The Big Picture
Tablets are becoming almost as essential as
smartphones. Here’s a survey of what to look for in these devices.
Any tablet will let you do email, browse
Web pages, read books, play music and games, and watch movies and videos. And
any tablet can run apps for everything from balancing your checkbook to writing
the next great American novel. Before choosing your tablet, you should decide
if you're already committed to a particular app and entertainment ecosystem. An
iPhone user with a large iTunes library and an affinity for iOS apps, for
instance, will probably want to stick with an iPad (despite its weight and other
limitations).
Tablets
are becoming almost as essential as smartphones
If you’re not in that camp, consider how
you will use your tablet. Are you a multi-tasker who needs to run several apps
at once? That might be a job best left to Microsoft’s Windows RT tablets. Do
you use Amazon Prime services? The Kindle Fire HD’s e-reading focus and its
well-integrated media-streaming capabilities might eclipse its app limitations.
Ditto for the Barnes & Noble Nook HD,
which will offer the highest pixel density on 7 and 9 inch displays we’ve yet
seen.
Most other tablets on the market run some
version of Google's Android operating system. Look for models that are Google
"certified" and that have Google’s Play Store preinstalled. The
latest models will run Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich). Google’s own Nexus 7
has an even newer version, Android 4.1 (Jelly Bean). Many Android tablets
provide USB ports, expansion slots, more built-in storage for the price, and
better file-management capabilities than Apples iPad.
Samsung’s
Galaxy Note 10.1 is a great choice for anyone who wants the option of using a
stylus with their tablet.
The Specs Explained
Storage:
More is better. File sizes increase right along with resolution, and if your
device has a fixed amount of storage, you’ll find yourself constantly swapping
content between it and the cloud or your computer. Avoid tablets with less than
16GB of memory. MicroSD card slots that allow you to add more storage are de
rigueur on most Android tablets. You don't get a slot on an iPad, of course, so
think hard about how much capacity you need before buying one.
Processor:
This spec is fraught with thorns. A mix of dual and quad-core ARM-based
processors dominate these days, but some platforms simply tout
"multicore" technology without disclosing the precise number of cores
available for any specific task.
Even within a processor family, you'll find
no consistency. Nvidia’s quad-core Tegra 3 processor has been a solid performer
on some of our test metrics, such as graphics; but it isn't as strong on
others, such as Web browsing. And not all Tegra 3 chips run at the same speed
or deliver the same oomph.
Samsung uses its own Exynos processor for
its tablets, while Apple employs its own A5 and A5X chips. Texas Instruments’
dual-core OMAP 4460 and 4470 each have plenty of traction, and Qualcomm's
quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro will appear in some new tablets soon. Be sure to
avoid tablets with single-core CPUs; they just aren't worth your money.
If you're considering a Windows tablet, the
processor game becomes far more critical. The CPU not only determines which
version of Windows you get, but also governs what you can do with the tablet. A
Windows tablet based on an ARM processor, such as Nvidia’s Tegra 3 or
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon S4 Pro, will be limited to running Windows RT; it won't
run Windows 8. Without Windows 8, you can't run the same apps that you use on a
laptop or desktop PC. For that, you need a tablet using an x86-based processor,
such as Intel's Atom “Clover Trail" or AMD's "Hondo" series of
low-power CPUs, or one of Intel's Core processors.
Memory: Most
tablets have 1GB of memory consider that a minimum. Models based on Qualcomm’s
Snapdragon S4 Pro are expected to pack 2GB. The added memory facilitates
multitasking.
Ports: The
iPad has just one proprietary port, and dongles (for HDMI, SD Cards, and USB
cameras) that attach to it are the antithesis of Apple chic. Other tablets
offer a slew of ports, including HDMI and Micro-USB. Some tablets also provide
a full-size USB port, which is handy for connecting memory-card readers and USB
flash drives.
Stylus: A
stylus is the perfect tool for handwriting notes, signing and annotating
documents, and drawing diagrams and pictures. But aftermarket capacitive
styluses lack the accuracy and palm-rejection capabilities of active
digitizers. If these features are important to you, give Samsung’s 10.1-inch
Galaxy Note a look. Some upcoming Windows 8 tablets will also have digitizers.
Keyboard dock: Some tablets come with an integrated dock and keyboard option that
transforms the tablet into a clamshell style laptop, complete with a touchpad,
an additional USB port or two, an SD Card slot, and, in many cases, an extra
built-in battery.
Profiles:
Plan to share your new tablet with the family? Apple’s iPad has restrictions
that provide a degree of parental control. Amazon's coming Kindle Fire HD will
have a similar feature. But with its new Nooks, Barnes & Noble is the only
tablet maker offering full-bore password protected profiles for up to six
users.
Google's
Nexus 7, with 16GB of storage and the latest version of Android, was selling
for $250 recently.
Buying Tips
Look for deals on previous-generation models: We can't say "last year's" models because some outdated tablets
are less than a year old the market is developing that quickly. You might find
close-out deals on older models with dual-core processors running Android 3.x
(Honeycomb), for instance. These tablets can handle the basics, such as email
and Web browsing. If you decide to buy an older model, however, choose one that
has a steep discount. After all, in September, Google's new 8GB Tegra 3-based
Nexus 7 was selling for only $200, and the even more useful 16GB model was
priced just $50 higher.
Don't buy a tablet on contract: Many mobile carriers offer tablets at subsidized prices, but the
up-front savings rarely pays off over the life of a two year contract. Tablet
technology is advancing so rapidly that you might be ready to sell or hand down
your current tablet within a year or even sooner.
Look at the apps and the media: Check the Apple, Amazon, and Google stores to see what's available and
what’s missing. If you know of titles, games, or arcane subjects for which you
need apps, see if the tablet's ecosystem supports them. All three brands have
newsstands and book, music, and video stores, as well. So check: Are your
favorite flicks or TV shows available?
