iPad mini 4 or iPad mini 2?

[pezman726]

I am in the market for an iPad mini for my (almost) 7 yr old daughter. She has been asking for an apple device for the past 2 years! Gotta love all the commercials on disney junior that say "get it in the apple app store today".

So, I was looking around for iPad minis and how much they cost. I figured 16gb isn't nearly enough, so I would go with at least 32gb, and I want the cellular connection as well. (We will be using this on vacations and whatnot, so I don't want to be always tied to wifi!)

I took a look at a local retailer, and they have an iPad mini 2, with Cellular connection (it says t-mobile...I thought they were really network agnostic...but it really doesn't matter, because I'd be using it on t-mo anyway), and 32GB for $299.

To the best of my understanding, the mini 3 is just the mini 2 with touchID...so i really don't need that.

The 64GB iPad mini 4 is running at $629

So, my question is, is the mini 4 REALLY worth the extra $330(+tax). What are the killer features that would make me want to spend more than 2x the amount? If you were buying it, which would you choose? Keeping in mind that this will be a 'family' device, but will mainly be used by a 7 year old to play (hopefully educational) games on!

Thanks for any input!

 

[tigerinexile]

The reason to go with the 4 would be the 2GB of RAM.

If it's a family device that'll take a bit of a beating and you'll want to replace it in a couple of years anyway, go with the Mini 2.

I'd buy the 4 for myself (did!), but it's not necessary. (Was downsizing from an Air, which has same specs as a Mini 2/3, and so I wanted an upgrade before pulling the trigger.)


Sent from my iPhone 6s Plus using Tapatalk

 

[katesbb]

I believe the Mini 4 can do Split View, where the Mini 2 can't.

 

[pezman726]

I believe the Mini 4 can do Split View, where the Mini 2 can't.

I'm guessing that is probably because of the less ram. I don't think that we'll be using it to much for multitasking. I have a laptop for that!

I think I am going to go with the mini 2.

Thanks for the help!

 

[katesbb]

I'm guessing that is probably because of the less ram. I don't think that we'll be using it to much for multitasking. I have a laptop for that!

I think I am going to go with the mini 2.

For what it's worth, I love my Mini 2. It does at least do iOS 9's "Slide Over," which can be super-handy at times. And while the Mini 4's specs make it more powerful, I don't have any performance complaints with the Mini 2.

 

[Septembersrain]

I'm guessing that is probably because of the less ram. I don't think that we'll be using it to much for multitasking. I have a laptop for that!

I think I am going to go with the mini 2.

Thanks for the help!

It's a really good device still. Very durable and stable. If it's going to be in younger hands, I'd vote against the 4. Price is way higher, device is much slimmer, and unless you're going to need that 2GB RAM or split view... Then the 2 would definitely be more viable I'd think.


Sent from my iPad Mini 3 using Tapatalk.

 

[Tre Lawrence]

Yep, still like the 2 here.

 

[pezman726]

Awesome! Thanks again for all the input. $300 is about the lowest I have seen for it. Any thoughts on if it might be cheaper around thanksgiving? I never really paid attention to the iPad deals in the past.

 

[mike1280]

It will be $199 for mini 2, wait till thanksgiving

 

[pezman726]

It will be $199 for mini 2, wait till thanksgiving

For the 32gb with cellular? You think? That would be an awesome deal!!!

 

[HankAZ]

If you want something that will last you a while, buy the biggest, baddest device that you can afford. If your goals are more short term, there's nothing wrong with buying the lesser model.

 

[Septembersrain]

Black Friday, Cyber Monday... There are deals coming!


Sent from my iPad Air 2 using Tapatalk.