<p>Our son would like an ipad, macbook pro and an iphone, before heading off to Alabama. Do kids really need all of these devices? Which of these will he really use?</p>
<p>LOL! Your son sounds like a brat. No offense, but the way you worded this question just made it seem like he asked for all three and you actually considered it. Oh wait…</p>
<p>If he does not already have a computer, then he should definitely get one, although it might not be worth it to spend the extra cash for a MacBook Pro. At the extreme a Mac and iPhone together would be okay, but all three is really just ridiculous, especially buying them at one time.</p>
<p>If he has all of them, he will use all of them. While each can do many tasks, some are better than others for certain tasks. I am interpreting your question as asking since the three items together are expensive, which ones would be the most essential? On that sense, I’d first ask why it is important to have all top of the line Apple products? While there are benefits to having all three, less expensive, but excellent (and sometimes better) options do exist. People will not be judging your son for not having the latest iPhone, iPad, and macbook pro. If you have the money and feel that these would be good for your son, then go ahead and buy them. Alternatively, one can get a smartphone, tablet, and laptop for around $1,000 and still be able to do most everything that the iPhone, iPad, and macbook pro can.</p>
<p>They’re all luxury goods so none of them. A good idea would be to consider rewarding him with one after he gets straight As in his first two semesters. An even better idea would be to make him get a job on or around campus to buy it instead.</p>
<p>If he does not have a computer, get a reasonable (~$500) laptop instead.</p>
<p>Hey, he can ask for these things (what kid wouldn’t!!), but he won’t need them all. These are luxury/convenience items.</p>
<p>Many kids do find that having a Smart phone is convenient, but there are kids who don’t have them. It’s up to you to determine whether you can afford them. My kids have the Galaxy phones…older son has the Galaxy Blaze, younger son has the Galaxy, and I have the Galaxy IIs…which is the Android equivalent to the IPhone 4. H still prefers the simple “not smart” phone…lol</p>
<p>As for a Macbook Pro…they’re pricey laptops and not needed. My older son got one for COLLEGE graduation (not really needed, but we felt he deserved to pick out what he wanted for his accomplishments.). For undergrad, he had the Dell from his NMF scholarship.<br>
Younger son (ChemE) has a Dell, can’t remember which one, about a $1000 ordered from Dell. Cheaper ones would have worked well, too.</p>
<p>Neither of my kids have iPads. I have the iPad 2. Because of some features, I am buying the iPad 3 for my younger son for his Bday because there is an app that would work very well for notes that involve drawing chemical organic reactions and be able to move them around, etc. But, it isn’t a necessary item…just something that would be a nice thing for him. He’s a rising senior at Bama, so he’s managed to go 3 years without needing one. I will get him the Bluetooth keyboard…which I think is necessary for notetaking, etc. </p>
<p>Obvsiously buying a pricey Smart phone, an iPad, and a MacBook Pro would add up to some serious coin. Is your son willing to earn the money to pay for some of these things? If not, then I would question how badly he really wants/needs them.</p>
<p>Which ipad does he want? I’m guessing that he wants the iPad 3 with 4G internet. </p>
<p>And, both the Smart phone and the iPad (with internet) require monthly charges.</p>
<p>What are YOU thinking about what he needs?</p>
<p>He sounds like me! I’ve been asking for a macbook and iphone too (and I don’t think thats a bratty thing to do).I’m a rising senior and I have an Ipad (well I took my moms from her) and at first I was kind of iffy about ipads but I love it! I used it at school almost everyday and it was great…but I think if he just had a macbook he would be ok. It does all the same things and more! Iphones are always good! My phone doesn’t have internet on it (I think I am the only person at my school with out an internet phone) and it’s really inconvenient! So if I were you and money is not an option I would say just the Iphone and Macbook would be good for him!! :)</p>
<p>Why do people need to be so judgemental? Calling someone’s kid a brat?! Really? Believe it or not, there are a lot of kids with all three ever since they were in high school, and there are kids with private plane, but who are we to judge?</p>
<p>Mac and iPhone work well together. Ipad is just a bigger version of iPhone. Smart phone, like Iphone, is useful because most people (professors and potential employers) expect students to get emails in real time. Most students I know have Mac. If you don’t want to spend that much money, maybe have your kid pay for some.</p>
<p>I know plenty of kids at my D’s high school who have all three and use all three a great deal. Are they a necessity? Of course not, but if a kid wants them and will use them and the parents are willing and can afford to buy them, I don’t see a problem, and I certainly don’t see how that makes the kid a brat. </p>
<p>My own D prefers a PC, and when offered an iPad for graduation declined because she thought her iPhone was good enough. So not every kid even wants all three. But I suspect most kids who want them will indeed get plenty of use out of all of them, as each is ideal for different things.</p>
<p>I use all three of those products on a daily basis. I take notes on my iPad at meetings or lectures 3-5 times a week. I can see that it would be a useful item for a college student. That said, I have two current college students as well as my D who will be incoming to UA. None of them have an iPad. But it is a personal choice. Like SeaTide said, they would probably all be used (unless the novelty wears off). But there are certainly less expensive ways to accomplish the same goals.</p>
<p>I also want to mention that parents should be cautious when giving their children these devices for school. Students can certainly benefit from taking notes electronically, following lecture slides, or even reading a digital textbook, but they can also just as easily use them to surf the web and browse Facebook during class. Some courses may not even allow their use because of this exact reason.</p>
<p>wow…this question must have popped up on the banner because of the attention it’s getting.</p>
<p>bamabound7: All three items are not inexpensive so you may offer your son a compromise. If he would really like an Iphone, ask that he pay for part of the cost and the data package. My son got his laptop through his NMF scholarship, but really wanted an Iphone for his overseas travels last summer. So we split a portion of the costs with him, and that seemed to work.</p>
<p>My husband loves Apple products and feels our kids need top technology so DD and her siblings each have all three. DD uses her ipad (she just recently got a new ipad 3 and I have to say the screen is WOW…I have an ipad2…now jealous!) for note taking, staying organized and is planning on downloading text books onto this fall. She uses her macbook pro for papers, research, homework and again has her planner on it. Since all three are apple products she is able to sync them and so they “share” information like her planner, notes ect. She is VP of her sorority and all three items Ipad, iphone and macbook pro have been extremely helpful with her duties.
I think this is an individual decision but see the merits for all three if it’s in your budget.
One option is a refurbished ipad and macbook pro. You can buy them through Apple at a discount and seriously…they are as good as new. While at the beach house last week DD#2’s macbook sadly passed away! We got online and ordered a new refurbished one for a substantial savings. My brother in law left his ipad on the airplane and they replaced doing a similar purchase with a refurbished ipad 2 for $319…again a great savings. If your S wants all three maybe this an option. DD loves her iphone…her music is on it…we use ours for directions, checking the availability of restaurant menus and reservations and also inventory when shopping.
I can see why your son “wants” all three. May kids have them. I think that in the world of “needs” and “wants” these items probably fall into the luxury category. Only you know what technology he needs to be successful in college.</p>
<p>I agree with Ahpimommy. While these are wants and not totally needs, it doesn’t mean anyone is a brat and that really is pretty judgmental of anyone to say. Really, name calling is silly and unnecessary.</p>
<p>My D has all three…she didn’t ask for any of them…okay, maybe she hinted a little about the iPhone 4S. We bought her the Macbook Pro because it best fit her needs and it has been very useful to have the iPhone to sync with it. We bought her the Macbook Pro first and then added the iPhone 4S. Our two younger children don’t have smart phones. When our HS added BYOT, we waited to see how it would work before buying them iPads (without 4G) with bluetooth keyboards. It made a tremendous difference for them to have the iPad for note taking and projects. We have a desktop Mac at home, so all of the devices sync and it makes our lives easier. Is it necessary, no…but it is nice. We have since added an iPad with a bluetooth keyboard (without 4G) for our daughter at the UA. She barely uses it, but that is by choice. The only necessary item would be some sort of computer. PC or Mac is a choice based upon preference, need, and finances. The iPhone is very helpful, but again is an extra. The iPad is extra on top of that in my opinion, but may work better for some than the iPhone depending on needs/wants. In the end, it comes down to what you can afford, how responsible your child will be, and what you find he really needs. Make the personal choice for your family using those criteria and you can’t go wrong.</p>
<p>realfocus
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I also want to mention that parents should be cautious when giving their children these devices for school. Students can certainly benefit from taking notes electronically, following lecture slides, or even reading a digital textbook, but they can also just as easily use them to surf the web and browse Facebook during class. Some courses may not even allow their use because of this exact reason.</p>
<p>If we trust our children enough to send them off to college, trust them in class to do their “job”. If the professor is interesting enough, students won’t be surfing…</p>
<p>I agree, NY2bama. Roll Tide!:)</p>
<p>I never mentioned you shouldn’t trust them with these items; I said be cautious. Regardless of professor quality, you would be surprised how very real the problem is in many college classrooms.</p>
<p>^^^that’s true…even in high school…I think it relates to maturity and self discipline.</p>
<p>Just a thought…you’re going to have to replace the computer before graduation anyway…maybe you could make the Mac an incentive?</p>
<p>I apologize for calling your son a brat. The question just seemed odd to me because I would never consider asking my parents for all three of these, let alone one of them. I have the iPhone 4 and iPad 3 – both of which I paid for myself. I rarely use my iPhone now, so your son probably won’t need both. </p>
<p>I understand people have different backgrounds, so my apologies again!</p>