Expert’s Rating
Pros
Cons
Our Verdict
Wi - Fi may be plentiful these days , but it ’s far from ubiquitous . A twist like the iPad is just pray for always - on cyberspace access , whether it be for checking mail , surfing the Web , or even keeping up with your modish plot of Words with Friends HD . Apple ’s iPad Wi - Fi + 3 G delivers on that promise , though the 3 G experience may occasionally have you searching about for a Wi - Fi accession pointtout de cortege .
Outwardly , the 3G - enabled iPad is almost identical to its Wi - Fi - only similitude .
Everything my colleague Jason Snell said in his original iPad revaluation hold honest with this machine , as the conflict between the two models are few . externally , the 3G - enabled iPad is almost identical to the Wi - Fi model , and the two plowshare almost all of the same feature of speech , with the exception of those related to 3 G networking and GPS .
Outwardly, the 3G-enabled iPad is almost identical to its Wi-Fi-only counterpart.
For the exclusive right of those few features , however , you will be paying a second extra : the 3 gee models command a $ 130 premium over their Wi - Fi - only siblings , hold the monetary value tag $ 629 for the 16 GB version , $ 729 for 32 GB , and $ 829 for 64 sarin . And keep in mind that the high Leontyne Price cover up only the 3 gram hardware inside the iPad . In ordering to really utilize the 3 G service , you ’ll need to pay up for one of the two monthly plan that Apple and AT&T have team up up to offer : a $ 15 - per - month architectural plan that allows you 250 megabyte of datum transferral or a $ 30 - per - month plan that permit you unlimited datum . And unlike the iPhone serve agreement , which require a two - year commitment with AT&T , you could cancel your 3 G design for the iPad at any time .
The performance
If you ’ve spent any clock time with an iPhone 3GS , then you ’ll be pretty familiar with the iPad ’s 3 G performance , as under - the - hood probe show that the two use the same hardware .
focal ratio Tests for 3 chiliad ( pass on ) and Wi - Fi ( right ) show a openhanded advantage for Wi - Fi .
Given that the iPad also boasts the belated 802.11n Wi - Fi specification , there ’s no competition between the two : Wi - Fi will perplex 3 GB every single time . I run a few fastness tryout using the Speed Test iPhone app and , though unscientific , Wi - Fi ’s superiority was pronto apparent — in one trial at my home , Wi - Fi was an astounding 70 time faster at downloads and 30 times quicker at uploads . Other test ( such as the one pictured here ) showed less of a disparity , but still universally deemed Wi - Fi the winner .
Speed Tests for 3G (left) and Wi-Fi (right) show a big advantage for Wi-Fi.
Of naturally , such functioning depart widely calculate on the quality of the AT&T connection in your fix . And given that poor performance on AT&T ’s 3 G internet has been one of the major complaints with the iPhone , do n’t expect magically better operation on the iPad . The flat to which I latterly moved resides in a spotty coverage geographical zone for AT&T ’s net , and I ’ve experienced frequent signal drop , pitiful insurance coverage , and obtuse divine service on both my iPhone 3GS and my 3G - enable iPad . I also have one of Apple ’s recent 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Stations , which helps me get the most out of my Wi - Fi web .
If you live , piece of work , or otherwise spend a lot of sentence in a place with solid 3 G insurance coverage , you should determine the iPad ’s 3 G performance to be perfectly serviceable for most common task , like reading due east - mail , surfing the WWW , chink RSS provender , and keeping up with social - networking sites like Facebook or Twitter .
But when you start out to get into more intensive job , the wisecrack in the 3 G internet begin to show . While I was able to rain buckets video , audio , prospect map , and so on over the 3 G connective , the functioning was sometimes subpar . cyclosis via Netflix ’s iPad app , for example , grant video that was mostly watchable , though it did suffer from frequent pauses in playback as the video re - buffered .
YouTube streamed over a 3G connection (above) is substantially lower quality than the same clip over Wi-Fi (below).
YouTube stream over a 3 gm connecter ( above ) is substantially lower quality than the same clip over Wi - Fi ( below ) .
The quality of the video delivered over the 3 G web is also noticeably depleted than what you get via Wi - Fi . Netflix , for example , down - samples the television , though it ’s passable . I also tried the AirVideo video - streaming app , which allow for you to pick and select from a variety of datum rates , but I still had trouble with pauses in playback .
I had even worse luck withthe recent ABC Player update , which allows for streaming television over the 3 G connection . carrying into action varied hugely count on localisation , with streaming fundamentally impossible to use at my home . However , I did incur that other placement yielded good result , and in one fussy incident , I actually had to flip the iPad ’s cellular data connection off and then on again to concede better speed .
The Usage screen under Settings -> General will let you know how much you’ve sent and received over the cellular dat connection.
Most perplexingly , I get that YouTube picture pelt over 3 G were much unwatchable , due to their low quality — you seem to get the same videos that theiPhonegets over the 3 G connector , which look awful pixelated on the iPad ’s higher resolution cover .
In general , pretty much any bandwidth - intensive job from video streaming to rendering graphics - ponderous Web pages takes longer to complete via the 3 G connection , but when you ’re out and about with nothing to equate it to , it ’s not much of a bother .
The plan
As I note in myfirst look at the 3 G iPad , manage your AT&T account on the iPad is wide-eyed : you may sign up up , supervise your employment , change your plan , and even cancel it all from the iPad ’s configurations app . While no contract is required , do remember that the data program are prepay , so once you activate a plan , you ’ve got it for 30 days . Changing or set off a plan wo n’t take effect until the oddment of the charge oscillation .
Of the two plans offered through AT&T , which should you get ? Well , the ability to sign and cancel at any time is a hugely beneficial one : it mean you only have to bless up for 3 universal gravitational constant divine service when you need it — say , when you ’re traveling , for example .
But if you ’re doing anything beyond e - mail and light Web surfing , you ’ll probably desire to shell out for the limitless plan . Streaming video , in exceptional , is hugely intensive : using the Netflix software can easy rack up in surplus of 100 MB in an hour . One feature film - length flick can put you within spitting space of your bandwidth detonator .
There are cases where you might opt for the 250 MB plan . As one of my colleagues suggested , perhaps you might want to check your e - mail or get online while you ’re stay at a hotel that charges — to put it diplomatically — premiumfees for Wi - Fi accession . It may very well be worthwhile , in such a typesetter’s case , to shell out the $ 15 just for the restroom . Plus , even the cheaper plan contribute you the added bonus of free access to AT&T ’s nationwide web of more than 20,000 Wi - Fi hot spot , including one at each of the half dozen Starbucks that are no incertitude within walk distance from your location at this very moment .
The Usage concealment under scope - > General will let you know how much you ’ve mail and received over the cellular dat connection .
If you want to keep an heart on how much bandwidth you ’re jaw up , there are two options : one is to use the meters under preferences - > General - > Usage , which state you how much data has been sent and receive over the cellular data point connection . This information is tracked by the iPad ’s operating organisation itself , so it should always be up to date . you could also view your bandwidth usage under your AT&T account in configurations - > Cellular Data , but that can sometimes take fourth dimension to update as it ’s track by AT&T. In summation , if you ’re using the unlimited program , you wo n’t see your employment displayed there , just a notation that you ’re on inexhaustible bandwidth .
Given the disparity between the prices and amount of bandwidth offered , I think most users will opt for the inexhaustible plan . If you make the 250 M crown , AT&T shuts the service off unless you add another $ 15 chunk of 250 megabit or change over to the unlimited plan — and if the choice is $ 30 for 500 megabyte or $ 30 for limitless information , that ’s not determination that requires a lot of thought .
One downside to 3 G connectivity through your iPad is that even if you already have an iPhone , with its ensuant $ 30 - per - month outright data plan , you ’ll necessitate to give for the iPad ’s data design individually . All of a sudden , you ’re racking up $ 60 every calendar month for 3 G data — and if you have more than one 3G - enabled iPad in your family , you ’ll have to pay full Leontyne Price for each one since AT&T does n’t proffer any sort of family plan .
The power
The addition of cellular capability to the iPad raises another question : how does the equipment ’s battery life admit up ? While Macworld Lab is still conducting more classic testing , my informal experience suggests that the 3 thou connectedness does touch on the bottom line for magnate , though not as badly as you might fear . While bank on the cell phone connexion , I regard the battery power fall much low than it had on any Clarence Shepard Day Jr. while using the Wi - Fi model , but not so much so that I was unable to get a full day ’s exercise out of it .
But think back that the improver of 3 G support and GPS entail that the iPad expect four separate radio chips that can all be active simultaneously : the cellular connexion , Wi - Fi , GPS , and Bluetooth . Having all four of these on at once can emphatically put a nick in your barrage fire . In fact , a substantial twenty-four hours ’s worth of mixed exercise — from about 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.—dropped me as dispirited as 40 pct of battery living , which is low-toned than I reached in day-by-day average exercise of my Wi - Fi iPad in the previous weeks .
You have the ability to deactivate the mobile phone connection under preferences- > Cellular Data and rely only on Wi - Fi . And that ’s a welcome option , especially if you spend a lot of prison term in a location where the iPad struggles to get a solid signal . I ’ve take to go away the cellular information connecter off unless I ’m specifically out of Wi - Fi stove , at which point the assault and battery lifespan ought to more or less be equivalent to a Wi - Fi - only iPad .
Macworld’s buying advice
The 3 G iPad is every bit as dear a gadget as the Wi - Fi - only model , and it ’s only more capable than its fellow model . There are no significant tradeoff with the 3 G interpretation , as long as you ’re unforced to give more in commutation for more capability . My colleague Mr. Snell made the case for a 3 G version of the iPad well before it ship , and having one in my hands , I find myself inclined to concur with his ending — that 3 G connectivity render this variation of the iPad a measure of tractability overlook from the Wi - Fi - only interpretation .
Assuming you ’re already sell on the estimation of an iPad and simply want to figure out whether to buy the 3 G edition or the Wi - Fi - only model , the real question you need to ask yourself is : is it worth it to spend an additional $ 130 to have theoptionto use 3 G service of process ? seem at it as an investment that at some point down the route you ’ll be trapped somewhere without Wi - Fi , and you ’ll be glad you may still roleplay that treble word musical score .
[ Dan Moren is a senior associate editor for Macworld . ]
update at 11AM PT to clarify the act of tuner in the iPad 3G.
update 5/5 at 8AM PT to clear up focal ratio mental test outcome .
