Non-polarized. They are actually gradient tinted, so the lower part is less dark than the upper part. I still find it hard to read the iPad mini when the sun is shining on the screen without taking off the glasses. I also have an iPad Pro and don't have the same problem with it.
New iPad Mini just announced.
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JimNtexas
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Jim - In Texas!
True, but to clarify, You don’t need a sim card to use the excellent Apple gps.
MooneyDriver78
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If you have a iPhone and link it (hotspot) with an iPad you’ll get gps from the phone. Not sure if it works without a cellular signal?
Doesn’t Stratus or clones have GPS in addition to ADSB data?
Doesn’t Stratus or clones have GPS in addition to ADSB data?
ChopAndDrop
Pre-takeoff checklist
Correct, that's the way I roll:
My iPad is WiFi-only (no built-in GPS) but when I'm in my plane I'm always getting GPS signal from my Stratux, or now I have a GDL-50. Either way, Foreflight picks-up the Location data from those devices.
I've been running this iPad since my Instrument Training, and I've never felt at a loss for missing the built-in GPS.
NoHeat
Final Approach
I missed it. Where did they say that?
Brad Z
Final Approach
ForeFlight and cockpit use of the iPad mini was featured prominently in the new mini release presentation.
ChopAndDrop
Pre-takeoff checklist
yeah, for me that is a “fail”, their presentation showed ForeFlight in a helicopter, as showcase for the iPad Mini, but they don’t have a screen that can handle a bright cockpit.
The anti-reflective screen should help, but either way, 500 Nits just is Not Enough. For reference I have an iPhone 8 Plus that is 625 nits I’ve used as a backup, it’s fine in the shade but if I turn to where the sun is coming in my window side, the screen is useless.
My primary is an 9.7” “iPad Pro” (older style with Fingerprint home button) and that is 511 Nits, also only works when I can maneuver it into the shade.
I got so tired of fighting this “LCD screen vs the sun” debate that in my Glider (bright bubble canopy) I use an eInk display device (“digital paper” like an ebook reader) for my maps and glide computer (XCsoar). Those are great in direct sunlight.
I fly in Florida a lot, and that 500 Nits on iPad Mini just isn’t going to cut it.
It’s great for pre-flight planning and briefing the approach in cruise, when I can maneuver it around into the shade. But if I tried to use a yoke mount or window-mount and the sun doesn’t cooperate (due to the angle of the sun vs approach vector) I lose visibility to the screen.
That’s why I like having an Aera in the pannel, it has a screen specifically for sunlight (“transflective LCD”) and even in blazing Florida sun is perfectly visible.
Lachlan
En-Route
Great idea on the eInk. An aviation specific display vs an iPad, the iPad is seldom gonna be the winner. But try reading PoA on your Aera….
MooneyDriver78
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Great idea on the eInk. An aviation specific display vs an iPad, the iPad is seldom gonna be the winner. But try reading PoA on your Aera….
I put non glare on my Aera, but you can still see some glare although it’s not as bad as in the photo.
I like both.
ChopAndDrop
Pre-takeoff checklist
I take my shoes off during cruise, also.
Part of my descent checklist to put shoes back on.
Really *&&^%*) right now at Apple. Ok, the USB-C connector, I can live with that (I have other devices that use it). But....Try to find the USB-C to USB (original) adapter....I've got the new iPad sitting on my desk and can't even set it up because....Apple insists on internet connection to talk to the MotherShip. Can't use wifi because....the MAC address is not in my firewall. Ah...option #2 - connect directly to a computer....wait...none of my computers have the USB-C port. So sometime this weekend I need to get to MicroCenter and hope they have the adapter. In between Young Eagles, the WWII airshow, grading 57 homework assignments and prep for 91 students on Monday (I just inherited another 34 students because one of our full-timers is out for the semester for medical reasons).
Fie on you Apple. Fie.
Fie on you Apple. Fie.
MooneyDriver78
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Tom
Option #3: Go to lunch where they have free wifi (even fast food places have it), easy peasy.
Option #4: Use your iPhone as a hotspot.
I can’t believe that’s your complaint, you might as well complain it needs electricity.
#3 I never and mean NEVER use public wifi
#4 My cellphone is just that - a phone, not a hotspot.
I will not take down the firewall just to get the iPad setup. Yes, I'm paranoid. I get paid to be paranoid. Hence those same policies carry over into my personal computers. I'll just squeeze in a trip to MicroCenter. Or wait until later in the week when I have more time.
Interesting trivia - Neither Targus nor Otterbox have a case for the 6 yet. That really surprises me.
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Bob Noel
you can't find a usb-c to usb-a adapter?
Not at 10 pm on Friday night. I thought I had every imaginable connector for just about every imaginable computer and cell phone (I still have a couple of the original SCSI cables) but nope, not usb-c to usb-a.
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ah. you mean you didn’t already have one
Stewartb
Final Approach
For a Mini used exclusively for Garmin Pilot will there be a useful difference between a gen 4 Mini versus the new gen 6? I know the 4 will become obsolete but I’m not sure if that day is now. Thoughts?
MooneyDriver78
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Tom
If you use GP with dynamic maps, traffic and weather, you can’t have too much CPU power.
The mini 4 will run at 100%, rendering will be slower and is more likely to overheat.
No question, get the 6. But don’t get extra memory, you won’t use it.
I'm using Foreflight rather than Pilot but I have periodically run Pilot and both are pretty processor-intensive. I had been waiting for the promised release of a Mini 6 this past summer and when it didn't happen, upgraded to a 5 because my 4 was definitely showing its age. The difference in processing, loading, and refresh rate between the 4 and 5 was noticeable. Based on that, I would expect the difference between a Gen 4 and a Gen 6 to be substantial.
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Hang 4
I have an aviation dedicated gen 4 mini. I run GP and have Win X Pro as a back up. I've not had any issue with it keeping up, overheating or freezing. I'd like the 6 for the pen, but my 4 works fine for now.
Fracpilot
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Stewartb
Final Approach
Same. My 4 works fine. I’m not sure I’d notice a faster processor for how I use it. My iPhone is newer and I don’t see any difference between them. Time will tell I guess.
I'm ecstatic they went to a "c". That's the reason I'm going to buy a 6 over a 5. Everything else I own uses usb-c except my flying tablets. It'll be nice to finally get down to just one connector type. Buy 'em by the dozen on Amazon. And the devices don't complain about them not being "genuine".
I'd love to know the percentage of folks using an ipad min vs a larger one...especially focused on older presbyopia pilots
RudyP
Cleared for Takeoff
I'll be a strange data point... I used to use an iPad mini until Apple stopped keeping them up to date and switched to full size high spec iPads (9.7" -> 10.5" Pro -> 11" Pro). Now with this new mini, I am actually going to try both - I'm keeping the 11" Pro and ordered a new mini and generally planning to use either/both depending on the type of trip.
I had one of the first full-size iPads when they first came out. It's sitting in a drawer somewhere. I've got 3 minis 4, 5 and the new 6. Traded in the 4 for discount on the 6 - that's the one I'll carry all the time (just like I did the 4) and the 5 will continue to be for flying. No problem with eyesight, altho I went to bifocals years ago. Portrait on the mini is exactly the size of a paper approach chart. If I want the sectional, I just zoom to where I want it.
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Warlock
Talking to my local ForeFlight employee…two things …yes, ForeFlight was mentioned and shown three times as part of the release…and one of the biggest drivers is the military has decided in general that the mini is the right size in the cockpit and no where to put a full size iPad…The military flight bag edition is a significant part of their sales. Good example is a mini is better in an ejection seat deployment…
I just turned 70, near vision sucks, have been using a Mini, and am waiting for delivery of a new one.
Chances are you will do far better on eBay than an Apple trade in. My retired iPads have all gone that route - their contribution to their successor.
Yep....remember who owns Jepp and FF now and where a really chunk of $$$ comes from. Even before being bought, FF got big income from the military and any commercial carrier using FF also used Jepp.
Forgive me. It’s no longer Jeppesen, it’s Boeing Global Services...
flyingcheesehead
Touchdown! Greaser!
The Mini 6 has the Apple A15 Bionic chip. The Mini 5 has the A12 Bionic. The Mini 4 had the A8. These are updated yearly... So the Mini 4's CPU is 7 year old technology.
The Mini 6 is also using the most up-to-date chip for the first time since the Mini 2. The Mini 3 was identical to the Mini 2 except for the fingerprint reader, which is why I never bought it, nor the 4. By the time the 5 came out, my Mini 2 was so out of date I felt like I had to upgrade. The 6 is a nice upgrade even from the 5, especially with the extra screen area and Apple Pencil 2 support which makes drawing on charts way easier - I use this especially for taxi routes and taxiway closures.
flyingcheesehead
Touchdown! Greaser!
Great idea on the eInk. An aviation specific display vs an iPad, the iPad is seldom gonna be the winner. But try reading PoA on your Aera….
The advantage of e-ink, at least during the day, is that it relies on external light and so isn't particularly susceptible to glare. Another advantage is that it does not use any electricity except for when it changes. Not a little, but ZERO. So battery life is generally fantastic on e-ink devices.
But, I can't stand e-Ink for aviation. I always wanted something to do approach plates - Just plates - before the iPad came out, and everything back then was e-ink based. But none of the displays were big or high resolution enough to get an entire approach plate up at once in a legible size, and e-ink is so slow to update that I felt like it wasn't workable. Want to know what your minimums are? Tap on the mins to zoom in, and wait... wait... wait... wait... It took several (6-7?) seconds to update. Sorry, I'm tryin' to fly a plane here, I can't wait that long.
Umm... Add it to your firewall? You're gonna have to do that at some point anyway, right?
It's been somewhat painful to switch everything from USB-A, Lightning, and other "2000 and 2010s" connectors over the past few years. I'm only a little glad that USB-C is taking over, though - The physical connector has been standardized, but just because the cable fits doesn't mean it's gonna work.
Want to plug in that monitor? Well, that's Thunderbolt 3, not USB. Gotta have the right cable.
Want to plug in your laptop to charge? Well, that cable doesn't support full USB-C PD, so you might get a little charge, or even slowly discharge. Gotta have the right cable.
I've even heard that using the wrong cable can *OVER*charge some devices and damage their batteries.
So, while I'm all for standardization, it's gotta be more than just the physical plug.
Can’t add it to the firewall until I get the MAC address, which can’t happen until I can open the iPad. Catch-22. Turns out there is an option- use the cable and connect directly to a computer....except...I need USB-C to USB-A adapter because the computer is old style USB.
bah humbug.
Stupid $8 adapter.
Continuing....Targus won’t have a case until mid-decmber. Haven’t heard from Otter yet.
Have the iPad attempt the connection. Look up the MAC address in the router log.
You log everything, right?
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Bro do you even lift
literally my mom just set up her new ipad all by herself. she is literally the most computer illiterate person east of the mississippi. she literally emailed me and said her email wasn't working.
Fake news. My mom wasn't even able to set up her iPad. My kids had to do it for her.
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Bro do you even lift
by 'set up' I mean she was able to power it on all by herself. way to go, ma!
The Xmount from RAM works for the mini 4,5,6.