7 ms·

I've been eyeing a tablet for a while. Unfortunately, the pickings with Android are rather slim, so that really only leaves the iPad. I haven't bought the iPad

I've been eyeing a tablet for a while. Unfortunately, the pickings with Android are rather slim, so that really only leaves the iPad. I haven't bought the iPad (6th gen) due to it only having 2gb of ram, but maybe the Mini is right for me.

hellofunk 8y ago
I'm curious, why are you concerned about 2gb of ram? What do you plan to do on the iPad that requires more than that?
- izacus 8y ago
  Browsing the web?
  - ceejayoz 8y ago
    I've never once felt like the iPhone browser (mine has 2GB too) lacked RAM.
    - Marsymars 8y ago
      Same here. The lack of Firefox with extensions is by far and away the single biggest pain point I have with web browsing on iOS, 2GB of RAM doesn't even register.
    - kalleboo 8y ago
      On the iPhone it's fine, but my iPads have always been constantly reloading tabs and felt like they cheaped out too much on the RAM (or needed a swap system)
  - saagarjha 8y ago
    Yeah, no. 2 GB of RAM is plenty for browsing the web; this isn’t Android where everything less than some absurd number of gigabytes (4? 6?) is useless.
    - Teckla 8y ago
      Maybe I open too many tabs at once, but my 5th gen iPad runs out of RAM while web browsing.
- jumbopapa 8y ago
  I'm not even sure. I probably wouldn't do anything too extensive. Probably Plex and some light browsing. I just didn't like the idea of limited ram someday causing me issues.
  - sosborn 8y ago
    > I just didn't like the idea of limited ram someday causing me issues. Ignore the specs. Try one out and you'll find that it simply isn't an issue in the vast majority of cases. iOS is very good at managing RAM.
    - mrkstu 8y ago
      Where it has been an issue in the past is iOS upgrades- part of the reason that older iPads 'slow down' is the baseline RAM starts to be consumed as the OS gets more resource hungry. Also with the new multitasking features added in recent releases, additional memory becomes a bigger feature add.
      - saagarjha 8y ago
        Apple gates multitasking features by model, so having more RAM is not a feature add in this case since you do not have control over this.
  - theshrike79 8y ago
    You can't really measure iOS RAM usage to a PC or Android device. The OS handles memory completely differently. At most you might notice that some memory hungry apps that don't suspend correctly "start over" when switching between multiple apps.
    - saagarjha 8y ago
      > some memory hungry apps that don't suspend correctly "start over" when switching between multiple apps Correction: memory hungry apps that don't implement state restoration correctly.
rb808 8y ago
Surface Go?
- IOT_Apprentice 8y ago
  The Go is physically larger than the Mini.
- kbd 8y ago
  I second this recommendation for anyone looking for a (non-Apple) tablet these days. The Surface Go is a good tablet and its built-in stand works really well. It's a "real computer" too, with a surprisingly usable snap-on keyboard cover, and can power my 3840x1600 ultrawide + all peripherals through a single USB C cable.
  - scarface74 8y ago
    Unfortunately it’s slow and runs Windows. Windows is a horrible for touch UI.
    - frosted-flakes 8y ago
      Windows used to have a horrible touch interface, but it's quite wonderful these days.
      - scarface74 8y ago
        It’s still horrible and inconsistent. Tried using Office with just touch? Even going into some of the Windows settings brings up an old fashion UI. I have a Dell 2n1 running Windows 10.
        kbd 8y ago
        Agree about some of the inconsistency, especially in preferences. It really feels like creaking around old corners of the 20+ year old UI it is. Microsoft needs to work on that. Also swipe-typing on the keyboard doesn't work in all apps (notably, Chrome). But some of these interface issues are just hard. How do you make the same interface work well when you're using your finger on a small tablet vs using a trackpad/mouse connected to big monitor? Overall I really enjoy my Go. It's great as a tablet for tablet things, and if you want to do computery things like use an Office suite, snap on a keyboard or plug it into a monitor and it works fine there too. Using Office for very long with touch is not something I'd want to do even if the UI for it was perfect so it seems like a strange complaint to me.
Bud 8y ago
It's vanishingly unlikely that you will ever notice any RAM-related issues on the Mini. Certainly not during web browsing.
awa 8y ago
pixel slate?
burlesona 8y ago
I had the original iPad and then an iPad Air 2 and have used the crap out of both of them. Especially on the Air I've played a bunch of "triple-A" games, etc. It's like a console, not a computer. The software is matched to the hardware, you don't need to worry about it. The Air 2 has 2GB of RAM and it plays X-Com smoother than my PS4 lol. So honestly, no need to worry about the specs. I've found the iPad line to be extremely long-lasting as well. I know that the HN crowd likes to complain it's not a "real computer," and I agree it's not the same thing, but it IS a pretty awesome portable computer-like console :)
lern_too_spel 8y ago
Android tablets are dead. Now there are Chrome OS tablets and 2-in-1s that run Android apps. I've found that I prefer the 2-in-1 form factor and that I reach for it far more often than I ever reached for a tablet.
bsimpson 8y ago
The Pixel Slate has been a fantastic travel computer. I wouldn't want to work on it all day, every day. However, it's convenient to carry, and it runs Android and Linux apps reasonably well. So, if I want to work remotely for a week and then take a month's vacation, I can use Sublime on the Slate and then totally unplug from work without lugging a MacBook around. I can download Netflix for planes/trains/buses. And of course, it's perfect for any web surfing. I realize it's a luxury to have a device that's just for relaxing in bed or taking on the road, but the Pixel Slate is really underrated for that use case.
- Marsymars 8y ago
  Problem with the Pixel Slate is that once you attach the keyboard it's both heavier and more expensive than the PixelBook for comparable specs. (And also is perpetually out of stock outside of the US Google Store.)

hellofunk 8y ago

I'm curious, why are you concerned about 2gb of ram? What do you plan to do on the iPad that requires more than that?

izacus 8y ago
Browsing the web?
- ceejayoz 8y ago
  I've never once felt like the iPhone browser (mine has 2GB too) lacked RAM.
  - Marsymars 8y ago
    Same here. The lack of Firefox with extensions is by far and away the single biggest pain point I have with web browsing on iOS, 2GB of RAM doesn't even register.
  - kalleboo 8y ago
    On the iPhone it's fine, but my iPads have always been constantly reloading tabs and felt like they cheaped out too much on the RAM (or needed a swap system)
- saagarjha 8y ago
  Yeah, no. 2 GB of RAM is plenty for browsing the web; this isn’t Android where everything less than some absurd number of gigabytes (4? 6?) is useless.
  - Teckla 8y ago
    Maybe I open too many tabs at once, but my 5th gen iPad runs out of RAM while web browsing.
jumbopapa 8y ago
I'm not even sure. I probably wouldn't do anything too extensive. Probably Plex and some light browsing. I just didn't like the idea of limited ram someday causing me issues.
- sosborn 8y ago
  > I just didn't like the idea of limited ram someday causing me issues. Ignore the specs. Try one out and you'll find that it simply isn't an issue in the vast majority of cases. iOS is very good at managing RAM.
  - mrkstu 8y ago
    Where it has been an issue in the past is iOS upgrades- part of the reason that older iPads 'slow down' is the baseline RAM starts to be consumed as the OS gets more resource hungry. Also with the new multitasking features added in recent releases, additional memory becomes a bigger feature add.
    - saagarjha 8y ago
      Apple gates multitasking features by model, so having more RAM is not a feature add in this case since you do not have control over this.
- theshrike79 8y ago
  You can't really measure iOS RAM usage to a PC or Android device. The OS handles memory completely differently. At most you might notice that some memory hungry apps that don't suspend correctly "start over" when switching between multiple apps.
  - saagarjha 8y ago
    > some memory hungry apps that don't suspend correctly "start over" when switching between multiple apps Correction: memory hungry apps that don't implement state restoration correctly.

rb808 8y ago

Surface Go?

IOT_Apprentice 8y ago
The Go is physically larger than the Mini.
kbd 8y ago
I second this recommendation for anyone looking for a (non-Apple) tablet these days. The Surface Go is a good tablet and its built-in stand works really well. It's a "real computer" too, with a surprisingly usable snap-on keyboard cover, and can power my 3840x1600 ultrawide + all peripherals through a single USB C cable.
- scarface74 8y ago
  Unfortunately it’s slow and runs Windows. Windows is a horrible for touch UI.
  - frosted-flakes 8y ago
    Windows used to have a horrible touch interface, but it's quite wonderful these days.
    - scarface74 8y ago
      It’s still horrible and inconsistent. Tried using Office with just touch? Even going into some of the Windows settings brings up an old fashion UI. I have a Dell 2n1 running Windows 10.
      - kbd 8y ago
        Agree about some of the inconsistency, especially in preferences. It really feels like creaking around old corners of the 20+ year old UI it is. Microsoft needs to work on that. Also swipe-typing on the keyboard doesn't work in all apps (notably, Chrome). But some of these interface issues are just hard. How do you make the same interface work well when you're using your finger on a small tablet vs using a trackpad/mouse connected to big monitor? Overall I really enjoy my Go. It's great as a tablet for tablet things, and if you want to do computery things like use an Office suite, snap on a keyboard or plug it into a monitor and it works fine there too. Using Office for very long with touch is not something I'd want to do even if the UI for it was perfect so it seems like a strange complaint to me.

Bud 8y ago

It's vanishingly unlikely that you will ever notice any RAM-related issues on the Mini. Certainly not during web browsing.

awa 8y ago

pixel slate?

burlesona 8y ago

I had the original iPad and then an iPad Air 2 and have used the crap out of both of them. Especially on the Air I've played a bunch of "triple-A" games, etc. It's like a console, not a computer. The software is matched to the hardware, you don't need to worry about it. The Air 2 has 2GB of RAM and it plays X-Com smoother than my PS4 lol. So honestly, no need to worry about the specs. I've found the iPad line to be extremely long-lasting as well. I know that the HN crowd likes to complain it's not a "real computer," and I agree it's not the same thing, but it IS a pretty awesome portable computer-like console :)

lern_too_spel 8y ago

Android tablets are dead. Now there are Chrome OS tablets and 2-in-1s that run Android apps. I've found that I prefer the 2-in-1 form factor and that I reach for it far more often than I ever reached for a tablet.

bsimpson 8y ago

The Pixel Slate has been a fantastic travel computer. I wouldn't want to work on it all day, every day. However, it's convenient to carry, and it runs Android and Linux apps reasonably well. So, if I want to work remotely for a week and then take a month's vacation, I can use Sublime on the Slate and then totally unplug from work without lugging a MacBook around. I can download Netflix for planes/trains/buses. And of course, it's perfect for any web surfing. I realize it's a luxury to have a device that's just for relaxing in bed or taking on the road, but the Pixel Slate is really underrated for that use case.

Marsymars 8y ago
Problem with the Pixel Slate is that once you attach the keyboard it's both heavier and more expensive than the PixelBook for comparable specs. (And also is perpetually out of stock outside of the US Google Store.)