What should someone look for in a tablet? iPad? Microsoft? Google? My Dad's looking for one for my Mom and I didn't know how to begin to advise him ... I've never looked in to them (I still have an 'old' 1st or 2nd generation kindle reader). Any advice or experience, or even price ranges to look at or expect? Thanks!! 8)
That's sort of an open ended question? If your Mom is a Wall Street trader than she'd need a screamer. If she's retired and simply using it for surf & comm the low end may be the place to start? The parts that make the most difference are the processor, screen resolution, touchscreen technology, and storage & memory capacity. Secondly are the availability of Ap's you want. Pick out the models you like and review them. Take the processor name and google it. You'll find when it was first used and usually the pro's and con's on it's performance. Screen resolution is reviewed the same way with the Video chipset name. Stay away from resistive touchscreens if you get peaved by a lagging response time to your finger movement. And remember, there's no mouse, you are constantly rubbing a screen with a plastic coating. Look at the touchpad on your laptop if you want to see what time & use can do. Storage and memory are a personal use consideration. WiFi, SD card, USB storage devices, if needed, should be added to the total price when you review them all. Most come with 12 month warranties, but they are throw away devices that "new cost" is less than "repair costs". I've pulled a few apart and I can attest that pads are an all in one integration of mostly non replaceable parts. If you've ever dropped your cell phone and picked it up to find with relief that it's OK, don't expect that same feeling after dropping a pad. This coming Christmas you're going to see quite a few new models and a major price drop in the older models.
I bought a Toshiba 10 LE last September, it was on sale at the time for around $329, i love having it for something portable. I like it during football season to keep up with my fantasy leagues. But I also can use it for an e-reader, web surf, play games, check email, skype, etc. The battery life on it is very good too. I did alot of price shopping and comparing before I bought this one, and at the time and the sale price, it was the most bang for the buck. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834214701
Love my ipad, but I also have an iPhone. You get more functionality using them together. It's also essentially the same operating system. If she has an android phone than looking at an android tablet makes sense as well. The android App Store has a larger selection of free apps than the Apple App Store. I think that although there are fewer apple apps, they are generally better quality. iTunes university is a great resource for completely free learning opportunities. You can take classes from top notch universities and pay nothing. You will not get course credit either. Good luck
Disclaimer: I DESPISE iTunes software. I would look for the added functionality you'll get with an Android or Windows based tablet. I have an ASUS Transformer and selected it over the iPad for the following reasons: 1. Price (the transformer was less expensive) 2. Can use a memory card (not on the iPad without an adapter) 3. Can use a USB connection (not on the iPad without an adapter) 4. Like it or not, there is web content that is done in Flash and I need to be able to view it. Not to mention that if you play games, a lot of those are done in Flash. (Forget viewing Flash on the iPad) 5. I don't have to use iTunes to do anything with the Transformer. (It's ridiculous that you can't attach an iPad or iPhone to your PC with a USB cable and have it recognized as a drive and copy MP3 files to it without having to have iTunes "manage" it for you.) I have an iPhone and love it (except for the iTunes thing) but can't see any reason to pay more for an iPad for fewer features. My 2 cents for what it is worth!
As far as Android, one thing I would NOT look for is a cheap one. I've been burned twice (once as a present and another I thought I was getting a deal). Never again, I'll make sure I get a name brand that has a connection to the Google App store. Anything else and odds are you won't be able to run the apps you want to run.
Thanks! That's some good advice that I can pass along, things to look for. It's mainly to be used as a distraction when they travel, to stream Netflix or other services, to play games on, check email or internet when they have connectivity. They're not entirely tech-savvy but they're both doing pretty good for a 78 and 80 year old, so "ease of use" is good.
I went to Best Buy last year and put my hands on all of the tablets they had. I ended up buying the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 8GB(Android op system). What sold me on this one was the memory slot which will accept up to a 32GB mini SD. I have been very pleased with this tablet. I saved some money by purchasing this from Amazon. Free shipping and no sales tax.
Tiger Direct has some deals right now on a couple of well rated tablets. Though at work we are ordering the HP Elitepad which comes with Windows 8 http://www.tigerdirect.com/email/wem3738.asp?SRCCODE=WEM3738BY&cm_mmc=email-_-Main-_-WEM3738-_-tigeremail3738&utm_source=EML&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=WEM3738&cm_lm=cpleasant@3cpackaging.com&lk=8 http://www.tigerdirect.com/sectors/campaigns/hp/elitepad/index.asp?srkey=hp elitepad
