Small Android Tablets

camcondor

camcondor

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I must be going a bit :Eeek: ordered a 7" Android tablet for £40 as I am curious about Android vs Apple and I want to see for myself........I love my ipad2 and iphone 4s, don't feel the need to "upgrade". But was very curious as to what Android offers, so a new toy is en route :Eeek::Eeek:

At least I can connect it to the mifi thingy I got over the weekend and don't have to have separate data sims for all these electronic gadgies!
 
JJ said:
When making the comparison I trust you will do like for like and compare the Android device with the £40 Apple equivalent. :Wink:
JJ :Cool:
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It will also depend which Android operating system you are operating. An earlier one will be less good than the latest version.:thumb:
 
JJ said:
When making the comparison I trust you will do like for like and compare the Android device with the £40 Apple equivalent. :Wink:

JJ :Cool:
Click to expand...

I am not getting into the "I hate Apple and must try put-downs at every possible opportunity" arguments, JJ. I love our Apple devices, they have been pure class compared to the sometimes junky and short-lived Windows equivalents, there is a considerable price difference, but often its a case of you get what you pay for, which means I am not expecting a lot from a £40 device, really.

Added to which, many millions more cheap devices are made, which helps to bring their prices down, compared to the Apple equipment.

I am just keen on actually doing a comparison for myself, rather than relying on the biased opinions of others. :Eeek: and having both, I can then benefit from the good points of each device! :thumb:
 
buttons said:
It will also depend which Android operating system you are operating. An earlier one will be less good than the latest version.:thumb:
Click to expand...


I believe its the latest one, Buttons - Jelly Bean something or other. 4.1 or 4.2?

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a £40 android device will be pants:Doh:
im a android user and have compared android to apple products Samsung to apple iphone,although i like the iphone i hate the apple operating system.
also the ipad against the motorola xoom,again the build quality of the apple products are fantastic.
perfect combination would be an ipad or iphone with the android operating system:thumb:
 
camcondor said:
I believe its the latest one, Buttons - Jelly Bean something or other. 4.1 or 4.2?
Click to expand...
£40 sounds like a good deal. I have a couple of Android devices, An S2 for 3 years and a Note 10.1 for over a year. Extremely happy with both. We also have Iphone 4s and an ipad mini which are also good bits of kit.:thumb:
 
chrisgreen said:
a £40 android device will be pants:Doh:
im a android user and have compared android to apple products Samsung to apple iphone,although i like the iphone i hate the apple operating system.
also the ipad against the motorola xoom,again the build quality of the apple products are fantastic.
perfect combination would be an ipad or iphone with the android operating system:thumb:
Click to expand...

I guess we are all individuals with different opinions or the world would be very boring :Smile: I have loved Apple products and we have Mac desktops, laptops, ipods, iphones and ipads.......... The OS has been just fine for our Apple stuff.

As for Android, I had an experience years ago with T-Mobiles early Android phones, a G1 I think it was, which more or less put me off forever, so I am hoping its improved a bit. The 7" tablet I ordered was marked down from from over £100, so will see. I am not expecting much, but a lot of people have been very positive about the small Android tablets and I just wanted to see for myself.
 
I am not expecting a lot from a £40 device, really.

If it is a good android I think you will be pleasantly surprised, we had a nexus 7 each last Xmas and Julie is never off hers, but I won a ipad in a raffle and as it has a larger screen I tend to use that now but not because i think it is better in any other way.
And as for sat nav on nexus, they just can't be beat , better than any sat nav I have had and I have had a few.
The ipad with no gps is no good for that at all.

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chrisgreen said:
a £40 android device will be pants:Doh:
im a android user and have compared android to apple products Samsung to apple iphone,although i like the iphone i hate the apple operating system.
also the ipad against the motorola xoom,again the build quality of the apple products are fantastic.
perfect combination would be an ipad or iphone with the android operating system:thumb:
Click to expand...
Not sure about the latest iphones but I prefer the build quality of my S2 to that of my 4S. Used my S2 every day for nearly 3 years and it don't even have a scratch on it. My 4S is cumbersome in comparison to my S2. :thumb:
 
camcondor said:
I am just keen on actually doing a comparison for myself
Click to expand...

Fine, as long as you compare the OS rather than the hardware. It would unreasonable to judge the screen speed and touch quality with that price difference.

Having said that, my £50 ( refurbished ! real price about £100 ) Acer tablet has an excellent screen and quick touch response. And GPS which is why I bought it and made a bracket to sit it in the MH.


Seen it now.
Decent looking tool. Batteries are a place to save cash, so again, don't judge the battery life at that price. Screen is minimum resolution but should be fine at that size and of course a lower resolution means faster refresh speed.

Enjoy.

And if you fancy a bit of Java, there is a full programmers development set FOC available. The native language of Android is Java.
 
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chrisgreen said:
a £40 android device will be pants:Doh:
Click to expand...

You never know this far down the line Chris. It just might come off the production line of last year's red hot Android using last year's hot processor. The screen is much lower resolution than today's offerings but a very high resolution is not needed in 7 inches.

Or it might fall to bits in the post :RollEyes:
 
I think you may be in danger of comparing apples with lemons.

The tablet has a slow dual core processor (most now use quad core) with very little RAM. It is therefore going to much slower and less "slick" than your high end expensive Apple products and also high end and expensive (but still cheaper) Android products. You will also find the screen very poor quality and grainy for the same reason. And you are going to run out of the meagre 4GB of storage very quickly, although, unlike Apple, you can add to that if you want.

But, as you say, each to their own. My technophobe wife loves her iPad and iPhone, and I can see their appeal as a consumer product. But to me they are just too locked down to the "Apple way".

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My mismanager and I treated ourselves to the new Nexus 7 each (on recommendation from he who lives on a hill)!!!

Simply superb!!! No problem reading books on the Kindle app even outside in sunshine, VERY fast. I have not used Android before but once you get used to the apps it is simplicity itself. Thanks Brian. :thumb:
 
peterc10 said:
I think you may be in danger of comparing apples with lemons.

The tablet has a slow dual core processor (most now use quad core) with very little RAM. It is therefore going to much slower and less "slick" than your high end expensive Apple products and also high end and expensive (but still cheaper) Android products. You will also find the screen very poor quality and grainy for the same reason. And you are going to run out of the meagre 4GB of storage very quickly, although, unlike Apple, you can add to that if you want.

But, as you say, each to their own. My technophobe wife loves her iPad and iPhone, and I can see their appeal as a consumer product. But to me they are just too locked down to the "Apple way".
Click to expand...

Not much "danger" and not a lot to lose, actually, just the £40 spent on the tablet. I am pretty dedicated to Apple and am very happy with my iPad, but I also do not fall into the trap of "needing" the latest, greatest, fastest, bestest :Rofl1: of any of these things. "Last year's model" is likely to be ok, in that case. I didn't want to spend £100's or I would have bought an ipad mini, except I would then not have been able to compare the Android /Apple OS/ apps. etc. £40 for a non-essential toy is luxury enough :Eeek:

Generally, I am happy with the "Apple way" and love my iPad2 with no need or desire to rush out and get an iPad 3 or 4 or whatever is next right now, but just wanted to be able to experience the Android small tablet and check out the apps, useability etc for myself. Expanding the memory with a card is no big deal, will take it a step at a time and see if I like it enough to want to invest in a top-end small tablet. As pointed out, at 7" it isn't going to make a massive difference if the screen has x zillion pixels or not :Smile:
 
Quick update and first impressions - tablet arrived very swiftly via Royal Mail, well boxed up, has a mains charger, USB cable and USB adaptor cable for using a dongle. It had a partial charge so was able to check it right away.

Seems reasonable build quality, didn't feel like it would fall to bits that easily, powered up quite simply. I am not used to Android anything so took a bit of fiddling to find my way around. Tablet preloaded with a lot of apps and games.

It was very easy to connect to wifi and the mifi unit too, via wifi. It is also preloaded with drivers for a load of dongles which can be plugged in via the USB port. There is a micro SD slot expandable to 32GB. The unit itself is 4GB storage and 500MB memory. However, apps did load reasonably quickly. Screen resolution decent but not spectacular. Loaded BBC iplayer and the video ran well despite the limited memory.

The sound is a little soft for my liking even when turned to max, but there is a headphone port. Kindle app runs well on it though, loaded up my kindle books easily and was able to read them with ease / screen comfortable and unit light enough to hold in one hand easily.

Basically, for £40 it is excellent and couldn't expect more, I don't think. I do have the option of returning it for full refund within 14 days, but I think we will keep it. Useful for when an ipad may be vulnerable to being damaged or nicked when out and about. I would mourn the loss of a £659 ipad a lot more than this little £40 jobbie.

Time will tell I guess, whether I ever really warm to this OS or not - I love my Apple products and was just interested to see how Android stacks up against Apple.
 
When and if your favoured Ipad goes to that Apple mulching graveyard in the 'Cloud' it might be the time to bite the bullet and try a 'Top End Android Device' and then you would get a true comparison between systems.

I've always had Iphone and Ipad's but in the last three months or so have swapped to a Nexus 4 mobile and Nexus 7 Tablet. I still really like Apple products but wouldn't want to go back to them. I am really impressed with the Android system - much more flexible and controllable.

Rob
 
the only true comparison will be is there anything i can do on my i pad i cant do on android if the answer is no then the android wins hands down considering the 15x price diffence

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mitzimad said:
the only true comparison will be is there anything i can do on my i pad i cant do on android if the answer is no then the android wins hands down considering the 15x price diffence
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I don't think that's necessarily the case, because personal choice plays a very large part in it. After all, you can drive to a destination in an old banger as successfully as you can in a luxury, new vehicle but that doesn't make the comparison between the two the "only true comparison".

I could probably achieve what I set out to do using Android operating system devices just as I can with an ipad, but for me, at this point, the iPad is my preferred choice. As I already have one and don't intend to change it anytime soon, the price differential is irrelevant at this stage.

Luckily for manufacturers of motorhomes, gadgets and everything else, we all have different opinions. Imagine if we all wanted the same generic motorhome
:Eeek::Rofl1:

I really just wanted to have a play with the operating system, the gadget was never intended to replace my ipad.
 
robelee said:
When and if your favoured Ipad goes to that Apple mulching graveyard in the 'Cloud' it might be the time to bite the bullet and try a 'Top End Android Device' and then you would get a true comparison between systems.

I've always had Iphone and Ipad's but in the last three months or so have swapped to a Nexus 4 mobile and Nexus 7 Tablet. I still really like Apple products but wouldn't want to go back to them. I am really impressed with the Android system - much more flexible and controllable.

Rob
Click to expand...

Can never say never, of course, but even our most ancient Apple hardware still soldiers on while the Windows graveyard continues to increase.........the build quality of the Apple stuff does seem a lot better than the rest and the programs generally just work - on our Macs in any case - without loads of hassle.

I will most likely stick with Apple even when this ipad needs replacing, unless I cannot afford the new iPad at that point - as top end android hardware does seem a lot less expensive.
 
I really is a crazy comparison!!!

There is going to be absolutely nothing similar between a £40 Android device and a device costing ten to fifteen times the price.

If you want a true comparison check out the latest Samsung Note 10.1 (2014 Edition) when it is released. That is the equivalent to an iPad, and if it is anywhere near as good as the reviews then it will seriously rock.

I do think an iPad is ideal for people who are not very tech-savvy as they have everything seriously locked down (e.g. no file manager access), but for those who want more flexibility I'd go Android every time.

That said, if all you do is browse the net, check email and play the odd game then even a £40 Android device would probably suffice or even the excellent, if seriously under-rated, Blackberry Playbook would be perfect as for about £100 you can pick up a 64 gig device which is perfect for storing lots of movies on to watch in the MH, and it will plug directly into an HDMI TV with a lead that costs less than five pounds.

The new Kindle Fire looks pretty cool too.
 
yorkieman said:
I really is a crazy comparison!!!

There is going to be absolutely nothing similar between a £40 Android device and a device costing ten to fifteen times the price.

If you want a true comparison check out the latest Samsung Note 10.1 (2014 Edition) when it is released. That is the equivalent to an iPad, and if it is anywhere near as good as the reviews then it will seriously rock.

I do think an iPad is ideal for people who are not very tech-savvy as they have everything seriously locked down (e.g. no file manager access), but for those who want more flexibility I'd go Android every time.

That said, if all you do is browse the net, check email and play the odd game then even a £40 Android device would probably suffice or even the excellent, if seriously under-rated, Blackberry Playbook would be perfect as for about £100 you can pick up a 64 gig device which is perfect for storing lots of movies on to watch in the MH, and it will plug directly into an HDMI TV with a lead that costs less than five pounds.

The new Kindle Fire looks pretty cool too.
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So in your (yorkshire?) opinion I am both crazy and stupid.......... :Eeek:

Well, for the record I don't rate you much either :Eeek::Rofl1::Rofl1:

If you actually bothered to read the thread, the idea of getting a small, cheap Android tablet had nothing whatsoever to do with comparing iPads to £40 devices...........:Eeek:

It however had everything to do with taking an inexpensive look at the difference in operating systems between iOS and Android. :Eeek::Eeek:
 
camcondor said:
Luckily for manufacturers of motorhomes, gadgets and everything else, we all have different opinions. Imagine if we all wanted the same generic motorhome
Click to expand...

Yes. It would be 50% of the price we pay now. And better quality.

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camcondor said:
I would mourn the loss of a £659 ipad a lot more than this little £40 jobbie. .
Click to expand...

Does that not say it all about Apple.

£619 cheaper and the Android is providing you with similar functionality.

About half the Apple price buys the same quality in Android.

But I am a self confessed Apple hater on the basis of the control freak attitude and ripping people off as a fashion item.

One great app I've recently got is MapsWithMe. Free. All the world ( download countries you need ) stored on your tablet.

K9mail for a good mail client.

Copilot Live if you can plug in a GPS.
 
peterc10 said:
AND no more of the dreaded motorhome envy.
Click to expand...

Now extend this to cars !

OK it's "freedom" but just look at the money wasted globally by dozens of makers doing all the research to end up with basically the same solution, a box with wheels to get from A to B.

It was like that in computers once. About half a dozen floppy disk formats. Half a dozen operating systems. Then IBM/Microsoft arrived and within a few years a £5000 purchase became a £500 purchase and the march of the clones decimated PC prices. Even more important, a common disk format, FAT arrived and with it's enhancement rules the roost today.
 
hilldweller said:
Now extend this to cars !

OK it's "freedom" but just look at the money wasted globally by dozens of makers doing all the research to end up with basically the same solution, a box with wheels to get from A to B.
Click to expand...

That sounds remarkably like communism. You can have a choice of car - white or black! And because that is all you can have we will not develop it any more and it will break down regularly and look and drive like a brick.

Errrrr .... not for me thanks, if that's OK with you?

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