Apple blows

[Danb]

I luckily carry 2 IPads an Air and Mini...my air started to crash( poor choice of words. Lockup). So the Genius folks said yeah you have a problem knowing I fly and need it they would not replace it in the store...so now a few weeks later since its been sent back under warranty I still am without one of my backups...complaining gets you just I'm sorry sir that's our policy...when can I expect it back?

[N601RX]

Did you have a cellular data plan turned on when it locked up?  I have found that will cause mine to lock almost every flight if it is not turned off.

[rbridges]

Sorry to hear about your frustration.  We sent an ipad back a few years ago, and I thought it took about a week.  IIRC, they sent me a label and the UPS store packaged it for me, and I got a replacement.  It definitely didn't take 3 weeks.  The only thing they contacted me about was the inscription.  My daughter's name was inscribed, and they said it would take longer if I wanted that replaced, too.

[Sabremech]

I've had IPads since they first came out and my original IPad 1 is still going strong. Sorry you've been bitten by a bad one, but I suspect all the other brands have a few problems as well.

[Houman]

I would suggest buying the AppleCare package next time you buy an Ipad, I have had my Ipad 2 replaced because I dropped it, no question asked at the Apple Store. It costs about 100$, but well worth it, specially if you are using it as an important part of your flying. I carry an Ipad Mini and my Ipad 2 as backup as well. It now permits a paperless cockpit...

[RobertGary1]

Did you have a cellular data plan turned on when it locked up?  I have found that will cause mine to lock almost every flight if it is not turned off.

 

If you do that will it disable the GPS? I bought the cellular iPad specifically because the GPS is more than capable in running ForeFlight. I don't need an external GPS.

 

-Robert

[N601RX]

No, it doesn't turn the gps off. Leaving the cellular on will also kill the battery quickly once it looses coverage and starts searching for towers.

[ryoder]

iPads have very little ram so they crash often. I have two and experience crashes daily. Try not to expect too much from it and only run one app at a time and you will be happy. Also disable cellular data prior to takeoff. God will work.

[RobertGary1]

iPads have very little ram so they crash often. I have two and experience crashes daily. Try not to expect too much from it and only run one app at a time and you will be happy. Also disable cellular data prior to takeoff. God will work.

 

Since I knew I was going to use mine in the cockpit and would want to have the entire US, approach charts, etc I bought the largest memory iPad available and cellular with it. The cellular works well for downloading updates when there is no wifi but also includes a GPS good enough that I don't need an external. If you buy the smallest memory iPad you might have more problems.

 

-Robert

[ryoder]

That is the problem. All iPad Air 1s have the same ram. Only the storage is different. So when your app is running it is constrained by available ram and crashes when it is exceeded. The new iPad air two has 2gb ram while the old air has only one. The 16gb or 32gb storage doesn't affect runtime performance at all, just how much content you can store on the iPad. Apple is super stingy with ram.

[ArtVandelay]

There are apps that will clean up memory, storage.

[RobertGary1]

Do you use the iPad for anything else? I have one dedicated just to flying. It's in a kneeboard. I don't use it for anything else. Don't install other apps etx.

[jlunseth]

I have had a 1, a  3, and now a 4, and I still keep the 1 as a backup.  I have not ever had a freeze or lockup on any of them.  A few times I have had Foreflight bring up something unexpected, but it is easy enough to just restart Foreflight, and I don't know or care if it is a Foreflight problem or an iPad problem, it is not significant.  I have flown in my 231 for around 800 hours now with an iPad of one type or another and would not use anything else. 

 

One thing I attribute this success to is the kneeboard I now use.  It is the aluminum, original case on forpilotsonly.com and cost a small fortune.  It does not perfectly fit the newer iPad versions, which are thinner.  I just need to get different foam strips so the iPad is locked in better.  What it does do, is that the strap for holding the case on your leg passes through the inside back of the case.  By design or sheer luck, this causes the iPad to be suspended off the back of the case, and thus off your thigh, which I believe allows good cooling, there is no "shared bodily warmth" between iPad and thigh, and as a result I have never had an overheat.

 

I have always gotten the Cellular/GPS versions.  They can be used in the cockpit for navigation, because the iPad virtually always has the location of the aircraft.  However, I have a good installed GPS (430AW) and AP (KFC200) with roll steering (Icarus SAM), and thus have little need for it for navigation purposes.  When at cruise, I tend to take it off and put it somewhere safe, although for years I would wear it throughout a flight.  The GPS works whether the Cellular service is on or off, the only significance of the cellular service is that is the version of the iPad that has the GPS.  I do keep a cellular subscription, however, because I find it very useful for getting weather on the ground at remote airports where there may not be a planning computer, or it may be locked up when you are there.

[DS1980]

What's an iPad?

[M016576]

What's an iPad?

It's like an iPhone, but weighs more and you can't talk into it.

[carusoam]

I agree but...

My iPad gets used around the office all day long, email, presentation projector, it navigates on weekends...

The old iPad 1 was slow on day 1. Four years later, you won't have patience for it...crashes became ordinary as the Apps advanced faster than OS, then the OS didn't advance anymore. Apps stopped supporting the old platform...

Direct sunshine was the cause of a few shutdowns.

Keeping it out of the sun would keep it cool but would lose it's GPS signal. SkyRadar supplied a nice fix with higher WAAS accuracy. WAAS is good for programs CloudAhoy that graphs your track within feet.

The iPad 4, high speed, high definition screen. Good OS support. Good app support...

The iPad is just a big iPhone... If you want to talk through it, use the Skype app when attached to wifi or cell system...Skype worked well calling home from Europe...

I use my iPhone for communication usually, if I need wifi for the iPad... The iPhone provides a Personal Hotspot. Nice way to minimize the monthly expenses...wifi is everywhere...sort of.

How cool is that...?

Makes me think of Garmin integration.... Higher costs, works the best, improves over time, nobody likes them either...

I have fear of dropping any device. They are expensive to fix...

My thoughts,

-a-

[47U]

I've got a Mini on the yoke, but keep an iPad 1 with built in GPS as a backup. It's running Sky Charts which is committed to supporting iOS 5.1.1. As long as I don't over zoom it runs fine, no crashes.

Sky Charts has VFR, IFR, TERPS, VFR Terminal charts and more. It's just basic flight planning, but displays continuous nearest airport heading and distance and has a one touch popup feature for special use airspace which is really nice on the fly. All for $4 / 28 days.

Every platform has lemons, but last July I made my longest Mooney trip to date from NORCAL to KERV to the upper midwest and back. 43 hours in eight days. It was epic (for me, anyway). I kept the iPads shaded and they were fine in the heat, even on a gas stop through 29 Palms when it was about 110F.

Nope, no problem with Apple, although I did replace my two 30 year old Narco Comm 120s since returning home. It was time.