Tablets Created 10 years ago2013-08-20 16:22:55 UTC by Striker

Newly added in the category of "shit I don't need, but imma buy anyway" is the tablet.

After buying a budget price 10" tablet and seeing the horrible quality( performance-wise it was excellent, but battery life and screen were appaling) I began being more skeptical. The thing is, for the amount of time I've used it, I thought it was pretty useful in "consuming" stuff from the web. It could even help me relax more as I can go earlier to bed, and even if I don't fall asleep at least laying in the bed is better than standing on a chair for 2 more hours. After 2 days the tablet's screen got broken so I sent it to the service. I requested the money back because I don't need that crap anymore.

Now after doing some research people recommended me the Asus Memo Pad HD 7. It's not top notch quality, and only 7 inch, but it has an IPS screen, good performance and most importantly, 10 hours of battery life. I guess it would be perfect for my commutes. The only thing I'm concerned about is the screen size. I realize now that 10inch is a bit big for public places, but isn't 7 inch too small to view videos? For reading it must be ok.

I wouldn't have posted this thread if I wasn't having 2 options. If the tablet was the only thing I wished to buy, I'd go for it, or maybe wait for a 10". But for a lot of time I wanted to buy an SSD for my notebook, and this is the alternative to the tablet: 128Gb 2.5 inch Samsung 840 Pro Series. The thing is, a notebook is much larger and heavier than a tablet, and I only use it when traveling by train. I rarely carry it with me otherwise.

So I have 2 questions.

1. Do you have a tablet, and if yes, what has it helped you with most?
2. Is it worth spending the money for making my laptop speedier?( and possibly increasing battery life by a few tens of minutes)

I consume most of my television on a 4.8 inch Samsung Galaxy S3 and find it absolutely fine. 7 Inches isn't that small when you're holding it 12" from your face.

Penis joke.

Yup, got a budget model. Battery life wasn't great until I turned the brightness of the screen down. Speakers were far too quiet until I downloaded a booster app. Now it suits me fine.

I use it for browsing the web and watching movies online if I'm around the house, cooking or tidying or whatever. I'd like a laptop for doing more PC stuff but this would still get plenty of use.

1. I don't have a tablet and I don't care about having one. It's like an oversized cellphone that can't make calls (unless you use Skype but that requires wireless network access). Using other people's tablets hasn't been of any use.

2. Yeah, why not.

7 Inches isn't that small when you're holding it 12" from your face.

Hah! GAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYY!

I have a Nexus 7 (previous generation) and I love it. It was a good price, runs great, and gets software updates before anything else. Granted, I only use it for a few things, but even then I think it was worth the price.

@Stu: you might not have a use for one, but they're not all useless toys (especially if it's an android tablet as opposed to ios). I use mine for:

• Ebook reader
• XBMC remote control (don't need that ugly wireless mouse!)
• Streaming video from my NAS box

As well as the standard browsing stuff. Tablets mIght be exclusively for consuming content, but if you consume any content at all, you'd probably find a tablet useful for something or other. For me, the Ebook reader alone justifies the cost of the tablet. Not trying to sell you one or anything, just saying there are plenty of things you can do with one that's not checking Facebook and playing terrible games like most use them for.

I have a Samsung Galaxy Tab2 10.1, and while I initially thought I wouldn't use it as much as my laptop I found that I use it a lot more during the college semester, although that is somewhat related to the fact that my laptop is only partially functional. That said, it is a very useful tool to have for college, as I can have all my textbooks on it in .pdf form, which is not only lighter than carrying a load of books around, but it takes up less desk space. Having a tablet with a 7" screen would only improve that. It's also quite good for web browsing or playing games before the lectures actually start.
Also, if you can get a way to rip DVD's to an .avi (or similar) file, or perhaps use some other popular way to get movies in that format, then it is excellent for watching movies or TV shows while commuting. I find the stylus on mine to be quite useful, as the marks it leaves on the screen are less noticeable than fingerprints. (If you're on a bus, then the changing angle of the sun as the bus moves makes it impossible to always angle the tablet so glare is reduced). Having a total commute/waiting for lectures to start time of around 2 hrs, it generally means I can end up watching a movie a day at least, so it's an excellent way to pass the time.
(I can also use mine as a television remote, which is pretty cool.)

That said, I personally find web browsing on a tablet to be really inconvenient, due to the amount of websites that automatically default to the mobile version (and then sometimes default to it again when you click 'view desktop version'). Plus the fact that on my tablet I am limited to 16 tabs on the browsers I have tried, although that might not be the case with the one that you linked to.

- XBMC remote control (don't need that ugly wireless mouse!)

That's neat. I'd have one for that if I ever had a media box

I've had my hands for a day on a Galaxy Tab2. It works and looks great. Sadly, I can't afford it.

DiscoStu, a tablet is much more than it's advertised. They're meant for regular consumers but with all those sensors and their versatility power they can be used in fun and creative ways. I'd even delve into developing Android applications.

Also, if you can get a way to rip DVD's to an .avi (or similar) file, or perhaps use some other popular way to get movies in that format, then it is excellent for watching movies or TV shows while commuting.

Yeah I'd use Format Factory or Handbrake for that.

Has anyone tried to connect a tablet with an Arduino or Raspberry Pi using an OTG cable or bluetooth/wi-fi ?

What's stopping you from trying?

Well... I don't own one yet.