I got to say that when Apple released the iPad Mini, I thought it was just a hype and would end up to be a product which would just fill a gap within the market segment. But how wrong I was when I got my hands on it. I know this comes as a little late because I have been a sceptic all this while hence I never thought that I would need it until recently.
Now I use to carry around my iPad Retina and slowly, it started being left at home because since I travel a fair bit during work, carrying it around meant carrying an extra bit of weight which I could do without. No doubt the iPad’s functionality was incredible and also extremely useful but the added weight just proved to be the one key factor which made me slowly move on it’s dependence to just a multimedia unit I bring along with me during trips.
This was until I gotten my hands on the iPad Mini via Maxis’ data plan. I was already relying on their mobile broadband plan which offered me 8Gb a month which was a blatant lie because what it really did was offer me 4Gb during peak hours and the remaining 4Gb between 2am and 8am, or somewhere along those times. This costs RM68 a month so I decided to swap it out for the iPad Mini data plan for RM75 a month and get 5Gb of data. The upside to it is that I am now able to access to the LTE network which was my main decision point.
I got the iPad mini together with a simple black case and a screen protector (matte version) by Power Support, one of my favourite screen protector brands which I have used since my iPhone 3G days. Although a lot of people have commented that putting in a matte screen protector does dull the screen, I am those type who can’t stand seeing finger prints on a screen so thats my main reason for going with a matte screen.
The iPad is extremely light, I have gotten the 16Gb version and after integrating all my emails, firm applications and personal applications, I still have a good 9Gb of space remaining which left me to download my favourite tunes on it. Because of it’s size and weight, I am more inclined to bring it out with me everywhere I go now.
I love to wear cargo pants and since I am not the thinnest of persons, most of my pants come oversized and the iPad mini fits into the pockets rather seamlessly. No skinny jeans for me.
Coming from the iPad with a retina display, this definitely was a change for me. I really can’t wait for the iPad mini with a retina screen, that would be the best and if it can have a 128Gb of HDD space, it would be the best iPad to have. For now, the normal screen will have to do.
In terms of performance and speed, I tried playing a couple of TD games and it seems to play rather smoothly. Mostly games like Anomaly, Kingdom Rush and Plants vs Zombies HD. I am a big fan of Tower Defense games hence you can probably see what my games library would consist.
As a modem, it worked perfectly. I was able to access the LTE network from the 65th floor of KLCC Tower 2 and in most parts of PJ, enjoying blazingly fast speeds whilst surfing the usual Facebook, emails, Feedly and other news networks. So far no glitches and as long as I connect the iPad via a cable to my work laptop, it functions well as a modem. Now the only trick is that I don’t over use my data instead.
Overall, the iPad mini is amazing. I seriously can’t wait to install iOS 7 on it and enjoy the newer functionalities as well as the look and feel of it a lot more. Right now, I use my iPad mini to check Google Maps (yes it is finally available in the Malaysian App Store) as well as buy cinema tickets from GSC.
