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Carrier Cellular or Wifi Only
- Thread starter dball4
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It all depends on your usage. There have been several threads discussing this:
Is getting the cellular iPad worth getting over the WIFI only iPad
WiFi vs Cellular... My personal observations
Cellular or wifi only
Wi-Fi Only Or Cellular?
Worth Getting Cellular over Wi-fi?
Is getting the cellular iPad worth getting over the WIFI only iPad
WiFi vs Cellular... My personal observations
Cellular or wifi only
Wi-Fi Only Or Cellular?
Worth Getting Cellular over Wi-fi?
I see this posted on every thread and in my case, and perhaps quite a few others, this simply is not the case. I would have to go out of my way to find free wifi. If I'm not planning to go to McDonald's Dunkin Donuts, or Starbucks, why would I pull into their parking lot? It makes no sense.
The biggest reason to buy a cellular iPad, aside from convenience, is GPS. If you are using it for navigation, it may be necessary. And no, using your phone as hotspot will not substitute for this.
I don't use my iPad that much and chances are if I had chosen a cellular model, that would change.
Sorry but no one here can tell you if cellular is worth it to you! Only you can make that choice
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To me it is like asking what color should I get.
What would you buy though? I just want feedback from people on it, not if I need it. I really don't need it but is it worth it for the convenience if I need the LTE, and now with the universal sim, I could try different networks too and go back to Verizon.
What other people choose is irrelevant to you, as their choices have no effect on what works for you. Each person's needs, preferences and tastes are different.
I disagree. Perhaps the OP will discover uses for the cellular model that he had not thought of before. GPS has already been mentioned as one.
Ok, not to sound rude, I just want to know what you would buy? I made my decision for the Cellular model after doing research but now I'm curious as to what others are doing.
same answer the previous 5 posts gave you.
if you want it as much as or more than the extra money it costs, get it
obviously it would come in handy, but how can anybody else tell you if its worth it or not?
The existing threads on this topic provide close to 200 posts of people offering their opinions, including a poll. If you're curious as to what others choose, there's plenty to go on there. What I personally would buy is irrelevant.
don't want to go gee wish I spent the extra. I think it helps resell later as well.You really do need to tell us what your intended uses are.
I can't imagine having an iPad without GPS. Horrible. But these days you can buy external GPS units for less than the cellular upgrade. A bit inconvenient since you either have to attach them or use bluetooth. OTOH, since they can be mounted in places with better reception they may be more accurate than the built in GPS in a cellular iPad. And they can be used with other devices in many cases.
Ditto with wifi. You don't need an iPad to get cellular data. You can use any number of devices that tether, or make personal hot spots. And again, they might be useful with other devices (many can connect several clients and have other features), and in addition might be cheaper than the data prices you'd pay for the iPad, depending on your carrier. And you could use it with your laptop, etc.
Just depends on your needs. And your wallet.
I can't imagine having an iPad without GPS. Horrible. But these days you can buy external GPS units for less than the cellular upgrade. A bit inconvenient since you either have to attach them or use bluetooth. OTOH, since they can be mounted in places with better reception they may be more accurate than the built in GPS in a cellular iPad. And they can be used with other devices in many cases.
Ditto with wifi. You don't need an iPad to get cellular data. You can use any number of devices that tether, or make personal hot spots. And again, they might be useful with other devices (many can connect several clients and have other features), and in addition might be cheaper than the data prices you'd pay for the iPad, depending on your carrier. And you could use it with your laptop, etc.
Just depends on your needs. And your wallet.
My current iPad is a cellular model. 64gb I had the top of the line when I bought it. I've used the cellular feature all of one time in the 2.5 years I've owned it. WiFi is everywhere. At least where I tend to use it. Therefore this time I went WiFi.
I find that wifi only is fine, if your phone data plan includes tethering.
I found cellular to be more important in the Dark Ages...i.e., with the original iPad. Back then, you'd find wifi at Starbucks, but not necessarily at a lot of other places. Nowadays, wifi is literally everywhere, many data plans include tethering as an option, and having a cellular-capable iPad just isn't quite as important.
But that's my setup, and it certainly won't be right for everyone.
I found cellular to be more important in the Dark Ages...i.e., with the original iPad. Back then, you'd find wifi at Starbucks, but not necessarily at a lot of other places. Nowadays, wifi is literally everywhere, many data plans include tethering as an option, and having a cellular-capable iPad just isn't quite as important.
But that's my setup, and it certainly won't be right for everyone.
Still using my iPad 2 (cellular) and wouldn't consider getting anything but another cellular iPad, the foremost reason being that I can always get online no matter where I am. Especially handy during power outages or while traveling.
Do like the AT&T data plan which I can subscribe to only when needed. Don't own a smart phone and have no need for one since I can use my iPad for communication.
Do have a prepaid phone which I keep around just in case I actually have to make an actual phone call.
Do like the AT&T data plan which I can subscribe to only when needed. Don't own a smart phone and have no need for one since I can use my iPad for communication.
Do have a prepaid phone which I keep around just in case I actually have to make an actual phone call.
Okay, cause I do not go out very often, the hotspot from iPhone will satisfy me when there is no wifi. And the same, I always use my phone to navigate.
For me, the wifi is all I need. As a student there is Wi-Fi everywhere, so much so that I turn off 3G/LTE on my iPhone and rely on Wi-Fi for data.
I'm going cellular. My current ipad is wifi-only and most of the time I have no issues getting wifi. But the times when I don't have wifi (or I'm in a hotel and the wifi is $20/day) and need to get something done/synced can be really frustrating.
IMO if you've already got a plan to add it to, and you can afford the initial upcharge, go cellular. Heck, if you're comfortable signing a 2-year contract with Verizon, you can buy it from them for $100 off, which offsets a lot of the cellular upcharge.
FYI - I'm on a grandfathered Verizon unlimited plan with my 5s, so I can't tether, and it's cheaper for me to do a separate plan (or a la carte data) for the ipad than it would be for me to change to a "share" plan.
IMO if you've already got a plan to add it to, and you can afford the initial upcharge, go cellular. Heck, if you're comfortable signing a 2-year contract with Verizon, you can buy it from them for $100 off, which offsets a lot of the cellular upcharge.
FYI - I'm on a grandfathered Verizon unlimited plan with my 5s, so I can't tether, and it's cheaper for me to do a separate plan (or a la carte data) for the ipad than it would be for me to change to a "share" plan.
I am an employee of Verizon so that's why I'm going with cellular. I can't directly buy it from the company since they won't allow employees to get them until "demand" goes down. Same for the 6/6 Plus. It's painful to sell the phones/iPad but not own one until probably next year. But I will buy one from either Best Buy or Apple
I already have a phone and didn't really want to pay two bills, plus for me the wifi model is more than enough to get all my needs done. Unless you really need to be connected everywhere I'd also suggest a Wifi only model, but that's just me!
Wow, that is just torturous to have to sit back and sell these great Apple products and not be allowed to purchase them for yourself. You made a good choice in getting the Cellular model. That is what I always get with every iPad purchase.
I went cellular on my iPad Air and I don't regret it. Rather than pay every month I just keep it on a pay as you go option and buy data as needed. I don't see me going back to wifi only but it really depends on what your data plans are now and whether you can tether for free or not.