The tablet is a device that evokes extreme
emotions, it seems. Some have chucked the laptop into the naughty corner and
adopted the tablet completely. Others are still using both devices, doing some
tasks on one and the rest on the other comfort being the critical keyword.
There is a third category of people however, who still haven't really found the
purpose of the tablet in their lives, between the smartphone and the laptop.
However, it does work well as a device that does a bit of this and a bit of
that web browsing, multimedia, office work and even gaming. To say that it can
replace the laptop solely depends on who is using it, how comfortable he/she is
with an all touchscreen environment to work on. To say that the tablet will
replace the smartphone is a bit of a raff. Agreed, most tablets have a SIM card
slot, but that is only for data usage on the move. Very few tablets offer
voice-calling capability.
To
say that the tablet will replace the smartphone is a bit of a raff. Agreed,
most tablets have a SIM card slot, but that is only for data usage on the move.
Very few tablets offer voice-calling capability
Display Size
There are two sizes being branded about
7-inches and 10-inches. While the 7-inch category does offer what is quoted
(example- the Nexus 7), the 10-inch category seems to have a numbers game
happening. The iPad's have had a 9.7-inch display, while the likes of the
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 have a 10.1-inch display size. While the 7-inch tablet
does have a huge advantage in the portability stakes and to a certain extent as
far as the weight is concerned, the bigger sibling does offer a slightly better
web, multimedia and gaming experience.
A larger 10-inch display does give you more
room to play with as well as enjoy the content on a bigger screen. It's ideal
for people who love to show off their art-work or have to showcase a lot of
presentations to their clients. Gamers would also much rather stick to larger
screen estate as it would enable them to fully enjoy the game to the tilt as
the developers had intended them to. Artists who love to be creative on-the-go,
will also be more drawn to large displays which will allow them to be more
carefree with their art. No matter what OS and which app they use, a larger
display surely has more pros than cons.
Samsung
Galaxy Tab 10.1-inch
But, if you are looking to have the tablet
experience in a more compact screen size, then the best way to go is for a
7-inch tablet. Especially if you are looking for a better browsing experience
than a smartphone on a slightly bigger screen, then the 7-inch tablet brigade
is your best bet. Plus, some people do not really want to carry a 10-inch
device around with them all day, but a 7-inch one is a lot more comfortable.
Hardware
Storage Space
As the saying goes, "the more the
merrier" is aptly true for storage space. At the moment, most high-end
tablets come with 16GB, 32GB and 64GB options, and that is the maximum
available at the moment. Some tablets do not have an expandable memory card
slot (microSD etc.), while others do. Lower end tablets may offer just a meager
1GB or so of internal storage, but make up for it via the expandable memory
slot. With more HD content than ever before and 4K on its way, the need for
storage is always going to increase more and more. As a buyer, you will have to
weigh in the options of various tablets with varying in-built space and microSD
card support. Because you may be able to increase the external storage by
buying a bigger microSD card but the internal storage never increases once you
have bought the device.
Tablet
hardware
There are also other options for storage
like Dropbox and SkyDrive which are being offered by various manufacturers to
lure customers in. These are especially useful when you have to access some
documents on multiple devices or share some pics with different friend circles
or workmates. Also useful for people who are habituated to taking down notes
and want all their smart devices to be synced with such notes, or even the monthly
expense sheets. You can even upload videos to it, but there is a space limit in
these apps. Normally a Dropbox user can expect a max of 25 GB for a limited
period, and SkyDrive is around that much too for certain manufacturers.
Some tablets do not have an expandable
memory card slot (microSD etc.), while others do
RAM
Another component (like internal storage)
which cannot be expanded once you have purchased a tablet, is the RAM. In fact,
every internal hardware component is non-upgradable for tablets, as compared to
laptops where almost everything can be upgraded. So, as a user - if you want to
use multiple apps all the time, then you are better off looking at
mid-to-higher end tabs which offer 1GB of RAM or more. There are certain budget
tablets that also offer 1GB of RAM, but they always tend to have rather
shabbily put together components that cannot fully optimize the hardware with
the in-built software. Higher RAM is also recommended for users who want to use
their tablet for gaming and viewing HD content, but if your primary use of a
tablet is browsing and mails with a little social networking thrown in, then
you can pretty much look at the full array of tablets that fit your budget and
specific needs.
Closely associated with the processor is
the Graphics Processing Unit aka GPU. Certainly a must-have if you want to
spend more time playing casual to high-end games as well as for those who love
watching HD movies in all their glory. There are various GPU manufacturers in
the market, and most tablets have some kind of GPU these days, but you might
want to keep your eye on how much memory is the GPU really giving to the
overall tablet processing.
Processor
Every little activity on a tablet is
handled by the processor and quite simply - the more power it has, the more
information and content a tablet can processor. We've seen dual-core and
quad-core processors explode in the market recently and these can give some of
the laptops a run for their money, with their sheer performance. BUT - since
none of the tablets are upgradable, you cannot really compare them to laptops,
but then again - a tablet is serving different needs to start with.
At the time of writing this article down,
we are hearing certain updates from the tech world that we might see EIGHT-CORE
CPU's being launched at MWC 2013 (Mobile World Congress). Now that will really
up the ante as far as the hardware race is concerned with every manufacturer
trying to out-do the other by providing bigger hardware which will let you do
almost any task you do today on a laptop, on a friendly 10-inch tablet. But,
till that time, weigh in your options and choose a dual-core if you are a
medium-to-heavy app and gaming user and a quad-core if you love gaming more
than home cooked food!
Asus
Eee Pad Transformer
