iPad選購難題 Air還是mini 2?

The recent update to Apple’s tablet product line leaves open a number of questions, but the biggest one is ‘which iPad should I buy, the iPad Air or the new iPad mini?’ Having reviewed both the iPad Air and the iPad mini with Retina Display here on Forbes, it’s not an easy decision to make.

蘋果平板電腦產品線的最近更新留下了很多疑問，其中最大的疑問是：“應該買哪款iPad？是iPad Air，還是配備Retina顯示屏的iPad mini（下簡稱iPad Mini 2）？”我已經在福布斯網站上分別發表了iPad Air和iPad Mini 2的評測文章，但至於究竟該買哪一款，這仍然是個艱難的決定。

Of course there are two more iPads out there that need to be acknowledged. Apple has retained the iPad 2, and while it might be a non-threatening option for those coming to the tablet space, its age and similar price to the iPad mini with Retina Display rules it out for the majority of consumer sales. On reflection I suspect that the iPad 2 remains ranged due to the huge number of educational markets that are equipped with this variant of the tablet and a number of 30-pin dock connector accessories.

當然，必須承認還有另外兩款iPad可供選擇。蘋果仍然保留了iPad 2，但它不會對平板電腦新品構成威脅。iPad 2不僅發佈時間較久，而且價格與帶視網膜屏的iPad mini相近，這使它不會成爲大多數消費者的選擇。我猜測，iPad 2之所以仍未下架，原因之一是大量的教育機構都配備了這款平板電腦，還有其30針底座連接器的相應配件。

The original iPad mini also remains ranged, and is the lowest priced iPad that Apple has on sale. As a second tablet for around the home, perhaps for younger members of the family, the iPad mini makes some commercial sense, especially if you have to buy multiple units. But unless price is a major concern, I would urge consumers to look up at the iPad mini with Retina Display or the iPad Air.

初代iPad mini也未下架，是市面上最便宜的iPad產品。作爲家裏的備用（或是爲家裏小孩準備的）平板電腦，初代iPad mini在商業上仍然具有存在意義，尤其是在你不得不購買多臺設備的情況下。但除非價格是主要考慮因素，否則我建議消費者選擇iPad mini 2或者iPad Air。

Both the 7.9 inch mini, and the 9.7 inch Air, have drawn elements from each other. The iPad mini with Retina Display has received a comparatively large jump in specifications, bringing it in line with the iPad Air. There is a very slight performance increase in the iPad Air’s A7 (it runs at 1.4GHz, compared to 1.3GHz on the iPad mini with Retina Display, and the iPhone 5S). This tiny bump aside, you no longer have to trade performance for the smaller size of the 2013 iPad mini edition.

7.9英寸的iPad mini 2和9.7英寸的iPad Air都借鑑了彼此的元素。iPad mini 2的配置有較大提升，與iPad Air相差無幾。iPad Air的A7處理器性能略強（運行頻率爲1.4GHz，而iPad mini 2和iPhone 5S爲1.3GHz）。除了這個微小的差距以外，尺寸較小的2013版iPad mini在性能方面與iPad Air相比毫不遜色。

In the same breath, the styling of the iPad Air owes far more to the design that debuted with the iPad mini last year than previous editions of the full-sized Apple tablet. With a much reduced bezel on the side of the screen, and a similar size at top and bottom, the iPad Air’s footprint is much reduced (and the thickness drops to 7.5 mm, which is astonishingly thin). It feels far more fashionable and well designed than the older generation, and of course matches up with the iPad mini to create an almost cohesive look when the iPad’s are all on sale together.

同時，iPad Air的風格更像是去年iPad mini首次採用的那種設計，而不像是前幾代的全尺寸蘋果平板電腦。iPad Air的屏幕邊框更窄，頂部和底部的大小與iPad mini類似，因此佔用面積大大減少（而且厚度降至7.5毫米，薄得驚人）。與前代產品相比，iPad Air遠遠更加時尚、設計更加精美，但它還是能跟iPad mini實現外觀上的完美銜接，使得所有iPad產品擺在一起時仍能形成和諧的整體外觀。

When you line up specifications, when capabilities are equal across the board, and when the back-end software and support are identical, there’s not a lot of distinction to make between the two tablets apart from size, and I think that’s where the decision has to be made.

在配置相似、性能相當、後端軟件和支持相同的情況下，iPad Air和iPad mini 2沒有太大區別，除了尺寸，而我認爲，尺寸就是下決定的關鍵點。

Think about how you would use a tablet throughout the day. If you are someone looking for a tablet to use while moving around, while standing up, and generally holding in one hand and operating it with the other, then the extra weight of the iPad Air over the iPad mini with Retina Display is eventually going to catch up with you. In which case the more mobile user should go for the iPad mini with Retina Display.

想想你一天中都是如何使用平板電腦的。如果你想要一款可以在走動或站立時使用、通常只需單手握持用另一隻手操作的平板電腦，那麼iPad Air相對於iPad mini 2的額外重量最終會顯現出來。在這種情況下，對移動性需求更強的用戶就應該選擇iPad mini 2。

If your iPad is going to be used more at a desk, while sitting down, and where you have a chance to rest it somewhere, then I would go for the physically larger screen and longer battery life. Which means the iPad Air.

如果你坐着在桌前使用iPad的時候更多，並且有機會在桌上找個地方支撐iPad，那麼我推薦屏幕尺寸更大的、續航時間更長的，也就是iPad Air。

There’s not much in it, and I’d be interested to read which decision you have come to. Is it the smaller mini, the larger Air, or one of the quirky older Apple tablets for you? And how did you come to that decision?

就是這麼簡單。我很想知道讀者會如何選擇。是較小的mini，還是較大的Air，抑或是顯得古怪的蘋果前幾代平板電腦之一？你是如何作出決定的？