Which iPad?

[avole]

As a result of reading through a couple of threads I've decided to buy an iPad, the old model, not the new. Which one would people recommend - I'm thinking of a 32 GB with WiFi only, since my iPhone can act as the 3G interface. Is that big enough for charts and plotting software, plus iTunes and the odd book?

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

As a result of reading through a couple of threads I've decided to buy an iPad, the old model, not the new. Which one would people recommend - I'm thinking of a 32 GB with WiFi only, since my iPhone can act as the 3G interface. Is that big enough for charts and plotting software, plus iTunes and the odd book?

Absolutely (probably)!

Books, charts, plotting software and apps take up very little space. I have 80 apps including 2 installations of Navionics (let's not got there please) and all the UK's Admiralty charts - and that's all in under 10GB.
I have 2500 songs (about 300 CD's worth) and thats another 10GB.
I have 12000 digital photos and thats another 10GB
I have another 5GB or video
I have another 5GB of data, reference files and so on.

The big space users are music and video.

 

[Laundryman]

Which ipad

I'm thinking of a 32 GB with WiFi only, since my iPhone can act as the 3G interface.

Sorry to hijack your post but i have a 64gb ipad wifi but no 3g, and a new iphone 4. Are you saying that i can use the navionics app on the ipad. by using the 3g and gps capability of my iphone. If so please tell me how because it will save me a lot of money. As for the ipad 32gb, it should be plenty big enough to handle whatever you are likely to put on it. I feel i wasted my money buying the 64gb

 

[Ex-SolentBoy]

I'm thinking of a 32 GB with WiFi only, since my iPhone can act as the 3G interface.

Sorry to hijack your post but i have a 64gb ipad wifi but no 3g, and a new iphone 4. Are you saying that i can use the navionics app on the ipad. by using the 3g and gps capability of my iphone. If so please tell me how because it will save me a lot of money. As for the ipad 32gb, it should be plenty big enough to handle whatever you are likely to put on it. I feel i wasted my money buying the 64gb

It seems that UK cellular providers my well be charging extra for Internet tethering. I am on O2 and they are not offering it free yet.

I have never heard of GPS tethering though so I can't see how what you suggest would work.

 

[gregcope]

I believe you need the 3G version to get GPS.

 

[Laundryman]

Which ipad

I believe you need the 3G version to get GPS.

I hoped the op suggested that you can use the 3g on the iphone paired to your wifi ipad to utilise the gps function. Thats why i asked how? I'm hoping i can do that to use the navionics app as a plotter. Before anyone says it, yes i already have a plotter on board and numerous back ups. Just trying to move with the times!

 

[DavyMac]

Thanks for the information on storage requirements, I was wondering the same thing.

The OP will need a 3G model to get GPS, unless they are proposing to use a wifi/nmea bridge to get an nmea gps position from a separate gps receiver. All of which requires more amps of course - I imagine that a wifi bridge is relatively power hungry but would be happy to be told that I'm wrong.

I am pretty sure that whilst iOS 4.3 supports wifi tethering on the iPhone (i.e. you can use the iPhone to create a mini wifi hotspot to which the iPad could connect) that feature only works where the network provider on the iPhone allows it. I don't know the terms on which UK networks allow this as yet but I would be surprised if they didn't charge extra despite that it would presumably be limited to your existing data caps. On my iPhone, on trying to select the feature I am told to contact Orange UK - presumably I wouldn't be if it were free. If others have better information then it would be much appreciated.

 

[JustMelfort]

I think I may have had the same quandary as you, and ended up with the 32Gb with 3G, for all the reasons above. I too have an Iphone but still went for the 3G version but added a PAYG sim card. Fortunately I still had my old data SIM that the data doesn't expire so my only real outlay was on the IPAD. As I go abroad a good deal I have the flexibility off adding a data SIM from the host country if reqd.

I believe I made the right choice as it does everything I want from nav to music and 1000s of photos. I guess I'd only go for the 64Gb version if I wanted to have lots of films. For me, not having the 3G would have become tedious, despite the Iphone.

 

[mikehibb]

A colleague at work has the iPad wifi, and also uses a mifi with 3G sim card when there is no wifi (ie not in office)
He (like me) travels a lot, I set up his mifi for three different sim cards, one for each of the contracts that he has in different countries.
Just an option if you see a cheap wifi only for sale.
The mifi can also be used with any other wifi devices too.

 

[Colvic Watson]

The problem with 3G iPad is that you'll need a data plan for anything other than vary occasional browsing as PAYG iPad is expensive. having travelled a lot with my iPad it's rare not to find a wifi hotspot and the speeds are much quicker than 3g. The mifi is a great bit of kit but requires lots of use to justify. Either way I think you'll love the iPad.

 

[barryg]

Ipad wifi only

I am going down this route, jailbreak and use external gps blue tooth dongle

http://www.simplemobilereview.com/how-to-use-an-external-bt-gps-with-the-ipad/