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Is it worth getting a tablet now?
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Peter_CJ
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Anika Hanson:
“I thought the ASUS MEMO HD 7 was basically a nexus 7 2012 with a rear camera and an SD card slot.”

Apart from the screen definition, it's nearer to the Nexus 7 2013 model than the 2012 in terms of spec, not components.

It's had a hard time because reviewers compare it to the Nexus 7 2013 model, although it is 80 pounds cheaper.

I suspect it will drop to 100 pound price point soon, which will make it more competitive against similar tablets, such as the Tesco tablet.
clonmult
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“Apart from the screen definition, it's nearer to the Nexus 7 2013 model than the 2012 in terms of spec, not components.

It's had a hard time because reviewers compare it to the Nexus 7 2013 model, although it is 80 pounds cheaper.

I suspect it will drop to 100 pound price point soon, which will make it more competitive against similar tablets, such as the Tesco tablet.”

Not sure how you figure the HD7 is closer to the 2013 on spec, as its overall performance is close to the 2012 N7.

On release the HD7 was way overpriced (around £200 iirc), which made for some negative early reviews. But it is a good device, and I doubt anyone buying one would be unhappy.
clonmult
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“Not what the review says on the link I've posted above.”

Look for more reviews; that one was quite ... selective, and even then it kicked the posterior of the N7 in the gaming benchmark (ie. real world usage). It tends to be amongst the best performing tablets, regardless of price.

Would be interesting to see how well it runs when rooted and overclocked ...
Peter_CJ
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by clonmult:
“Not sure how you figure the HD7 is closer to the 2013 on spec, as its overall performance is close to the 2012 N7.

On release the HD7 was way overpriced (around £200 iirc), which made for some negative early reviews. But it is a good device, and I doubt anyone buying one would be unhappy.”


The HD7 was mispriced by Currys, who for some reason known only to themselves, put it on their site at 199 pre-release, whereas the official ASUS pre-release price was always 130 GB pounds.

You seem to be judging tablets on chip speeds, whereas sound, camera, wi-fi strength, screen response, battery life, etc, are what go to make up a good tablet, plus ASUS are one of the best hardware manufacturers in the world.

The Advent you mention was rated as good on chip speed, the rest of it got a naff write-up in the review I posted.
alan1302
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“The HD7 was mispriced by Currys, who for some reason known only to themselves, put it on their site at 199 pre-release, whereas the official ASUS pre-release price was always 130 GB pounds.
”

It was never mis-priced - Currys do it for a few weeks and then drop the price and give the customer a 'saving'
Peter_CJ
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by alan1302:
“It was never mis-priced - Currys do it for a few weeks and then drop the price and give the customer a 'saving' ”

As I said, Curry's mispriced the ASUS HD7 prior to release - it was confirmed by ASUS that the recommended price was 130 GB pounds.

As soon as the ASUS was available through Curry's, they corrected their mistake.
clonmult
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“You seem to be judging tablets on chip speeds, whereas sound, camera, wi-fi strength, screen response, battery life, etc, are what go to make up a good tablet, plus ASUS are one of the best hardware manufacturers in the world.

The Advent you mention was rated as good on chip speed, the rest of it got a naff write-up in the review I posted.”

Yup, and the camera on the Advent is apparently pretty good (at least its better than the N7/2).

Look up other reviews, the Advent (or EVGA, it goes under many names) typically gets very good reviews. I don't think there's any reasonable doubt that it is considerably better than the HD7 in every possible way (including running something closer to stock Android, and getting more frequent updates).
Peter_CJ
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by clonmult:
“Yup, and the camera on the Advent is apparently pretty good (at least its better than the N7/2).

Look up other reviews, the Advent (or EVGA, it goes under many names) typically gets very good reviews. I don't think there's any reasonable doubt that it is considerably better than the HD7 in every possible way (including running something closer to stock Android, and getting more frequent updates).”

Post up some of the glowing reviews you are referring to then - Trusted Reviews said:-


Worrying flex in the design
Average screen quality
Poor front-facing camera

Read more at http://www.trustedreviews.com/advent...UaMBIqIkhok.99
alan1302
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“As I said, Curry's mispriced the ASUS HD7 prior to release - it was confirmed by ASUS that the recommended price was 130 GB pounds.

As soon as the ASUS was available through Curry's, they corrected their mistake.”

No, Currys did not correct their 'mistake'. Look at Currys website now - it says it was £199.99 and has now been 'reduced' to £129.99 to make it look like they are selling it cheaper. All intentional selling tactics.
alan1302
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Peter_CJ:
“Post up some of the glowing reviews you are referring to then - Trusted Reviews said:-


Worrying flex in the design
Average screen quality
Poor front-facing camera

Read more at http://www.trustedreviews.com/advent...UaMBIqIkhok.99”

What about this one:

http://www.pocket-lint.com/review/12...-note-7-review

Even Trusted reviews gave it 8/10 which is a a very good score.
IanP
30-12-2013
I'm loving my Tegra note 7. Entering text by just swishing the stylus is fantastic, no need to type anymore
Sniffle774
30-12-2013
Quiet easy to get blinded by specs as well. I'm after a 7" tablet for mainly media use so you look at the reviews and it's all quad core this, dual core that, pixels the other. Trying to find out what is the ideal for me, not so easy...I'm not going to be a hard core gamer so for daily use of social media / music and movies what kind of spec is ideal for me....still figuring that one out.
clonmult
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Sniffle774:
“Quiet easy to get blinded by specs as well. I'm after a 7" tablet for mainly media use so you look at the reviews and it's all quad core this, dual core that, pixels the other. Trying to find out what is the ideal for me, not so easy...I'm not going to be a hard core gamer so for daily use of social media / music and movies what kind of spec is ideal for me....still figuring that one out.”

For all round usage, any of these will fit the bill.

Some have specific strengths, be it performance (Note 7), screen (Hudl - insanely good for the price), decent book store (Kindle). So while I may argue like a retard about specs, all of these are pretty good devices - be it Hudl, N7 (2012 or 2013), HD7, Tegra Note 7, Kindle Fire HD, etc.

Not worth worrying about which will be the most future proof - as none of them are. Some would point to the Nexus 7 due to the software updates, but that is of little real world use (4.4 hasn't made any difference to my N7s usability).
justatech
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by ssr:
“If you are happy to live in a walled environment.
No Google Play Store or YouTube.
My son bought one and returned it pronto,now has Galaxy Note 8”

I use youtube on my kindle fire.
Peter_CJ
30-12-2013
Originally Posted by Sniffle774:
“Quiet easy to get blinded by specs as well. I'm after a 7" tablet for mainly media use so you look at the reviews and it's all quad core this, dual core that, pixels the other. Trying to find out what is the ideal for me, not so easy...I'm not going to be a hard core gamer so for daily use of social media / music and movies what kind of spec is ideal for me....still figuring that one out.”

It's well worth going into Curry's to have a look at some tablets running, even if you don't buy one there.

I've got a Nexus 7.2 (2013 model) and I'm really pleased with it.

Things to check out are:-

Screen definition and colour

Screen response to touch

Sound - volume, i.e. can you hear it a couple of metres away from it. Also, is it mono or stereo. Makes a difference if you want to plug it into an external amplifier.

Battery life - often something that is exaggerated.

Wi-Fi capability - has been a problem on many tablets in the past.

General build quality - is the case rigid, or does it flex easily because it's thin plastic?

External storage capability

Front and back cameras (something that doesn't bother me as I have a good camera already)

The high definition screen on the Nexus 7 (2013) is excellent.

If you read that the human eye can't discern the difference, ignore it. You don't look at a high-definition screen and think: wow that's a lot of pixels. What you see is acutely sharp lettering, amazingly smooth and sharp pictures, and glorious colours.

When watching TV or movies on the Nexus 7.2 it's easy to forget that you are watching on such a small screen. The amount of detail you see, and the clarity, gives the impression of the screen being much bigger. Until you try it, you won't know what I mean.
gemma-the-husky
30-12-2013
I just subscribed to DM and got a free kindle fire.

I read up about the kindle/android position, and i know i could reload normal android, but tbh, the amazon skin gives me what i need.
Dancefan8001
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by Lil_M:
“that's the conclusion I have come to and was going to purchase it.

Was wondering if something better came along, would I have wasted money?

The tablet is only for personal use and browsing, reading, watching telly. Mainly leisure use.”

You wouldn't be wasting money, Amazon loses money on every Kindle Fire they sell. It's the best value for money, as several reviewers noted.

I could easily have returned mine in favor of the newer model b/c it was still within the 30-day return period but I was so pleased with it I said I'm not giving this baby up. It's a great tablet and movies look sooo good on it. I really don't think you'll regret it.
Sniffle774
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by gemma-the-husky:
“I just subscribed to DM and got a free kindle fire.

I read up about the kindle/android position, and i know i could reload normal android, but tbh, the amazon skin gives me what i need.”

The Times do a similar offer with a new Nexus. Not so sure they are a,axing value if you DONT buy the paper as a rule but if you do, makes sense.
johnathome
31-12-2013
If your buying a tablet to read books on for the most part then a 7" tablet does the job well, what you pick is up to you.

However if your going to be using it a lot for other things, lots of web browsing or watching videos, then i'd go for a 10" tablet.

I got a free KFHD 7" from work for nothing but if i was buying one i'd go for a 10" tab because of what i use it for.
Anika Hanson
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by johnathome:
“If your buying a tablet to read books on for the most part then a 7" tablet does the job well, what you pick is up to you.

However if your going to be using it a lot for other things, lots of web browsing or watching videos, then i'd go for a 10" tablet.

I got a free KFHD 7" from work for nothing but if i was buying one i'd go for a 10" tab because of what i use it for.”

10 inch tablets aren't much good for travelling and for in bed. I have a 10 inch tablet and 2 7 inch ones. However if I could only have 1 I'd go for an 8 inch one. Good for pretty much everything and portable.
howardl
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by Anika Hanson:
“10 inch tablets aren't much good for travelling and for in bed. I have a 10 inch tablet and 2 7 inch ones. However if I could only have 1 I'd go for an 8 inch one. Good for pretty much everything and portable.”

You have three????!!!??
Anika Hanson
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by howardl:
“You have three????!!!??”

Well my OH and I share them.
clonmult
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by howardl:
“You have three????!!!??”

I also have a 10" tablet (Advent Vega) and 2 7" tablets (Playbook and 2012 N7).

Originally bought the Vega, just to see what the fuss was about. Its been a pretty good device until I dropped it. It still kinda worked, but elements of the digitiser were fubar.

Bought a playbook when they dropped in price, and reckon its a darned good bit of kit. Best interface by far.

And bought the N7 after trashing the Vega.

It was handy having the selection, as it stopped my sons from arguing over who got to play ....

But now that both lads have Hudls, I really don't need them.
Lil_M
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by Dancefan8001:
“You wouldn't be wasting money, Amazon loses money on every Kindle Fire they sell. It's the best value for money, as several reviewers noted.

I could easily have returned mine in favor of the newer model b/c it was still within the 30-day return period but I was so pleased with it I said I'm not giving this baby up. It's a great tablet and movies look sooo good on it. I really don't think you'll regret it.”

Bought it yesterday and got it today along with a cover (£10)
It is worth it.
Downside, is no google apps- but you can install them. I have got them on the kindle. It is ok.
I hate the fact that you have to pay to read newspapers (which is more for my mum as she likes to read).

Mayday - a great feature and I used it (even though I didn't need to)
Dancefan8001
31-12-2013
Originally Posted by Lil_M:
“Bought it yesterday and got it today along with a cover (£10)
It is worth it.
Downside, is no google apps- but you can install them. I have got them on the kindle. It is ok.
I hate the fact that you have to pay to read newspapers (which is more for my mum as she likes to read).

Mayday - a great feature and I used it (even though I didn't need to)”

Cool! I'm so tickled to hear you got it! I've got an older model than you but couldn't be happier so I imagine yours has even more improvements.

Like the poster above, I have tablets in all sizes but if I had to narrow it to just one I'd pick the mid-size Kindle Fire HD. Big enough without being too big.

I never even heard of the Mayday feature until you mentioned it; now that I looked up what it is, I gotta say, Amazon has incredible customer service, always has. One Christmas I meant to send just one item Next Day Air and when I saw all my gift items got shipped Next Day Air, I called Amazon customer service and said I didn't mean to, it was a mistake. They credited me for ALL the next-day charges and still delivered everything the next day! They really do go above and beyond. Big fan here.
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