Purchasing an iPad for travel. My husband would like to download movies to watch onboard the plane, he would delete afterwards. Got a great deal on a 9th generation 64GB and wondering if it has enough space ? Typical use is just visiting websites, watching videos, and checking emails.
iPad (9th generation)
Whichever iPad model you choose, you would be well advised to purchase as much internal storage as your budget might reasonably allow - as internal storage (and other hardware) cannot be changed, upgraded or extended. The available internal storage is fixed for the entire life of the device. If you run out of internal storage for your documents, photos and other data, you will forever struggle and become a source of frustration. It is far better to have more storage than you need, than to need more storage than you have.
A good rule of thumb is to quantify how much data storage you will need - add a healthy margin - then double it. If you are unable to quantify your data storage needs, it becomes more difficult. Whilst I and others cannot cannot make definitive recommendations for your personal needs, objectively I would council against purchase of any iPad with any less than 256GB storage.
Within the Apple Support Communities we see regular tales of woe and disappointment when storage requirements are exceeded, necessitating replacement of the device; by contrast, we never see complaint of having too much available storage. It is relatively easy to fill limited internal storage space; perhaps consider higher tiers of storage as providing room for growth as your needs develop or mature - potentially extending the useful usable life of the device.
Consider also the functional differences between WiFi Only and WiFi+Cellular models of iPad. Only WiFi+Cellular models include GPS capabilities - which may impact any Apps or features that require accurate and consistent location data, such as Mapping - which may be important for travel. Purchase of a WiFi+Cellular model does not commit you to using Cellular connections, but provides this flexibility should it be needed. WiFi Only models of iPad have no Cellular or GPS functions at all.
If this is truly how you plan on using your iPad, you should be OK with 64GB of storage. I have 5 movies stored on my iPad and they take up around 20GB. Visiting websites, using email (not counting downloading attachments), watching online videos is not going to use much storage. If you start taking tons of photos, they can add up.
Just remember that you can’t add storage to the device. If you have any doubt that 64GB won’t be enough, by all means buy an iPad with more storage.
How much storage space?
