OK, here's my approach. I picked up an iPad (I) a couple of years ago and love it. I bought a 64 GB Wi-Fi only model because I normally have access to Wi-Fi and didn't want to run out of storage. Because I knew I'd want Internet access sometimes when Wi-Fi wasn't available, I eventually opted for a "My-Fi" mobile hotspot from Virgin Mobile. This device uses the Sprint network. The advantage, to me, of the My-Fi device is that I don't need a monthly subscription. I can let the account sit dormant and only feed it some money when I know I'm going to be traveling where there is no Wi-Fi access. I only need to feed the kitty a couple of times a year so this works really well for me. I stayed away from the iPhone because it was AT&T only and, like you, our area is poorly served by AT&T. I've been a long time Verizon customer because it doesn't matter where I go. I can be in the mountains of east Tennessee or some rural Iowa location and still have great service. But after my experience with the iPad, I knew I'd eventually have to have an iPhone. So when Verizon offered the iPhone 4, I picked up a 32 GB model. I love both of my iOS devices and would be very reluctant to give up either of them. My music (MP3) goes on my iPhone so it's with me all the time. I also use some apps like the Peterson strobe tuner app. I never have to worry about finding a tuner. The Peterson strobe app is as good as Peterson's other high-end tuners and I use it often. The iPad is where I keep videos and sheet music. Even after two years my iPad is slightly under half full. Had I purchased a 32 GB iPad it would now be too full since you need to leave some working memory open. There are some wonderful iOS apps for musicians. Many of them run on both the iPad and iPhone but most are more useful on the iPad. I've picked up a few that I haven't wound up using very much but here is a list of the apps I use most:- RealB - Chord charts from The Real Book. You can add chord charts from the Internet or build your own for any song you want. Runs on both the iPhone and iPad.
- iGigBook - An absolutely terrific PDF reader for musical scores. I have nearly twenty (PDF) music books in this app totaling some seven thousand song charts. This app has nearly forty built in indexes for a great many common fake books such as Real Book 6th Edition, Classical Fake Book, The Ultimate Fake Book, The European Real Book, and many more. I believe you can also create your own index for other music books available in PDF form. The indexes make it supremely useful. You can search for any tune in your library and it finds every version in all your PDF books. You just pick the one you want and it's there for the sight reading. You can also add your own PDFs so if you make your own teaching materials you can take these with you and pull them up for students. The app also lets you store set lists for gigs. At the gig, just pull up the set list and your sheet music is already in order for you. By the way, the IK Media folks make an iPad rack that attaches to a microphone stand.
- Tunebook - This app lets you maintain a library of tunes in ABC format, very useful for Mudcatters and most trad players. The scores look nice and the editor is just a touch away should you need any changes. This app will play the tune for you too.
- OnSong - This is a lyrics and chords app. You enter the lyrics with the chords embedded wherever the changes properly occur. When the page is displayed, you get the lyrics with the chords placed above the lyrics in the correct spot so it's easy to sing the lyrics and to play the chords without one interfering with the other.
- unrealBook - Another PDF reader with musician features. Easy to add your own PDF files from iMac apps like TablEdit, Mup, and MuseScore.
- MuseScore Viewer - I just picked up this free app and haven't used it much yet but will probably be using it quite a bit. Even though I have a copy of Sibelius on my MacBook Pro, I much prefer using the free MuseScore app for making engraved music scores. The iPad app isn't an editor but displays scores developed using MuseScore.
- MultiTrack DAW - This is a dandy digital audio workstation (DAW) for making multi-track recordings. You might not want to use it for professionally released recordings but with the right mic setup, you could. It's great for arranging, rehearsing, field recording, etc. and it runs on both the iPad and iPhone.
There are hundreds if not thousands of great music apps for iPad and iPhone. We should probably begin a moderated thread here where users can discuss the iOS music apps they use and share tips. The apps you choose will depend on whether you are a teacher, performer, recording artist, or jammer. Many people are all of those at times. But I really think you'll need both an iPad and an iPhone if you plan to use them for music. And if you have an iPhone and an Internet connected Mac, you may not want to spend the extra money for 3G/4G capability on your iPad. I'll try to remember to monitor this thread if you have other questions. - Mark
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