Hi all

I was hoping to get a piece of advice as to which tablet would be best to buy. I am looking to replace the kids dvd players we have with a tablet that I can load with videos and simple games like angry birds, doodle jump, etc.

I am looking for something cheap since I need to buy 2, and decent battery life is important since we will only be able to charge them at night.

They are both used to the iPod touch so it would need to have a capacitive touch screen

I have already looked at the LeapPad and the Vtech tablets but they are going to be too basic for my 13 year old and even my 4 year old (he is very technologically advanced)

Any advice I much appreciated. Thanks!

Advent Vega (£130 refurbished on eBay) or Hanspree (£160 from eBuyer) would both fit the bill. 10" capacitive screens with dual core CPU. Both have Android 3.2 available through custom ROM which is the tablet optimised version of Android. Battery life is around 4 to 5 hours.

My 4 year old was able to pick it up my vega and get started in less then 5 minutes and now has no trouble navigating around and using the apps. Hanspree with 3.2 ROM would have the same interface.


If battery life is critical then archos do some 7" tablets running Android 2.2 with better battery life.

Thank you, I was looking at the Archos 101 whoch I can get for £150 from a few shops. I have looked on eBay for the Vega as it seems to be the most popular but I could not find any under £169/

EDIT: I have just looked and the Hanspree has been discontinued on eBuyer

Keep an eye out for the vega, they do sell out quickly but usually have more units every week or two.

I had a quick look for the hannspree and it does look to be sold out

Just came across this tab that someone had posted in the AVForum bargains forum.

http://increditech.co.uk/tablet-pcs/...fi-camera.html

Cheap but downside from your point of view is, as far as I can see, it does not have a capacitive touch screen.

I'd also suggest the Vega - my 3 year old has also been happily using it, starts various apps, closes them, etc. no problems at all.

Downsides are more than that.

Low resolution capacitive screen
Slow CPU
Insufficient RAM

So it'll be okay for some light browsing, but games won't be too good.

also battery life of less then 2 hours !

You can pick up a flytouch3 from china for around £100 a unit inc delivery in 7 days.

It ticks all the boxes except its a resistive screen. However my kids picked it up and had no problems with it once you get used to using a slightly bent finger or with the stylus.

Carphone Warehouse are selling the Archos 70 (£99) and Archos 101 (£150) but you can get £15 cashbask via quidco or topcashback at the moment.
Also In a past few weeks a couple of retailers have been selling the 101 for £130 too, might be worth keeping an eye on hotukdeals.com etc. to see if more pop up.

Im getting my 10yr old a archos home tablet from carphone warehouse. Its £74 and think it will do what she wants, which is to play angry birds, and use youtube. am hoping its going to be ok, reviews look ok for it.

Just bought one of these last week for my 3 year old niece. I wasn't expecting to be all that impressed, but it's a decent bit of kit for £100 and it's pretty much perfect for her.

http://www.carphonewarehouse.com/mob...NTERNET-TABLET

I got my Hannspad from Misco but they appear to have sold out as well. I would have one of them or the Vega over the Archos 101. But price and availability make the difference.

Thanks for your suggestions everyone. I have it narrowed down to either the Archos 101 and the Arnova 10

Can anyone recommend which one is better? I know people rave about the Vega but I really would like to have a feel and a play before buying... so I would idealy like one that is avalable to buy in stores.

Oh and just to add, the capacitive touch screen is a must, I am willing to compromise on other aspects but not this. I just don't think my kids would get on with anything else

The Arnova is a cheap version of the 101, poorer build quality, lower specs and most importantly for you, resistive screen instead of capacitive.

have they tried a resistive screen. Everyone told me that its unusable but after getting the FT3 neither me or my kids had any problems using a resistive screen. It just takes 5 to 10 minutes to get used to it so its difficult to tell in a store if you are going to get on with it, especially if you are comparing against capacitive screens.

At the end of the day, you are talking about around £50 difference per tablet so £100. Its your choice if you want to spend the extra money or not.

An Archos 70 and a Archos 101 are a very good pairing, especially if they tend to share for days out etc.
There is nothing £100 to recommend and the above may or may not be limited stocks.

The above were the top of the range from Archos until recent. (Using the same CPU as in the iPad 1)

Thats strange, as it's listed online as having a capacitive and I had a play with one yesterday in Comet.

I really liked the Arnova so if the 101 is better, then I'm going to go for that one.

Thanks so much for all your help guys

Ah, just had a look at the comet site. We're talking about different models. Theres 2 models, theres the Arnova 10 (old model), and then the Arnova 10 G2 (new model). The G2 has a capacitive screen. If you've seen it & like it then I'd suggest thats the best pick for you. There doesnt seem to be a great deal between them (the G2 and the 101) spec wise, with the G2 slightly ahead.

Yes it was the G2 model, I didn't realise there were two different kinds.

Thank you, I really did like the Arnova and my son had a play in the shop and seemed happy with it. I think thats the one I am going to go for.