Associate
Just thought I'd give my opinion on my newly purchased device in case anyone may be interested.
As a bit of background (as I know Apple is a company who seem to divide opinions), I've owned a couple of Android Devices, including my current HTC One and I've had an iPhone 4 and currently own an ATV2.
Right,
Why did I get the iPad Mini Retina?
This is the first tablet that I've owned and one that I've been waiting to come out. Until now my requirements for a tablet have always been let down by either the weight, the screen resolution, the size or the aspect ratio.
The first iPad Mini only fell short on the fact that it wasn't retina. With retina almost being a standard across Apple's range, it was a bit of a let down. But considering a tablet is generally a device that improves capability but doesn't really give you any new capability, it wasn't really an issue for me to wait.
The new Nexus 7 tempted me, but I really think a 4:3 aspect ratio is best for a tablet as I'd be using it mainly for web browsing and gaming.
I've never got on with the 10" tablets that I've tried. They've always seemed cumbersome to use and have given me the impression that they'd be tiresome to use without placing them on a table.
Hardware
Very good. The casing, weight and screen are all almost perfect. It feels good in the hands and isn't too heavy to use for prolonged periods.
The only niggles I have are with the screen. Firstly the colours are more washed out than my HTC One. This is probably due to the reduced colour range that the screen can deliver. The main issue however is down to the screen not being flush to the glass. This is almost the first thing I noticed about the device. It means that when you touch the glass more than softly you can feel it depress slightly giving an almost "spongy" feel. No reviews I read mentioned this and it's something that isn't expected on a premium device. It becomes a reduced issue after the first 10 minutes but it's instantly noticeable after coming from another premium device.
Software - iOS
This is my first use of iOS7 and I really like the new look. It's still very Apple but quite a bit more modern and still easy to use. I like the home screen layout more than Android as I only really use the app drawer on Android anyway as I've never seen any benefit to widgets.
I don't know if it's my experience, but I would say iOS7 seems quite buggy. Safari has crashed on me quite a few times, I've had a full lock up of iOS and Airplay becomes choppy if I'm using a data heavy website at the sametime.
Software - Apps
iOS still very much feels like the developers' lead platform which means the amount of good quality apps is ahead of any other platform. Also the tablet optimised apps are brilliant and offer loads more useable space as opposed to being scaled up phone apps. Ebay, Deezer, Flipboard are all brilliant examples of this and really make the iPad a productive and rewarding device to use. Considering the software available generally makes or breaks a device, the iPad has got to be better than any other in this field.
Software - iTunes
On windows, still sluggish and buggy. It took me six hours to sync my iPad. It wouldn't recoginse my device so I ran through Apple's troubleshooting guide many times until I eventually found a folder called "Lockdown" that once deleted, made everything fine. I came to the conclusion that it must have been there from an old install of itunes and isn't removed upon uninstallation for some bizzare reason.
Conclusion
Overall, I'm very pleased with the iPad Mini and would definitely recommend one. If they improve the screen for this year's revision, from a hardware point of view it will be perfect. From a software point of view, the app store and apps available are brilliant and really make the device. Apple could do with sorting out the bugs with iTunes and Airplay though. The issues I've been experiencing, whilst they don't ruin the experience, the phrase "It just works" is one that is no longer applicable.
As a bit of background (as I know Apple is a company who seem to divide opinions), I've owned a couple of Android Devices, including my current HTC One and I've had an iPhone 4 and currently own an ATV2.
Right,
Why did I get the iPad Mini Retina?
This is the first tablet that I've owned and one that I've been waiting to come out. Until now my requirements for a tablet have always been let down by either the weight, the screen resolution, the size or the aspect ratio.
The first iPad Mini only fell short on the fact that it wasn't retina. With retina almost being a standard across Apple's range, it was a bit of a let down. But considering a tablet is generally a device that improves capability but doesn't really give you any new capability, it wasn't really an issue for me to wait.
The new Nexus 7 tempted me, but I really think a 4:3 aspect ratio is best for a tablet as I'd be using it mainly for web browsing and gaming.
I've never got on with the 10" tablets that I've tried. They've always seemed cumbersome to use and have given me the impression that they'd be tiresome to use without placing them on a table.
Hardware
Very good. The casing, weight and screen are all almost perfect. It feels good in the hands and isn't too heavy to use for prolonged periods.
The only niggles I have are with the screen. Firstly the colours are more washed out than my HTC One. This is probably due to the reduced colour range that the screen can deliver. The main issue however is down to the screen not being flush to the glass. This is almost the first thing I noticed about the device. It means that when you touch the glass more than softly you can feel it depress slightly giving an almost "spongy" feel. No reviews I read mentioned this and it's something that isn't expected on a premium device. It becomes a reduced issue after the first 10 minutes but it's instantly noticeable after coming from another premium device.
Software - iOS
This is my first use of iOS7 and I really like the new look. It's still very Apple but quite a bit more modern and still easy to use. I like the home screen layout more than Android as I only really use the app drawer on Android anyway as I've never seen any benefit to widgets.
I don't know if it's my experience, but I would say iOS7 seems quite buggy. Safari has crashed on me quite a few times, I've had a full lock up of iOS and Airplay becomes choppy if I'm using a data heavy website at the sametime.
Software - Apps
iOS still very much feels like the developers' lead platform which means the amount of good quality apps is ahead of any other platform. Also the tablet optimised apps are brilliant and offer loads more useable space as opposed to being scaled up phone apps. Ebay, Deezer, Flipboard are all brilliant examples of this and really make the iPad a productive and rewarding device to use. Considering the software available generally makes or breaks a device, the iPad has got to be better than any other in this field.
Software - iTunes
On windows, still sluggish and buggy. It took me six hours to sync my iPad. It wouldn't recoginse my device so I ran through Apple's troubleshooting guide many times until I eventually found a folder called "Lockdown" that once deleted, made everything fine. I came to the conclusion that it must have been there from an old install of itunes and isn't removed upon uninstallation for some bizzare reason.
Conclusion
Overall, I'm very pleased with the iPad Mini and would definitely recommend one. If they improve the screen for this year's revision, from a hardware point of view it will be perfect. From a software point of view, the app store and apps available are brilliant and really make the device. Apple could do with sorting out the bugs with iTunes and Airplay though. The issues I've been experiencing, whilst they don't ruin the experience, the phrase "It just works" is one that is no longer applicable.
I've not had chance to put it on my iPad Mini Retina but certainly looks and feels up to the job and a bargain for £13.50!