Comments on: Opinion: Buying an iPad for college is worth it

By: Josh

Josh — Wed, 15 Aug 2012 17:39:18 +0000

@Jason What type of netbook would you recommend? Which type did you use to upgrade? I’m fairly good with technology and upgrading a cheap netbook sounds like a more viable idea than buying an iPad.

By: Ardelle Coletta

Ardelle Coletta — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 14:05:47 +0000

Oh my goodness! a tremendous article dude. Thanks Nevertheless I’m experiencing issue with ur rss . Don’t know why Unable to subscribe to it. Is there anybody getting an identical rss downside? Anybody who knows kindly respond. Thnkx

By: iPad as a new study buddy | News Track : The New York Times

iPad as a new study buddy | News Track : The New York Times — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 07:50:17 +0000

[...] Opinion: Buying an iPad for college is worth it | USA TODAY College May 9, 2011 … Last semester, spotting that one kid in class with an iPad was a big deal. [...]

By: Carol

Carol — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 10:24:51 +0000

@Mirl there’s an accessory for that, called something like ipad keyboard for turning ipad to a laptop, and it’s much cheaper than connecting two ipads

By: Michelle

Michelle — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 20:45:47 +0000

I did not find as much functionality in my iPad — I couldn’t access databases with its touch screen and was useless to my group during a class that was all research.

By: MicCord

MicCord — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 14:49:09 +0000

@jason
Lindsay (the author) didn’t say this was her MAIN computer. Meaning, she comfortably totes the iPad around all day (compared to her former, heavier laptop), the battery never dies on her no matter how much she uses it during the day (try THAT with a netbook…seriously), and has a whole bunch of useful free and paid apps available at her fingertips (literally). So, the statement, “…good luck typing a paper on a tablet.” is just assuming that she doesn’t have another computer at home to accomplish this on. Also, it’s nice that you bought a netbook for $250 and then upgraded it yourself. Much props for you and your ability to do things like that yourself. However, from the sounds of the article (“Within the first two days of receiving it, I didn’t even turn it on because I was so confused about how to do the initial startup.”), the author isn’t as tech savvy as you are, and taking apart a netbook to replace the hard drive with an SSD is probably something she would never have done herself. Plus, your set-up didn’t save you a boat-load of money over the iPad’s $500 purchase price. If she’s using the iPad for internet surfing, emailing, and presentation viewing, it’s surely capable of accomplishing these thing (and is instant-on right out of the backpack).

@Miri – Did she say her parents bought it for her? Or that they were paying for her education?

By: Jason

Jason — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 04:26:36 +0000

This article seems to highlight more of the reasons you *shouldn’t* get an iPad (or tablets in general) – college students usually don’t have a lot of discretionary income, and you can get a rock-solid and far more useful netbook/ultraportable for much less. Today’s students are going to have to figure out how to use technology properly one way or another, so spending way more for something that dumbs everything down for them does as much harm as good.

Besides, good luck typing a paper on a tablet.

I bought my netbook for around $250, spent $100 to replace the harddrive with an SSD, and another $50 to upgrade the battery. The thing feels faster and is more responsive than my main PC, and extremely fast for browsing the web, typing documents and papers, email, etc, and the total cost even with upgrades was still less than any tablet on the market.

By: Mirl

Mirl — Thu, 12 May 2011 15:43:53 +0000

It’s nice to see that Mom and Dad’s hard earned money is going to Solitare and Angry Birds. I waiting for my idea; the IPAD laptop, two ipads hinged together, creating twice as much screen and typing surface (although twice the weight,of course). That will be the ultimate mobile device. I know you can buy keyboard attachments, but I want mine built in!