Reasons why 'not' to buy 3G..

[lowlife]

Performance is location specific. I bought my iPad on day one and have had full bars even in my cellar. I actually thought that the bars were some sort of con. Finally, one day I caught it go down one bar for just a second as I drove under some electrical wires. My download speeds are always 1.5 or better.

 

[Bremen]

I bought the 3G because tethering my iphonevia wifi eats the batteries.

You are right about that. When I tether I can almost see the battery level dropping. But, I seldom use it, and when in the car I have my iPhone plugged into the cigar lighter......

 

[MikesTooLz]

I just recently signed up for the unlimited 3g plan in my ipad and put my verizon MiFi plan on hold for the simple reason that my iPad has a 10 hour battery life that takes me through the day but my MiFi only has a 4 hour battery at best.

 

[Seadog]

I got the 3G because of the GPS and the fact that I have occasional need for Internet on the road. My initial experience has been great. Enough so that I may just keep it active full time for now.

 

[spinfreak]

You never know when you'll need the 3G - and for $130 it's worth it to me.

Exactly. Can I get by without the 3G, or find other ways around it? Sure. Is it nice to have 3G "just in case", even if you're not using it? Absolutely. You can always not use it....if you don't have it and then need it, you're SOL.

 

[Phantom]

Have Had No Problem Here With My 3G 64 iPad. Actually The iPad 3G Receives A Better Signal Than My iPhone 3G.

 

[Matth3w]

You never know when you'll need the 3G - and for $130 it's worth it to me.

Exactly. Can I get by without the 3G, or find other ways around it? Sure. Is it nice to have 3G "just in case", even if you're not using it? Absolutely. You can always not use it....if you don't have it and then need it, you're SOL.

Unless you have a tethered phone, then you never have to worry...especially if it's a Verizon

 

[Teacher's Pet]

I have a 3G 16 iPad and I'm really glad I opted to go with the 3G. I think that having good wireless data anywhere I go is one of the main reasons I like the device as well as I do. Where I live, the 3G coverage is great. Even at my farm out in the country I have really good reception and my speeds on the speed test are showing excellent results.

I could see it being an option some people wouldn't need, but for me, its invaluable. I use mine for instant messaging a good bit as well as email, and its quite convenient to grab it and go without worrying about where there is and isn't WiFi. I can tether with my phone, but its so convenient having the service built in, especially since it doesn't require a contract anyway, if I decided to cancel I could do so.

 

[Wetstuff]

T-P: I wish I could have simply copy/pasted your story. Good for you.

...you need to show up to win, but time/place are usually helpful. Cheers.

 

[maryinredding]

Tethered to my Pre is the only reason I need.[/QUOTE

Do you have the Pre Plus through Verizon? I have a Pre through Sprint and they do not offer tethering on phone. It is capable, but when they launched it, they had Palm turn that feature off. Maybe they will reconsider in an update, hopefully.

 

[Matth3w]

It's called root and hacking

 

[Jman09]

The Pre on Verizon doesn't need hacking to tether.

edit: of course if you meant for the Pre on Sprint then you will need to hack.

 

[gameboy213]

I think of the 3G as a back up. I will always use wifi but when there isn't any I will probably get a decent enough signal.

Plus. I wanted the gps option.

 

[DavidNM]

In a year or so when the 2nd gen iPad is out most of us will want to upgrade. If we intend on selling our current iPad - having 3G will make our iPads much more attractive.