Black or white, which iPad mini or iPad 4 should you get?

Black or white, which iPad mini or iPad 4 should you get? | iMore.com Skip to main content Android BlackBerry iPhone / iPad Windows Phone webOS REGISTER|LOG IN iMore iPhone iPad Forums Apps Accessories Reviews How-To Podcasts Free wallpapers: iPhone & iPad Guides: iOS, iCloud, Siri, photography, jailbreak Free: iPhone apps & games, iPad apps & games Shop Online Cases Chargers Screen protectors Headsets & More Free shipping on orders over $50 Black or white, which iPad mini or iPad 4 should you get? By Rene Ritchie, Thursday, Oct 25, 2012 a 10:52 am 6

Apple has updated the iPad and launched the new iPad mini, so we're updating our buyers guides to help you choose just exactly the right devices for you. Now, ever since the iPad 2 launched with a choice of black or white faceplates, one of the biggest decisions we've all had to make is which color to get. This year, that stays the same for the iPad, but for the iPad mini, which has an iPod touch 5-style colored backplate as well, it's an even bigger -- make that smaller -- choice.

Is the white iPad 4 or iPad mini faceplate more distracting?

There's a reason almost all TV sets are black. When you're watching video or playing a game, you want the TV set to blend away into the background so you can enjoy what you're doing without the distractions of a big, bright rim around it.

The same goes for iPad and iPad mini. Some people find having a white faceplate very distracting when they're watching videos or gaming, and others just don't like the contrast between the white border and the black screen when the device is off. (It's known as "panda" if you want to get all inside baseball about it.)

Others aren't bothered by a white border at all and really like the two-tone look of the iPhone when its off. This year, however, you also have something else to consider. Until apps update for widescreen, they'll be letter-boxed or pillar-boxed on the iPhone 5, which means black bars. Those will almost disappear on a black iPhone 5. On a white iPhone 5, not so much...

I've had both a Black & Slate and a White & Silver iPhone 4 and have never been distracted nor irked by either one. If White & Silver catches your eye a little too much, however, you might want to stick with Black & Slate.

Will the white iPad 4 or iPad mini discolor?

Rumor has it Apple delayed the launch of the white iPhone 4 in order to improve the UV protection and prevent discoloration. That's just a rumor, however, and white iPads have shipped day and date with black iPads since they were introduced in March 2011. That also means white iPads have been on the market for over a year and a half now, and there haven't been any widespread accounts of discoloration. My own white iPad 2, bought in March 2011, still looks as crisp and clean as the day I unboxed it.

In 5 years time some more obvious aging issues may present themselves, but 5 years is an eternity in consumer electronics. If it concerns you, stick with black.

On the other hand, black shows fingerprints, dust, lint, and smudges more dramatically, so if those annoy you, white is a better choice.

Does the white iPad 4 or iPad mini look better?

Some people just love the look of a white device, whether it's an iPad, an iPhone, a BlackBerry, an Android phone, or whatever. They sometimes get shipped later or come in more limited quantities so there's an air of exclusivity about them.

That's not the case with the iPad 4 or iPad mini.

White tends to stand out more and can be more obvious with brightly colored cases. Is that something that appeals to you? Or do you want the content and the accessories to be the star? If you like the idea of a blank canvas, stick to black. If you want your iPad to pop all on its own, get white.

What about the anodized aluminum on the iPad mini?

Like the watch or race car trend, the Black & Slate of the iPad mini is blacked out and the White & Silver appears brighter and flashier. Think Darth Vader vs. Storm Trooper. Both mix texture and sheen to great effect. Both look hot. Black might show scratches and scuffs more, but that could also be seen as aged to perfection.

Unless and until a significant flaw shows up in one or the other, you're fine with either.

So which color iPad 4 or iPad mini should you get?

At the end of the day, the only real answer is get the color you like better. Everything else is manufactured anxiety at this point. Just close your eyes, picture your iPad in your hand and carefully look at what color you're picturing.

Then buy that.

Rene Ritchie

Editor-in-Chief of iMore, co-host of Mobile Nations, Iterate, ZEN and TECH. Cook, grappler, photon wrangler. Follow him on Twitter, App.net, Google+.

More Posts

 

0 1 29 More of: Featured, Tips and How-To, iMore Guides
More of: ipad mini buyers guide, Ipad Mini, Ipad 4 ? Previously13" retina MacBook Pro gets the customary teardown treatment Next up ?Deal of the Day: 46% off the Incipio OVRMLD Case for iPhone 5 There are 6 comments. Add yours. RealNeal says: Oct 25, 2012 at 11:12 am - 29 min ago

I thought I would never like a white device until I tried the iPhone 5 in white. Now, that's the color I prefer. I'm just glad I have the option of black or white.

Reply singletonkatelyn says: Oct 25, 2012 at 11:25 am - 16 min ago

@Loise, you make $27h thats great going girl good for you! My story is that I quit working at shoprite to work online, seriously I couldn't be happier I work when I want and where I want. And with a little effort I easily bring in $35h and sometimes even as much as $85h…heres a good example of what i'm doing, www.Fox90.Com

Reply stephen007 says: Oct 25, 2012 at 11:32 am - 9 min ago

[Sigh]

Reply dandbj13 says: Oct 25, 2012 at 11:25 am - 16 min ago

White mini, black maxi.

Reply Gazoobee says: Oct 25, 2012 at 11:31 am - 10 min ago

All this article shows is that there are increasingly less things to talk about when it comes to these iconic and almost featureless devices.

However, you missed talking about the single most important and popular argument in regards this choice and the reason why White may actually be better in some cases. You talked about how if you watch videos you really want the black, but the reverse is also true, if your primary viewing is of documents, then you want white.

The black is just as "jarring" to the eye surrounding a white webpage as the white border around a black video screen is.

Reply jimmers says: Oct 25, 2012 at 11:38 am - 3 min ago

"...the iPad mini, which has an iPod touch 5-style colored backplate..."

Quoted from this article. I think this is a misprint or I'm misunderstanding it. It only comes in black with the slate back or white with the aluminum back.

Reply Contact iMoreSEND US NEWS  |  SUBMIT AN APP

Shop iMore

THE #1 ACCESSORY STORE | 2 MILLION+ ORDERS SHIPPED

Browse All Accessories Cases and Skins Chargers Cradles Bluetooth Headsets Screen Protectors See all accessories Browse Accessories For Your Phone iPhone 5 Cases Chargers Car Kits & more iPhone 4S Cases Chargers Car Kits & more The new iPad Cases Chargers Screen Care & more iPhone 4 Cases Chargers Car Kits & more iPad 2 Cases Chargers Screen Care & more iPhone 3GS Cases Chargers Car Kits & more Shop iMore

THE #1 ACCESSORY STORE | 2 MILLION+ ORDERS SHIPPED

View All Devices STORE AD CONTENT Follow iMore(function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1&appId=213678485361751"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk'));

Follow @iMore!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js";fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document,"script","twitter-wjs");


Facebook
Twitter
Google+
RSS
YouTube
iTunes Download iMoreiMORE APP  |  iMORE FORUMS  |  MOBILE NATIONS

Watch iMoreMORE SHOWS  |  MORE VIDEOS

Tell iMore
Team iMore
Rene
Georgia
Leanna
Chris
Ally
Simon
Chris
Michelle Headlines 13" retina MacBook Pro gets the customary teardown treatment Apple shares detailed design drawings of iPad mini and 4th generation iPad Apple releases new MacBook Pro commercial, Colors ZEN and TECH: Q&A live at 10:30pm ET, 7:30pm PT All headlines Help & how-to Black or white, which iPad mini or iPad 4 should you get? How to sell your old iPad before buying an iPad 4 or iPad mini How to replace the front facing FaceTime camera in an iPhone 4S How to find restaurants, read reviews, and make reservations using Siri All help & how-to Apps & games Languages for iPhone review Loren Brichter talks about his new game, Letterpress for iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad Letterpress by Atebits review Sonic Jump by SEGA for iPhone and iPad review All apps & games Accessories iPad mini Smart Covers priced at $39 VooMote Zapper Universal Remote Control for iPad review Lightning to 30-pin Adapters hands-on SGP GLAS.t premium tempered glass screen protector for iPhone 5 review All accessories iPhone Is your Verizon or Sprint iPhone 5 displaying the wrong date and time? Need For Speed Most Wanted heading to iPhone and iPad in the very near future iPhone 5, photography, purple fringing, and what you need to know Weekly photo contest: Avatars! All iphone More iPad Apple shares detailed design drawings of iPad mini and 4th generation iPad iPad mini round-table - reactions to Apple's latest and greatest product announcements LTE-enabled iPad mini and fourth-gen iPad will come to Sprint Swell Apple Store manager extends return period for remorseful iPad third-gen buyers All more ipad iOS 5 + iCloud iPad mini event - by the numbers Apple begins construction on Prineville data center Apple acquires HTML5-focused startup Particle Apple adds shared reminders to iCloud web app All ios 5 + icloud Jailbreak State of the jailbreak: iOS 6, iPhone 5, and more How to tethered jailbreak iOS 6 and install Cydia Add page animations and transitions to your iPhone or iPad with DisplayCandy [jailbreak] Dash brings fluid card style multitasking to your iPhone [jailbreak] All jailbreak Device reviews iPhone 5 review The new iPad (2012) review iPhone 4S review 2011 iPod touch review All device reviews Comparisons iPad 4 vs. Kindle Fire 8 HD vs. Nexus 7 vs. Surface RT vs. PlayBook: Spec shootout! iPad mini vs. Kindle Fire 7 HD vs. Nexus 7 vs. Surface RT vs. PlayBook: Spec shootout! iPhone 5 vs. Samsung Galaxy Note 2: Which one should you get? iPhone 5 vs iPhone 4S vs iPad 3 vs Android: Benchmark shootout All comparisons Features Forums: Getting an iPad mini, How do you all feel about the pricing? How to replace the front facing FaceTime camera in an iPhone 4S Are you ordering a new iPad mini, iPad 4, iMac, 13-inch Macbook Pro, or Mac mini? What do you think Apple will announce at the iPad mini event? [Poll] All features Contests Weekly Photo Contest: Lens Flare! iMore Weekly Contest winners: iPods and Instagram photos! Win a free iPad mini from iMore! Win a FREE color modified AnoStyle™ iPhone 5 from The Pod Drop! All contests Mobile Nations YouTube Channel Follow Us on Twitter Join us on Facebook Mobile Nations RSS Feed 9,367,600 Readers Per Month Mobile Nations brings you the very best of Android Central,
CrackBerry, iMore, webOS Nation, and WPCentral   Deal of the Day: 46% off the Incipio OVRMLD Case for iPhone 5Black or white, which iPad mini or iPad 4 should you get?13" retina MacBook Pro gets the customary teardown treatmentLanguages for iPhone reviewApple shares detailed design drawings of iPad mini and 4th generation iPadApple releases new MacBook Pro commercial, Colors   Nexus 10 manual shots reveal a curvy Samsung-made tabletDeal of the Day: Seidio SURFACE Case for HTC One XAT&T announces Sony Xperia TL, landing November 2AT&T accepting preorders for Samsung Galaxy Note 2SwiftKey Flow brings trace input to leading Android keyboard How to delete applications from BlackBerry App WorldDeal of the Day: Save 44% on the iGrip PerfektFit Charging Dock for BlackBerry Bold 9930/9900Dear Berry: How do I stop syncing my gmail contacts on my BlackBerry?Spooktacular Halloween wallpapers for your BlackBerryBlackBerry Print to Go desktop software updated to v1.0.161 Microsoft Windows 8 Launch live stream and chatWindows Phone App Review: Photo ShaderSection of Nokia Lumia manuals display all the outside bits and bobsSouth Africa: Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8 heading your way!Comparing sensitivity on Lumia 920, Lumia 820 and iPhone 5 using gloves and fruitFood Company Sara Lee chooses Nokia Lumia over Blackberry, Apple and Samsung Gram working with LG on an Open webOS TVSet a Reply-To email addressTweaking Open webOS for phone-sized screensMobile Nations 19: PassportAn update from Amazon MP3: They're working on itGoogle Maps Street View (homebrew)   iPhone / iPad ForumsAndroid ForumsBlackBerry ForumsWindows Phone ForumswebOS Forums Copyright 2012 Mobile Nations ? Terms and Conditions ? Privacy Policy

View the original article here