffle. Anyway, I love them and use them all the time. You don't need a docking station, but a good cover is a must. We can stretch our iTune gift cards, too. Personally, I think it's a great gift. We got my in-laws a 16gb iPad 2 for Xmas.

 

[racechick8293]

The iPad is well worth the money! I've found so many uses, for home and work. There are also many good educational apps. It can be used for communications, reading books, watching videos, organization, etc. The size and weight are also perfect to carry with me.

IMHO, the Apple products are worth the investment. They tend to hold a fairly strong resale value, and just work. The uses of the Nook/Kindle are limited. My experiences with Android have been that it's a buggy operating system, although it may be better now. I jumped ship to Apple two years ago and haven't looked back.

 

[iheartpeterpan]

I love my ipad. Also, if they already have iphones, they have probably already bought the extra "stuff" they will want to buy (music etc) with the exception of a couple of ipad specific apps - and I rarely spend money on those. I love having my ipad when I travel to watch movies, read books, etc. and if I have access to wifi I have my TV at home through slingplayer!

 

[starbird]

The two things the OP said that stand out the most to me are:

1. Concern the price to value ratio with the HP TouchPad
2. Your kids currently have iPhones

On the first point? HP originally priced the TouchPad at the same price ($499/$599) as the iPad. As a result? It sold so poorly (or more accurately, didn't sell) that places such as Best Buy told HP to take them back. It wasn't until the firesale price of $99/$149 that here was any true interest in it. I have always been a Mac/iPod user, but had a Palm Pre (ran webOS like the TouchPad) as though it is a great mobile OS, the hardware is comparable to the first iPad, the device suffered from not having the same synergy as the iPad/iOS. (The irony that webOS has a feature called Synergy is not lost on me). To compare this to the product that essentially defined the category (the iPad) is going to be difficult. The TouchPad is a great device for the $99/$149 price point.

To the second point. They have iPhones already. Every app they already have will work on it. No additional charge. It is the OS they are familiar with. So that should cover the concern of app costs, etc. as others have said, you don't need a dock, it comes with the chargers. Personally, I don't think that screen protectors are needed on the iPad. Especially since they don't have kids. A smart cover is enough.

Hope that helps!

 

[Pigeon]

I have one from work, but I don't think it is remotely worth what they cost.

 

[DisneyLoverUSA]

You can buy them a Kindle Fire for $199 and if you are Prime members on Amazon you will get free streaming TV and video on the devices as long as they are on your Prime account membership with you.

If you buy them make sure you check the box that they are meant to be a gift so they don't come registered to your own Amazon account. I bought two for my younger kids and had them registered to my account. I bought DS26 one and checked to NOT have it registered to my account but when it came it greeted ME by name and was registered to my account. You just click the button out next to the greeting that asks you if you are NOT "that person"

The Ipad is bigger than the Fire and has GPS and bluetooth. The Fire doesn't. But I don't need a 10 inch GPS pad I have a regular GPS in my car.

It has apps and games and books and video and TV. Everything you can do with an Ipad. You can even add your ITunes music or regular music to the Fire.

I bought 3 and added the 2 year Square Trade warranty with each of them so for 3 Fires with the warranty for each it was $750 with free 2 day shipping. Money well spent.

 

[PurpleDog]

Thoughts and observations:

Ive had the 32GB iPad 1 for over a year and love it. It's my ebook reader, video player, music player, emailer, web surfer, and game player. I spend 2+ hours a day with it. The screen is stunning even when watching standard defination video; with HD it must be seen to be believed.

I purchased a Kindle Fire, and a Blackberry Playbook and gave each device a though testing .. the Blackberry was returned within 3 days and I still have the Fire, but its most likely going back also. I would keep the Kindle Fire if I did not have my iPad but I sure dont need both. [I anyone wants a great deal on a Fire with a case .. contact me !]

Keep in mind that the Fire costs $199, but they only give you 1 month of the free Prime service. The Prime service allows you to access Amazon's huge library of digital content [movies, tv shows, music] for free. You have to pay $79 for a year of Prime after that free one month trial. Without the Prime, and access to the streaming digital contact, the Kindle Fire is not a viable tablet in my opinion.

If you need to "scrimp" ... get each child a Fire [$199] and an Amazon gift card for $80 [$279 total for each child] - and you will have done really well. If you want to really WOW them get them each the iPad 2.

I highly recomend buying refurbished iPads from the Apple Store. Each unit is tested, given a new case and battery, and comes with the full one year warranty.

The rumor mill says that Apple will release the iPad 3 soon, and that the iPad 2 will then be available in 3 different models; one of which will be priced near $200 to compete with the Kindle Fire.

 

[mdsoccermom]

What business apps do you use? I got an i-pad for Christmas and I can't figure out its worth for business or everyday life. Great for goofing around, though.

I'm a travel agent, so most of my apps are travel related. I do have one called Splashtop which allows me to access my laptop remotely. That's good if I need to access a document. The benefit to me is that I can do work anywhere - such as research quotes for client - without having to take my laptop along.

 

[lucigo]

I've been researching, but haven't made any decisions yet, so appreciate this thread. Several of my friends have iPads for their kids with autism and really love them. My son loves his ipod, but mostly watches youtube, and takes videos and pictures with it. Its always full and he never wants to delete his videos. I am torn. If I get an ipad I know there are a lot of autism related education apps available (and not sure if he is more high functioning and wouldn't really benefit as much from them). If I get something smaller like a Fire or android based tablet it might be easier to add more storage and transfer between computer and tablet. That said, I have an android based phone that doesn't run as smoothly as the ipod.

As you can see I can't make a decision either! LOL

 

[beaucoup]

iPad is not a toy.

Lots of companies and even the military issue them to some employees for work purposes.
DH will be issued one when he gets back from Afghanistan. No movies. No music. Lots of work & productivity / business apps. All work related. No personal info allowed on it.

I have an iPhone & iPad2. I don't listen to music or watch movies on either of them.

 

[polkadotminnie]

We have an ipad and the new Nook tablet. I like the size and portability of the tablet. It fits in my purse. It also cost only $250.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

I had an ipad, then an hp touchpad, then the kindle fire. Now I'm back to the ipad. It's the best, love it!

 

[Dizfan4life]

I just found out that my sister-in-law purchased the Samsung tablet. When I posted previously I wasn't sure of what she purchased so I didn't want to give the wrong info. She purchased the tablet so she can email, when on vacation, and use it to play movies. One nice feature that the tablet has over the ipad is the SD slot so you can download your own movies onto them and insert them into the tablet.... instead of having to download them into an ipad and have it take up memory. She got the 10" tablet, which is the same price as the ipad, however, I know that smaller tablets are not as expensive. Good luck with your decision!

 

[vallamen]

Love mine. Loved it so much I ditched my blackberry for an iPhone 4s. Got sick of the kids trying to steal it all the time that I got them iPods for Christmas. My dad loved it so much, he got one and he takes it with him everywhere. I use it for work, as does my dad and my brother in law. The cloud keeps everything in sync between ipad and iphone such as contacts, calendars, songs, movies, apps, etc. I love having quick remote access to my home computer through a cheap app (I use jump). Makes traveling a breeze compared to hauling a laptop.

It really is a great piece of technology. I would recommend the 3G + wifi version. 3G version is great for traveling and to do remote access to a pc from anywhere.

If your kids like their iPhones then they would probably love an iPad.