iPad for Dad, #6 – Choosing an iPad | As Our Parents Age So Do We

If you like this post, read some of the other descriptions of our Father/Daughter iPad for Dad adventures — iPad for Dad, #1, iPad for Dad, #2, iPad for Dad, #3, iPad for Dad, #4, iPad for Dad, #5, iPad for Dad, #6, iPad for Dad, #7, iPad for Dad, #8, iPad for Dad, #9, iPad for Dad, #10, iPad for Dad, #11, iPad for Dad, #12, iPad for Dad, #13, iPad for Dad, #14, iPad for Dad, #15, iPad for Dad, #16, iPad for Dad, #17 , iPad for Dad, #18, iPad for Dad, #19, iPad for Dad, #20, iPad for Dad, #21 and iPad for Dad, # 22.

Note: Several readers have written to ask how I picked out an iPad for my Dad. I put the first part of this post in the comment section of the initial iPad for Dad posting, responding to one e-mail, but since then I have received a couple of more, so I am reposting the paragraphs here.

The iPad that I purchased for my dad was the cheapest wi-fi wireless model with 16 GB of memory. This model lets him use the iPad on his home wi-fi, and he can also use it on wireless he has permission to access (Starbucks, for instance, or the home of a friend). He is not going to use his iPad at the beach or at other places where he would need the 3GS iPad (which costs more and requires cellular access and an extra fee to AT&T for the greater access). He likes to take the train, so this gave me some pause about the cellular, but I knew he would not want to pay the extra fees.

I chose 16 GB of memory because he is using the iPad to read books, access the web, send e-mail, and maybe soon in the future, watch some YouTube videos. All of these activities that require lower amounts of memory and storage. He is not going to download huge video games or movies which would require massive amounts of storage. 16 GB of storage equals a lot of books.

If I buy one for myself, which I hope to do sometime, I will probably get the same wi-fi model, but with 32 GB of memory, since I might download some movies, though not a lot of them.

I get the most joy from this project when I am working together with Dad, so I am looking forward to working with him in person with this coming weekend!

iPad Odds and Ends

Apple has posted an iPad users guide in PDF format. I may print this out, or at least the important parts, and put the pages in binder for Dad to use.

This link at about.com that with iPad prices and an understandable memory specifications chart.

You may want to read this press release about a PDF buyer’s guide with graphics and lots of diagrams — all useful for a person who is thinking about purchasing an iPad. The PDF as well as other types of documents are at iLounge. This is not a link or a document that I would use with my father — it contains way too much information. However, it is filled with information for anyone trying to decide about purchasing an iPad model.