Smart LTE iPad with Retina Display Unboxing and Initial Review

Smart LTE iPad with Retina Display Unboxing and Initial Review

Smart LTE powering the iPad with Retina Display = WIN.
Smart LTE powering the iPad with Retina Display = WIN.

Unboxing the Smart LTE iPad with Retina Display!

A choice between the iPad Mini and iPad with Retina would be easy for a lot of people (majority would go for the iPad Mini), but we took quite a while to decide which of the two we would get. After much thought we ended up going for the iPad with Retina Display for several reasons. First, it had a whopping 11,560mAh battery which would potentially make it the longest-lasting LTE portable WiFi modem we could ever get our hands on. Second, it makes for better gaming with the better specs (the iPad Mini just has iPad 2 specs), and lastly the display quality. We got the unit yesterday and we just want to share with everyone our unboxing.

By the way, here’s a quick spec rundown of the iPad with Retina Display. Most people don’t know what are the internal of the iPad so it’s kinda cool to check out what’s inside, hehe.

iPad with Retina Display Spec Sheet

  • 1.4GHz Dual-core Apple A6X CPU
  • PowerVR SGX554MP4 GPU (quad-core graphics)
  • 1GB RAM
  • 16GB/32GB/64GB/128GB Internal Storage
  • 9.7-inches LED-backlit IPS LCD Capacitive Touchscreen
  • 1536 x 2048 resolution, 264 pixels per inch, Retina Display
  • Scratch-resistant glass, oleophobic coating
  • 5.0-megapixel rear-facing camera with autofocus, records video 1080p@30fps
  • 1.2-megapixel front-facing camera, 720@30fps
  • WiFi a/b/g/n, WiFi Hotspot, Bluetooth 4.0, 3G, LTE, GPS/aGPS
  • iOS 6, upgradeable to 6.1.3
  • 11,560mAh Battery

Okay, with that out of the way let’s proceed to the unboxing!

iPad and LTE Sim Unboxing!

The iPad with Retina Display came in the usual Apple packaging. White carton box covered with plastic. Product photo in side-view up front. Product details and specs at the back. Inside is the iPad with plastic cover and beneath it are the manuals, Lightning Cable, and the wall charger. Again like we said, standard fare.

Usual Apple packaging for the iPad with Retina
Usual Apple packaging for the iPad with Retina
iPad with Retina from Smart officially unboxed!
iPad with Retina from Smart officially unboxed!

Of course powering the iPad with Retina Display is the Smart LTE SIM card. We’re digging the vibrant colors and attention grabbing visuals. Unfortunately we made the mistake of getting the Nano SIM. The iPad with Retina Display still uses micro SIM cards. It’s a good thing though that we live just next to Greenhills so we just bought a converter tray so that the Nano SIM we got would fit in the iPad. Win.

Here's what the SIM card looks like. We just got the prepaid one.
Here’s what the SIM card looks like. We just got the prepaid one.
The SIM Card actually looks nice, hehe. Love the colors.
The SIM Card actually looks nice, hehe. Love the colors.

As users of Smart LTE for several months now we can’t stress how awesome this combo is. Smart LTE has fantastic coverage and the speeds have been very consistent for us. The fact that we can now put it in an iPad is exciting. Goodbye slow downloads, agonizing buffering, and laggy e-mails. Crazy speed on the go.

LTE on iPad Y U NO WORK!?

Before you scream that LTE doesn’t work on your iPad you have to make sure of two important things. One you have to update the iOS version to the latest one. If you don’t you won’t find the toggle for LTE. Second you have to make sure you’re in an area with LTE signal.

Update your iPad to IOS 6.1.3 via the software update control in Settings
Update your iPad to IOS 6.1.3 via the software update control in Settings
"Enable LTE" should now be visible
“Enable LTE” should now be visible

If you’re on postpaid, did the update, and have LTE signal, it should work already. It’s different though for prepaid.

How to get Smart LTE prepaid to work on your iPad with Retina or iPad Mini

First buy a Smart LTE Prepaid SIM card. It should cost you Php350 and that will give you 7-day unlimited LTE access. The next step is to update iOS version and toggle on LTE. After that you have to go to an internet-enabled laptop or PC and go to the Smart website. If you don’t have a My Smart Account yet, register for one. Log-in and then add the LTE Sim Card to your account. To verify the SIM Card pick the second option (since SMS won’t obviously work) and input the IMEI number at the back of your SIM card holder in the field. After that go to LTE packages and buy the 7-day package (the SIM comes with 310 load).

Add your LTE prepaid SIM to your account and then buy the 7-day Unlimited access.
Add your LTE prepaid SIM to your account and then buy the 7-day Unlimited access.

It should work after. 🙂

Full Review Coming Soon

We’re going to go around and take this iPad for a spin to see if the LTE speeds hold up in different parts of Metro Manila. We’ll report back with the results in a week or so.

Both the iPad Mini and the iPad with Retina Display are now being offered by Smart via their postpaid plans. Click here for all the juicy details.

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