Holiday season is near. Along with smartphones, tablets are one of the most popular gift choices in the last few years. If we already have a desktop computer, a laptop and a smartphone, why would we even need a tablet device? It is true that tablet devices were not even in anyone’s list before 2010 when Apple introduced the first iPad. Since then, a lot of other manufacturers are competing to gain market share by launching a massive amount of different tablet products. With the rapid development of native apps for tablets, people started to embrace a new habit in life: consuming contents and do casual computing activities on tablets.
Sure we can do these activities in desktop computers (or laptops), even with more capabilities. However, tablets offer one primary advantage: flexibility. Tablets allow us to read books comfortably on a sofa. Tablets allow us to browse shopping catalogs on our bed before sleep. Tablets allow us to do basic computing tasks almost anywhere we feel comfortable. Smartphone can do the same but their screen sizes are generally too small (if we exclude those phablets) and desktop computers (and laptops) are generally too bulky and too much trouble to carry. There are exceptions, but they don’t come cheap.
Apple’s iPad is NOT the first tablet device in the market. Long before 2010, Microsoft and Nokia had introduced tablet devices to the market, but they never gained significant public interest. Tablet devices were not considered as mainstream computing device. The rapid adoption of tablets as mainstream device started with Apple iPad (the first generation) back in 2010. Today, we can choose from a huge selection of products, from as cheap as $30 to as expensive as $2000 (or even more).
I personally own an Apple iPad mini 2, Google Nexus 7 from Asus (Android) and Toshiba Encore 8 (Windows 8.1) tablets. I use them regularly for my computing devices, therefore I can write from first-hand experience. This article is focused on helping ORDINARY users to choose the operating system of their tablet devices. Therefore I try not to discuss much about features for advanced users.
iPad
iPad runs Apple’s mobile operating system called iOS. It is the first mainstream tablet device in modern market. The latest iPad model today is Apple iPad Air 2, an extremely thin and light tablet device featuring 9.7″ screen. Apple also has a smaller size tablet called iPad mini (latest model is iPad mini 3) with 7.9″ screen size.
Good points about choosing iPad:
+ It is a very well-built product with premium feel.
+ Very simple and intuitive interface.
+ It runs Apple’s iOS with iTunes Store (music, movies, books, apps, podcasts and many more).
+ Huge selection of third party apps ready to be downloaded.
+ Most of the downloadable apps are native apps with high quality user interface design.
+ The third party apps are highly controlled by Apple.
+ Many apps to connect to the most popular Internet services from Apple, Google, Microsoft, Facebook and other major companies.
+ Native apps for Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint). Free for casual editing, requires Office 365 subscription to access full editing features.
+ Best age rating on third party apps, making it the safest device for families with young children.
+ Stable operating system, performs a lot more efficient so lower hardware specs can outperform other OS with higher hardware specs.
+ Syncs our contents (music, video, books, apps, etc) seamlessly with iTunes, or can be used without a computer (everything syncs to iCloud).
+ The best backup-and-restore system compared to other operating systems.
+ Receives OS updates regularly every year on the same day as the OS update for the latest model, stay up to date with the latest OS for up to 4 years.
+ Very good resell value of the devices when we want to upgrade.
+ Impressive display quality with natural colors.
+ Good battery life.
+ Lots of accessories to choose.
+ Generally free from viruses and malwares, except if someone choose to jailbreak the device.
+ Built-in fingerprint sensor for faster access to start using the tablet (only available for the latest models).
+ Easily exchange files with other Apple devices using AirDrop.
+ Available in large internal storage (up to 128 GB).
Bad points about iPad:
– Premium price.
– Apple’s tight control on the app ecosystem rejected many apps that fail to comply, this might become an issue if you are looking for a very specific app.
– Super thin device means we need to take extra care to protect the device.
– No slot for external memory cards. I personally see this as a good thing, but apparently many people consider this as a bad one.
– The built-in cameras are not the best in the market.
– No built-in support to access files from USB devices. There are some accessories for this, but must be purchased separately.
Android tablets
There are tons of tablet devices using Android operating system. Users can choose from super cheap devices to premium flagship devices from well-known brands. Of course, generally you will get what you pay, since price does not lie. There are few exceptions to this statement. Some specific brands (and models) are sold with a very slim profit margin because its manufacturer’s business model sees the product as a tool to sell something else. So in their mind, they are not trying to make their main profit from selling the hardware, but from selling the services after many people are using their hardware.
Technically, I should not compare “iPad” with “Android” because one is a product name and the other one is operating system’s name. The right comparison would be “iOS” and “Android” as they are both the name of operating systems. However, the name iPad is more familiar for most people, and since this guide is written for ordinary users, I opt to use “iPad” as the artice’s sub-section title.
Good points about choosing Android tablets:
+ There are tons of brands and models to choose from.
+ Tons of screen size options.
+ Tons of hardware design options.
+ Wide range of prices from around $30 to more than $2000.
+ The latest Android 5.0 Lollipop brings significant improvement on the user interface standard.
+ Google Play Store to download and purchase contents (apps, music, movies, books, etc).
+ The highest number of third party apps.
+ Highly customizable, especially if someone has sufficient technical skill to do that.
+ Generally we get the best price to hardware specs ratio, even better hardware specs do not always translate to better user experience.
+ Many models offer slot for external memory cards.
+ Many apps to connect to the most popular Internet services from Google, Microsoft, Facebook and other major companies.
+ Native app for Microsoft Office, currently still inferior to iPad version, but Microsoft promises they will update them in the future.
+ Some models have built-in USB OTG port.
+ Some models offer super long battery life.
+ Some models are waterproof.
+ Some models have superior camera.
Bad points about Android tablets:
– Quite frankly, most of the cheaper models are crappy.
– Viruses and malware, even in devices without much system modifications.
– Google Play has very minimum control to the app ecosystem. As a result, you will get all the good apps just like what you can get from Apple AppStore, plus all the bad apps that contain viruses, trying to pretend to be something else, trying to steal our information, etc. For example, when Blackberry releases their BBM app for iOS and Android, there was only one app in AppStore and there are at least 20 apps in Google Play (one is the real BBM app and the rest are fake, pretending to be the real one). This is especially dangerous for people who can’t tell the differences between fake and real apps.
– Plenty of third party apps does not provide good support to deal with files in external memory cards.
– Vast majority of apps are not designed to take full advantages of high-end hardware specs because they need to maintain their apps to remain compatible with the lowest specs still popular in the market.
– In my personal experience, the OS crashes a lot more than iOS. This might be related to my personal usage patterns and different people can end up with different experiences.
– Most models will not receive OS updates in the futures. Even Nexus models (which are guaranteed to receive future updates) get the updates NOT on the same day.
– Only some models have decent amount of compatible accessories.
– Some models from some manufacturers come with a lot of bloatwares. These are apps created by the hardware makers (on top of the original Android system made by Google), trying to provide “added values” to the product. However, in many cases, these added features are no more than gimmicks and in the long run will serve no actual purpose other than slowing down the entire device.
– Since people can do almost anything on the hardware, it will become more difficult to parents to ensure “safe” contents for their kids.
– Most models do not have physical button on front-screen to wake up the device.
Windows tablets
The third player in tablet market is Microsoft with its Windows operating system. There are two different kinds of Windows operating system for tablet. First, they have Windows RT. This is an operating system specially designed for tablets. It has very limited set of apps because it can only runs apps designed specifically for Windows RT.
Second, they also have FULL Windows running in tablet devices. Full Windows means we can run ANY app that can run in our desktop PC or Windows laptops, now in our tablets. The downside, those apps designed for large screen with mouse operation will be very difficult to operate in tablets with touch screens. Luckily, tablet with full Windows OS can also run apps designed specifically for tablets, even though the number of these apps are still very limited compared to the selections for iPad and Android devices.
Good points about choosing Windows tablet:
+ Full Windows experience. This means we can run ANY software designed for Windows including the ones we have since many years ago. This assumes that our Windows tablet is a model with FULL Windows OS installed, not the RT version.
+ Some models offer slot for memory cards.
+ Some models have built-in USB ports (or micro-USB OTG).
+ Some models have built-in HDMI port (or micro-HDMI).
+ Native Microsoft Office suite, desktop version with full capability. However, it is also the most difficult to operate with pure touchscreen operation (compared to the app for iPad and Android). External keyboard and mouse are almost crucial for working with Microsoft Office in Windows tablets.
+ Some models come with keyboard (some are detachable).
+ For people who needs to access very specific software designed for Windows (usually for office environment), Windows tablet remains the only option.
+ Receives the same Windows updates as the ones in desktop computers.
Bad points about Windows tablet:
– It can be very confusing for ordinary users to understand about products full Windows OS and Windows RT. This might lead to many people bought the wrong products.
– Some models have Windows logo on the front-screen, but the logo does not serve as Start button. I choose my Toshiba Encore 8 because the Windows logo actually works as Start button.
– Windows OS requires large storage. Tablets with full Windows 8.1 and Microsoft Office installed in 32 GB internal storage will have almost no space left to install other software.
– Lots of viruses and malwares.
– Lots of unsafe materials/software/apps/contents for kids.
– Older apps not designed for touchscreen tablets can be difficult to operate.
– Less number of third party apps compared to iOS and Android.
– Many apps in Windows Store are fake versions of other apps.
Personal Evaluations
Basically, if you must use certain software that is only available for Windows, then Windows tablet is your only choice. It seems like offering best of both worlds by having a “desktop-level” operating system inside a tablet form-factor, but believe me, the real usage is far from getting “best” of both worlds. Instead, you will get the compromise version of both worlds. The features are technically available, but not comfortably usable. It’s a perfect solution while on-the-go so we can do few minutes editing using desktop-level software without the bulk of carrying a laptop. But don’t expect to work long hours on these machines. As a media consumption device, again, it’s doable, but not the best option out there.
Android tablets would be a good choice if you have limited budget and only needs the tablet for accessing social media (Facebook, Twitter, etc) plus occasional browsing and casual gaming. A lot of third party apps in Android are not as polished as the ones in iPad. It’s getting better compared to the situation 3-4 years ago, but it’s still not quite there yet. Android is also the best OS for people who love to customize their devices. If you have sufficient technical skill, time and willingness to do so, Android devices can be tweaked into almost anything within the hardware capabilities.
For everyone else, iPad is still by far the best tablet for content consumption (book reading, movies, photos, etc) plus some casual productivity (editing work files, photo manipulation, writing blogs or journals). It provides a good selection of third party apps without the need to figure out fake apps, without the need to worry about viruses and other malware, or apps designed to steal our personal information. Most apps are designed with user interface optimized for tablet screen size, giving us the best computing experience on that screen. The closed app ecosystem and tight control also makes it the best device for young children as non tech-savvy parents would have sufficient control without worrying too much. The new family sharing feature in iOS 8 makes it even easier for iPad users to share apps with other family members.
Epilogue
So there you are, lists of good and bad things about each operating system. Hopefully will be useful for you to choose a tablet device that suits your needs the best. I use all three of them and find that they have unique and different strong points. In the end, everything comes down to individual NEEDS, TASTE and BUDGET.
Leave A Comment