Splurch, it depends on what you're looking for. If you're really a PC guy, you might want to include the Android tablets in your research as they tend to be a little more PC-like.
These are my personal observations.
Make no mistake, Flash isn't the only thing Android tablets have going. At least so far, they've had higher res screens than the iPad 2, though you have to be careful....some, such as the Xoom and Thrive have screens that aren't as bright, and have poorer viewing angles. I think the best screens (for Android) are the ASUS Transformer Prime, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1, and ASUS Transformer, in that order.
Part of the problem is that whether iOS or Android, one or the other did *something* first......Android had Cloud storage etc. a year before iOS did....but now they both have it. Android has Flash, but Flash is becoming less relevant, since Adobe is moving away from it *for mobile*.
However, there are still millions of sites out there that still make extensive use of Flash, and HTML 5 isn't capable of doing nearly as much as Flash is, so it's not going to replace Flash.....yet. But it's coming.
That having been said, services like OnLive, for a subscription fee, give you access to a full desktop browser and Flash...whether on your iPad or an Android tablet.
The iPad has very limited connectivity options....basically, using prioprietary Apple connectors/converters to get USB or whatever into the tablet, no memory card slots, etc. However, both iPad and Android tablets can use cloud storage services like Dropbox for moving files. I'm not a huge fan of cloud storage services....I use them, but:
A) You're always dependent upon a network connection, and if it's via 3G (phone tethering), you can use up a lot of your data moving files around.
B) File transfer speeds are still slow. Dropbox takes 20x as long to move files as simply plugging in a microSD or SDcard, putting files on it, and pulling it out.
Android devices have better ability to move files via Bluetooth, as they're not locked down in the same way as iOS is. I can move files (documents, music files, movies) in moments via Bluetooth from my Transformer to *any* device with Bluetooth *except* anything running iOS due to the restrictions in that OS. Whether it's iPhone to iPhone, iPhone to iPad, iPad to whatever, you just have fewer options that way.
Besides which, call me paranoid, but I'm just always nervous about putting my files on someone else's servers. At some level, you have to accept there could be some dude clicking and looking at your stuff that you just uploaded, and to ask yourself if that's an acceptable risk. I mean, even Mark Zuckerberg allegedly (according to an article I read this week) called Facebook users fools for trusting him with their information, photos etc, very early on in the life of Facebook. I'm just very sensitive about that kind of thing.....but that's my own, personal feeling. It comes down to your risk tolerance.
If you want to load movies like Digital Copies from Blurays and watch them on your tablet, there are more choices on iPads. You have the iTunes Store, and you Digital Copies are innately compatible. For Android, you have fewer options for purchasing files. I am not sure if I can take a movie purchased in the iTunes store and play it on Android....I haven't tried it. For Digital Copies, *some* movies are now coming out Android compatible, and supposedly able to be loaded to a tablet......but I haven't figured out how to do it...you have to use PocketBlu, and I'm not sure how that works.
There is a better selection of apps for the iPad. But, Android tabs tend to render Javascript better in my experience.....so some websites function better/correctly on Android, whereas on the iPad, they don't. We have a rich text editor built into our company's CMS, and it works correctly on Android with no extra programming....but my partners with their iPads are unable to use it. Comes down to differences between how the two devices use Javascript. As to Android, don't listen to those who go on about there being only 600 apps or whatever. There are more, and many of the ones that aren't optimized for tablets yet still work. They go to full screen, and in some cases just have more wasted space...but they work fine. Plus, I find some things like Facebook actually don't need an app, since the website, even the chat, works fine in the browser....so, do you really need an app? That comes down to preference.
There is talk about Android malware......but if you stick to apps that either come from prominent publishers, or ones with a lot of positive reviews etc., and stay away from porn and stuff like that, you'll likely be fine. I haven't encountered a single piece of malware yet. Or a single virus. It's like with your PC. Download from trusted sources, and you'll generally be fine.
With an Android tablet if things like connecting a USB keyboard or mouse, external storage hard drive etc. are important to you, it's much easier. I use my tablet as a virtual laptop much of the time....going so far as sometimes docking my Transformer to the keyboard, and then plugging a mouse into the USB port and bang.....pretty much a perfect netbook.
Apple's generally got superior battery life. Not as good as a docked Transformer, but then you're talking about a device that, with keyboard attached, probably weighs 2-3x as much. But take away the dock, and I think Apple lasts longer than any of the other Android devices....excepting *maybe* the Transformer Prime.
Apple's typically more reliable with updates....when they come, they come to everyone. Not everyone gets every feature....but they all get the update on the same day, which is nice. With Android, ICS was announced/released in what...November? And it's been a gradual trickle down of the update to other devices over the months since.
As others have said, budget makes a difference as well. If you have $200 to spend, the Kindle Fire, Nook, and Playbook (particularly with OS 2.0 that launched this week) are your best bets. Which one you prefer largely depends on things like how married you are to Amazon services. The Fire is useless as an option in Canada, since we can't use the American Amazon services. If you're in the US, that's not an issue.
If you have $300 or more, your options open up. Stick with the main tablets if you're getting into higher price points.....avoid the cheaper stuff......ones like the Acer A100, Xoom, Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 and ASUS Transformer seem to be the best received of the full size tablets on the Android side...then you have the iPad. Given the iPad 3 may be coming out within a month or so, you may want to wait to make a final decision.
I won't say one is better than the other. For the things that matter to me, Android was the choice...whereas for other people, they like iOS better, and neither choice is right/wrong. There are advantages and disadvantages to each. Try them out and see for yourself what appeals to you better.
Banshee
