update: choice of iDevices for the holidays

Happy New Year!

I hope your holidays were way better than mine!! :D

not quite freezing rain on 01/03 but made for some good pics :D

So the holidays has come and gone, 

looking back on my thoughts on the iDevice(s) to get...

well the crazy discounted shopping season is over, and here's a glimpse of what I netted.

iPhone6+ NOT! 

after Target screwed me over (pre-order-esq non-preorder debacle. seriously, what were you guys doing? putting me down for pre-order, promising the item for a week after the release, only to not contact me AT ALL!) i decided to just keep my 5S and get a separate tablet.

So, let the tablet roulette begin!

Black Friday - Best Buy had a $100 off deal on iPad Air2 as a door buster. (as it turned out, the doorbuster sale lasted more than a day. I strolled into local BB in the evening and found me a 64Gb White for $499+ $30 tax) this was only the beginning.. 

Sometime in December - BB had a sale on iPad Mini with Retina, or #iPadMini2

64Gb White for $329. with BB holiday return window until 1/15, I jumped on a good deal.

I really like the mini's form factor, although that was somewhat ruined by Lifeproof Nuud case for original iPad mini (I bring that up, since the retina version is a tad thicker, and the case seems a tad too small...

I started using the Mini 2 right away. Air 2 is still sealed at this point.

this coincided with MS opening up Office for iOS for free.

started using excel with my mini 2 for ordering at the store for some vendors.

But as with all excel applications, having a small screen is annoying, so I was reeeeally close to just opening up the Air2 for store use, although that seemed like a waste for a device that seems like a delicate version of the "original" Air.

While I was mulling over my options, Microcenter dropped a "Original" Air with 32Gb for $329. unlike 2 BB telephone associate (idiots) and 1 BB telephone associate (who couldn't price match on technicality, which was whatever..) the associate in the store was (actually) helpful. [I like the customer service at the "new" Best Buy, alas, it may be the case of too little too late. but i'll enjoy it while it lasts, be it 1 year, or 20..

For last Christmas, I bought my mom the Black / Space Gray Air with 16Gb for Christmas from an online retailer, but she always liked white, so I took this opportunity to swap them out.

Now that I had a "free" iPad Air sitting around at home, I decided to bring that one to the store, so I can a. run the CCTV app to check on the front of the store while working in the back and b. use a bigger screen to use Excel for iOS.

phew..

So.. that still leaves me with a Still-sealed-in-box Air 2. Well, that one's going to my Sister. So in the course of a month, i dropped over a G on 3, 3! non-16Gb iOS devices. I guess the 24-70mm f/2.8L II will have to wait :p

Oh yea, and I also scored the Lifeproof Nuud case for 5S. (too back I decided to spring for it after the screen was cracked, but it was either the case or go commando :p

as much as I dig my 50 1.4, the not-so-great focus  keeps whispering the name of the $2k toy :p