Which android tablet should I get?

w1z4rd

w1z4rd

Karmic Sangoma
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I am currently looking at purchasing a new 10" tablet. Right now my choices are:

Samsung Galaxy Tab
Samsung 10" Note
Samsung Nexus

I suppose the galaxy tab is last on that list as it offers nothing that other two tablets dont already have. So its a tossup between the speed and power of the nexus vs the stylus of the Note.

I want to use this tablet to take notes, especially now that the amount of meetings I attend has increased a hundred fold. So while I know tablets are normally for media consumption, I am going to be doing some production on it. I used to carry my laptop around, but going all over the country with a laptop is a chore.

What would you recommend. Has anyone tried the Note?
 
One of my colleagues has the Note and is quite impressed with it. Personally the lack of high resolution display is offputting since I've become spoiled with retina display, and also the Note didn't get very good reviews due to a sluggish UI. Therefore I'd recommend the 10' Nexus rather but that also has some limitations versus the Note.

Another option that seems to have garnered some quite strong reviews is the Sony Xperia Tablet Z: 1080p, fully waterproof, looks classy. But it's not coming out till later in the year.
 
Nexus 10 if you dont need 3G connectivity.
 
cerebus said:
One of my colleagues has the Note and is quite impressed with it. Personally the lack of high resolution display is offputting since I've become spoiled with retina display, and also the Note didn't get very good reviews due to a sluggish UI. Therefore I'd recommend the 10' Nexus rather but that also has some limitations versus the Note.
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I had a look at the ipad, but its lack of practical functionality put me off. I need a device that plays with others and doesnt require iTunes. I do know what you mean by the retina display. My wifes ipad is beautiful to look at. For what I need this for I dont need high resolution. I will not be editing pictures. I will be in public and private meetings taking notes the whole time. Only time I will use it for media is perhaps at the B&B`s I am housed at in the evenings.

Another option that seems to have garnered some quite strong reviews is the Sony Xperia Tablet Z: 1080p, fully waterproof, looks classy. But it's not coming out till later in the year.
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I need it to be on that FNB smartphone offer :D :D Though if they had that, I would definitely look at it.


Ecco said:
Nexus 10 if you dont need 3G connectivity.
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I need 3G. I always need internets :D Doesnt the nexus have 3g?
 
ghoti said:
I had a look at the ipad, but its lack of practical functionality put me off. I need a device that plays with others and doesnt require iTunes. I do know what you mean by the retina display. My wifes ipad is beautiful to look at. For what I need this for I dont need high resolution. I will not be editing pictures. I will be in public and private meetings taking notes the whole time. Only time I will use it for media is perhaps at the B&B`s I am housed at in the evenings.
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Yea I'm only talking about preferring a high resolution over a low resolution tablet screen. It's a night and day difference. If you want an Android tab, I think I'd always make that a prioritized item - since it's really JUST a screen. Another option is the Asus Transformer Infinity.

But also keep in mind that Nvidia and Arm are rolling out their next gen chipsets now and they are substantially faster than last gen. The difference between Tegra3 and 4 for instance is an order of magnitude (it outputs 4k resolution movies for instance :o )
So anything on the market currently is only a couple of months from being superseded by next gen - it might be worth holding out a little while (if you can).
 
ghoti said:
I need 3G. I always need internets :D Doesnt the nexus have 3g?
Click to expand...

Only the Nexus 7 comes with 3G.

The poster above suggested the Asus Transformer infinity, also no 3G.
 
the note 10.1 is a good option, but the screen resolution is a concern
 
I've being testing the Note for an academic department, its wonderful!

Note taking is simple. The bundled S-Note is okay to start off with, but I tired of its capabilities (Android 4.2's S-Note looks promising). I've been using an app called Papyrus religiously; used it while lecturing (droidVNC over wifi to laptop/computer connected to projector), during meetings, furniture shopping with the fiance xD

For the record, I've seen students using iPads during lectures to take notes. Only drawback is thicker strokes.

Also, have a look at the Samsung ATIV. Its a laptop/slate combo though, but with a WACOM digitizer.

I definitely recommend the Note if you want if note taking is a major determining factor in your purchase. PM me if you go for this and need a list of things you get you up and running.
 
Nexus 7 with 3g is good. I have 2 of them now, one with 3g and the other without.

The Asus Fonepad is coming out soon, and will be price competitively also, with Atom processor i think.
If you not in a hurry, i would wait for the battery life reviews on that before buying as otherwise it looks as good as Nexus 7 but with phone functionality included
 
ghoti said:
I am currently looking at purchasing a new 10" tablet. Right now my choices are:

Samsung Galaxy Tab
Samsung 10" Note
Samsung Nexus

I suppose the galaxy tab is last on that list as it offers nothing that other two tablets dont already have. So its a tossup between the speed and power of the nexus vs the stylus of the Note.

I want to use this tablet to take notes, especially now that the amount of meetings I attend has increased a hundred fold. So while I know tablets are normally for media consumption, I am going to be doing some production on it. I used to carry my laptop around, but going all over the country with a laptop is a chore.

What would you recommend. Has anyone tried the Note?
Click to expand...

I have the Galaxy tab1 10.1(P7500) apparently the tab 2 is pretty similar so I can recommend that. I don't have the note, Though I was setting up one of the ladies at works note 10.1 last week, and not sure how to describe it but somehow seemed a bit more responsive when typing and using the stylus, so might be better for you since you want it for taking notes
 
imranpanji said:
Nexus 7 with 3g is good. I have 2 of them now, one with 3g and the other without.

The Asus Fonepad is coming out soon, and will be price competitively also, with Atom processor i think.
If you not in a hurry, i would wait for the battery life reviews on that before buying as otherwise it looks as good as Nexus 7 but with phone functionality included
Click to expand...

Not 10" good, which is the OP's requirement.
 
I've been evaluating a demo Note 10.1 and must say I'm highly unimpressed. The screen quality and fluidity/smoothness of the UI (orig 4.0.4 & latest 4.1.2) in my opinion dont even match an old iPad1. Next to an iPad3 its honestly a joke.

Haven't seen a Nexus 10 in the flesh so cant comment, but I'd recommend you check out an iPad(4) as well. With cloud based note taking systems like Evernote, the OS itself becomes irrelevant anyway.
 
Roman4604 said:
I've been evaluating a demo Note 10.1 and must say I'm highly unimpressed. The screen quality and fluidity/smoothness of the UI (orig 4.0.4 & latest 4.1.2) in my opinion dont even match an old iPad1. Next to an iPad3 its honestly a joke.

Haven't seen a Nexus 10 in the flesh so cant comment, but I'd recommend you check out an iPad(4) as well. With cloud based note taking systems like Evernote, the OS itself becomes irrelevant anyway.
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iOS prioritises the UI over everything else, far more resources get pushed to it looking pretty, hence the UI is fluid and smooth, Android is multitasking in the background all the time, the ui doesn't get priority, which is a little silly as it would make people believe the OS is flying, even though it's doing the exact same thing as before.
 
Lupus said:
iOS prioritises the UI over everything else, far more resources get pushed to it looking pretty, hence the UI is fluid and smooth, Android is multitasking in the background all the time, the ui doesn't get priority, which is a little silly as it would make people believe the OS is flying, even though it's doing the exact same thing as before.
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The DPI and use of space is completely different as well. Flipboard looks awful on Android tablet, yet the same can't be it on iOS.
 
Haven't seen a Nexus 10 in the flesh so cant comment, but I'd recommend you check out an iPad(4) as well. With cloud based note taking systems like Evernote, the OS itself becomes irrelevant anyway.
Click to expand...

That's just it. If I'm using Dropbox, Evernote, Wunderlist, Google Calendars, Gtalk, Google Reader, Google Drive to edit Google Docs and whatever other web-based services to do my work, the iPad 'plays nicely' with pretty much any other device on the market. The iPad itself has very poor services from Apple but all the features you could want are available as apps.
 
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I use my ipad for note taking in meeting. I use evernote though which happily syncs to my pc and android phone so I always have those notes at hand. The keyboard is just fine and I can touch type on it without much hassle.
I would personally prefer a nexus 10 if it was 3G, Im not a fan of apple's closed ecosystem.
 
The Asus Padfone Infinity is looking quite promising - 1080p phone + 1080p tablet in one. Pricey but when you consider that you're getting a premium smartphone plus a premium tablet in one it can be justified.. I think.

The DPI and use of space is completely different as well. Flipboard looks awful on Android tablet, yet the same can't be it on iOS.
Click to expand...

The DPI issue with Android tabs is completely endemic and it's due to the way Android handles scaling. This one is Google's fault to be honest. Developers and designers are creating to spec and getting crappy results.
 
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