Which tablet?

[reallymadwoman]

I want to buy a tablet for my daughter for Xmas but am getting a bit lost with the myriad of options available.

 

She would probably use it to chat/check emails/surf on the go plus as a portable store for course work etc to save lugging a laptop around. She currently uses Windows 7 on her lap top and has an android phone.

 

I was planning on something around the £300 mark but having just browsed on Amazon I might need to revise that upwards.

 

Can someone explain in plain English the relative advantages of the various operating systems and wifi/3G etc?

 

Thanks!

[renegadeimp]

The best one out right now for pure value for money is one of the android ones. Ill have to look up the name.

 

Ipads are good too but they are very overpriced for what they are. Almost double the cost of others with the same spec.

[reallymadwoman]

Thanks.

 

I'm pretty sure an iPad would be way over budget.

[Nystagmite]

The majority of tablets do the pretty much the same thing anyway. With ipads and the like, you're paying for the name. I only have one because I personally find it to be more accessible for my needs.

 

I second Android. I have one last year and it was ok. I assume that they've got much better since then.

 

You may also want to look at the size of the tablet screen. There's a few which have detachable keyboards. I've not used one of these; so can't comment on what they're like.

 

If your daughter gets a Windows 7 tablet, she should be able to transfer documents between her tablet and computer. I am not sure how this would work if her tablet was Android,

[sequenci]

The majority of tablets do the pretty much the same thing anyway. With ipads and the like, you're paying for the name. I only have one because I personally find it to be more accessible for my needs.

 

I have an iPad too - for the same reason. I need access to Apple specific software BUT for most people it's unlikely to make much of a difference although the operating system is better (IMO).

 

Tesco have a new tablet coming to market that looks interesting, only £130 too.

 

Wifi: Will need to connect to a wireless broadband internet network

3g: connects to mobile phone networks - may cost a lot if used a great deal.

[raydetinu]

got some good ones on ideal world channel;

see;

http://www.idealworld.tv/categorygridview.aspx?fh_view=lister&fh_usertype=category&fh_location=%2f%2fidealworld%2fen_gb%2fcategories@lt;%7b1004%7d%2fcategories@lt;%7b8978%7d&fh_eds=%c3%9f&fh_view_size=25

13.3" for £199?

Thinking about getting one myself?

If you don't like it you can send it back.

[Nystagmite]

Does your daughter know you're getting her a tablet for Christmas? Just thinking if she has an idea what she's after, she could you a few options?

[silverfox1961]

I recently bought a Gemini Joytab and (although it was refurbished) works well. I is at the cheaper end of the market but you buy what you can afford.

 

It has a dual core processor (rockchip), 16GB of memeory, 1GB RAM and bluetooth (no GPS). I paid £90 whilst a new model is around £150

 

This model is pre rooted (allowing you to modify the android and remove the useless apps) and streaming is almost perfect (dependent on internet speed)

The seller for me was the cover, this protects the screen and is a bluetooth keyboard which uses the same charger as the tablet. Quite light and the muti-touch capacitive screen is simple to use.

 

Whatever you choose, don't get anything with a resistive screen. They are crap

[reallymadwoman]

She doesn't know - it's a surprise because the piece of c**p she bought herself cheap on the internet broke fairly quickly but of course the seller has disappeared ....

 

Thanks for all the info - I think I'm going for wifi rather than 3g cos of usage cost and using the same operating system as her laptop would make sense I suppose.

[snowdragon]

UK Clearance centre, tablet on there for £89.99 new

[locutus]

worth a though...

 

http://www.tescoplc.com/index.asp?pageid=17&newsid=806

[nilbymouth]

How about the Asus Google Nexus range, even the new series should be under £300, only issue with these is the storage capacity is not expandable, only up to 32gb.

Have a look at ebuyer.com they are a good online retailer, almost all there products come with a warranty, so you can return it if not happy with it. They got the white iPad mini for £329, what size are you after?

[biggeorge]

If the size of screen isn't an issue I would recommend looking at the Nexus 7 range.

You can now pick up the older 1st gen models for £140 and the newer models for £199.

 

I have had both version of the Nexus 7 and the 2nd gen is far better and does everything

I ask of it without laggy response times, Will do everything your daughter requires from a tablet.

 

The limited storage on the Nexus 7 range is easily solved with a USB stick and USB OTG Cable, Lets the Nexus 7

see the memory stick connected and read/write to it.

 

George

[raydetinu]

if 7 means 7inch; its too small! IMHO.

[reallymadwoman]

I found a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 at a really good price so opted for that. I'm absolutely sure she'll be thrilled with it and it's the same make as her phone so hopefully will not be too unfamiliar.

[Nystagmite]

I personally don't have a Samsung; but a friend does and he says it's good.

[45002]

Paracetamol is the best Tablet and it's cheap....

[san_d]

I prefer capsules.

[Nystagmite]

oh dear...

[labrat]

asus memo tab 7inch..

[adridude]

I think even as as Apple lover, deviationist and Developer that even I admit that iPads are OTT. But at the end of the day it's also up to you... Droid tablets have a FAR wider (in terms of background) set of users, so they're easy to find for help or just randomly bump into and say 'hey wow you've got one too'. Apple, has tended to be a bit of an Elitist lot and still are... Even as a developer myself with quite a bit of experience its bl**dy hard stopping one (even in the forums) and asking for a pointer without a 'I BIG AM' attitude.

 

Source: YEARS of experience LOL

Why do it do it? Because I got sick of craping under desks to fiddle with PCI cards or connectors

 

lol

 

I'd say, first choice, go Droid, when your comfy with droids and other brands and/or OS's then move to Apple; be warned, even the teens (20 years in generations below me) look down on me The only upper hand is that I can afford the upper hand xD

 

Only criticism I have of android devices, is watch what you get. There are LOADS of knockoff makes out there, on Amazon you can get £40 specials, 7-10 inch specials that work well, but have shoddy ratings of being dead within a week or arriving broken.

 

Rather spend a tad more on something more reputable. Amazon.com or play.com are good online indicators for such devices, but I'd advise use brand-names like Samsung etc... first, weigh their amazon +5 star vs 1 star ratings up vs [price to other brands... There's loads out there...