Should I get the AT&T or Verizon iPad 2?

[dmaul1114]

I'm in a smaller city than that and it's not that hard to find free wifi. Pretty much every coffee shop has it, as do a lot of a cafe style restaurants, book stores etc.

That said, I also just don't give a crap about having internet access when I'm out and about. The internet is for killing time and home and work, I don't generally want access to the internet or e-mail when I'm out and about (which is why I still don't have or really want a smart phone).

I spend the majority of my time and home or the office (have wifi both places), if I'm out or about it's to be shopping, or eating out, or hanging out with friends or on a date etc.

But I get others are more addicted to the net and/or e-mail, facebook etc. and need constant access etc. So to each their own.

 

[Chriztofor]

What? I live in New York City. There is no usable free wifi generally. Am I going to go online (where? from my apartment only?) on my ipad to find a place with free wifi and only go to places with free wifi because my ipad doesn't have 3G? I'm going to change my plans for my device? Really? After paying over $500 for something? Really? Until cities developed wide area free public broadband, wifi only doesn't work.

Yes, really. http://www.downtownny.com/discover/wifi/
I doubt that NY has "generally no usable free wifi", but you live there, so I assume you already checked that out.

 

[dkons]

Why do you want an ipad if you don't want the internet on-the-go? Do you commute to work on public transportation or drive? I think people who use public transportation want internet on-the-go and those who drive everywhere don't because they don't have idle travel time.

 

[elgerber]

I probably don't need the 3g. I have wi-fi at home, and most of our coffee shops/diners around here have free wi-fi. The schools also have free wi-fi.
My question is, I have a Droid X, which can be a mobile hotspot if I pay for it do so. Can't I just use that for my wi-fi Ipad if I find myself needing mobile internet at some point for a bit?

Thanks!

 

[dmaul1114]

Why do you want an ipad if you don't want the internet on-the-go? Do you commute to work on public transportation or drive? I think people who use public transportation want internet on-the-go and those who drive everywhere don't because they don't have idle travel time.

No, I drive to work and everywhere. Public transit in Atlanta sucks ass. But I definitely get the need for 3G for people with idle travel time. I'd like it when I'm stuck in the airport etc., but not enough to pay $130 more. If it was a reasonable difference like $50 (like the Kindle--no way the iPads 3G chip costs that much more) I'd get the 3G model. Though I generally just take my Kindle and read--I waste enough time on the internet at work and home as is.

As for my iPad uses, I want it for net surfing on the couch (hate my bulky laptop), reading PDFs of scholarly journal articles instead of printing them out, Facetime/Skype, reading newspapers, magazines, comics etc., and a calendar app to replace my aging Palm pilot and so on.

I'll use it 99% of the time at home or in the office and have wifi both places.

 

[Chriztofor]

Why do you want an ipad if you don't want the internet on-the-go? Do you commute to work on public transportation or drive? I think people who use public transportation want internet on-the-go and those who drive everywhere don't because they don't have idle travel time.

Here are the reasons:

1) Don't want to be a target for a mugging (A peson from Manhattan should know this.) ;
2) Use Iphone to read news on the train;
3) Use Ipad primarily for Home (Hate resting my laptop on my stomach)
4) If I must take it with me and there is no free wi-fi then I will pay $5 to get on a wi-fi network. For the extra $130 plus the monthly plan I could do this ALOT.

 

[dkons]

What? I live in New York City. There is no usable free wifi generally. Am I going to go online (where? from my apartment only?) on my ipad to find a place with free wifi and only go to places with free wifi because my ipad doesn't have 3G? I'm going to change my plans for my device? Really? After paying over $500 for something? Really? Until cities developed wide area free public broadband, wifi only doesn't work.

Yes, really. Downtown Alliance
I doubt that NY has "generally no usable free wifi", but you live there, so I assume you already checked that out.

That site lists 12 locations in all of lower manhattan with wifi. There are 1.6 million manhattan residents so lets divide that by 6 because lower manhattan takes up about 1/6th of total manhattan real estate. That means 266,666 people need to share those 12 free wifi spots (and realistically, we should look at the number of people who work in lower manhattan daily because that would be a higher number). This means that any free wifi is often overloaded with users meaning you get tiny bandwidth and no real usability. There are thousands of restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and stores in new york. Most do not have free wifi, though I don't doubt that there are some that do, most do not. If I lived in a town of 40,000 with 20-30 main stores/shops and 12 of them had free wifi, I'd be super excited. Alas, I do not.

 

[Chriztofor]

What? I live in New York City. There is no usable free wifi generally. Am I going to go online (where? from my apartment only?) on my ipad to find a place with free wifi and only go to places with free wifi because my ipad doesn't have 3G? I'm going to change my plans for my device? Really? After paying over $500 for something? Really? Until cities developed wide area free public broadband, wifi only doesn't work.

Yes, really. Downtown Alliance
I doubt that NY has "generally no usable free wifi", but you live there, so I assume you already checked that out.

That site lists 12 locations in all of lower manhattan with wifi. There are 1.6 million manhattan residents so lets divide that by 6 because lower manhattan takes up about 1/6th of total manhattan real estate. That means 266,666 people need to share those 12 free wifi spots (and realistically, we should look at the number of people who work in lower manhattan daily because that would be a higher number). This means that any free wifi is often overloaded with users meaning you get tiny bandwidth and no real usability. There are thousands of restaurants, coffee shops, bars, and stores in new york. Most do not have free wifi, though I don't doubt that there are some that do, most do not. If I lived in a town of 40,000 with 20-30 main stores/shops and 12 of them had free wifi, I'd be super excited. Alas, I do not.

I did a quick google search, I am sure there is more than that. I am also sure you did your homework. No hard feelings. Let's all just get excited about the big day tomorrow!

 

[Mtnmedic]

If I remember correctly, recent studies showed that while AT&T has the faster 3G service, it's not the most widespread like Verizon.

For me, the #1 deciding factor is COVERAGE. I'll suffer with slower speeds if I can still get 3G (or even Edge) without having to hunt and position myself for WiFi. And I live in the mountains. Trust me, 3G in areas (especially rural or mountainous) where open public WiFi signals aren't plentiful or just don't exist, is a good thing. Not to mention 3G is safer than using an open, unsecured public WiFi network.

AT&T has been pretty darned good for me. And no activation fee, which is nice (though I'd be willing to pay it in order to get the service I need).

Michael "Spam, spam, bacon, eggs and spam. Hold the bacon and eggs." Sent from my iPad using iPF

 

[Biggysmallz]

Don't tell me that iPads are now tied to these companies?
This is new. I don't think I like this at all.

 

[Chriztofor]

Don't tell me that iPads are now tied to these companies?
This is new. I don't think I like this at all.

Only the 3g models, not the Wi-Fi models. Mr. Rip Van Winkle, where have you been?!

 

[dkons]

Yes, I'm mostly just stoked about getting an ipad 2 and have been debating 3G vs. no 3G for months in anticipation. Does anyone use a mifi or personal mobile hotspot with their current ipad? I'm looking into Sprint's because it will use their 4G network where available and I think this is the only way to get your iPad on 4G (which is awesome if you haven't tried 4G). But I'm not sure if the Sprint device/coverage is better than the Verizon option. Anyone tried either?

 

[dkons]

Why do you want an ipad if you don't want the internet on-the-go? Do you commute to work on public transportation or drive? I think people who use public transportation want internet on-the-go and those who drive everywhere don't because they don't have idle travel time.

Here are the reasons:

1) Don't want to be a target for a mugging (A peson from Manhattan should know this.) ;
2) Use Iphone to read news on the train;
3) Use Ipad primarily for Home (Hate resting my laptop on my stomach)
4) If I must take it with me and there is no free wi-fi then I will pay $5 to get on a wi-fi network. For the extra $130 plus the monthly plan I could do this ALOT.

All good reasons. I only take issue with #1. New York City has the 3rd lowest rate of larceny (property theft) out of cities in the US over 250,000 people. United States cities by crime rate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia This surprised me too but makes sense based on my experience here. Fortunately, NYC is not what it was in the 70s. If you broke that number down by burrough, I bet Manhattan's larceny rate is even lower. Everyone thinks big cities (especially New York) are more "dangerous." I've lived here for 7 years, I take my electronics on the subway constantly, I don't know anyone personally who has been mugged (maybe pickpocketed).

 

[Biggysmallz]

Don't tell me that iPads are now tied to these companies?
This is new. I don't think I like this at all.

Only the 3g models, not the Wi-Fi models. Mr. Rip Van Winkle, where have you been?!

I only buy the 3 g model. The one big advantage of the iPad before now, was that I could choose any service provider I wanted to. Now this has changed. This is the reason why I never even considered an android tablet.

Wouldn't this now affect the traveling aspect of iPad 3 g service?

Don't think I like iPad 2 now.

 

[FrankP99]

ATT = NO ACTIVATION FEE.
VERIZON = $35?

You decide. =)

There is no activation fee and no monthly contract required by either ATT or Verizon. I spoke with two different reps at Apple today and they confirmed this. The trick is to sign up for your 3G access thru the IPAD2. You buy a package only when you need it. See Apple - iPad - Two great ways to stay connected. which does not specity the new IPAD but an Apple rep confirmed that applies to the IPAD2 .

Now I have to choose ATT or Verizon.