At the recent Consumer Electronics Show, you couldn’t walk a foot without tripping over a tablet. These lightweight, touch screen computers are all the rage, thanks to the success of Apple's iPad. UPDATED FOR HOLIDAYS 2011
But if you’re considering a tablet (Apple’s or otherwise) there’s a few things you need to know.
What’s a Tablet?
A tablet is a cross between a feeble laptop and a smartphone on steroids. Tablets combine some of the best and worst qualities of those two other mobile computing platforms. With screen sizes ranging from five to 10 inches (measured diagonally) and thicknesses under an inch and weights in the pound-and-a-half range, they’re considerably lighter and more portable than even the slenderest netbook. They have longer-lasting batteries than netbooks too—approaching 10 hours, depending on the application.
Tablets offer the same wireless connectivity options as a smartphone: You can connect them to the Internet via 3G connections (with a subscription) or use Wi-Fi. If your needs are more local, you can skip the cellular connection and purchase a Wi-Fi-only tablet, which will be less expensive than one with both Wi Fi and cellular radios. Also, like the new crop of high-end smartphones, tablets are also increasingly offering cameras, both front- and rear-facing, allowing you to snap pictures and record video or conduct video chats over services like Skype. But given their size and the relatively low quality of the rear camera, tablets aren’t very practical for snapping pictures (nor are the pictures they take any good).
Not (Yet) a Laptop Replacement
While tablets are increasingly upping their processing power, they still lag behind the processing available in your average laptop, particularly when it comes to processing power for the price. That means that when it comes to playing games, or editing photos or videos, tablets can’t keep pace with a traditional notebook. Nor do they pack as much internal memory. Tablets rely on flash memory, which means they start up very quickly and can be jostled without fear of ruining your data, but they don’t offer the same kinds of capacities you’ll find on inexpensive netbooks. Most entry-level netbooks offer 160GB hard disc drives, while most tablets supply just 4-to-8GB of internal flash memory, and at most 64GB (although you can expand this if the tablet accepts SD cards).
So tablets are, if not strictly for entertainment, certainly better suited for surfing the web, light emailing, e-book reading, and some basic game playing. The lack of a fixed keyboard makes extended typing a chore. You can add accessory keyboards to most tablets if you like, but that adds to cost, and those keyboards aren’t as robust as your typical laptop keyboard.
Operating Systems
If tablets aren’t up to the task of laptop replacement, they do offer a wider choice of operating systems than is found in the laptop market, where your choice is essentially Mac OS or Windows. When it comes to tablet operating systems, it’s a two-horse race between Apple’s iOS (found only on the iPad) and Google’s Android, which is popular on a variety of tablets from manufacturers such as Dell, Motorola, Archos, and Samsung. But there other operating system options as well, including Windows, RIM/Blackberry, and HP’s WebOS. Right now, none of these other operating systems offer the breadth of applications available for either Apple or Google’s operating system, so if it’s loads of software choices you want, the established platforms are the way to go.
Apple Alternatives
While Apple has cornered the hype market, there is a healthy crop of alternative tablet models to consider:
Asus 32GB Eee Pad TF101 Transformer Tablet
Tablets are growing in features and functionality and a shining example of that is the Asus 32GB Eee Pad TF101 Transformer Tablet ($499.99). The tablet is one of the latest generation of devices that sport the Android 3.0 Honeycomb operating system that was designed specifically for tablet operations. The Eee Pad TF101 features an nVidia dual core Tegra 2 processor and has a storage capacity of 32GB. Its 10.1 inch touch pad has a 1280 x 800 resolution and comes with a 1.2MP front camera and a 5MP rear facing camera. Weighing in at under 2 pounds, its provides 9.5 hours battery time or 16 hours with an optional dock so that users are confident a full workday's use
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Motorola’s Xoom is one of the first models to incorporate Google’s Android Honeycomb operating system, the first built specifically for tablets (earlier Android tablets are running the same OS as the one found on mobile phones). It’s also one of the first tablets equipped to handle faster 4G wireless networks, although it’s also available in a less expensive Wi-Fi only option too. The Xoom boasts a pair of cameras: 5-megapixel in the rear and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera for video calling along with 32GB of internal memory.
Creative Labs ZiiO
Sometimes a full-sized tablet is too bulky for a mobile user and they look to the smaller 7-inch format to meet their needs. Waiting for them is the Creative Labs ZiiO 7 inch 8GB Wireless Tablet ($239). The tablet has a 7-inch TFT display with 480x800 resolution and comes with 8GB of Flash Memory as storage. It is powered by the ZiiLABS ZMS-08 HD Media-Rich Applications Processor and operates using the Android 2.1 operating system. Creative has built in the ability to wirelessly stream music via Bluetooth to Bluetooth-enabled headsets or speakers.
