How Long Do I Have?

[HenryWalsh]

Well the Mini's start at $329 + tax, and they are starting to trickle into the Apple store refurb area, at $30-40 less depending on the model.

Android's are indeed cheaper, but to me they just look like a big phone, not a tablet.

Phil does some nice comparisons against the Google Nexus 7 at the 50min mark

Apple - Apple Events - Apple Special Event October 2012

I'll take a look. This is just frustrating. Granted, I can't complain about how much I paid for my Pad as it was a contest prize, but it is pretty much abandoned by apple less than 4 years in. Granted, technology moves fast but... I expected at least 6 years before a platform is cast aside. I can probably still sell my pad for $50-$100 (if I am lucky.) But even if I could come up with $300 over that I don't feel like I can trust Apple to support an older pad, like an iPad 2 which is the cheapest of the bunch, for long enough to make buying anything but their most expensive tablet feasible and even then I don't know how long it will be viable.

To be honest I feel betrayed.

That may seem harsh or unreasonable but it seems too short a time frame to out mod something do darned expensive.

On the other hand it is Apple. They have always been the wealthy person's computer company. Slick looking and very streamlined but Apple has always been VERY expensive.

 

[KevinJS]

The iPad 2 is not only still supported, it is still manufactured and sold. The original iPad, it should not be forgotten, it the tablet that no-one wanted, that was never going to sell. Considering the whining at the time of release, I think it has done pretty well. 4 years is a long time in IT.

 

[alicepattinson]

Is it possible to earn enough money to get a new one?[/QUOTE

Yes of course

 

[y2kgtp]

I hear your argument. Having a device that is locked in at iOS 5.1.1 stings, as more and more apps come out requiring iOS 6.

I have a 1st generation 16GB iPod touch, that is locked down to 3.1.3, sits in a drawer mostly, as could use a replacement battery. However it still makes a good iPod for music.

I am seriously looking at the Mini, regardless that it is really just iPad 2 hardware....same hardware that is in my iPhone 4s really. Screen looks much better than the 1st gen iPad from what I have seen in person as well. My main concern at this point is what effect iOS 7 will have on it when it gets installed. When the iPad first came out on iOS 4 it ran very well, then iOS 5 came along and that was the killer in my opinion.

Apple designs the latest iOS to support the latest devices, with the older models as a afterthought. Of course they want your older device sluggish, then you are wanting a newer device to run all your apps on you already paid for....

 

[HenryWalsh]

I hear your argument. Having a device that is locked in at iOS 5.1.1 stings, as more and more apps come out requiring iOS 6.

I have a 1st generation 16GB iPod touch, that is locked down to 3.1.3, sits in a drawer mostly, as could use a replacement battery. However it still makes a good iPod for music.

I am seriously looking at the Mini, regardless that it is really just iPad 2 hardware....same hardware that is in my iPhone 4s really. Screen looks much better than the 1st gen iPad from what I have seen in person as well. My main concern at this point is what effect iOS 7 will have on it when it gets installed. When the iPad first came out on iOS 4 it ran very well, then iOS 5 came along and that was the killer in my opinion.

Apple designs the latest iOS to support the latest devices, with the older models as a afterthought. Of course they want your older device sluggish, then you are wanting a newer device to run all your apps on you already paid for....

I dunno. I think apple lost me as a customer on this one. In order to use apps I already bought I have to buy a new iPad. That is bothering me. I'll look into the mini and the 2 but that just seems so expensive to me right now.

 

[HenryWalsh]

Is it possible to earn enough money to get a new one?[/QUOTE

Yes of course

No. It really isn't. Not everyone is in a situation where that is possible. I'm not, that is for sure. I'm dropping 50% of my monthly pay on medication and medical related expenses. I can't just cut corners to save up money for a new tablet.

I use my pad on the ride to the hospital (4 hours. Plants vs Zombies is a great distraction) and especially extended stays (and I've gotten quite good with ArtStudio because of it) and already I am being locked out of apps. Not to sound like I am whining, but it does get frustrating when the platform hasn't been out long enough to be abandoned by its parent company.

 

[y2kgtp]

I dunno. I think apple lost me as a customer on this one. In order to use apps I already bought I have to buy a new iPad. That is bothering me. I'll look into the mini and the 2 but that just seems so expensive to me right now.

Apple refurbished products is the next best thing to new. 1 year warranty, new case, new screen, new battery, new accessories. I would keep an eye on this page for the 16gb WiFi Mini, which will make it here eventually.

I see an iPad 2 for $319 in there as well.

Refurbished iPad - Apple Certified, 1-Year Warranty - Apple Store (U.S.)

 

[Kaykaykay]

I dunno. I think apple lost me as a customer on this one. In order to use apps I already bought I have to buy a new iPad. That is bothering me. I'll look into the mini and the 2 but that just seems so expensive to me right now.

It's tough for you because you've gotten to enjoy an iPad as an unexpected bonus, but Apple is in the business of making money, and they're not obligated to lower prices to meet any individual's budget. If all customers were on your budget, there would be no iPads at all, because Apple would not produce the high-quality products that it does for so little return.

 

[HenryWalsh]

It's tough for you because you've gotten to enjoy an iPad as an unexpected bonus, but Apple is in the business of making money, and they're not obligated to lower prices to meet any individual's budget. If all customers were on your budget, there would be no iPads at all, because Apple would not produce the high-quality products that it does for so little return.

I disagree. When you make a product you should stick by that product for an acceptable time. The iPad 1 isn't old enough to completely abandon which Apple has done. Heck, to use something comparable, the Playstation 3 has gone through multiple iterations but hasn't required users to purchase a new one to keep purchasing/using software on it. And that console is pushing nearly a decade.

This isn't a matter of, "There will be some applications you cannot run now." This is a matter of, "We are never doing anything more with this product and, because our OS is the only security or upgrade functionality for this device, we are effectively urging that all 3rd parties abandon it as well."

Apple should, at least, be continuing to release upgrades for the iPad 1's to try to minimize the loss of functionality.

 

[y2kgtp]

I disagree. When you make a product you should stick by that product for an acceptable time. The iPad 1 isn't old enough to completely abandon which Apple has done. Heck, to use something comparable, the Playstation 3 has gone through multiple iterations but hasn't required users to purchase a new one to keep purchasing/using software on it. And that console is pushing nearly a decade.

This isn't a matter of, "There will be some applications you cannot run now." This is a matter of, "We are never doing anything more with this product and, because our OS is the only security or upgrade functionality for this device, we are effectively urging that all 3rd parties abandon it as well."

Apple should, at least, be continuing to release upgrades for the iPad 1's to try to minimize the loss of functionality.

As an Owner of two 1st generation iPads, I would like to to agree, but I can't. You simply have to draw the line as a manufacturer on what you have to gimp your OS to be able to run correctly on older hardware.

Security updates would be appreciated, but I don't expect it.

These iPads still can run 90% of what is out there in the App store I would say, and i am fine with that. It's a 3 year old device that most gadget purchase shops would barely give me $100 for it.

 

[AdmiralAdama]

Worth considering.

http://www.ipadforums.net/apple-ipa...gen-ipad-ipad-mini-available-apple-store.html

AA

Sent from my iPhone using iPF

 

[Kaykaykay]

I disagree. When you make a product you should stick by that product for an acceptable time. The iPad 1 isn't old enough to completely abandon which Apple has done. Heck, to use something comparable, the Playstation 3 has gone through multiple iterations but hasn't required users to purchase a new one to keep purchasing/using software on it. And that console is pushing nearly a decade.

This isn't a matter of, "There will be some applications you cannot run now." This is a matter of, "We are never doing anything more with this product and, because our OS is the only security or upgrade functionality for this device, we are effectively urging that all 3rd parties abandon it as well."

Apple should, at least, be continuing to release upgrades for the iPad 1's to try to minimize the loss of functionality.

As y2kgtp says, you're unrealistically expecting Apple to hold back its upgrades. Not going to happen. A game console is not reasonably compared to a tablet. You'd be better off politely requesting that the developers of your apps keep supporting old versions, so you can keep using your iPad 1.

 

[y2kgtp]

As y2kgtp says, you're unrealistically expecting Apple to hold back its upgrades. Not going to happen. A game console is not reasonably compared to a tablet. You'd be better off politely requesting that the developers of your apps keep supporting old versions, so you can keep using your iPad 1.

I have seen Apps get dropped from support due to the iOS version, and get put back as well due to complaints from numerous users in the App store. I believe 'Cut the Rope' pushed out an update that required iOS 6, and after a few days of constant complaints from iPad 1 users it got updated again to allow the 5.1.1 iOS to work with it.

 

[Kaykaykay]

I have seen Apps get dropped from support due to the iOS version, and get put back as well due to complaints from numerous users in the App store. I believe 'Cut the Rope' pushed out an update that required iOS 6, and after a few days of constant complaints from iPad 1 users it got updated again to allow the 5.1.1 iOS to work with it.

That's why it pays to contact the developer. Doing something constructive is a more useful approach to life in general, IMO.

 

[KevinJS]

If, by some stroke of fortune, I was to win a Cadillac, I would probably be forced to sell it immediately, on the grounds that I would not be able to run it and maintain it. I certainly would not be able to replace it, and I would not consider myself to be a Cadillac customer in the time I owned it. I'm a Dodge Neon kind of guy.

When I was growing up, poverty was measured by how many times in a week a family could not put food on the table. In the same country, it is now measured by how many television sets a family owns and whether they have high speed Internet. Times have changed, it seems.

Some members are entertained by my "On the road and off it too" thread. I post pictures of my trucking exploits there. It's 10 PM. I just finished work for the day. The entertainment I provide for those who are interested is far from entertaining for me. I work up to 70 hours a week, and my income does not go to providing electronic goodies for myself. In order to do that, I rely on the extra income I derive from sleeping in a truck night after night, and saving the few dollars I'm paid for doing it.

Some Apple customers, no doubt, are wealthy. Most of us are not. We make sacrifices and we save, with an end in view, and don't blame anyone for our financial plight.