Ipad Mini

[Godfrey]

.. But I don't think tablets - given what they do, are worth Apple asking price personally. ...

That's to you, and certainly nothing wrong with that.

For many (myself included), the iPad has proven to address a huge part of my personal and working need for a computing device. I've scaled back on what I have in desktop and laptop computing equipment because for all but the top end needs (photo image processing of raw files being the biggest of them), the iPad 2 does the job perfectly and far more efficiently in terms of price, space, power consumption, etc.

The good news is that there is now a huge range of different equipment available to suit all these individual needs. When I've used other tablets, they didn't do what I need/want as well.

I guess the bottom line is that you see the tablet as a plaything, where I get a good bit of my work done with one. Different perspectives..

 

[NickTrop]

^ Fair enough, Godfrey. Though I don't think I can live with Photoshop Touch (if that's what you're referencing).

 

[Godfrey]

^ Fair enough, Godfrey. Though I don't think I can live with Photoshop Touch (if that's what you're referencing).

Perhaps I wasn't clear enough ... My photographic image processing is most of what I still require a standard computer for. I do some quickie image processing on the iPad with Snapseed (to JPEG files) but my image scanning, raw conversion, etc is done with VueScan, Lightroom and Photoshop on my OS X system (currently a MacBook Pro, but possibly soon to be a Mac mini as I so rarely take the laptop out of the cradle any more; the iPad does mobility better).

My paying work, nowadays, is technical writing. I can get about 90% of what I need to do there written using PlainText and Pages on the iPad, then I need to transfer what I've written into structured writing tools and finished on OS X. Document review and research is generally easier to do on the iPad, for me.

My own photo/art book creation, presentation, etc work: most of the idea part of the job and writing I do on the iPad. Just as with my career work, the workflow then rolls that into tools on OS X for finishing.

Email, web surfing, etc etc ... Well, I'm writing this right now on my iPad.

 

[Poppers]

Does anyone know if I was to buy one in the US the 3G one would it work ok in the UK. Are they locked to a provider like iPhones?

 

[GaryLH]

http://www.apple.com/ipad-mini/ultrafast-wireless/

This writeup implies it is not carrier locked... But wouldn't put it past AT&T. I don't ave a gsm iPad so hopefully someone will give the latest update on this since I would eventually get one for business and vacation travell.

Gary

 

[Godfrey]

Does anyone know if I was to buy one in the US the 3G one would it work ok in the UK. Are they locked to a provider like iPhones?

My iPad 2 (bought in California) has the GSM cellular hardware in it. I normally use it with AT&T in the USA, but there's nothing "locked" about it ... the service is always a month to month deal. When I go to the UK, I can get a chip and and buy cellular data service with several different carriers there.

When I took it there last Fall, I didn't even bother with that as ATT has a buy on need extension for cellular data in most parts of the UK, so I just used that.

 

[willie_901]

I purchased an app called DSLRRemoteHD for my iPad 2. My laptop connects to a tripod mounted D700 and the iPad connects wirelessly. The app operates the camera and mirrors the D700 Live View display in real time on the iPad.

Clients just adore this. They can walk around the room we're shooting with the iPad in hand and stage in real time. I can check the lighting and adjust strobe locations to eliminate shadows and reflections by looking the large iPad display. I just have to be sure I have enough camera batteries because the Live View mode eats them. We both save a lot of time and the client knows exactly what they will get.

 

[GaryLH]

I just noticed Sony did the same thing w/ the nex6...

Pretty neat idea.

Gary

 

[coelacanth]

For someone designing things for iPad (and most of other kinds of touch screen devices) on daily basis, having same resolution as iPad 2 is a bonus. Of course the physical size is different so UX testing must be conducted though.

I just had a meeting with a high profile ID firm and they had interactive 3D rendering of physical device mockup on iPad so we could play with it. iPad is definitely becoming more than pure media consumption device and I am welcoming the trend.

Since I'm a UX designer (Best benefit: can justify expense of all latest gadgets!), I've had all iPads, and currently using Nexus 7 and iPad 3 (and Kindle Paperwhite). I'll be getting iPad mini anyway. I test UI mockups on tablets everyday so the iPad mini will contribute to that for sure.

 

[kuzano]

More for $80...

More for $80...

What am I missing here. I just bought an $80 touch screen overlay for my worthless (could get perhaps $100 for it used) Acer 10.1inch Netbook, and put Android on it. Fold it to protect the screen and a real keyboard. Three real USB ports and 320 Gb hard drive. Still have productivity and cheap port access to all devices.

??????

I call it a MePad. And it does not have wings for extra protection.

 

[splitimageview]

One can also buy a $20 Nikon EM body and a $20 50mm lens and it will shoot essentially the same photos as a brand new Leica M7 Ala carte -- body only for $6000. Luckily one doesn't have to choose an OS when using a film camera. 🙂

Personally, I don't like Android on a phone, let alone on a larger screen. For me, it's the user interface that matters, and seamless operation. Also must mention unmatched build quality, and solid resale value.

It's great there are options for people that want something else. All hail competition and the free market.

 

[jtm6]

no retina display though...

That's next. Give it a few months, 6 max.

(I'm joking but it is probably true. 😉 )

 

[swoop]

Don't have to buy an ipad fitting bag anymore, love the ipad mini size I believe will fit in an F803 or Retrospective 5 🙂

My thoughts exactly. I have been through bag after bag after bag but I love the Domke F-6. It's the bag I turn to day after day for work and personal photographing. I've even figured out how to modify it into a diaper/camera bag when my son was born. But alas it will not fit a tablet.

And though I love my android phone and android tablet. There is no better app for mobile editing that filterstorm. And the ******* who makes it, bless his heart, is an absolute Apple fanatic and will not make an android version.

 

[jtm6]

The regular-sized iPads fit perfectly in the back pocket of a Domke F-803 satchel.

 

[jtm6]

What am I missing here. I just bought an $80 touch screen overlay for my worthless (could get perhaps $100 for it used) Acer 10.1inch Netbook, and put Android on it. Fold it to protect the screen and a real keyboard. Three real USB ports and 320 Gb hard drive. Still have productivity and cheap port access to all devices.

Even though they are both fruit, there are differences between apples and oranges.

 

[benlees]

Companies are having too much selling you a computer and a tablet. Gonna be awhile before a tablet is a high powered machine!

 

[CaptZoom]

Boy, I just don't know.

My first thought was that this never would never have seen the light of day under Steve.

But, I assume that this would be outstanding for field types -such as delivery, construction, perhaps medical (EMT), etc... The idea of using it as a smaller "photo bank" had not crossed my mind.

So, there does seem to be a possible "phablet" market emerging, and once again -Apple will be on the crest and likely sell a bazillion!

It is likely that this new iPad was in development while Steve Jobs was still with Apple. Jobs was already working on an iPad like device back when iPhone was first released. You can watch a joint interview of Jobs and Gates in which Jobs describes a future pc device that turned out to be an iPad. The R&D for new devices is at least three years deep.

 

[nightfly]

My wife has an iPad which I've always found a little too big and heavy for the type of device it is. To me something which is half the weight is appealing so I'm looking seriously at the mini.

I've already bought into the Apple ecosystem and if you like what they are offering and don't chafe at the limitations, it's a nice place to be. Everything just works together with next to zero futzing. To me an extra few $ to not waste my time dicking around trying to get something to work is well worth it. Android based devices aren't even a consideration for me.

However I think I'll probably wait a bit till the 32 gig version is closer to the current 16 gig pricepoint since it's primarily an entertainment/media consumption device for me. I just dropped a ton of money on a retina mackbook pro (very happy with it) which is easy to just for work but the ipad is still more of a play device for me.

 

[Al Patterson]

- I want the simple ability to plug in a USB drive or 32 gig external microSD and not be intentionally crippled by Apple to their internal disk space upgraded pricing tiers.

- Not be forced into the overpriced Apple ecosystem

- All streaming services work on this low price Android. Netflix, Xfinity, Youtube etc. It's a full Android that works fine, including 3D games.

Again, if you want a laptop replacement then go higher end. But from my perspective - none of them (tablets) are "there" yet. I'll sit it out until (a) they are there and are viable alternatives and (b) their price drops.

In the meantime, I'll go cheap and stay "within a reasonable scope for such a device" and not try to have it do what it's not intended to do.

And I didn't see any issue with the load times of the pages on the video. It loads as fast as my PC. Negligible wait times. I have no issue with the speed pages load on the tablet.

Again, I did say Apple is the gold standard. It is. But if you want a tab for recreational purposes and aren't looking for a laptop replacement (none of them are right now imo) but don't want to spend a ton of dough on one with a 10" sceen, the model I proposed is a reasonable choice.

I'd like to check out the iPad mini, but I'm going with the larger NOOK HD with the 9" screen as a portable browsing device Nothing wrong with Apple, it's just that I still read books on the thing, and was able to find the apps I wanted in the B&N NOOK store. I've always thought the iPad 1/2/3 were too big, and having used a 7" Nook Color, I've decided the 7" devices are too small. As they say, YMMV, and Apple is a gold standard, but I usually buy Silver...

 

[Godfrey]

How do you connect the iPad to a projector?

Easy stuff:

- 30pin or Lightning connection to DVI, HDMI, or VGA adapter for cable connection. for video (or video and sound with HDMI).

- Air Display to AppleTV device, connected via HDMI to the projector/television/etc, for video and sound.

Keynote on an iPad, and an AppleTV or connecting cable, is an amazing presentation engine.