Which iPad will work?

[mmitsch]

Our daughter just had a baby and wants an iPad to play in her car so the baby can see it in a rear facing seat. She wants to play Amazon prime videos they can download. Super simple songs shows. Also likes paw patrol or Netflix.

I have 2 old iPad 1’s that are in excellent condition but I don’t think they’ll work. If you think there’s a chance I can get these to work let me know.

If these cannot I was hoping someone could recommend a good used model I could get. Hopefully something the same size as the 1’s so I can use cases.

Let me know your thoughts.

 

[jkingrph]

Our daughter just had a baby and wants an iPad to play in her car so the baby can see it in a rear facing seat. She wants to play Amazon prime videos they can download. Super simple songs shows. Also likes paw patrol or Netflix.

I have 2 old iPad 1’s that are in excellent condition but I don’t think they’ll work. If you think there’s a chance I can get these to work let me know.

If these cannot I was hoping someone could recommend a good used model I could get. Hopefully something the same size as the 1’s so I can use cases.

Let me know your thoughts.

Good luck, try charging them up and setting her an account to see if it will work with what you want. As far as finding a later model that can use the same case, again good luck, It seems to me that every new edition requires a different size or shape case with reference to charging port/mick plug access, or speaker volume controls.

 

[J. A.]

If she wants to use the apps:
Amazon Prime requires iOS 12 and later, Netflix needs iPadOS 14 and later. iPad models that are compatible with iPadOS 14 are: all iPad Pro models, iPad 5 and later, iPad Air 2 and later, iPad mini 4 and later.

As for your case:
The iPad 1 had a depth of 13 mm (0.5 inch). No other iPad afterwards was even close to that. The iPad 2, e. g., had a depth of 8.8 mm (0.345 in).
So you can‘t use the case of an iPad 1st generation on any other iPad model.

 

[mmitsch]

If she wants to use the apps:
Amazon Prime requires iOS 12 and later, Netflix needs iPadOS 14 and later. iPad models that are compatible with iPadOS 14 are: all iPad Pro models, iPad 5 and later, iPad Air 2 and later, iPad mini 4 and later.

As for your case:
The iPad 1 had a depth of 13 mm (0.5 inch). No other iPad afterwards was even close to that. The iPad 2, e. g., had a depth of 8.8 mm (0.345 in).
So you can‘t use the case of an iPad 1st generation on any other iPad model.

Thank you very much!

I think I should be looking for an iPad 6th generation -- does this seem a goof choice?

 

[twerppoet]

Here is one way of thinking over the value of buying an older iPad. Apple generally supports each iPad model from 4 to 6 years with new updates. Most mainstream app developers provide support for at least two older versions of iOS/iPadOS. That gives you a minimum of 6 years of almost guranteed support for your iPad, where you can expect just about any app to work on it with a reasonable amount of functionalilty. This is a pessimistic support senario. Chances are you’ll get another year or two out of the iPad if you’re use is casual, and you don’t get unlucky with the hardware.

So, take the price of the newest iPad model that you want. Divide it by 6, then subtract the result from the new price for each generation older the model you‘re looking at.

A new iPad (gen 9) costs $329 for the base model. Rounding down and dividing by 6 gives us $50. (I’m math lazy)

By my calculations you’d want to pay somewhere in the neighborhood of $150 for an iPad (6 gen) to get the same lifetime value as you would get for the $329 iPad (9gen)

This is only a thinking tool, and one I came up with without a great deal of research, but it should give you a starting point for deciding which iPad model/genration you might want to get. Of course, we all have a budget, and that often overides making ideal long term choices. Good luck.

 

[scifan57]

Older iPads are still useful as media players; even a first generation iPad as long as the battery is good and there are no hardware faults.

 

[twerppoet]

Older iPads are still useful as media players; even a first generation iPad as long as the battery is good and there are no hardware faults.

True, and it's a great reason to hang onto your older iPad. But unless all you want is a media player it's a poor reason to buy and older iPad. Not that a 6th generation iPad is that old, it's just three years closer to becoming that old, compared to a new iPad, and you should take it into consideration when deciding how much to pay for it.

Keep in mind that a first generation iPad can play a lot of media, but not HD media, and not in all the newest streaming formats, and it won't be compatible with any of the current streaming apps. You'll even struggle to find third party local storage media apps that are compatible with it.