Please share with me where you buy your iPads from and what model is good for TrainerRoad. I have used an iPad mini in the past but that is no longer available to me. I used my iPhone for a couple workouts last week but it is way too small after using an iPad for years.
Groupon always has deals but I wonder if those are so old, they can’t get the latest iOS upgrades???
Share where I can find a great price!! Thanks for any input!
Honestly Apple has their pricing pretty locked down. You can typically get a decent deal on a refurb from www.apple.com. As long as it has BLE 4.0 you should be good.
I personally check www.slickdeals.net for anything I am seeking to purchase. You can search for the specific iPad you are looking for and see what stores might be having certain deals. I have seen some good deals on there before. Also, Black Friday is coming up so keep your eyes peeled for any sales coming up on previous and current gen iPad 
Costco
I’d go for the base model. My siblings and I got one for our parents to replace an iPad 2 whose battery was on its way out. It is excellent value for the money.
I also do all my training with an iPad (unless I use the virtual group rides feature), and I can say with certainty that this is the best way to do TR. I put my iPad on a substantial music stand and this combo has been working great for me.
My iPad 3 from 2012 is laggy as all hell but once it loads the workout, it does a great job as the hub (3 BT sensors in my setup), losing around 8% battery per hour. To my knowledge it’s the first generation with BT4 and has a perfectly decent resolution display.
I’m sure you could find a decent example for a very good price. They are heavy by iPad standards though.