Posts Tagged ‘ipads’

Snagging an iPad mini retina

laelene Posted in lifestyle glimpses，Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
07 July 2014
0

For the past year or so, I’ve been thinking about replacing my iPad 2. I’ve had it since 2010 and it’s bulkier and slower than I’d like. A few months ago, Target was offering $150 trade-ins plus a $50 gift card. That would make the iPad mini retina 16GB only half its original price! I should have sprung on the deal then, but I missed out and the next week they were offering the iPad mini with the same type of deal. I thought the difference between retina and not wouldn’t be a big deal, so I went to check it out. Unfortunately, the instant I looked at a non-retina screen, I could discern the pixels and it was more obvious to my eye than I had hoped. I set my resolve to get an iPad mini retina the next time I could get it at the $200 price point, with trade-in value and gift cards earned and whatnot.

Finally, on Saturday Panda and I got back from our trip and saw the Target ad for this week – $100 gift card for the iPad mini retina! Between that and my trade-in value around $100 for the iPad 2, I was ready to finally get my new device. Sunday morning, I went in prepared to trade in my iPad and get the mini retina. Then I realized that I don’t have to trade in my iPad at Target, which would give me $91 for it. Since I’m just getting a gift card back, why not go to the highest bidder? Best Buy is quoting $126 for the same one. I’ll certainly be able to spend that sort of money there the next time I get a laptop, TV, or other electronics. So I went ahead and bought the iPad mini I wanted at Target without trading in.

Today I went to Best Buy to trade in my iPad 2 and got that $126 gift card, as promised. I’ll be getting a smart cover for my iPad mini when I figure out which color I like best. I also went by Target again since the first time I didn’t put the full charge on my Target RedCard and I missed out on nearly $15 in savings from the 5% off I get with that card! I had thought that any portion of the charge made on my RedCard would result in 5% off the purchase, but it’s just 5% off the amount charged to the card. Makes total sense, and I should have known that. Good thing I checked my receipt and noticed it, or else that’s a nice meal’s worth of money I would have missed out on.

So now I proudly introduce to you my new gadget, in case you’ve never seen Apple packaging before. Ready for the unboxing?

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Glad to see they had an info card instead of the whole pamphlet printed.

Glad to see they had an info card instead of the whole pamphlet printed.

Of course the plastic part is far more interesting to her.

Of course the plastic part is far more interesting to her.

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Just enough for one hand to hold.

Just enough for one hand to hold.

Trading in that old iPad... farewell!

Trading in that old iPad… farewell!

365great Day 140: AppleCare

laelene Posted in 365great，Tags: , , , , ,
01 August 2013
0

Learn more about 365great here.

365great challenge day 140: applecareI seem to be unlucky in the luckiest way possible. Ever since I got my first iPhone back in 2010, I’ve had to go in to the Apple Store for Genius Bar appointments no less than a dozen times due to issues with my iPhone or iPad. About 8 or 9 of those visits resulted in me getting a new device or (once) a screen replaced. In fact, I wrote about some of the earlier experiences just so I wouldn’t forget. It’s such a frequent occurrence that all my visits and exchanges have started to blur together. While I’ve had my share of woes with my iPhone and iPad, I am very glad to have Apple Stores readily available to solve all my needs. I can’t imagine the hassle it would be with any other device, where the manufacturer would be far less willing to send you a new device, or it would be a drag to do like Panda’s was when his Android phone had issues. I’m very happy with the 1-year warranty coverage that my iDevices come with and surprisingly, I manage to not break them in the second year.

Just the other day I posted an image on Instagram of my shattered screen. I was holding my phone and a shower pouf, went to put the pouf on the towel rack in the shower, and BAM dropped by phone. The hard impact of the tub was enough to do quite some damage. Strangely, I wasn’t upset like with previous screen shatters. I’m not sure why, but perhaps it’s because I’m far too concerned about larger issues in my life now, like buying a home and getting a job. Ironically, I had been mulling over going into the Apple Store just days before since there was a dust speck in the camera lens that I had ignored since spring. It was in the corner and mostly unobtrusive, but I wanted to get a new device swapped out before my warranty ran out in September. It happened right after I’d gone in on two separate occasion for that same issue so I was sick of trading phones. Then I broke the screen and figured I might as well try to get that new device now! Like I said, I’m unlucky in the luckiest way because whenever I manage to destroy my devices, I’ve almost always had them fixed for free. There was only one time I had to pay a third party to do the repair. How great is that?

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