Apologies in advance for starting another ipad thread but I haven't had any luck finding this.
I was thinking about getting an ipad mini for flying. The upfront cost of an ipad doesn't bother me too much provided it will last a few years. I have wifi access at home and on the ground at the airport for last minute weather checks, but do I need to pay for a monthly data plan to use an app like Foreflight in flight?
Here's what to consider:
First of all storage is not upgradeable. The ForeFlight folks recommend at least 32GB, and I concur. If you're only using it for flying, that's probably enough - But my personal MO when buying electronics is to buy maximum memory and storage right off the bat, as usually by the time you need more, it's not worth upgrading the device. This strategy has served me well in that my devices last a lot longer without needing to be replaced. (I figure if I buy 3x what everyone is saying to buy, that's about right.)
As for data, there are two things to consider: The capability of the hardware, and the data plan itself.
As for the hardware, the WiFi-only iPads do not have an internal GPS, while the cellular-capable ones do. Of course, for the price difference, you can buy a GPS and if you're planning on getting a Stratus or other ADS-B + WAAS GPS device, then you don't really need the internal GPS and you can put the money you save toward the external device. However, that is an additional potential point of failure, and you'll have another device you need to keep charged up.
For the data plan, you do NOT need to have a data plan for the internal GPS to work, nor do you need it for EFB software such as ForeFlight to work in flight - Really, getting data in-flight via the cell networks is quite unreliable. The EFB apps allow you to download the charts you'll need on the ground (on your wifi) prior to flying so that they're stored locally on the device and you don't need an Internet connection while flying.
Having a Stratus or other ADS-B device can give you weather in the cockpit via ADS-B, MUCH more reliable than trying to get it with a cellular data plan in flight, and if you do this, again, you don't need a data plan.
Where a data plan is most useful is when you're at an airport away from home, on the ground where ADS-B doesn't work well in most places, and there's no wifi. The cellular data plan will allow you to do your preflight weather check and planning, file a flight plan, etc. when there isn't a WiFi hot spot around.
If you have a cell phone with a data plan that will act as a WiFi hot spot there isn't any reason to have a cellular data plan. If you also have an external GPS, there isn't any reason other than redundancy to have the cellular-capable iPad.
Hope this helps!
