How on earth does one choose a tablet?

bundly

I just broke my Asus Eee PC and rather than pay to have it mended, this is an opportunity to drag myself into the 21st century and get something that will replace my camera, ancient mobile phone, oldfashioned MP3 player and also allow me to get on the Net whenever I am travelling or out and about.

I've never used a tablet, my sole experience is seeing them used by people on trains etc. But I went online to take a look and am left bewildered by the hugely wide range of choice. When I read the list of spec. my eyes glaze over. I understand about 2% of what I read!

How on earth can one make up one's mind?

Should I go to PC World and get them to go through everything with me, or learn all about them on the internet?

Any suggestions?

GunJack

don't ask pcw !!!! sure way to open yourself up to the wallet-wrenching tactics employed by their sales staff.. impartial advice on here is far better

zaax

Pay £500+ for an ipad or £200+ for Asus Nexus or Samsung Galaxy note for an in between price, though you will have to add a keyboard on top of those prices.

Of course you could buy a netbook.

bundly

zaax wrote: »

Pay £500+ for an ipad or £200+ for Asus Nexus or Samsung Galaxy note for an in between price, though you will have to add a keyboard on top of those prices.

Of course you could buy a netbook.

My broken Eee PC is a netbook. I don't even know what the difference is between a Netbook and a Tablet :-(

OK Gunjack - here I am! I wasn't planning on buying from PCW, just getting their staff to explain everything and show me a few machines. Once I'd chosen one I would then come home and search the net for the best price. ( I'd go out without my debit or credit cards, just my return bus ticket!!!)

macman

Decide first what OS you want-iOS or Android. Then screen size. Then w-fi, or wi-fi and £G.All else follows from that.
A netbook runs a conventional laptop/PC OS and has a keyboard. A tablet has a virtual keyboard and runs a specialised OS.

bundly

Thanks Macman.

I don't have a budget. Given my propensity to break things I will go for the cheaper, which Zaxx says is not an Apple type machine.

I have no idea of the difference between w-fi and wi-fi. All I want is to be able to connect to the net without having to plug anything in.

womble12345

If you want to connect to the internet when out and about you will either need to find a wifi hotspot when out and about or for greater flexibility get a tablet with 3G and then you will need to buy a SIM (like the one in your phone) and put that in it.

Sounds to me like you need to fully list what you want to use this new device for and then people on her can advise, without that information noone can give you any useful advice.

Gettin256

Completely agree with above, figure out what it is you want to use it for.

My requirements were a 10" screen, thought 7" was a bit too small, and I only needed wifi, not 3g as would only be using it at home. Haivng read every review going for a tablet within that remit, i ended up with the google nexus 10 and i absolutely love it.

bundly

Well, I am not bothered about the camera as I have a new digital one. What I want MOST of all is to surf the net without having to use a wifi hotspot. I've just come back from abroad and found it really frustrating not being able to get on the net and find out about trains etc.

I like the price and spec of this one BUT I think I need a 10 or 11 inch screen as my eyesight isn't great.

http://www.tesco.com/direct/acer-iconia-79-hd-a1-810-16gb-white/161-9004.prd?sc_cmp=ppc_g_+acer%20+iconia%20+a1_b&gclid=CKvUtaDs2bkCFXLLtAodXiQAgQ

womble12345

bundly wrote: »

Does this one look good?

http://www.tesco.com/direct/acer-iconia-79-hd-a1-810-16gb-white/161-9004.prd?sc_cmp=ppc_g_+acer%20+iconia%20+a1_b&gclid=CKvUtaDs2bkCFXLLtAodXiQAgQ

That depends on what you need it for...

bundly

womble12345 wrote: »

That depends on what you need it for...

Only for travelling away from home, mainly by train, and staying in hotels which don't all have wifi in rooms or free. Also I need to write emails and hate the tiny keyboard so if I can plug in an external keyboard that would be great!

Would like to be able to watch iPlayer. Be nice to ditch my MP3 player and plug my earphones into the tablet, too.