iPad Questions

I've read as much as I could find but still have questions.  It's been years since I've owned an iPad (Air) and I sold it within a year of purchase.  Didn't like the restrictions, itunes, exorbitant cost, and a hundred other reasons.  But I am a new IFD540 owner and if I want to use the Avidyne training app and the IFD100 app, I have no choice.

It'll be a Mini 5, mounted on the leftmost side of the panel with RAM Mount equipment.  Android tablets have always worked well here, with the A Pillar serving as a hand-rest for this left hander.  There will be an inch or so of glare shield over the iPad to keep it out of direct sunlight, and the high wing will block the aft sun.
Q.  Do I need a screen protector/anti-glare?

For the IFD540 and IFD100, I plan to use the first free Jepp offer to get every chart, plate, etc., for the Americas, and then update with only the USA thereafter.  I'll also want a scratch pad app  for clearance, and WingX, populated with USA VFR and IFR data.  Music, W&B, and other apps will be on my trusty Android cell phone.
Q.  Will 64gb be enough?

I'd like to have it powered/charging while it is in the plane.
Q.  Will any of the 2.4 - 3.1 amp cigarette lighter type chargers work (I know about EMI related to cheap chargers in aircraft)?
Q.  Is there a fire danger to keeping it on the charger constantly?
Q.  Does a constant charge increase the chances of a thermal shut down?

Q.  Do I need a screen protector/anti-glare?

The anti-glare is a matter of personal preference. The newer iPads are much better than the old ones in that respect. I'd mount the iPad where I want it and check. Like everything else, you get what you pay for. If you do want an anti-glare screen, go for a name brand. There is a difference between the ultra cheap ones and the more expensive ones.

I prefer to get the GPS version too. No need to activate a data plan, if you don't want to. It provides a good backup should you have electrical issues or problems with your primary navigator. The price difference is not much compared to buying an external GPS, and you save carrying yet another device if you ever use the iPad outside the plane.

Position information would be useful if something happens to your panel equipment, like an electrical problem or other failure. I have built a couple of Stratux units and still consider them fairly unreliable. Too many general purpose parts cobbled together to provide a specific function, with many possible failure points. They've gotten better, but mine still ate a few SD cards and had other issues before I stopped using it. There was never anything major, but still annoying failures when it was most inconvenient. I prefer to buy a purpose-built unit, like a Stratus or Sentry. 

I got a mini just for the IFD100, didn't get GPS since I have that backed up in my android tablets, which I didn't have to pay extra for.  Never had problems with my androids shutting down from overheating, but the iPad, even after making a sun shade for it (because the screen isn't nearly as bright as my androids), shut down for 90% of the first approach I shot to test it...  Aviation is stuck in this "we only support apple because that is what pilots use" and "pilots use apple because that is where the apps are" cycle that needs to be broken.

Edited by oskrypuch - 25 Jul 2020 at 2:22pm

Edited by oskrypuch - 27 Jul 2020 at 12:39pm

Edited by oskrypuch - 27 Jul 2020 at 2:55pm

oskrypuch wrote: Catani, Your mini would still be usable outside of the cockpit, same apps etc. given that you are in the Apple sphere. For me, that is not the case, and is the point I was making.

I am sometimes amazed at all the Apple haters out their. There is basically one reason pilots use Ipads, and that is Foreflight. Almost all of the airlines issue Ipads to their pilots, most with Foreflight (using Jepp charts).