Past 1st base with android tablet, now to learn............................

Legacy_user

So you've got an android tablet and you have learnt how to aquire apps for use within wifi range, but what then?

No doubt there will be times when you are not able to use wifi, rail journeys for example, so can the tablet be used then ?. being a very new convert to tablets, this is something I'd like to know more about. Elsewhere I read that a film could be downloaded and saved to use when out of wifi range. Or maybe it could be a missed tv program. Perhaps anyone with a tad more experience might be happy to enlighten those of us that are still learning please.

Lokolo

If you have a tablet which has 3G. And you have a SIM with 3G allowance (either PAYG/Contract) then you will be able to access without WiFi but where there is strong mobile signal.

http://shop.vodafone.co.uk/shop/mobile-broadband-plans/vodafone-business-connected-12mon

This is the one I have, but I only pay £10 a month because I haggled it down. I use it on my train journeys, but when I get on the tube I use Virgin Medias WiFi.

bob_a_builder

t. Elsewhere I read that a film could be downloaded and saved to use when out of wifi range. Or maybe it could be a missed tv program

There will 'shortly' (not sure how shortly) be a new version of an iPlayer app that will allow you to download and watch later (for 30 days) - IOS version already exists/works

Lifeforms

islandman wrote: »

So you've got an android tablet and you have learnt how to aquire apps for use within wifi range, but what then?

Not all apps need to be on wifi, some games for example. Other apps like note can be used with wifi or without, with wifi generally syncing them somewhere like google docs

islandman wrote: »

No doubt there will be times when you are not able to use wifi, rail journeys for example, so can the tablet be used then ?.

Yes if you can get wifi on the train (for example) Be aware though that you have no idea who could be "spying" on the free/paid wifi. Treat it as unsecure, and never do things like online banking, or passwords/usernames at all, at all!

You can buy what is a called a Mifi unit, which provides a secured wifi (set the key!) for use where you wont have wifi. Depends on the phone signal, naturally, milage varies, as does cost, and limits on the sims needed. Generally you can get locked ones to certain networks, voda, 3 being an example, but you can also buy off likes of ebay, and then buy sim cards on top to suit your own time/needs AND it is usually way cheaper than a contract on a mifi unit.

islandman wrote: »

Elsewhere I read that a film could be downloaded and saved to use when out of wifi range. Or maybe it could be a missed tv program.

Short answer, yes. Long answer will depend on the hardware and software used. Iplayer on iOS allows downloads, but not quite yet on Android. You can rip your films onto a suitable format, but you will need to either experiment with formats and encoding to suit your tablet. If you can use things like Buzz player (i use on ipad ios) that will play almost all formats, but again depends if your tablet can actually cope with it, sound ok, and be decent enough spec to play it without killing it. Google'ing the tablet and playing video should give you more information.

As to streaming services, you will need to have a wifi connection and be aware streaming will eat your internet fast. Also worth noting for your home wifi set up as you will probably have a limit on that, and any streaming uses data up quickly.

The other aspect of this is physical size of it inside. If it's only a few GB of space, then several films/programs will fast eat this space up and can cause problems. If you have expandable devices, ie able to throw in an SD card, you can fit more films/tv on that.

System

All extremely useful information which I must read again slowly and digest when the opportunity arises (currently have visitors)

DCFC79

Any other questions we can help with ?

System

DCFC79 wrote: »

Any other questions we can help with ?

Do you mean me (O/P) or iam21needhelp ?

If you mean me, I have discovered an Android Tablet Forum recently and have made mention of it elsewhere, but rather than cause an issue by repeating myself, you might like to seek out my posts if you're interested.

DCFC79

islandman wrote: »

Do you mean me (O/P) or iam21needhelp ?

If you mean me, I have discovered an Android Tablet Forum recently and have made mention of it elsewhere, but rather than cause an issue by repeating myself, you might like to seek out my posts if you're interested.

I meant yourself, yes i saw the post about the other forum.

System

So maybe I don't need the other forum, with your number of posts and your number of thanks, you must be doing /helping many.

DCFC79

islandman wrote: »

So maybe I don't need the other forum, with your number of posts and your number of thanks, you must be doing /helping many.

Not saying theres nothing wrong with dedicated forums, it can be good to use other forums to get wider opinions etc.

Im a newbie to tablets myself, not to android as im on my third android product so far.

Daz2009

I'm a recent convert to Android tablets.
First thing I did was to get a 32Gb memory card,nothing worse that not having enough storage.
Now install your apps....most apps work offline.I have a couple of newspaper apps that download the latest news in the morning before I go out and then read offline later.
Then I installed a few e-book readers and downloaded some books....you can get free e-books from your local library.
Then I've loaded a dozen or so films onto the tablet.
If you're into games the play store has a massive choice.
You can do all this on wi-fi so no charge and then you've got plenty of stuff to be doing when you're not online.
Want to go online when you're away from your wi-fi connection ? Well if your mobile phone allows tethering use the data from the phone and connect your tablet to the the phone via wi-fi and you're good to go, just watch your data usage.