Have a laptop and an old iphone. I heard about ipad long time ago but never cared for it b/c i had laptop and a phone. I had android phone then went to an iphone. I always thought an ipad was not necessary and expensive.
I then thought about it and said… hey this would be a great thing if i want to watch youtube or skype etc and dont want to be on my laptop. Most importantly, i could lye down on my bed and use it whether watching youtube or web browsing or skype. I of course could do this with my iphone but its really small screen. In a way i could do this with a laptop but very uncomfortable if im lying on the bed.
I would only use it for web browsing sites and youtube mainly. Would you say getting one is necessary or not so much? Also how many tabs should be the max i open on these? When im on laptop i have a ton of tabs opened. But for ipad i know its harder b/c im not doing this with a mouse and typing everything myself so i won’t have that much windows open. Would u say ipad is necessary for me? I dont play any games or stuff like that though. I might watch some movies etc. I also know u cant really do extensive stuff in it so basically it would be like my using it for youtube.
No. An iPad is not necessary. It’s a convenience, sure, and if you want one, go ahead and get one, but it’s not a necessity by any reasonable definition of the word.
Jeeze, of course it isn’t necessary. But it is almost irresistible if you’re into cool toys.
Tablets are great fun and can be handy. If you’re mostly going to use it for some websurfing or streaming, it’s probably much cheaper to get a noname type tablet. (From the OP, it doesn’t seem their wed to a certain maker.)
The Fella gave me a tablet that he found online cheap (new, but a cheap one). I stream, play some games and read a kindle on it. It’s fun and convenient. (And I had never asked for one, or wanted one–he found a really good deal. I love it now and it’s known as “The Teat”. “Where’s The Teat? I need to play Tapped Out!”).
Pauly01, do you have a T.V. in your bedroom?
For too long, I avoided even investigating how to stream to my T.V. because I assumed it would be a major set up and more hassle than I was ready for. When I finally took the plunge, I realized how extremely easy it is and really pretty inexpensive. Roku and Chromecast are both much cheaper than an iPad and you can watch YouTube or pretty much any video you might find anywhere on the internet, all streamed up to your T.V. set.
You do have to have a modernish T.V. I say “modernish” because my T.V. is a number of years old and wasn’t anywhere near top-of-the-line when it was new.
You just can’t use these streaming devices with the older “boob tube” type T.V.s (at least, I don’t think you can).
That would just leave the question of how much web browsing you’ll want to do while lying on your bed. If the majority of your web browsing can be done sitting up at your computer, and if you can deal with your occasional lying down browsing sessions being slightly less than ideal comfort-wise using your laptop or your phone, then you might find that adding Roku or Chromecast to your phone and laptop would make the iPad unnecessary.
…that is, provided you have a T.V. in your bedroom.
Of course it’s not necessary, in the major scheme of things. But if you want to surf the net and watch YouTube and don’t want to be on your laptop or phone, then you’re going to need a device that will allow you to do that, and an iPad or Android tablet will do you good. If you like consuming content on the go, (on the train, in the patio, on your couch, in your bed, etc.), it might make sense to get one. It’s lighter than a laptop, turns on instantly, and I’m sure you’ll find an app or two you’ll like.
In my experience watching videos on a tablet in bed is better in theory than it is in reality. If you’re laying down you have to either hold the thing up the whole time or prop it up on a pillow, and that get’s annoying pretty quick IMHO. Phones are smaller and a bit easier to hold after a period of time but tablets, even the light ones get annoying. Yeah you could get a case with a prop and that would work but they are generally stuck at one or two angles. Although I do have a Surface Pro 3 which is the best of all worlds. Laptop, tablet and its got a build in stand that is infinitely adjustable over a very wide angle.
I’ve gotten along my whole life without one. No cell phone, either. I never miss them. So I’m going to have to take the side that they are not really necessary.
It’s not necessary for us, but we have one. I was trying to think of what to buy my wife for Christmas last year, and remembered she had mentioned that her friend was extolling the virtues of hers, and thought, well, that seems like a good idea.
I’m glad we have it, but we certainly didn’t need it.
Not necessary at all. I have an iPad that I got through work. When I got it, I thought “heh heh, I might occasionally use this thing for work.” Turns out I almost never use it if I’m not at work, and there 90% of what I use it for is to put pdfs from my dropbox up on a projector.
Unless things change, I don’t see myself ever seriously using a tablet outside of the classroom.
It is certainly not necessary. (Talk about first world problems, when a tablet is necessary.)
That said, I have a 5" iPhone, an 8" Android tablet and a 17" Windows laptop. They all have distinct functions and I use all of them every day.
While the phone gets used least by units of time, it actually gets used the most if you think about number of times picked up… besides the phone and texting functions, it’s my primary way of checking calendars and contact info. (Even when I’m on my laptop, it’s more convenient to use the phone to look up info.)
The tablet is primarily for passive entertainment - reading an movies. I read about an hour before bed each night. Sometimes I use it to play TV or movies when I’m doing boring work on the laptop. So… probably two hours a day of use, or more. (Like the OP, I wasn’t sure I needed one, and only added it about a month ago. It’s money well spent, though it’s a very low-end tablet, just $80).
The laptop is used for interactive things, like posting on the forums and work. It is actually both my work and personal computer at once, but don’t tell the IRS. I probably put in ten hours a day on the laptop.
(And yes, this story does mean that I can be found working on my laptop, while watching TV on the tablet, while looking up contact info on my phone - all at once. I even have a second monitor for the laptop. Surely that wins me some kind of geek prize.)
I have an iPhone, and iPad, and a computer–or rather computers, desktop and laptop–and to be honest, I almost never use my iPad. I either use my iPhone, since it’s convenient and right there in my pocket, or, if I have a bigger job to deal with, I use one of the computers. The iPad is good for taking notes during meetings, but that’s pretty much all I do with it.
I have a laptop, iPhone and iPad.
I only use my laptop for actual paid work. For everyday emails, posting to SDMB, watching movies, editing photos, taking notes, playing games, shopping, surfing and other stuff, I use the iPad. It’s my primary device. That said, I use a Bluetooth keyboard, which IMHO is key to getting the most out of it.
Not necessary by a long shot. Not at all. But very, very nice.
An iPad is an unneeded luxury, of course. Not necessary by any means, but definitely nice to have. I enjoy mine.
Two years ago my hubby bought us a new desktop Mac Mini, an upgrade that we needed and would both enjoy and use, awesome! Imagine my confusion when the next gift I opened was an IPad mini! Wha…? How could I/anyone possibly need both?
I was this >< close to telling him to take it back, but thought I’d just try it for a few days first, it being Christmas and all!
When we’d see the adds on the tv, he’d say, “You could surf on the patio! Or in the bedroom! Or anywhere!” But I was unconvinced and would always respond, “Yeah, but I hardly need to and why would I even want to?”
All that said, once the thing was in my hands I could not put it down, it was so much fun! For the next six months, I never once used the desktop! I don’t have a cell phone so it really was a whole new world of things to try and to learn, etc.
(At one point, I was begging him to take it to work with him, so I could get some shit done around the house!)
Necessary? Nah, but tons of fun! Mine has since been around the world with me, and I’m delighted with every little thing it can do!
My teen-adult children have tablets but I notice they mainly use their laptops.
My wife had a tablet for outside hours of work and swore…at it. However she now has a Surface 3 with a keyboard which is far better.
Much as I love gadgets I’m also not getting any younger. My fingers seem to have become thumbs so even my Galaxy 3 phone (which I like) seldom ever gets used for internet stuff. My eyesight isn’t great these days so small screens with smudges and reflections are difficult to read.
The laptop however is a winner in every sphere. I’ve used one in bed often for over ten years (like right now) and the 15.6 screen is just right for movies and browsing. When it gets uncomfortable thats a signal to go to sleep.
Just to be clear - no Apple stuff in my menagerie. 
It’s like flying first class, definitely not necessary but if you can afford it, it’s so much better.
One thing to suggest is not limit yourself to an iPad and if you do, spend a bit of time holding them and playing with different angles. Nothing is worse than a tablet that is awkward to hold, for you, while reading or watching movies. And all tablets have a slightly different feel.
Also an e-Ink reader is much better than a tablet if you love to read a lot.
I agree with most of the other posters here: not necessary, but very nice to have. I have an iPad mini, an iPad 3, an iPhone 6, and various computers (the computers are all Windows–I love iOS but hate MacOS). I use them all for different things. I’m considering upgrading the iPad 3 to the new iPad air, just because I’m finally getting to the point where the small print on the mini’s screen is getting to be a bit of a problem.
I love my tablets. When my dad was sick last winter and I had to go down and spend several days in a house where I didn’t have the wifi password, the TV in the bedroom didn’t work, and I just generally felt completely out of place, having my little iPad to watch Doctor Who on was a godsend.