Tablet/notebook help please

Charlton_King

Looking finally to take advantage of the BT home hub which I've had in the house for nearly a year but only run a desktop pc so far from the hard phone connection.

Sometime soon I'd like to get a portable wi-fi gizmo/netbook/tablet to use elsewhere in the house while the main pc is in use. My problem is that I've heard of the various kinds of devices... but never really taken anything on board!

I'm looking basically for something which is smaller than your average laptop but can handle/display the internet. It has to be relatively user friendly from the 'ease of learning' viewpoint - bear in mind I've only ever used standard, wired connections/mouse etc!

Frankly, I don't even know where to start.

Can anyone offer the benefit of their experience as regards a suitable make/model at a low - average cost?

DCFC79

Well I'll throw in the Nexus 7, I've got 1 and its quite good and price wise its £200 from Tesco, dont know if its any cheaper than that or if you have any Tesco vouchers. It all depends what you want to do with 1. I surf the net, play games, maybe write some a short email, can read e books bought from amazon/google play store, play some music or a radio station, go on google maps and check out various places and read word docs. It only comes with Wifi and not 3G (unless you get the Nexus 10) but you can easily solve that with a few options.

You say something smaller than the average laptop so would a netbook do or do you want something like a tablet/ipad. When tablet is talked about its anything non apple stuff.

neilwoods

Samsung Galaxy tab 2 10.1, if you want something a little bigger than 7". Ideal for browsing, facebook, emails, films, books (indoors), music. £237 from o2 at the moment (last time i checked)

Wickwar

Nexus 7 all the way

Charlton_King

Thanks for the advice, guys.

Jakeandme

10" screen MSI U180 net book from Argos under £200 will do everything you asked, not good for hardcore gaming.

I Player no problem and You Tube movies OK as long as you have half decent connection to net.

No problem with connection to public WI FI.

And the keyboard is good, like a 10" tablet with keyboard what more do you need.

james123

Personally i would get a tablet, like the nexus or galaxy stated above, with touch screen etc , BUT i have used android phones and am happy to try something new. IF you would prefer to stick to what you know i think jakeandme's suggestion is all but perfect, it is basically a small laptop with a keyboard and windows operating system(but without the disc drive) that you would be used to, also you could more than likely plug in a mouse. As stated they dont have a lot of "grunt", but are more than enough for websites / email / facebook etc. Good luck with whatever you choose!

Jim

NiftyDigits

MSI Wind U180 £133.94

tyllwyd

What do you actually want to do with the new device? I've looked at a friend's nexus 7, and it is very smart but since the screen is so small I found it limited in what you would want to do. My OH has a netbook, and that is great for just picking up and looking at emails etc - it is heavier than a tablet, but you can sit with it on your lap without having to hold the screen so it is very easy to use.

Cisco001

Acer B1 is another cheap tablet.