Tablets Tablets Tablets!

Hello-

*Looks around*

I am new here *Points to my post count to prove it* and wanted to ask a couple of questions of those people most likely to have similar uses and expectations about tablets:

I do not have one yet, but and seriously looking into getting one. I imagine using it to read things online (like enworld!) and other simple connectivity things, as well as (and perhaps more primarily) read various PDFs on, either while gaming, for reference, or while not gaming for research etc.

1) What are your experiences using a tablet in this way?

2) Do you have any suggestions for specific tablets to avoid or gravitate to?

I have a semi-loyalty to Samsung, as I have been very happy with a number of their other products I own. Price is somewhat an issue, I do not foresee liking the price on an iPad. Also, I am not a fan of the iOS in general, and I only really have iTunes for simplicity sake.

I will be hooking up a cloud-style drive soon, 3TB, that I will be able to access remotely in-home or over the net. One thing also, I do not relish the additional cost of a 3G/4G tablet, preferring to stick with with wifi instead. I do have a smartphone, and from what I understand, you can use that to provide the connection when not in the vicinity if actual wifi.

I think that is it, though any additional information that might be applicable I am more than willing to listen to! (OK, read!)

-Dhomal

Welcome to enworld. I hope you stick around and participate in the RPG discussions as well. You're in a sub-forum for casual chat about tech here, so if you don't get a solid answer, there are better tech forums. But most of us are techies, so you'll get something.

I hear good things about the Samsung Galaxy tablets and the Google tablets. You can't go wrong with a Google tablet, which will have the best support for new Android versions.

I like my ipad, but can appreciate that it's pricey. A Google Nexus 7 is about $250, smaller and works really well from what I hear from folks who have one.

Using my Ipad for reading forums works pretty good. Androids can do that too. Book reading software works fine, and there's a Kindle reader and Sony reader app for Android and iOS, so you can access the main player's stores.

Getting internet from your smartphone is called Tethering. Good to know when buying it. I have a mobile hotspot instead, and that works just fine.

I find that I seldom need internet while moving about on a tablet. The smartphone is better suited for that. The tablet tends to get used online when I am stationary, and thus likely in range of wifi (like at my house, starbucks, etc).

I have an Android phone, and just bought an iPad.....I reall miss the freedom of Android on the iPad. But, having all my music sync in about 5 minutes of work from turning it on for the first time was amazing in the iPad. But, all that said, if money is any issue, I would go Android unless there are multiple apps you want that are only on Apple....the price and freedom to use the apps you want, mostly, are great Android advantages. If money is no teal issue, tough call. I have barely touchedy home computer in the 2 plus weeks I have owned the iPad.

Hello-

Thanks to both of you for replying!

I will have to look more in depth into different options, just in case I have missed something.

A couple of additional points: I am leaning toward the 10" variety, just so that the reading of PDFs is easier, and any extr stuff, like maps etc.

Money is an issue, in that, I want to not spend more than I have to. And as far as apple-only apps, I cant think of any, so -still- no reason to go iPad. But with So Many Android options out there, it can be daunting to wade through all the information. But I can do it, I did actually assemble my own PC last August. Worked on first power-up too!

If anyone else has anything to add, please feel free, I will still be tracking this.

-Dhomal

Just get the most powerful one you can afford. And I also have an older nook, which is 7 inches....go for the 10 inch tablet for sure.

My suggestion is get a raspberry pi.

While my wife loves her iPad, I picked up an 8.9" Kindle Fire HD which I use as a media consumption device (movies, TV, books/magazines, web, documents). Works well enough for that and is pretty capable for the price, and since I have Amazon Prime it's a good combo. The Amazon app store is admittedly pretty limited, but then I'm not much of an app user.

Full disclosure: I have an Android smartphone, an Apple iPod Touch, and an iPad2...and I really dislike the way my smartphone handles certain tasks.

That said, I'm pro-tablet in nearly any form. The size of the screen makes for easy websurfing and reading of PDFs, etc. There are plenty of gaming-specific apps for both Androids and Apple devices, but I generally find my Notes app up to the task of handling my campaign notes and character sheets.

But then again, I'm used to doing all that on a 8'x11.5" notepad, too.

While I have much love for the iPad way, I also have much respect for the Samsung tablets, and acknowledge that they can do some things the iPads cannot do.

One thing I did NOT spend money on with my iPad was having built-in wi-fi. I got a hotspot instead. It's faster than most mobile devices' onboard wi-fi, and I can use it to support multiple devices simultaneously...for only little more than a dataplan for a single device. Plus, once 4G becomes obsolete, all I will need to do is replace the hotspot...

Bottom line: find one with as much memory and speed as you can afford and with a display size and resolution you like.

One thing I can think to add is look at screen resolution. I have had both an iPad 1 and now an iPad 4, and the retina screen makes viewing PDFs on the device much, much better. Pixels per inch will be more important if you're trying to view PDFs (formatted for 8.5x11, ie a 13" diagonal) on a 7" display.

Hello-

I thought I just replied - but its not here....

Anyway...

So, for my birthday, the GF and I went out and I picked up a Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1" tablet!

Its really amazing, and I am still playing with it and learning things. I have not even tried using the s-pen that comes with it!

It is a bit more than we were originally thinking to spend, but I think it was worth it!

So, I guess this thread could become a comments/suggestions/pitfalls thread for that specific tablet!

Many Many thanks for the replies, they really did help!

-Dhomal