Help Me Pick a Tablet!

I'm not much of a tablet guy!

However, I have a need for one now. I started getting some PDFs for textbooks and I'd like to pick up a tablet for them. I figure I might as well use it for other things as well and not buy a shit one though. So, I ask my fellow bombers: what should I get?

I'm looking to spend less then $400. Right now I'm looking at the Nexus 10 or a Kindle Fire HD 8.9". I'll probably root and throw cyanogenmod or some ROM on the Kindle if I get it, so I'm not to worried about the OS. Anywyas, any other suggestions are welcome as well, but those are the ones I'm looking at. I might be willing to spring some extra for Xperia Z Tablet, because it looks slick, but I'm really leaning towards the kindle because I have consoles to buy soon!

Edit: I just noticed I can get the Kindle for $200 with a student discount. Pretty tempting. any comments on whether or not the extra 1.9" make it better than the Nexus 7 for the same price especially when reading text books?

I forget how much the Asus transformer is but I loved the hell out of it when I had mines. I even liked it more than the IPAD I had too. The Asus worked more like a pc so I preferred it. More open-source than a Mac.

Its Android but I seriously dont understand the hate for Android tablets on here. Other than the the lackluster gaming apps compared to IPAD I hear, I see nothing else wrong.

Nexus 7 or 10 would be your best bet. If you're going android, there's no need to buy anything else and then HOPE that cyanogen will continue to support it. Just stick with the first party deal. The specs are really impressive on both of them, and Google is really good about continuing to support them with updates.

@video_game_king: <---- winner.

@video_game_king: Well, to be fair, it is pretty easy when your neighbor's wife is hot.

@friskyheadcrab: I have a bit of a hard time buying a 7" tablet for text books though. That's only 2" bigger than my phone. The Nexus 10 is going to double the amount I spend as well.

Nexus 7 just got an upgrade.

If it's not urgent, maybe wait for Black Friday/Cyber Monday? I'm a cheapskate, so I will, but then again it's not really a necessity, just a fun toy.

@ch3burashka: I have class now, so if I'm gonna get one I'll get it now. I don't 100% need it. I can use my laptop and desktop to read my text books, but I kinda want it for the convenience.

Nexus 7 is an amazing piece of tech for the price. I've had it for a few days and it's awesome

Not the "break" I meant.

you guys are pushing me towards a nexus. If I do it I'll probably go for the 10. I'll justify it to myself that I'll save some money buying PDF's for books rather than actual copies.

Even so! The newer Kindle Fires are supposed to get announced whenever!

BGR: From kindling to inferno: Full specs for next-gen Amazon Kindle Fire HD tablets

Even so! The newer Kindle Fires are supposed to get announced whenever!

BGR: From kindling to inferno: Full specs for next-gen Amazon Kindle Fire HD tablets

@blu3v3nom07: Hmmm, I could wait a month and at the same price that would be really nice. I trust the community to get a good rom going on it as well.

@skytylz: Uhm, sure. I would say until like October. You should look at last year's release date.

@skytylz: Uhm, sure. I would say until like October. You should look at last year's release date.

@blu3v3nom07: September for 7 inch model, but the bigger model wasn't until November. I can't really wait for that.

I have a Samsung Tab 2 10.1, it's rock solid; the 3 is out now but I'm not sure it's worth the extra price.

@skytylz: Well, maybe.. I guess it depends what you want it for. Like, school, or games and comics?

I would get the smaller one.

I want it for text books. I feel like a 7" is too small for that. It's nearing the size of my phone...

I want it for text books. I feel like a 7" is too small for that. It's nearing the size of my phone...

I love the shit out of my iPad 3 ... but then again I must be an Apple-zombie or some such shit.

Get an iPad ... and incredible 4:3 screen (fuck 16:9) and everything you seem to want. Get a mini if size is an issue. It's a brilliant little device. My iPad has virtually replace my laptop.

I don't have an apple account of any kind and I'd rather keep it that way. No apple device for me. I'd consider a windows tablet or even some kind of linux slate. I know even less about those though.

@pandabear: Do you still use a 4:3 tv to watch movies/tv? 16:9 is the current industry standard for screen ratios, so hating it is kind of dumb.

wow, what phone do you have? I have the new nexus 7, and it seems like a fine size for reading text book pdf's. The Extremely high pixel count makes it so a lot of text can fit on screen, while remaining legible. And it doesn't cause eye strain.

I would still consider a 7 inch tablet, as the 10 inch market is very expensive (when it comes to wanting quality). If you need a 10 inch tablet soon, your only options would probably be priced in the 400-500 dollar range.

And don't get a windows tablet... just dont... Android and apple are your best bets for having a well rounded tablet experience

Honestly I'd say hold off for a bit if those were the tablets you are dead set on. Both are getting 2013 upgrades in the not so distant future. (Late September to Early October for the Kindle, before December for Nexus 10)

@skytylz: I have a new Nexus 7 and it's pretty ridiculous. Fits in my pocket, super snappy responsiveness, pretty cheap for what it offers. Highly recommended. Oh, and I've been using it for the last 48 hours and it's still at 60% charge. Pretty crazy little device.

New Nexus 7 is the one to get for android hands down, don't even fuck around.

You may not want an Apple account (why I don't know) ... but you do realise at some point you'll have to setup an account with one of the Android stores?

So you read a lot 16:9 books? 4:3 is closer to the actual aspect we see the world in... he wants it for textbooks and PDFs and reading ... hold any widescreen tablet sideways and tell me that reads better than the iPad's 4:3 retina display. Plus 4:3 works better ergonomically (imho) when reading or browsing the net.

I love widescreen in the cinema and for my TV. I never said I hate 16:9, I said I don't like 16:9 tablets as much.

You realize that the Nexus 7 can be used in portrait mode as well right? It's also 8:5 (or 16:10 if you hate math) so it's a little broader and more or less matches up with your average paper back.

iPad Mini or iPad 2 at that price range. iPad 4 would be ideal.

My Acer A500 is still working just fine, has some nice features most tablets don't (built in USB and HDMI output, surprisingly decent sounding speakers) and is available for dirt cheap these days. Also, I found PDFs slightly cramped on a ten inch screen. I can't imagine how small text would be with a full page view on a 7 inch screen.

10 inch screen for document, pdf, cbz, cbr viewing. avoid the atom cpus

I have a Nexus 10 and think it's excellent. Not sure if it's due an upgrade soon or not.

Nexus 10 user here too, and I really like it - I could be wrong, but I think the pixel density on it is actually higher than the current iPad. Either way, it's pretty bloody good.

I've only ever owned Android phones and this is my first tablet, so I can't make a comparison with Apple. There are some frustrations with the overall Android experience, but I'm sure that goes for iOS too.

If you want a bit more flexibility and a lower price, with the new Transformer coming out, you might be able to pick up an earlier model (TF300 or whatever) a bit cheaper. I gave one of those serious consideration as I liked the idea of being able to strap on a proper keyboard for typing longer messages, but instead I went for the Nexus and bought a cheap-but-perfectly-serviceable bluetooth keyboard.

The Kindle Fire is pretty bad for anything other than reading if you believe what Tested says about it. The Nexus 7 is pretty bawlin' and very cheap for the power and quality you get. The kindle is definitely the best reader out there though. Just don't get anything Apple. It's not worth the price.

Sold my iPad (full sized, third generation) for the Nexus 7 recently. Yeah never going back to iOS. It's poor in comparison, in a post Android 2.3 world.

Although I reached this conclusion a while ago (been using Android phones for almost 3 years), I didn't feel comfortable pulling the trigger on an Android tablet after a horrible experience with them in 2011, ugh, Honeycomb. What a piece of shit that was.

Anyway yeah, as someone that was running the iOS 7 beta, there is absolutely nothing compelling about the direction iOS is going, and it still has awful, awful notifications, no widgets, a poor keyboard, poor communication between apps and app management in comparison to Android. Don't even get me started on the crappy iOS keyboard and the fact you cannot change it if you dislike it. (even via jailbreaking, modification options are poor) I feel that design wise Apple have lost their touch, because iOS 7 is a very weird looking beast and Android leapfrogged iOS in the design department after Ice Cream Sandwich and Apple haven't been able to replicate or better Android's (4.0 and up) current, understated yet quite slick design.

So, make a choice, are games really, really important to you? If so yeah, iOS is better, if not, Android is a far more pleasant operating system to use, and smarter, too. I'll happily take a smaller selection of games if it means not putting up with an operating system that feels half baked in comparison to the competition at this point.

edit: note I am talking about stock Android which I use on my phone and Nexus 7.

This is what I'm worried about and is really making me doubt buying a nexus 7. I may just go with a nexus 10 and spend the extra cash.

I have an Asus tf201 and dock that I absolutely love. Best tablet I've had hands down, quite readable and great battery life (made even better if you get one of asus' keyboard docks as they have their own battery inside it). I'm not sure what the newer models are running pricewise honestly as I've found no reason to need to switch. I would highly suggest going with a larger screen regardless if you are going to be using this for a lot of reading as regardless of pixel density you still want the most surface area you can get for your text honestly.

Whine, whine, whine. iOS is the best operating system on any device in the world. If you like an operating system a two year old could've developed, sure go Android. If you want class and style, there's only one choice. Apple.

If I was smart, I would have gotten a Nexus. Instead I have an ol' Nook and Kindle I don't use.

Root that shit and throw a custom rom on it man!

Me thinks you've already have gotten the tablet.

No I haven't! I'm going to wait for the Nexus 10 and probably get that. Everyone seems to love the new Nexus 7 and hopefully the 10 is an equally good larger version of it!

Nexus 7.

I use mine for browsing the web, and reading eBooks.