I am also Apple-free, other than the iThingie I relented to buy, so I could run FF & the IFD100.

I don't use the tablet a lot, and when I do, it is sitting in my lap on the left side of my lapdesk.

I did not bother with a screen protector.

Buy a good amount of memory, say midrange if not maximum. Don't get the minimum.

As this will be a dedicated in-cockpit unit (I presume), just get the wi-fi unit without the cellular circuitry, a good $ savings. You lose the GPS (odd design), but that doesn't matter as you will have GPS on wifi in the plane from the IFD. You still get a coarse location sense on the ground from wifi.

I have had good success with the Anker plug in units for all my plug in devices, they upgrade them every couple of years. Minimum of 2.4A. Never had noise from these.

I would doubt a fire hazard, any more than any other Li-ion powered device.

Unlike most android tablets, the iThingies are very prone to overheat, things that seem to make this worse:

1) running on external power, as this runs them faster/brighter -- good but "bad"

2) having them in the sun (which you will have)

3) having them on continually

I have seen mine overheat, even though I don't do #2 and #3.

If you are going to have it on continually, on power, in the sun, you might want to look at a cooling solution. Kind of bulky, and a pain that you need something like that for such an expensive tablet.

* Orest

Q.  Will 64gb be enough?

WingX takes about 9.32GB with the whole US loaded. Avidyne takes about 449 kB with both apps. If you don't use anything else, 64GB should be enough. FYI, Foreflight with lots of additional manuals and data, and the whole US loaded takes 27.18 GB. FlyQ EFB takes 32GB for the basic app plus the whole US. My iPad has almost completely replaced my laptop and I use it more outside the plane than for flying. I prefer to get the largest memory that I can. I usually downloaded several movies when flying internationally.

Q.  Does a constant charge increase the chances of a thermal shut down?

Possibly. The iPad sometimes warms up just a little when charging. It shouldn't once it is fully charged. I am careful to keep mine out of direct sun. It hasn't overheated in a long time. It certainly will if I put it on the glareshield or in the direct Texas sun.

If you don't want to pay for Foreflight, You can get the FLTPLAN GO app that has moving map and all the FAA approach plates and charts for free. It will provide a good backup with geo-referenced charts in case you lose airplane electric power.  It is a very small price to pay, usually about $100 more for the cellular version.

It is also relatively inexpensive to add the iPad to your phone's cellular plan (at least on AT&T) and then you have an internet connection everywhere you go, without drawing down your phone's battery when you use a hotspot. It even works in the air if you're not flying too high or if you forgot to bring your phone.

At least AT&T allows you to turn on a data plan for a single day for something like $5.00. Nice to have should you ever need it somewhere. I also like the iPad to have its own GPS because of my use outside the plane. It can also be helpful for the Find My function if it gets misplaced or stolen. I understand the reasoning for not needing GPS reception in an iPad dedicated to the plane. It does save $129 to relinquish the function.

brou0040 wrote: ...Aviation is stuck in this "we only support apple because that is what pilots use" and "pilots use apple because that is where the apps are" cycle that needs to be broken.

Two thumbs up to that.

* Orest

brou0040 wrote: ...Aviation is stuck in this "we only support apple because that is what pilots use" and "pilots use apple because that is where the apps are" cycle that needs to be broken.

More likely (IMHO) is that there is a substantial majority pilots who own and prefer to use Apple tablets in the cockpit, and would not be interested in buying Android apps.  In the annual flying budget for most pilots (who ever said flying is cheap?), I think the price difference between buying an Android or Apple tablet would be a rounding error, especially when spread over years of flying.  My Apple iPad mini is 4 years old now, and still works fine.

Why some (not all) Apple developers don't also generate software for Android products (and make even more money supplying both markets) is the real mystery, the answer to which is not the mindless circle you describe IMHO.

Android tablets owned by potential pilot customers are ignored by some Apple-only developers - especially ForeFlight, the dominate aviation app of them all.  Perhaps it's because of concerns for how their products can more easily be hacked on Android OS devices, which lack Apple's security features?  Or perhaps concerns over having their customer's personal data be vacuumed out of their app and sold to third parties, as Google's profit model requires?  Or what??  Take a guess, I have no idea.  But is seems a big issue for Android folks since complaints are often raised, and I wonder why they haven't been able to get answers to these questions yet.

My Apple iPad mini has overheated only rarely in the last 1,500 hours of flying, and then only when sunlight is shining on it and I have it on a charger (which I don't do if the battery will last the whole flight).  The solution is: don't do that.  Disconnect the charger or take it out of the sunlight when both occur at the same time - before it can overheat.  I can't remember the last time I just let the thing overheat, it's been years.  So there's a solution for both Apple lovers, as well as those Android guys grumbling about having to buy an iPad just for flying.  Overheated iPads, like running out of gas, is something that should not happen.

The heterogeneity of the android hardware space is certainly a challenge for producers. OTOH, it is a big plus for consumers, as it keeps prices in line and you don't have to live in the walled garden of one hardware manufacturer. But that said, many software producers have done very well in the android sphere, and most major apps are available on both.

Apple has as much of an interest in data aggregation as Google, and anyone else out there that can get their greedy hands on it. Google is more successful because they dominate the hardware and browser space. I dislike all of them, and use Firefox and Duck Duck Go, but it is a losing battle.

Apple devices just seem to run hot, iPads among the worst. Some of their laptops have even been known to desolder themselves. They make certain assumptions about use and average power generation to push size and battery life considerations. Those may be fine for the intended use of browsing and playing some tunes indoors, but falls down when you run it full out, continually on and in the sun, like you might in an aviation application. That is why they overheat and shutdown, and typically need external cooling. Android devices can overheat as well, and will shutdown, but it is comparatively rarer and it seems mainly limited to the $100 device niche.

As I'm an android guy, I have a choice of not using FF, or the IFD100, or forking over extra $ to get a single purpose device that lives in my flightbag. If you are an Apple guy, you don't have this annoyance.

It is what it is.

* Orest

oskrypuch wrote: ...As I'm an android guy, I have a choice of not using FF, or the IFD100, or forking over extra $ to get a single purpose device that lives in my flightbag. If you are an Apple guy, you don't have this annoyance.

To re-phrase:

"I'm an Apple guy, I have the choice of using my iPad Pro, or forking over extra $ to get a single purpose device (my ipad mini) that lives in my flightbag.  I'm an Apple guy .... but I don't consider this annoying." [quoting myself]

So perhaps we Android/Apple guys are not so different after all Orest.  I'm just not as bothered about buying that extra cost single-purpose thingy in my flight bag.  Four Bose headsets cost much more, and three of them go unused on most flights.  My Mini is used every flight, and then it's put away just like the pricey headsets.  Who said flying was cheap?

Catani,

Your mini would still be usable outside of the cockpit, same apps etc. given that you are in the Apple sphere.

For me, that is not the case, and is the point I was making. I could populate the mini with similar cross-platform apps, but not worth the effort or extra cost. And I find the iOS system quite clunky to use. (maybe someday you will get a back key!)

I always bring my Tab S5e along when I travel, and of course my Samsung S10 is in my pocket.

* Orest

If you want to base your decision on what platform to use on the OS and hardware, then you have to make the trade off in the apps available. Most apps are pretty similar between Android and iOS. It just seems that at least for pilots, iOS has some apps people are willing to pay a lot for that are just not available under Android. Developers have made their choice. I don't know of a single Android app that I wish were available on iOS, but I have a few I'd really miss since I don't know of a full equivalent on Android. I make the trade-off to use Apple based on that.

Of the mobile apps that I use, FF and the IFD100 are the only ones that do not have android equivalents. As they represent probably no more than 1% of my actual use on mobile devices, they wouldn't much drive my own decision on platform. In fact my decision on platform was made before either existed.

So, I grudgingly got the mini for the flightbag, and as I mention bring my other working gear as well.

* Orest

I agree most apps have equivalents in the other OS. The only must haves for me are Foreflight and the IFD100. Aviation apps drove my direction early on too. Back then I liked WingX Pro, and it was better on iOS than on Android. Many of the apps that exist on both seem to bring out features first on iOS.

Yep, I get that you feel shorted for that reason.  My point was that I'm as shorted as you.  Meaning, just like you, I get no use out of my Mini except in the air.

The source of your problem is that you don't use your iPad for anything outside the cockpit.  That's a personal choice, as the iPad obviously works as well on the ground as in the air. You just prefer to use Android tablets on the ground. 

The source of my problem is that I don't use my Mini for anything outside the cockpit.  Like you, that's a personal choice also, as the Mini works as well on the ground as in the air.  I just prefer to use larger tablets on the ground.

The result is the same: we each buy a device for use only in the cockpit, and we both do so for personal reasons that are not compulsory.  We both could solve our "problem" by just using one tablet for everything: a single iPad.  And we both say: "Doesn't work for me!" So we both shell out more bucks to get what we want.

I do think I'm more clear on the fact this is a problem I foisted on myself.  I suspect you're more inclined to blame FF and/or the IFD100 developers for your decision.  As has been pointed out, those are business decisions those developers have made for apparently confidential reasons.

Well, I don't think there is a lot of mystery to the decisions, and I don't see how I was parceling out "blame". As I mention in my post upthread ...

As a consumer you choose.

As an aside, I was always partial to the 8" format of tablet for general use, certainly that is the better size for our cockpits too. But, the last tablet I got was 10", and I must say I have got to like it. The one thing in particular you CAN do with it, that is harder with an 8" format, is reading a newspaper in full broadform format.

* Orest

Foreflight writes their app just to run on IOS for one basic reason. Android makes their operating system available to an manufacture out their that wants to go that route. The problem, each of these Android manufactures tend to modify the Android operating system to fit the needs of their specific tablet or phone. Foreflight is not going to write code for each of these systems. Also, those companies that do attempt to support both operating systems (Garmin Pilot, WingsX etc), their IOS App is considerably different than their Android App, usually with a lot less features and capability.

So I will stick with my Ipads as well as Foreflight for just that reason. There is a reason that most airlines issue their pilots Ipads, most running Foreflight Pro using Jepp charts. My daughter is a Jet Blue pilot. Her company issued Ipad contains all this plus checklists for the Airbus she flys.

Yes, my ipad has overheated at times (I fly a Grumman Tiger) but it usually recovers as soon as I get it out of direct sun, so yes, Ipads will overheat and crash. Android platforms just crash for no specific reason.

Aviation Consumer had a specific writeup comparing Ipads to various Andriod devices. Anybody considering purchasing either IOS or Android should read that article before making a final decision.

Claude   

I am sometimes amazed at all the android haters ... 

Yep, Foreflight (among those "haters") is the main reason to consider an iThingie, if you don't use one already.

But all kidding aside, for me it is not "hate", just an objective assessment of my needs and the available hardware. I decided to go android many years ago, well before FF existed. FF (and the IFD100) is the only reason I got an iPad, and because it doesn't fit my venue otherwise, that is the only thing I use it for. Not fiscally efficient, but as I say, it is what it is.

Previously I used a single purpose reader (kindle-like) device that could display Jepp charts in the cockpit. It wasn't usable for much anything else either, and it was priced at north of $1000. So the situation is not that dissimilar.

* Orest