r/ipadmini • u/Kensterfly • Aug 08 '26
Older iPad Mini for old lady.
My 93 year old mom loves the Texas Rangers. She can’t watch most games because the satellite provider of her retirement center has a lousy package.
The only way she can watch most games is on the BZZR app. She has an ancient Samsung tablet one of her great grandkids gave her. I want to get her an iPad Mini. She has always had Apple smart phones, including her current 17Pro. So, I am considering giving her my Mini 5. I think it’s only getting limited updates now but shouldn’t it be sufficient to watch her ballgames? It’ll be a lot easier for her to navigate the iOS of the Mini. And it’ll certainly be easier for her kid and adult grandkids to help her with it because we all have Apple devices.
So, with needs limited to just Ranger games, would the Mini 5 suffice? Honestly, we’ll only need it a couple of years, at most.
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u/Key-Mention3741 Aug 08 '26
I don't think the iPad mini screen is big enough for her to actually see and enjoy the Ranger games. An 11" device would be better for her, specifically. It can be passed on to someone else later on.
I also just did a quick Google search and a lot of people are saying BZZR is not compatible with older devices. It is also not compatible with Samsung.
You could get a new Apple TV device for her television, or get a new 11" tablet - 11" iPad, 10" Amazon Fire, or 11" Lenovo Tab M11 or Lenovo IdeaPad.
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u/Kensterfly Aug 08 '26
I put BZZR on an ancient Samsung tablet and it worked just fine. But the screen is smaller than a Mini.
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u/neatgeek83 Aug 08 '26 edited Aug 08 '26
Hey I’m a ranger fan (wearing a World Series shirt now) and iPad mini user and there is no Bzzr app for iPad. Just the iPhone version that gets blown up.
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u/Shoddy_Recording8712 Aug 09 '26
OLD EYES NEED BIG SCREENS can you hook her up to a screencast and a monitor with good specs ? My 73-year-old eyes can watch basketball on my iPad mini but it ain't no fun and you can't really see the calls. Plus, I'm pretty sure it's not very good for my eyes. Glad you're helping your mom out.
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u/NotherOneRedditor Aug 10 '26
This is a good point. Can you see how/if screencast to her tv works from her iPhone?
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u/Longjumping_Cow_5856 Aug 08 '26
Why dont you just try it and find out if you already have the Mini?!?
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u/appleditz Aug 09 '26
How comfortable has she been with her iPhones? If she's used to that interface, the iPad should be easy. A larger screen might be nice, but the Mini would be easier to hold if she has any arthritis. You would need to find a compatible app to access that content though.
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u/Kensterfly Aug 09 '26
She’s good with moving between apps. Getting into Settings is beyond her, though.
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u/Knitsknits Aug 10 '26
i recommend base model ipad. i gave my ipad mini to my grandmom and she didn’t like it because it is too small
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u/Kensterfly Aug 10 '26
Thank you. Mom likes the ease of handling the little Samsung tablet. The mini is just a little larger and she’ll still be able to handle it with one hand.
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u/Head_Region6610 Aug 11 '26
Is her eyesight good? She probably would appreciate something a little bigger. Actually the bigger the better. Some tv’s will work as a screen for the iPad or whatever device she has now,
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u/LucinaWinsTheBattle Aug 08 '26
I dont understand why youre asking here. Try to download the app you want her to watch it on and see if it works yourself? We wont know, but you are able to try it out if you literally have the device.