iPad - With or Without 3G?

chouglez

chouglez

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I am thinking of getting an iPad 64GB and was wondering if it's worth paying extra for the 3G or stick with the wi-fi model? :thinking:
 
Depends if you want internet access out of the house and don't want to depend on wifi hotspots...
 
whitey said:
how long would you be using it on the move?
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Not very long as I have started working locally so wi-fi at work, wi-fi at home. It's about 80 quid more for 3G and wondering if it's worth spending it
 
If you want 3G you could use the 3G wireless modem that £G use, you see them unlocked on the web so could put any Pay As You Go sim in. I have the 3G version myself which I find it really convenient on my travels
 
Peter_Hartland said:
If you want 3G you could use the 3G wireless modem that £G use, you see them unlocked on the web so could put any Pay As You Go sim in. I have the 3G version myself which I find it really convenient on my travels
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I am buying it from a US apple strore and have confirmed that they come unlocked.

I not sure what you mentioned in your reply...... "you could use the 3G wireless modem that £G use"
 
For the extra go for the 3G Model ant least you have it if you ever need it.
 
chouglez said:
I am buying it from a US apple strore and have confirmed that they come unlocked.

I not sure what you mentioned in your reply...... "you could use the 3G wireless modem that £G use"
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I think he had the shift key in and was meaning 3G, which a lot of people think is the name of the network 3UK. They do a wireless mifi, which basically makes a little wifi network for you to use. I have one, but still bought the 3G iPad as the mifi has a few problems, firstly battery is only good for around 4 hours and secondly adds a complication to each data session whereby you have to switch on, wait for service, wait for connection everytime you want to use it .

The 3G iPad is simplicity, always connected and excellent battery life. If you don't mind paying the extra it's a no brainer for convenience. I was also lucky enough to find a 3UK 12 month/12GB pay as you go sim on eBay (only cost me £27) to use in the iPad (all 3G ipads are sold unlocked).
 
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If you have wireless wherever your are then save the money from the 3G and put it towards something else
 
I debated 3G or not 3G. But also having an iPhone I realised I didn't really need the 3G option.

I also looked at the 3G modem, (3G and Vodafone do them for around £40). My thought was that if really did need mobile broadband then this was the better option as it would work with my laptop and iPad .
 
Having the 3G makes you realize how much you would miss it if you didn't have it..... If that makes any sense.:bonk::bonk:

Definitely get the 3g
 
If you have a jailbroken iPhone 3G or above, you can use a few different apps to create a wifi hotspot on your iPhone, then use the wifi on the iPad to connect to it.
I use it on my MBA, not tried an iPad yet though, but I believe MyWi works well.
 
For anyone in the same dilemma, it appears the 3G option may be the best route if you don't want to shell out the whole cost of an iPad from the off.

Orange have just announced 18 and 24 month tariffs for the iPad which means the initial cost is £200 for the 16GB unit.

Works out more expensive in the long run, but might make it accessible for a few more who wanted one but didn't have £500 to drop from the off :shrug:
 
As I mentioned in my earlier post, I have a mifi but for a number of reasons found the built in 3G on the iPad more convenient. The mifi will only give a max of around 4 hours battery life (not enough for a day out of the office) and it's a pain to have to set up and connect just to check email when you have a spare minute.
 
I debated going down the MiFi route but it was yet another device to carry / keep charged

I've got a T-mobile PAYG SIM in mine , £20 for 6 months internet :)
 
As the non 3G doesn't have a GPS chip, if you wanted to rely on any apps that require GPS, then you need the 3G unit.

Steve
 
If you've got an Android mobile phone you can use that as a wifi hotspot and connect your iPad to it. That's what I do and it works brilliantly :)
 
I didn't bother personally.

If I commuted on the train for 20+ minutes it would have been a no brainer but I don't.

Totally depends on your situation I guess, do factor in the need for a 3G sim. I beleive 3 do the best monthly data package.
 
Ok, I have both now. I bought a wifi for my daughters xmas present, obviously I had a play and it was great.
Wife has got me a 3G for xmas, had to test with a sim, even better!
Go 3G, seriously thinking of changing daughters before xmas!
 
3 do a great deal og 1gb/month for £7.50. I have not managed to use more than that yet!
 
menthel said:
3 do a great deal og 1gb/month for £7.50. I have not managed to use more than that yet!
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Just had my sim delivered today for that! Was very surprised as I got it today and ordered it on Monday night! Xmas I thought I may see it sometime in Jan!
 
Brooksy said:
Just had my sim delivered today for that! Was very surprised as I got it today and ordered it on Monday night! Xmas I thought I may see it sometime in Jan!
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Mine arrived just as quickly. The signal with 3 seems fab too. I may change over to them when my O2 contract for my iPhone is up.
 
I use 3 Mifi at my caravan. Its by far the best where I am on the coast.
 
I plumped for the 3g version and have a 3 payg sim in at the min. Main reason I did not get a mifi was it is another 'thing' to carry round with you when out and about not that practical for me.

3 def have the best ipad deals, for £20 you get 3gig data that lasts for 3 months although as I have just found you can't then re-top up to that amount. you only get the option of 1 month deals so have to get another sim which is a complete pain!
 
One extra consideration - if you only plan on using it occasionally, the built-in 3G may not be much use to you.

The reason is that the iPad takes a micro-SIM, which is still (as far as I know) only used in iPhones and iPads - which means unless you already have an iPhone then you'll need a dedicated 3G Broadband SIM for your iPad, and there aren't any tarrifs suited to occasional use. The micro-SIM can aso be difficult to get hold of when you're abroad, if you wanted "local" data prices rather than roaming.

I have a MiFi, and very rarely use it, but when i do i just swap the SIM out of my phone. Bit of a faff having another thing to carry, but its the tarrif prices that made the difference to me, not the hardware.

David
 
I bought a non 3G one at launch then traded it for a 3G one a few weeks later... Having the 3G there all the time without messing around is a real bonus, well worth it for me.
 
scuby said:
One extra consideration - if you only plan on using it occasionally, the built-in 3G may not be much use to you.

The reason is that the iPad takes a micro-SIM, which is still (as far as I know) only used in iPhones and iPads - which means unless you already have an iPhone then you'll need a dedicated 3G Broadband SIM for your iPad, and there aren't any tarrifs suited to occasional use. The micro-SIM can aso be difficult to get hold of when you're abroad, if you wanted "local" data prices rather than roaming.

I have a MiFi, and very rarely use it, but when i do i just swap the SIM out of my phone. Bit of a faff having another thing to carry, but its the tarrif prices that made the difference to me, not the hardware.

David
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I have got a payg sim from my isp (aaisp) http://aa.nu/telecoms.html that only has a £2+vat per month line rental charge and a flat 2.5p+vat per MB data usage fee.

My average monthly bill is only about £6 as I'm an infrequent user, and there are no silly rules like being charged for a whole MB if you only use a few kb (this shows on my bill like 0.005p or some similarly tiny sum).

Also no silly "lock in" rules so you can cancel with 30 days notice. They are marked with a template for easy cutting, but I just use a cheap £10 sim cutter which works fine.
 
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