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Comment by rjh29 | Hacker News Reader

I've gone all the way around and came back. The Samsung Fold was awesome and convenient. But carrying an ipad mini and a phone is not that big a deal. It's quite nice that the ipad mini does not have whatsapp or SMS plugged into it, so I can use it exclusively for reading books or playing music.

The cost of the iPad Mini + my phone was like $600 and the folds - even the 6th gen and above - are super unreliable, so right now that seems like the best play.

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It depends I guess. I really like my foldable. Got it for 500€ on a special deal.

It's really nice to have a tablet always with you. I live in a warm country so I don't usually wear a coat or a big bag.

Also, on android there's really no good small tablets. They're all 10" and bigger.

> But carrying an ipad mini and a phone is not that big a deal.

For you maybe, but for most it is, or we'd all be doing it.

Or not. Some of us are okay with phones the size they are so we are not tempted to stare at them even more.

Some of us wish minis were still be made.

If my eyesight were better, I would 100% want a mini

What do you mean? iPad Minis are totally still made...

i_Phone_ minis

Although there might be a /s missing from your post lol

I'd forgotten the phone mini even existed and the last mini in the thread was the pad mini.

Foldables are a niche market, so that's not a good argument.

> It's quite nice that the ipad mini does not have whatsapp or SMS plugged into it, so I can use it exclusively for reading books or playing music.

Both a phone and a tablet can come with WhatsApp, it's a user choice whether they are there and the frequency of checking them. Global muting the apps is also an option.

I understand your point, but it is a point mitigated by user intervention. Now, if we want to say reading on a bigger screen than a phone is a better user experience, I'm on board with that.

It is a pain to carry an iPad and a phone if you are walking. You need either large pockets or a handbag. If it is warm then you don't want either,

those folding phones are permanently bulging and enormous.

I feel like I'm the only person on earth sometimes who just wants the phone to be small so it's easy to carry and use one-handed.

I want to live life when I'm out and about, the phone I have is the heaviest thing I am constantly carrying.

If the alternative is carrying a tablet then a folding phone is smaller.

Yes but smaller than an iPad mini.

My pockets are not wide enough for a mini but would take a folding phone - the depth is much less of an issue.

What I want is a phone/wifi in a watch - e.g. Dick Tracy like.

Then I am free to wander etc.

If I need a screen then I can attach an iPad or smart glasses to the wifi from the watch.

The iPad Mini is such an underrated device. For years they have been my primary computing device. The form factor is so close to a paperback book that it's easy to carry with you. Heck, it even fits in the front pocket of my Dockers. Toss in in the front compartment of my backpack.

A big thing about the form factor is the perception. If you are in a meeting and pull out a full size iPad or your laptop to look something up, it certainly feels different than using your mini. Same at a restaurant.

At the park with the dog I can carry it like a paperback, sit on the grass and read. It's perfect for everything except phone calls.

iPad mini is awesome for reading however, it took forever until Apple powered it up.

Personally, as someone being used to the Motorola Razor foldable, which happened to present back then. It was really good and cool as well. I hated the ever smaller getting Ericson smartphones.

I am looking forward to Apple's copy of Samsungs foldable smartphones. After all, I don't want to carry an iPhone as well as an iPad mini around with me.

And I see the foldable more as a replacement for the iPhone ultra max phones. No matter how large the screensize they have, they never beat the iPad mini on readability, even being stuck with the old one for many years.

> But carrying an ipad mini and a phone is not that big a deal

I did this way back when the first iPad mini was released, and it's not bad.

But these days, the big iPhone is 7 inches to the iPad mini's 8 inches... the phone is big enough for most iPad mini use cases

The thing I like about the iPad Mini is that it's an optional carry. I don't need an 8" device every time I leave the house. And maybe that's going to be the appeal of the foldable.

Yeah, I got used to the big phone, and it's nice to have the big screen around when you are stuck at the bus stop watching YouTube. But I know its an awkward carry for lot of people.

Another benefit of the foldable over the ipad mini + regular phone is managing internet connectivity is a lot easier. Also no need for 2 separate sessions on whatever apps/websites you're currently using. As much as syncing states works fine nowadays, it'll never match just sticking to one device and not having separate browsers / note taking apps for your phone + the ipad.

I also don't foresee ipad minis going down that much in size, whereas foldables are constantly being made in smaller sizes (in height, thickness, weight, and even a variety of aspect ratios).

Price is the final real hurdle for most of these things IMO.

In general, managing a single device is always going to be easier than managing multiple -- fewer things to keep charged, fewer updates to run, less stuff to carry, etc.

I thought part of the point was that the iPad would _not_ have internet connectivity. Nothing to distract you. No notifications to check.

This is exactly why I opted for the iPad Air over the Mini. It's an optional carry device that really only leaves my home when I am traveling overnight somewhere. In that use case, and on my sofa, I appreciate the bigger screen more than any portability advantages.

> 7 inches to the iPad mini's 8 inches

These numbers don't correspond to the screen size though

How do you carry your iPad mini? Does it fit in pockets?

It fits in a front pocket if you wear Dockers or equivalent, which have notoriously large pockets. It fits well in the front of a backpack. It's most akin to a slightly wide paperback book.

I have a small shoulder bag which also holds wet wipes, a bottle of water, raincoat in case it rains etc... can't really go back to just using my pockets now.

> It's quite nice that the ipad mini does not have whatsapp or SMS plugged into it, so I can use it exclusively for reading books or playing music.

Eh, iOS has profiles that let you disable whatever apps you wish to. Better than a whole other piece of hardware, IMO

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