iPAD AIRHEADS!

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT:
iPAD AIRHEADS!
#iPadAir #iPadMini2

Good late evening, Synapse Circuit Readers! I hope that you’re having a great evening and if your day is still unravelling there is still time...

I guess I didn’t miss too much when I took a break... The World of Tech spun and continues to spin as per usual but I can’t say that I was too impressed with the latest iPad models from Apple and here’s why...

iPAD AIR

Also known as Apple iPad 5

LTE carrier support

Available as:

Apple iPad Air Wi-Fi + Cellular with 3G/LTE support

Apple iPad Air Wi-Fi with Wi-Fi only and no GPS support

GENERAL   
2G Network  GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900

CDMA 800 / 1900

3G Network  HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100

CDMA2000 1xEV-DO

4G Network  LTE- all models

SIM    
Nano-SIM

Announced  2013, October

Status: Available. Released November 2013

BODY           
Dimensions 240 x 169.5 x 7.5 mm (9.45 x 6.67 x 0.30 in)

Weight 469 g (Wi-Fi) / 478 g (3G/LTE) (1.03 lb)

DISPLAY      
Type  LED-backlit IPS LCD, capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors

Size    1536 x 2048 pixels, 9.7 inches (~264 ppi pixel density)

Multitouch Yes

Protection Scratch-resistant glass, oleophobic coating

SOUND        
Alert types N/A

Loudspeaker

3.5mm jack  

MEMORY     
No card slot

Internal         
16/32/64/128 GB storage, 1 GB RAM DDR3

DATA
GPRS Yes

EDGE Yes

Speed           
DC-HSDPA, 42 Mbps; HSDPA, 21 Mbps; HSUPA, 5.76 Mbps, LTE, 100 Mbps; EV-DO Rev. A, up to 3.1 Mbps

WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi hotspot

Bluetooth Yes, v4.0 with A2DP, EDR

USB  
Yes, v2.0

CAMERA      
Primary 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, check quality

Features      
Geo-tagging, touch focus, face detection, HDR

Video, 1080p@30fps, video stabilization, check quality

Secondary Yes, 1.2 MP, 720p@30fps, face detection, FaceTime over Wi-Fi or Cellular

FEATURES  

OS      

iOS 7.0.3

Chipset
Apple A7

CPU  
Dual-core 1.3 GHz Cyclone (ARM v8-based)

GPU  
PowerVR G6430 (quad-core graphics)

Sensors       
Accelerometer, gyro, compass

Messaging  
iMessage, Email, Push Email, IM

Browser       
HTML (Safari)

Radio No

GPS   
Yes, with A-GPS support and GLONASS

Java, No

Colours        
Space Gray, Silver

- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic

- Siri natural language commands and dictation

- AirDrop file sharing

- iCloud cloud service

- iCloud Keychain

- Twitter and Facebook integration

- TV-out

- Maps

- Audio/video player/editor

- Organizer

- Image viewer/editor

- Document viewer/editor (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

- Voice memo

- Predictive text input

BATTERY              
Non-removable Li-Po 8,820 battery (32.4 Wh)

Stand-by      

Talk time      
Up to 10 h (multimedia)

POWER
There’s no doubt that the iPad Air is a powerful tablet but just look at the prices:

WiFi only: 16GB, £399.

WiFi + cellular: 16GB, £499.

C’mon, such prices are unrealistic by today’s standards! It is no wonder that Android tablets are rapidly usurping the iPad! It is clear to me that Apple has run out of ideas because creating an extremely thin tablet made from aluminium and glass does not make for a device that is going to last. I have seen some drop tests – that didn’t have to be made – that proves how fragile the iPad Air is .Apple still wants to put the idea across that their devices are premium. As stunning as the iPad Air appears it is just not practical.

In my opinion the iPad (and any other tablet) should be made from durable materials as found on many Android tablets. Apple had the opportunity to use an unbreakable display in the way that Samsung and LG are promising but not quite delivering. Apple has fumbled the ball once again. It is sad but true.

The cost of the 128GB iPad Air with both WiFi and cellular is £739 and I would rather spend that kind of money on a Windows tablet with the full version of Windows 8 and an Android tablet! Why pay so much money for a tablet that runs apps when you can be running full programs on Windows based tablets?

iPAD MINI 2
Yes, at last, it iPad mini 2 has now received a retina screen but once again the price is too high for what it is. Here’s the cost of a base model on WiFi only: 16GB, £319. It’s a mere £80 cheaper and it might appeal to the dedicated Apple fan and it will therefore cannibalize sales of the iPad Air; déjà vu!

As far as the iPad mini 2 goes I think it is outmoded by the Google Nexus 7 2013 and a bunch of other Android tablets. You might even prefer a phablet instead such as the Galaxy Note 3!

Apple seriously needs to go back to the drawing board and rethink that this “premium” idea. Apple: rethink differently!

I hope you enjoyed this introduction. Stay tuned for more reviews to come.

Watch this space!

Take good care!

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