What's most important: Battery life, retina display, or lightness?

[Rene Ritchie]

Let's say apple has a new iPad 5 ready, but because it's so thin and has a retina display the battery life is hard-pressed to get 10 hours like previous generations.

Or, let's say when they put a retina screen in the iPad mini, it's hard-pressed to get the same battery life as the original iPad mini.

Is that okay with you? Is having a lighter big iPad, or a retina iPad mini, worth less battery life?

Could Apple sell an iPad that doesn't get 10 hours of battery life?

 

[rayz336]

When it comes to mobile devices I'd choose battery over thinness or a retina display every day and twice on Sundays.

I believe Apple could sell an iPad that gets less than 10 hours of battery life because people will want the iPad experience and a lot of users could care less as long as they get about 8 to 9 hours on a single charge.

 

[Richard Devine]

Retina display on the iPad Mini and I'll go out and buy one tomorrow. Because its not like a smartphone and I use it more sparingly, I could take a bit of a trade off in battery for that beautiful display.

 

[dkhmwilliams]

All of the above.


Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk 2

 

[cardfan]

Retina display easily for bigger ipad. Like Richard said, I use ipads more sparingly. I wouldn't even notice if it was reduced 2-3 hours. Thin and light? That matters more with the Mini because I use it as I would use an ipod touch. The bigger ipad i usually used moreso with stands or laying on folded smartcover but not held nearly as much as the Mini.

That said, I'd buy a retina Mini yesterday. Otherwise this could be a year in which I don't really buy an iOS device.

 

[Just_Me_D]

After having had the iPad 2 for a couple of years, I'd take batter battery life over the thinness and the retina display any time. I mean really, at which point do we call a device "too thin"? As for the retina display & as gorgeous as it it, I would still choose a better battery over it, but that's Just Me, D...

 

[sting7k]

The iPad is too heavy. It must be lighter.

The iPad Mini needs retina display.

 

[Just_Me_D]

If you spend time with the iPad 3 or 4 though, they are considerably heavier than the 2 because of the need for the bigger battery for the retina screen.

I understand, but it goes back to
Rene's question:

"Is having a lighter big iPad, or a retina iPad mini, worth less battery life?"

"My" answer is no. I'd take the longer battery life any day over the lighter weight & a retina display.

 

[Fausty82]

Let's say apple has a new iPad 5 ready, but because it's so thin and has a retina display the battery life is hard-pressed to get 10 hours like previous generations.

Or, let's say when they put a retina screen in the iPad mini, it's hard-pressed to get the same battery life as the original iPad mini.

Is that okay with you? Is having a lighter big iPad, or a retina iPad mini, worth less battery life?

Could Apple sell an iPad that doesn't get 10 hours of battery life?

It depends on the device. IMHO, the retina display is more important on the larger devices... Battery life is more important to me on mobile devices (iPhones, mainly). With iPads, I’d prefer lighter as I carry it around - mine are all wifi, so I don’t use is as a "mobile" device as much as a portable device. The same with laptops... lighter and retina...

 

[DC506]

Make it lighter.

For me...
I would be hard pressed to use my iPad more than 10 hours a day. And I can recharge throughout the day if I need to.

 

[anon(4698833)]

The devices are already ultra thin and super light...with the battery #'s we get now, i can't imagine I would personally want to sacrifice anymore battery longevity for a fraction smaller chassis that is really only noticeable when the two items are set right next to each other. I also know that eventually, technology will be there to make the batteries paper thing and the devices will, in turn, become significantly thinner and lighter...until that time, what we have I am content with and would be for at least a few more years.

Making a device too light also has a very direct effect on the "cheapness" FEEL to the device...the iPhone 5 (coming from the 4S) was shockingly light, almost to the point where i was uncomfortable carrying it around, for fear of breaking it or the quality of the build. The Macbook Air is the same way...it feels so light, i personally start questioning how durable it would be in my day to day activities.

One thing that I also want to be comfortable about with a device that is designed significantly thinner and lighter is it's durability...i dont want to have a device that gets dropped from a couch cushion and ends up bent or dented significantly, I also don't want the glass panel on the device to be fragile to where years of use causes stress cracks or shattering issues (after the device is out of warranty).

The retina display is there...i would not want to move away from that on the iOS devices, so that is a must have for me now. So in the end, if i had to pick one of those three things as "most important" as our devices sit right now, it would definitely be the retina display.

 

[jclisenby]

Battery life and retina display. Make it a tiny bit thicker and we can get both.


Tappin and Talkin from my iPhone 5

 

[mulasien]

This reminds me of an oft-repeated saying in the car enthusiast world:

"Cheap, fast, and reliable. You can only choose TWO."

In this case, I think that two out of the three available options are easily doable.

For me, I'd take retina display with long battery life any day. The race to make the thinnest, lightest device possible means either one or both of the other two requirements will have to be cut.

I could see the requirements for the Mini being slightly different since it's supposed to be more 'portable', but would an extra ounce or two REALLY be that much of a detriment for the trade off of a better screen with great battery life? I have a hard time believing that.

 

[Good OL MC]

It's really hard to say if a heavier iPad Mini would be worth the retina display without knowing how much heavier one would be. Would it still be an easy to hold device for one hand? That is the real question.

As far as the 9.7 iPad I think sacrificing battery life on that would be a mistake. That large display begs for movie playback and games - need to feed that beast. I'd love a lighter one but not at the expense of battery life.

 

[abazigal]

Battery life for me. I use my ipad very heavily in my life as a teacher, and it often ends the day with ~30-40% of battery life. Any less, and my ipad would have problems lasting through the day, what more when I want to use it for leisure at home.

That said, because I am constantly walking around the classroom with it in hand, I would appreciate any reduction in weight, assuming it does not come at the expense of battery life.

 

[iPhone4iPad]

For me, it would Battery Life. Because with the technologies today we can easily get an HD display/Retina Display. Lightness is the last concern. When I FIRST held the 5, I felt it was made from plastic due to the thickness and weight, but now holding an iPhone 4S makes that fat but I could still live with that provided I get an excellent battery life.


Sent from my iPad Mini using Tapatalk

 

[BlackBerry Guy]

I would be ok with a slightly thicker and heavier iPad mini with retina.


Sent from my Z10 using Tapatalk 2

 

[theKHMERboy]

Well to me battery life is not much of an issue since I always have a charger with me now and the weight of the phone does kinda matter and I like how the iphone5 is so light but I guess retina display is the most important to me and I like how iPhone 5 display is so bright and so clear compare to most of the smartphones out there makes the phone look more beautiful then it already is

 

[chris_328]

All of them!!!

 

[cwbcpa]

If I had to rank by importance I would say battery life is always most important with phones and tablets for me. That is followed by portability and then display.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk