Buying an Android Tablet - Hardware & Software

Hello Facepunch. As the knowledgeable people you are I was wondering if I could get your 2 cents on a tablet. I am wanting to buy a tablet in either early December (as my birthday is at the end of November) or early January ( as I can get money from both birthday and Christmas). I have been looking at the cheaper tablets (~$500) and I am drawn to two of them. The ASUS Transformer and the Acer Iconia. I will be using the tablet for school and general home use along with traveling. [img]http://techniczone.com/wp-content/plugins/jobber-import-articles/photos/102948-acer-iconia-tab-a500.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.noctambulism.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/ASUS-Eee-Pad-Transformer-Tablet-Just-Launched-570x516.jpg[/img] Both tablets have the same processors and ram, so it pretty much leaves it down to its features and aesthetics. From what I have read about the Iconia, it is a sturdy and well built tablet, but can be uncomfortable to hold at times. It is also one of the heavyweights of the tablet world. The brushed steel I am also a fan of and like it much better than the scaley back of the Transformer. Another up to the Iconia is the built in USB port, which the Transformer lacks. Even though there are some likes I have over the Transformer, I still love it. The Transformer can be a netbook! How can you hate that? I have read that the screen is the best out there for a tablet, the battery life is amazing, and with the expansion slots (ie the sd card slots and the 2 usb ports on the keyboard dock) the memory is more than enough. I am just not sure which one will be better in the end or if there is another tablet entirely I should get. If you could give your opinion, I would greatly appreciate it.

New gen tablets will be out by Xmas, don't bother planning any purchases for after November because all the devices we have now will be replaced by new ones. [editline]29th September 2011[/editline] Also just one correction to the info in your post. The Transformer doesn't have the best tablet screen, the Galaxy Tab 10.1 does. It's a super PLS screen which offers better viewing angles and brightness compared to IPS.

Transformer looks fucking horrible IRL.

Would you actually use the physical keyboard? I would imagine that having the Asus Transformer would make typing shit for school far easier. (Although, virtual keyboards aren't all too bad, especially with the swift keyboard)

[QUOTE=Underline;32555089] (Although, virtual keyboards aren't all too bad, especially with the swift keyboard) [/QUOTE] Tactile feedback. Touchscreen just can't compare to physical keys when it comes to that. And for some people (including me) that is a [B]MUST[/B].

Touchscreen keyboards are easy to get used to, you absolutely do not require a hardware one, you just don't want to bother without.

[QUOTE=Protocol7;32555580]Touchscreen keyboards are easy to get used to, you absolutely do not require a hardware one, you just don't want to bother without.[/QUOTE] Been trying for months, Can't. People are different, you didn't factor that in.

[QUOTE=Van-man;32556170]Been trying for months, Can't. People are different, you didn't factor that in.[/QUOTE] I was the same way, but I got used to it, I'm pretty sure it's possible to acclimate yourself to touchscreen-only input. On a tablet it's really easy anyway with the big screen and if you really want to do serious work on it, just use your money to get a real laptop.

[QUOTE=Jasun;32551133]Transformer looks fucking horrible IRL.[/QUOTE] Yet you own a Xoom, one of the thickest, heaviest and least ergonomic tablets. Stop presenting your opinions as facts. If I were to claim "The Galaxy Tab 10.1 is the best tablet" I wouldn't be correct because it's all subjective. If I claim "The Galaxy Tab 10.1 has the best screen and is the thinnest tablet" then I am correct because the S-PLS screen is the equivalent of the IPS panels on other tablets but with a better viewing angle and better brightness. And it’s the thinnest because it has the least depth of any tablet on the market. These are facts that can be backed up with real world evidence. The claim “Transformer looks fucking horrible IRL.” Is just your opinion.

[QUOTE=garrynohome;32556583]Yet you own a Xoom, one of the thickest, heaviest and least ergonomic tablets. Stop presenting your opinions as facts. If I were to claim "The Galaxy Tab 10.1 is the best tablet" I wouldn't be correct because it's all subjective. If I claim "The Galaxy Tab 10.1 has the best screen and is the thinnest tablet" then I am correct because the S-PLS screen is the equivalent of the IPS panels on other tablets but with a better viewing angle and better brightness. And it’s the thinnest because it has the least depth of any tablet on the market. These are facts that can be backed up with real world evidence. The claim “Transformer looks fucking horrible IRL.” Is just your opinion.[/QUOTE] I've owned both, and compared to the other tablets on the market, the copper brown look of it does look bad.

[QUOTE=Jasun;32556829]I've owned both, and compared to the other tablets on the market, the copper brown look of it does look bad.[/QUOTE] [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fact[/url] [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion[/url] Useful reading material. It's actually disturbing how you can't comprehend the concept that your opinions aren't universal.

[QUOTE=garrynohome;32556882][url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fact[/url] [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion[/url] Useful reading material. It's actually disturbing how you can't comprehend the concept that your opinions aren't universal.[/QUOTE] I didn't even say it was a fact. Sorry, I forgot you're not allowed to express opinions on a forum, that would be silly. The best thing to do OP would be go to an electronics store and look at the display models. Get a feel of what each tablet is like and find out what you would prefer.

[QUOTE=Jasun;32556932]I didn't even say it was a fact. Sorry, I forgot you're not allowed to express opinions on a forum, that would be silly. [/QUOTE] Opinions are encouraged, if they're presented as opinions. The words "I think" separate a fact from an opinion. Nice job attacking an argument I never made.

[QUOTE=Protocol7;32556256]I was the same way, but I got used to it, I'm pretty sure it's possible to acclimate yourself to touchscreen-only input.[/QUOTE] Yeah, never gonna happen for me. I'm the type of person that would sell a kidney and a lung for a phone with a keyboard that feels like typing on a IBM Model M keyboard. Touchscreen is (for me) shit for typing more than a 5 word sentence with short words.

I would go for the Asus Transformer, why? It looks better, got more functionality(Incl. keyboard and touchpad), and as it seems a better mod community(Roms, swmods, etc). It also has 2x usb 2.0 ports like the Acer.

Didn't the EEE Pad Slider just come out? That may be a good choice.

Thanks for all the input guys. So I saw that Protocol7 brought up the fact of getting a notebook. I really just don't want to get a laptop. I feel that a tablet would be just a little more appealing to my wants. For example, lets say I got the Transformer and was at school. In the morning I have English and then Communication Technologies. For English I could use the tablet with the dock and takes notes and work on papers, and then in ComTech I could pop the screen off the dock and then hold the tablet and can browse the web. A laptop could do all those things but when I get home I don't need a laptop kicking around, as I already have my pc. Some will argue my logic but whatever. As far as the EEE Pad Slider goes, I really do like the design of the keyboard but I don't know how sturdy the product actually is. It looks like if you moved it in the wrong fashion it could break. The gains of having the keyboard build in are nice, but compared to the Transformer, the keyboard really doesn't do much as far as battery life is concerned. Garrynohome said I should wait until after xmas to buy a tablet because the new ones will be coming out. Well if the new ones are coming out does that not mean that the old ones will drop in price, and the new ones be over $600? I will probably wait until after xmas anyways so I can get some money rounded up to buy one. If you own a tablet yourself please feel free to share which one and why you love/hate it.

[QUOTE=1337sause;32563698]Thanks for all the input guys. So I saw that Protocol7 brought up the fact of getting a notebook. I really just don't want to get a laptop. I feel that a tablet would be just a little more appealing to my wants. For example, lets say I got the Transformer and was at school. In the morning I have English and then Communication Technologies. For English I could use the tablet with the dock and takes notes and work on papers, and then in ComTech I could pop the screen off the dock and then hold the tablet and can browse the web. A laptop could do all those things but when I get home I don't need a laptop kicking around, as I already have my pc. Some will argue my logic but whatever. As far as the EEE Pad Slider goes, I really do like the design of the keyboard but I don't know how sturdy the product actually is. It looks like if you moved it in the wrong fashion it could break. The gains of having the keyboard build in are nice, but compared to the Transformer, the keyboard really doesn't do much as far as battery life is concerned. Garrynohome said I should wait until after xmas to buy a tablet because the new ones will be coming out. Well if the new ones are coming out does that not mean that the old ones will drop in price, and the new ones be over $600? I will probably wait until after xmas anyways so I can get some money rounded up to buy one. If you own a tablet yourself please feel free to share which one and why you love/hate it.[/QUOTE] The new ones would probably be the same price as the old ones when they first launched. So ASUS will probably launch something like a transformer 2 for $400 or so.

I like the transformer, the external keyboard is great, lets me mount 2 SD cards and expands my battery life instead of draining it, like a bluetooth keyboard.

[QUOTE=garrynohome;32557016]Opinions are encouraged, if they're presented as opinions. The words "I think" separate a fact from an opinion. Nice job attacking an argument I never made.[/QUOTE] Uhh I think does not always precede an opinion. An opinion is simply a statement made on a subjective metter. "X is the best tablet." is an opinion regardless of the presence of an "I think". You are really not as smart as you think.

I was told in PC World and Comet that anything bigger than 7 inch doesn't have android marketplace unless you install rooted firmware that voids your warranty. But they don't like to mention this beforehand.

[QUOTE=Jawalt;32600772]Uhh I think does not always precede an opinion. An opinion is simply a statement made on a subjective metter. "X is the best tablet." is an opinion regardless of the presence of an "I think". You are really not as smart as you think.[/QUOTE] That's quite funny. I don't think you're as smart as you think you are either. But with you it seems during an argument you'll "forget" parts of it that have too much solid evidence against them instead of either admitting you were wrong or continuing to debate.

[QUOTE=garrynohome;32605000]That's quite funny. I don't think you're as smart as you think you are either. But with you it seems during an argument you'll "forget" parts of it that have too much solid evidence against them instead of either admitting you were wrong or continuing to debate.[/QUOTE] Best strawman ever.

if you dont want a netbook add-on get the galaxy tab 10.1 it has a super pls screen (a generation ahead of ips), haptic feedback, and is the lightest tablet available. the downside is that its 500 bucks and apple has the gt 10.1 on its shitlist so who knows what will happen to future updates

[QUOTE=Bilsta1000;32604944]I was told in PC World and Comet that anything bigger than 7 inch doesn't have android marketplace unless you install rooted firmware that voids your warranty. But they don't like to mention this beforehand.[/QUOTE]Sounds like they are intentionally misleading you into buying something else. Ask to see a working display model.

I actually just picked up a Nook Color for a tablet. While not on the high side of computing nor even made to be a tablet, it does have a strong sense of being a tablet and works well for most situations. But if you're going to be doing heavier processing work, you'll want to sink a lot more money. Take a look at the Viewsonic tablets. One of them does dual booting to Android and Windows.

[QUOTE=psp401.com;32615439]I actually just picked up a Nook Color for a tablet. While not on the high side of computing nor even made to be a tablet, it does have a strong sense of being a tablet and works well for most situations. But if you're going to be doing heavier processing work, you'll want to sink a lot more money. Take a look at the Viewsonic tablets. One of them does dual booting to Android and Windows.[/QUOTE] I have found that Windows 7 is not very tablet friendy

I thought the keyboard dock for the transformer was sold separately and cost like $150? Still I want one so bad..

[QUOTE=SSBMX;32616970]I have found that Windows 7 is not very tablet friendy[/QUOTE] That is very true, I can attest having an Acer Iconia Tab W500. Not very tablet friendly, but it'll work.

The kindle fire(besides the screen size/res) has pretty impressive specs, especially for the price point.