Ask Slashdot: Best Tablet In 2015? 283
An anonymous reader writes: My 2012 Nexus 7 tablet is showing its age. The battery drains quickly, the storage problem that plagued all the Nexus 7s persists even after rooting and re-imaging, and the CPU/RAM can't keep up with the later Android versions. When it came out, it was fantastic — good specs, solid build quality, Nexus line, and a good size. Is there anything on the market today that stands out as much as the Nexus 7 did? I tend to prefer the smaller tablets over the bigger ones, but I'm not entirely averse to an 8" or 9" device. There seem to be some really nice devices in the $3-400 range, but I'm not sure if there's a huge benefit to those over the ~$200 models. I don't do any serious gaming on my tablet, but I also want the apps I do use to be snappy. Those of you who have bought or used tablets made in the past year or so, what has your experience been? Any brands or models that stand out from the crowd? Any to avoid?
Dell (Score:3, Interesting)
I got a dell tablet from work and rolled my eyes pretty hard, but I have to say it's really nice. Thin, light, well built and speedy. The screen is really bright and they seem to be pretty supportive of rooting and alternative images. The depth camera thing is a total gimmick but overall it's the nicest tablet I've used in recent years. I've seen them run about $300 new and $200 refurb from dell.
I vote Samsung Galaxy Tab S (Score:2, Interesting)
After several weeks of looking around... Just got Tab S for 400 EUR (in the Netherlands), and I expect 50 EUR back from Samsung (mail-in rebate).
Re: (Score:3)
Same here. really nice tablet, not that expensive (for the 8" version at least) and the screen is just incredible. And the galaxy tab S just got updated to android 5.
Beware : as for HD, you will get used to the screen sharpness very quickly and everything else you will see in the future will looks awful in comparison. And you'll have expensive tastes.
Re: (Score:3)
Yeah, I got a 32 gig Tab S 10.5 when it was released last year and it's pretty nice. Especially the 2560x1600 OLED display. Takes MicroSDXC cards, has OTG and MHL, decent battery life. I got it after having used a Nexus 10 since it was released. Comparing the two, the Tab S is much thinner and lighter. It's also faster and the display is better. There's just no comparing LCD to OLED. The tradeoff is that I don't get a clean installation of Android and it's way behind the Nexus 10. The Tab S is runni
Re:I vote Samsung Galaxy Tab S (Score:4, Informative)
It's also one of the few tablets around to have a microSD slot. That's rare. I cart around 25GB of music and 20GB of video with me, and there are very few tablets on the market that can handle that.
microSDXC royalties (Score:4, Informative)
I cart around 25GB of music and 20GB of video with me, and there are very few tablets on the market that can handle that.
You can blame the SD Card Association for making Microsoft's patented exFAT file system a requirement for devices that support microSD cards bigger than 32 GB.
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I went from a Nexus 7 (2012) to a Tab S 10.5 this year, and I am very satisfied. The original Nexus 7 was woefully underpowered in my opinion (particularly in terms of RAM) so the Tab S feels substantially quicker. As others have mentioned, the screen is gorgeous; it's also easy to root and has a decent rom community. The new model (Tab S2) just came out however it's not much of an upgrade (lower resolution, no flash, slightly smaller & faster) so you stand a good chance if scoring a deal on the orig
Re: (Score:2)
Asus ME572C (Score:3, Interesting)
Like an updated Nexus 7 with a faster Atom quad core, faster Power Rangers graphics, micro SD slot and much better price. Can be found for $119 shipped refurbished on eBay /thread
I feel you... (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:I feel you... (Score:4, Insightful)
hang on.
2012 is a 'long time ago'? and a device built and sold 3 years ago is now 'long in the tooth'?
you guys who think that you should go thru electronics like you go thru sneakers, I think your priorities are ALL FUCKED UP.
lets also add the vendors in there, who design things that, to the audience, at least, only has a useful interesting lifespan of 3 years.
I have pc's that I built 20 yrs ago that still work and can still be useful. certainly I have laptops that I bought 5 yrs ago that are fine and even 10 yr old laptops can be useful. they don't stop functioning, they dont 'slow down'. that's nonsense!
you guys have been programmed to:
do {
buy();
use();
dispose();
} while (1);
and this cycle that you participate in also encourages the vendors to not care about the gear they sold, causing this feedback-loop go to run-away.
I guess the landfill owners are happy; but I can't see this style of consumerism really being a good thing, to be honest. if your gear is 'worn out and useless' in 3 years, did you really NEED that gear in the first place; and in the 2nd place, what kind of purchasing decision are you making that throws out the cost of an expensive bit of kit in such a short period of time?
some people seriously do not know the value of money. throwing away (and then rebuying) another 3 year device - sigh.... this upsets so many of us. its like you all are being played and enjoy the process OF being played.
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
I have a Nexus 7 (2012) tablet that I want to replace because it is now unusable, otherwise normally I would try and keep it going for 5 of 6 years.
The reviews for the tablet were excellent - they didn't tell me that it was only designed to last for 18 months - which is the maximum guaranteed amount of time that Google will guarantee that they will give you security updates for.
So, I decided that I wouldn't buy a Vanilla Google android tablet again, and got one of the very expensive Sony Xperia Z4 tablets.
Re: (Score:2)
When vendors are still banging out tablets loaded with Jellybean and Kitkat, which is what 2011/2012 respectively, then three years is NOT a long time in tablet history at all!
>a href="http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/2682828.htm">Here's a CURRENT one that's running Jellybean, for £40 from a fucking HIGH STREET VENDOR.
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yes I titted up my markup but you still got the link.
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When vendors are still banging out tablets loaded with Jellybean and Kitkat, which is what 2011/2012 respectively, then three years is NOT a long time in tablet history at all!
yeah tablets go way back, elvis had one, john lennon wrote all his music on one
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yes, and Shakespeare drafted his sonnets in Word.
Re: (Score:2)
Oh please! What do you think Moses used? And the company that made them is still in business.
Re: (Score:2)
Hardware locked to a particular insecure OS (Score:2)
The OS has nothing to do with the hardware.
It does if the hardware locks you into using the operating system that came with it, be it through a cryptographically secured bootloader or through an undocumented chipset.
A few years in tablet - hardware is a long time considering how big leaps there have been in screen quality and processing power and you still have those things even if you use an outdated OS
But how useful are "screen quality and processing power" if the device's manufacturer refuses to issue updates to correct security vulnerabilities in a device's operating system and refuses to cooperate with hobbyists making replacement operating system images?
Re:I feel you... (Score:4, Insightful)
I have an iPhonre that is from 2011 (iPhone 4S). It works the latest software from Apple, the latest software from the App Store and, while not as snappy as the first day, runs smoothly enough.
I also have an iPad 2 which was bought at the exact same time. Same results, equivalent CPU, same RAM, runs just fine with the latest software from Apple. It will even support iOS9.
So no, I don't think 2012 is a long time ago, even in tablet times. Maybe other vendors aren't as keen to support old hardware. Maybe that's why they sell their tablets for half the price, since you have to buy twice as many ;-)
Re: (Score:2)
On the other hand the Nexus 7 cost half as much back in 2012. Ignoring the difficulty of comparing devices with different screen sizes, resolutions and general features, even if a Nexus 7 lasts half as long you get a nice new device twice as often.
Of course, the reality is that the Nexus 7 runs okay with the latest version of Android. What makes it choke is when you have a lot of heavy apps installed that are designed for newer devices, the same as on iOS. If you uninstall them they poor performance problem
Re: (Score:2)
Well, it's not as if you could upgrade the software anyway. Hardware vendors are really to blame her. They do not provide software updates nor help you do a cyanogen build. I liked the android revolution at the beginning (and I really like my 2011 motorola flipout phone with a physical keyboard and android 2.1). But I quickly realized that those devices are getting harder to use in the long term than a PC with windows.
I'll likely buy a new android phone this year, but I hope the next one will be running a
Re: (Score:2)
Without software, your table will quickly become useless. That app you liked? Well, the vendor cut the support for the old API, you know the API your old version is using. Sorry bro, doesn't work anymore.
Software is the issue, not hardware.
Then use free apps (Score:2)
Then use free apps instead of non-free apps. A free app can be updated to use the new API of the network service while still using the old API of the operating system. F-Droid is the best known repository of free apps for Android.
Re:I feel you... (Score:5, Insightful)
One of the major criticisms the OP left out is the way the latest OS updtae effectively broke the device.
When I unlock my N7, the thing frequently grinds to a halt with ungodly lag, that can last anywhere from a couple to several minutes making the device unusable in a casual and thoughtless manner - the very purpose of the device.
This is not due to the hardware's "age", this is due to the poorly written Android Lollipop OS. This problem didn't exist in the previous version. In fact, if it wasn't for this tablet-trashing update, I would be using my N7 as much as the day I got it (usually for simple web browsing, email and the occasional game).
My experiance of the N7 has been one of *forced* obsolescence, not ageing. And the lesson I took from it is, never spend more than £100 on these pieces of shit, because the companies behind them will want you to upgrade (buy another one) as soon as possible and will engineer the necessity by not giving a damn about their un-optimised code for 'old' devices.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
You can uninstall half the crap you've installed, you can unlock and replace the rom with something more lightweight, you can root and install xposed and then various utilities will help you, or you can root and run greenify. But you can solve the wake-rape problem.
Re: (Score:2)
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Re: I feel you... (Score:2, Interesting)
I had the same experience until I unlocked the bootloader and installed a custom ROM. The experience has been great. If you are willing to do some work, this might work for you.
Take a look at this post: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=62701383&postcount=63
I followed the guide and it's running awesome.
Re: (Score:2)
Completely agreed. I have the 2012 N7 and a very, very long in the tooth HP Touchpad running a Cyanogenmod nightly. The Touchpad easily outperforms the N7. That's really sad.
Sony? (Score:3)
The Sony tablets are very, very nice, and they have an 8" compact version. They're very lightly skinned, they're water resistant (you can wash off the screen) and they're very light. So light, in fact, that the first time I picked up the Z I thought it was an empty display model. That lightness, more than anything, is what makes it so pleasant to use for me. Can hold it up without effort for long periods when reading for instance.
Re:Sony? (Score:5, Informative)
we don't buy sony here.
I thought everyone knew that.
sony is on the 'do not buy from' list.
Re: (Score:2)
we don't buy sony here.
Gee, ya think they notice? And besides, everything you buy, whether it's tablets, music, or laundry detergent, has a piece of 'Sony' in it.
Re:Sony? (Score:5, Informative)
we don't buy sony here.
I thought everyone knew that.
sony is on the 'do not buy from' list.
Bad behavior, like Memory Stick, should be punished. Good behavior, like their rootable phones and tablets, should be rewarded. This will motivate them to make more good things, and less shit things.
Re:Sony? (Score:4, Interesting)
This. I replaced my 2012 Nexus 7 with a Z3 Tablet Compact around Christmas time. I replaced the Sony launcher and keyboard with the Google ones, but otherwise didn't have to do much to it. And Sony have delivered a few OS updates since I've had it, they seem to be pretty decent with that these days. Due to the smaller bezel, it is barely bigger in length and width than the Nexus 7 despite the larger screen, and the screen is way better. I bought the official Style cover, and the Sony inside that cover is barely thicker than the Nexus 7 with no cover; without the cover, the Sony is amazingly thin and light. And it has a microsd slot.
Re: (Score:3)
Whilst I do agree with the Sony hate due to the rootkits and erstwhile proprietary storage media ... that is their laptop and storage division. Their phones and tablets are top-quality (after you uninstall the bloatware).
The hardware is topnotch: the z4 tablet? Wow. It weighs something like a thin square of plywood, yet feels sturdy. The one and only problem I have with it is that it feels so light that I want to break it over my knee, just to see what it would feel like :-) I'm not a violent person: you'll
Hybrid cel/tablet? (Score:3)
If you are into smaller tablets, why not one of the bigger cells or hybrids? I know several people who are happy with their Galaxy Notes. And right now, with my 5.5" Moto X Play, sometimes I don't feel the need to get my tablet.
Re: (Score:2)
I want to know, honestly, how one carries around a phablet. It's too big for your pocket, but it doesn't come with a laptop-style carrying case. So what do you do, carry it around in your hand? Wear baggy clown pants to your pockets are large enough...?
Re: (Score:3)
I can't say I like those either. This 5.5" Moto X Play is pretty much on my limit. My old 4.8" Moto X (1st Gen) was the ideal size for me, but unfortunately it went the way of the dodo.
My "real" tablet is a 10.1" Samsung Galaxy Tab, that I carry around in my briefcase.
Lenovo Tab 2 A10 (Score:3, Informative)
Nexus 7 (2013) (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
Yeah, I'm very happy w/my 2013 Nexus 7, $70ish, rooted, just works nicely. Cheap enough to not have to worry about, easily opened, battery can be replaced if willing, not sure newer have these attributes or significant enough different performance.
Re: Nexus 7 (2013) (Score:3)
I dropped my Nexus 7 (2013) and broke the screen / digitizer assembly. My evaluations of other tablets resulted in my purchase of a refurbished Nexus 7 (2013). I couldn't find anything as good for the money. And OS updates on a non-skinned device are icing on the cake.
It's not 2012 anymore (Score:2)
I had a N7 2012 too, drains fast, charges slowly, overall great piece of shift.
It's not 2012 anymore, any decent tablet will perform faster and better than your old N7.
Re: (Score:2)
The chargers fail, and the tablet can get itself into a state where it won't charge without doing a weird combination of press and holds and other arcanery. No back facing camera and no micro SD slot. Otherwise, it was a good price at the time and there isn't much else positive to say about it. I do not regret picking it up, but only by a slim margin.
Too early to ask - wait a few days (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
By that logic, if you wait for a few more weeks, then Samsung, and all the others will have their updated versions that has stuff that Apple didn't have, but If you wait longer then Apple with have a new product with suff the other guys do not have.....
When you buy hardware, expect it to be out of date within a few months.
Re: (Score:3)
When you buy hardware, expect it to be out of date within a few months.
While I somewhat agree with you, I agree with the OP that sometimes waiting is the right move. If you are in the market for a Surface Pro or iPad right now, it is prudent to wait for information about the soon to be released iPad Pro and Surface Pro 4. And in the case of an iPad we may even learn about new products other than the iPad Pro next week.
I also disagree that hardware is expected to be out of date within a few months. This is usually only the case if you don't research upcoming products. If you bo
Re: (Score:3)
Actually, wrt to Samsung, no need to wait. They just released the S2 tablets. Very thin/light, doesn't seem to be as infected with the usual Samsung bloatware (tho the floor model I played with did show some unsightly bloatware warts). Nice Super AMOLED screen. Camera seems a bit dated, but I don't use tablet cameras anyway. But it is a bit out of the OP's price range. ($400 for the 8 inch, $500 for the 9.7 inch)
I share the OP's pain: have an old-ish Nook HD I picked up cheap when they cleared them out.
Care about updates? (Score:2)
If you want quick updates to the latest version of Android, it's got to be Nexus 7 (2013), Nexus 9 - or you could buy a device supported by Cyanogenmod [cyanogenmod.org] and install Google Apps on top if required. [cyanogenmod.org]
If not, just pick the specs important to you - say 1080p screen, at least 32GB flash, 2GB RAM and quad core CPU - and get the best deal available. You should be able to find even a factory refurbished 9 inch tablet for under $200. They are all pretty good.
Re: (Score:2)
supported by Cyanogenmod
supported by microsoft
Re: (Score:2)
Why is this a negative? Cyanogenmod is an independent company that has formed a partnership with Microsoft, and the OS is 100% open source. But say these were commercial ROMs from microsoft.com. Why would a ROM from Microsoft be any worse than a ROM from Samsung? From what I saw so far, the former will probably be a little less bloated.
Re: (Score:2)
Cyanogenmod is an independent company
not independent if they need microsoft money to survive
Convertible Laptops. (Score:2)
I have a Yoga 3 and it kinda is the best of both worlds. A decent laptop, and a really good table. That runs most of your standard applications. Without as much of the closed architecture that will prevent you from tinkering with it.
Wait About a Month (Score:2)
Skip the latest models. (Score:3)
Not sure I'd recommend anything more expensive unless you have a specific need to fill. In fact there's no reason to buy any brand new (as in came out this year) electronic device when you can find the last few year's mid-to-high end models at steep discounts.
Re: (Score:2)
Hold out a bit more (Score:2)
I have a Nexus 9, and I'd say that even though the performance isn't bad it could be better. But maybe it's because I'm used to the performance of my desktop.
Exact same boat. (Score:2)
I have a Nexus 7 2012. It's only good as an ereader right now. Even the Kindle app struggles. I did some window shopping at Best Buy recently and the Amazon Kindle HD tablets looked very nice. Good looking screen, supposedly it will work well with the Kindle app and Prime video. Does anyone know if Google apps like Youtube are able to be installed on them? If it can't do basic Google apps then the purchase is a non-starter.
Nexus 7 gen 2 (Score:2)
jolla (Score:2, Interesting)
Waiting for my 64GB Jolla to arrive. Any day now..hopefully.
Samsung 12.2 tablet (Score:2)
Hands down the best. anything smaller is a toy.
Yes even my Surface pro is sad compared to that wonderful sized screen.
'Need' or 'want'? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I've found few legitimate uses for a tablet computer versus a laptop
Which 10 inch laptop do you recommend for running Linux?
Re: (Score:3)
Tablets win in a couple of places. First as pure media consumption devices, casual web surfing in the lounge or bed is much better on a tablet. Watching movies and tv on a tablet is also better, less heat and lighter.
Another one is you are also more likely to throw your tablet in the car then you are to take your laptop. I don't tend to move my laptop unless I am explicitly planning on needing it at the destination. So when I end up at the in laws and they are having network issues I have my tablet wi
Sadly, the Nexus 7 (2013) model is your best bet (Score:3)
If you're sure that you want a 7" Android tablet in the $200 range, the 2013 version of the Nexus 7 is probably your best bet.
You would think that something better would have come out by now, but there really isn't anything in that size and price range that is noticeably better.
If you wait until the end of the month, Google is expected to release some new Nexus models. Perhaps they will finally have a 7" tablet upgrade in the mix.
Lenovo Yoga 2 (Score:2)
(and be quick, the upcoming Yoga 3 isn't remotely as good).
I've been buying those for the past year or so, in 8" and 10" format. Not good at gaming, but excellent for everything else. Their weird shape allows for a bigger battery, better speakers, integrated stand, and they even fit the hand better.
They even look nice, and are reasonably updated (not Nexus-level though). They're regularly on sale, probably right now due to EOL.
Jolla - MWC 2015's Best tablet (Score:5, Interesting)
If you want something that stands out of the crowd, then you might want to take a look at the Jolla Tablet http://jolla.com/tablet/ [jolla.com]. It won the Best tablet award at this years Mobile World Congress. I've been using a Jolla smartphone and really like it. It doesn't spy on me, I can get root from the settings, it has a command line shell + SSH built in and it runs Linux.
Jolla's Sailfish OS is based on the Maemo/Meego line. They've built a really nice user interface on top of it and it's partly open source. The UI is based on swiping gestures, so it takes a few minutes to learn to use it, but after that it's really swift and nice. They also have an Android VM, so you can run Andoroid apps on it if you want. No Google Play store though, but I believe you can enable it yourself if you want. If you want apps outside the official store, you can add additional repositories to the phone.
Jolla also listens to its users. You can log in at http://together.jolla.com/ [jolla.com] to leave bug reports, feature ideas and ask advice from the community and Jolla sailors. The OS gets regular updates which add features and squish bugs, so my phone is actually a lot better now than when I bought it. The specs are more modest than the current Android flagship models, but the OS is much lighter so doesn't need that much processing power to run well. The price tag is pretty nice too.
Have a look, try it out. They're just about to start shipping.
Try filling the SSD (Score:3)
I had that storage problem.
Assuming you're running one of the new builds of Android with TRIM support
* Root the device /dev/zero to a temp file
* Open a shell using adb
* Fill the remaining space in each file system ( system / cache / userdata ) by using dd to copy
* Delete the temp file
http://www.it-psycho.de/2012/1... [it-psycho.de]
This trims all the remaining free space and gets rid of the block fragmentation that the storage controller caused before TRIM was available on Android.
I found this improved my laggy 2012 Nexus 7 from "intolerably slow" (taking 5-10 seconds to wake up from a screen unlock swipe) to "not bad" (screen unlock works OK, apps load quickly, still not the fastest tablet on the block but entirely adequate).
I think it helps the battery consumption as well - it's not constantly wiping blocks just to write logs etc.
I hate to say it, but the Surface Pro 3. (Score:5, Interesting)
Stay your pitchforks a moment: My desktop is a Lin/Win box, my laptop is a MacBook Pro that dual boots Mac/Lin, my phones are a Galaxy S5 and a iPhone 5c, I have a kindle, a verizon droid tablet (which I forgot I had), an ipad, heck my TV is a Samsung smart with a hacked evolve that can boot mint (because, seriously, if you're going to use cssh you really need to do it on a 4K UHD display ;)
I picked up the surface because - well, because of a 30 day return option. I wanted to rip the heck out of it. So I upgraded it straight to 10 (10 wasn't officially supported on it when I did, I wasn't about to give the thing a chance at success)
About 20 days in I realized I had pretty much migrated everything off of drop box onto One/Sky drive, and my Drive usage had become more organized and well deliniated against that usage.
A little later on I realized that I haven't had a single one of my esoteric usb/bluetooth devices /not/ work with the Surface. Somewhere about 10-14 days in, I stopped even trying to use them on my/my wifes other devices, I'd just automatically reach for the surface.
Truth be told, it was "Fresh Paint" that distracted me enough to get suckered in. It helped me discover the remarkable versatility of the devices form factor and the combination of the kick stand and the foldable keyboard and the magnetic attachment points for the power/keyboard.
I've used the surface now everywhere that any of my other devices used to go and places none of them would: Balanced on the dash of the car, on the tiny ledge by my shower.
I can't begin to do it justice trying to describe the versatility, I will just say that it was a huge part of enamoring me to the device.
It has the best wifi/bluetooth of any of my devices and it is fast at connecting; it talks to all of my devices, and windows 10 comes with an app for setting up a small handful of windows features against iphone/ipad/droid phones.
Battery life is pretty good, and unless you're trying to play an mmo at ultra-high-graphics it's very easy to switch to a battery saving mode to squeeze a few more hours of facebooking/solitaire out of it. The only problem is it's so good that when the battery does get low, you get a bit 10ish ("I don't want to go") #1stworldproblems.
Time for the cons:
The weight is just a few grams heavy, and although it's not, with the keyboard attached it feels heavier than the (17in) MacBook Pro. It does sometimes feel a little large and unwieldy, but yesterday I realized that's because I'm using it now where I would previously have used my phone. I wouldn't give up an inch of the form factor, tbh.
It has it's own, unique, special power connector, and doesn't seem to be capable of USB charging.
The little Windows insignia/button on the device is poorly placed. Instead of putting it near the camera, for example, it's on the right hand side roughly exactly where you would put your hand to hold the device a large part of the time. Good news: you can disable it.
Start-up time from off and sleep feel a little sluggish. They didn't at first, and I don't think they've gotten slower, I think I am just really eager to interact with the device now when I am turning it on.
If anything, the biggest drawback is the storage capacity. I have the Pro i5/256 and I have 167Gb left, mostly because I'm being very selective about what I install.
Some of the default Windows 10 apps for things I'm not very keen on. But hey, if you want default apps, go get an apple. Specifically, Groove Music. W.T.L.F, and I'm still very undecided on the photos app. I must confess that I had a Windows 7 Phone phone for a while, so I've experienced the original, pure, "Metro" experience, and I can imagine how the photos app would have been as a pure metro app and I like that idea - but using the photos app you can almost smell the blood that must have been spilled in the clashes between the mobile and desktop teams...
Lastly - and this is really Windows 10 r
Peak everything (Score:3)
* 5 years ago, this category of product didn't even exist.
* 3 years ago, you bought something that was "fantastic".
* Now, it's crap and you absolutely need a newer version.
* 3 years from now, you'll come back to Slashdot to whine that you have a crappy 2015 tablet.
* 10 years from now, you'll ask yourself where all the lithium and rare earth went.
Re:suggestion (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Actually the biggest thing it adds is double the memory which will:
A) Greatly increase the lifetime of the device.
B) Greatly decrease frustration of when things get killed as you swap around apps.
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Or wait until the iPad Air 3 comes out, and get one of those. You want as much RAM as possible in these devices. I have a first-gen iPad mini (512 MB of RAM) and you can't even have multiple browser tabs open without it dropping the inactive tabs from the cache so it has to reload when you go to one of the other tabs. It's maddening. The on screen keyboard frequently has delays, and using a Bluetooth keyboard is no better. It is much slower than my Nexus 4 phone.
I like my Android phone but also prefer iOS o
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Because people are expecting the iPad Air 3 to be out in a few days (Sep 9th), not years. If it's a matter of waiting half a week to get a better spec machine, it's relevant to the discussion... Talk of the iPad Air 9, not so much.
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The next Apple mobile devices should be announced Wednesday, not exactly a long wait.
However, some rumors claim Apple will be focusing their efforts on a new 'iPad Pro' and the Air will see little improvement this cycle.
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Why do Apple devices have so little memory? 3GB is fairly standard for a low cost Android device these days. Doesn't seem to have a negative effect on battery life etc. How come Apple have stuck with so little for so long, when as you point out there are major performance and usability gains to be had by adding some inexpensive hardware?
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Why limit yourself to iOS though? Get an x86 based tablet. They are about half the price of an iPad, similar quality screen/battery life, probably better connectivity (USB, maybe NFC or wireless charging, SD card slot)... Maybe a tad thicker but who cares, you can run Android, Windows or Linux on the thing. If you don't like one in a couple of years just switch.
Plus no mucking about with iTunes or Apple networking protocols to transfer files to the thing. Tablets are great for media consumption and displayi
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The only time that I've run iTunes in the past 2 years that I got my current iPad was when I bought a new iPad and I wanted to transfer my stuff from the old one. I read books (PDF) on it, comics, watch media... . The same for my iPhone.
The whole iTunes thing may be an argument a couple of years ago but it is certainly not an argument today.
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So say I have a Windows PC with some media files on it. A couple of MKV movies I ripped, some PDF datahseets, some FLAC and MP3 music. How do I get those onto an iPad without installing any Apple crapware?
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USB with what device class? (Score:2)
USB is the solution
Then why does Apple refuse to implement publicly documented USB device classes?
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The easiest way is via Dropbox, or Google Drive, Box.net, or OneDrive
Which costs 2 GB of your ISP's monthly cap for each 1 GB that you transfer.
If Wi-Fi and suspend broken, it's a no-go (Score:2)
Get an x86 based tablet. [...] you can run [...] Linux on the thing.
Which x86-based tablet in 7-8" and 9-11" size classes works well with Linux when paired to a Bluetooth keyboard? I've looked into it but found plenty of reports about Wi-Fi not working, Bluetooth not working, backlight adjustment not working, and most critically, suspend not working.
Insignia (Score:2)
HP Stream 7 (Score:2)
I'm pretty happy with the HP Stream 7, which can be had for $80 or sometimes less. Win10 on it is fine. Win8.x wasn't as much of a pain as people would lead you to believe. The OSK is crap, though (even with the hidden full keyboard), so I threw a bluetooth keyboard and mouse at it.
http://www.amazon.com/Jelly-Co... [amazon.com]
http://www.amazon.com/Microsof... [amazon.com]
Runs Steam fine, much of my 2D game library works well. People have reported success getting it to boot Linux. Its main limitation is the 1GB of RAM which lim
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This isn't great advice.
it could be MOST AWESOME and EXCELLENT advice if the primary use is watching movies
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The post is obviously asking for bargain tablets to purchase, so they aren't too interested in top of the line specs. The iPad Air 1 is $100 less than the Air 2, and you can get more than a 16 GB hard drive for just $50 as opposed to $100 for the Air 2 (although the Air 2 goes to 64 GB instead of 32 GB).
I'm not saying the Air 1 is necessarily the way to go, but based on the information from the post I see no reason to recommend the Air 2 instead.
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The Air1 is old tech and new iPads and a new iOS are going to be announced in a few days. Recommending the Air1 is just plain wrong.
All $200-$400 tablets are old tech.
Surface (Score:2)
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I was going to respond with advice to wait for the new announcements from Apple and Microsoft, but when the post mentioned the price range I realized these announcements will be irrelevant. Since they are asking about $200-$400 tablets, the title should have been "Best Bargain Tablet in 2015" to reduce confusion.
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I'll see your Xoom and raise you a Fujitsu Stylistic 3500 from 2001, with original battery that holds 20 minutes of charge.
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My Xoom gets considerably more use than my Nexus 7. I take it on biz trips now instead of a laptop. The Xoom keyboard (can't get any more) is a solid piece of gear.
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If you're paying $3 for a tablet, then you're buying an Etch A Sketch.
or maybe an excedrin
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No, people in your situation use the cellphone form factor this way: http://nypost.com/2014/02/16/p... [nypost.com]
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I am not sure if it fits your size requirement, but I hear the Sony Xperia Z2 LTE tablet is quite good. I didn't need LTE access so I went with the Galaxy Tab S, but I was considering the Xperia prior to my purchase. I was on VZW'so site last night, and they definitely still sell/support it.