Ipad 10.2″ for a PhD: 32 or 128 GB

hardware-recommendationipadmemorypdf

I hope this is the right community:

I'm a first year PhD student in Mathematics, and I plan to buy an Ipad 10.2" with the Apple Pencil as I have seen that it can be quite useful to take notes when I'm at the campus, and it's easily portable.

My main concern is about memory: I really don't know if I should take the 32GB or the 128GB.

In order to provide additional information: as a Mathematics student, I'm sure I will use intensively Notability or similar apps, and I think I will need to download PDFs with papers and stuff like that. For instance, if I plan to take notes using the Ipad, will I run out of memory with 32GB?

Best Answer

As @benwiggy pointed out correctly, storage always tends to run short.

Of course, such a topic is a matter of personal opinion. Trying to keep objective, please consider the following:

  • The 32 GB option is the "entry-level" option—in fact, no other iPad even offers such a low option anymore! (iPad Air and iPad mini start at 64 GB; iPad Pro at 128 GB.) It is safe to assume that it's on the market solely as a cheap entry model to the Apple universe.
  • Getting the model with more storage will, even if you have no use for it now, increase the device's value down the line. I, for one, tend to sell my old Apple devices (usually after upgrading to a newer model): the resale value of a 32 GB devices will be considerably less than the same device with 128 GB.
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