Which CHEAP Tablet should I choose

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francs

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I'd love to get one of those nice Galaxy tabs, Ipad2 or Motorola Xoom, but they are all R5000+
So as a spin-off to the "Which Tablet should I choose" thread, I want to know which cheap pads, under R3000, are out there?

I've looked at the Zenithink ZT180 and so far feedback has been good.
It's around R2200 (have2have). Doesn't come with all the bells and whistles, eg. 3G (However, some USB 3G modems work), but you can do some light surfing, watch a movie (when the wife hogs the
TV to watch Grey's) and play Angry birds.
 
I'd say go for the iPad. Last week DionWired had them on special for R2000. I'm sure you'll get these specials at other shops now that they iPad 2 is out. Also check out Gumtree, you should be able to get one below R3000. I've worked on those Android tablets, trust me, nothing else comes even close to the iPad.
 
I have an MSI Windpad 100, which I bought for experimenting with. It runs Windows 7 Home. It has a 32Gb solid state hard drive, two cameras, a mic, a card slot, HDMI output, WiFi and it has a docking port, but most important of all, it has a USB slot. I plan to try it with the tablet version of the latest release of Ubuntu. For me, the lack of USB connectivity in the IPad is a real disadvantage.

Regarding software, I have installed Kindle and I make use of the PC version of the Oxford English Dictionary. It works well with Skype and I really like the convenience of such a portable device. But it's not for everyone: I have four other computers around my house, so I can choose how I use it. I think that it is a fore-runner of a process of convergence which will see tablets becoming increasingly useful and therefore generally more attractive to own. But for now, they're a beguiling luxury.

At the time I bought the Windpad, I looked at the Galaxy and rejected it as an overpriced hybrid. I think an indicator of future direction is the Dell Inspiron Duo, which is a little bigger than a netbook and doubles as a tablet, but I've read that the OS has a few snags. I expect to replace my ordinary Dell Inspiron and the tablet with a single device in the next 12 months.
 
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Because I find the ability to connect a keyboard, a mouse, a hard drive an important feature.
 
I think a 'Windows Tablet' is actually called a slate? Am I wrong? I've always associated Tablet with alternate OS devices (Apple iOS, Android, etc)
 
youmike said:
Because I find the ability to connect a keyboard, a mouse, a hard drive an important feature.
Click to expand...

Bluetooth keyboard and mouse, a lot more convenient. Never had an issue with adding an extra drive, since it's always on wifi at home, so I have access to everything on my pc's.
 
Check out http://www.isonic.co.za/ebook.htm

The day iPad will let me
a: browse my windows shares via wifi and copy a document/music onto my tablet and then use any app on it to consume/edit that I will look at them.
b: use a USB Xbox 360 controller or allowing camera's to offload pictures via USB I might consider them. (Expect Apple to follow in iPad 3 or 4)
 
Just ignore the free shipping, rather go for DHL or other known carrier. The free shipping is the HK Post and not reliable or maybe the connection with SA Post .....
 
Elimentals said:
Check out http://www.isonic.co.za/ebook.htm

The day iPad will let me
a: browse my windows shares via wifi and copy a document/music onto my tablet and then use any app on it to consume/edit that I will look at them.
b: use a USB Xbox 360 controller or allowing camera's to offload pictures via USB I might consider them. (Expect Apple to follow in iPad 3 or 4)
Click to expand...

Erm, what do you actually want to do on a a tablet, edit videos??? In that case, rather get a laptop. I can understand why someone would want to browse windows shares (which you can do on an iPad) and copy documents & music (which you can do on an iPad). But why would you want to edit movies on a tablet???

Secondly, why would you want to use an Xbox controller on an tablet? For photos, you get those SD cards with build-in wifi for quite cheap.

*edit* I just read through your post again, nowhere do you mention videos... my bad. :/ So those things you mention you can actually already do on an iPad.
 
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I mainly want a tablet for:

Reading PDF magazines downloaded from the net.
Connect to work via vnc - need to connect after hours to check that backups are taking place, ftp items etc.
Carry emails around.
Browse the web.
I have a usb vodacom dongle I would like to be able to use.
Play the occasional game.
Play mp3 and video.
Not have to pay a fortune for apps!

That's it really - the main things
 
I wonder how long it'll take for the "cheaper" tablets to feature Android 3?
 
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