Tablet

I am about to buy a tablet have been looking at Google Nexus, Samsung and Kindle fire any recommendations.


Thanks am going to research further but do like price etc of Nexus

Thank you for all the info will look further into what is available and perhaps adjust what I spend!

I bought 2 Nexus's last year (please don't ask why!!!) and am delighted with the Nexus. I bought the 7" because I found the 10" too heavy to hold whilst reading whereas the 7" is almost perfect. The build quality is very good - and being a Google product the updates are installed quite quickly. Personally I find the Android soft keyboard not the easiest thing to use and bought a separate keyboard. The volume is good - which is important for me because I do listen to a lot of UK radio.

So much better than lugging a laptop around - provided one has access to wi-fi! When I go back to the UK all my children are well equipped - and it remembers the settings. Occasionally it might be good to have a sim card, but it is very occasionally that I feel the need!

A satisfied customer :-)

So you are going to use Android. My experience with tablets suggests that Android versions come out more frequently than Windows ones ever have. This can mean that Apps written for the latest versions will not work on earlier ones, and that Apps may need to be upgraded when the Android version changes. For example, I subscribe to Microsoft Office 365 but have only been able to install Mobile Office on my newest phone - it isn't compatible with the other three phones or either tablet. The equipment will undoubtedly outlast the Android version installed when you buy it.

I would therefore suggest you check that any new tablet is "Lollipop ready" in other words will run Android 5, even if an earlier version is installed at first. Beyond that my crystal ball cannot see! If I were buying a new tablet I'd probably not spend too much - in a couple of years it might be relatively useless.

My favourite tablet is my Asus Transformer - a 10inch tablet with removable keyboard, but Asus haven't issued an update beyond Jellybean so I can't use it for Office 365. If you don't want a keyboard there are so many out there, in various sizes, that you are spoiled for choice.

The ones you suggest should be reliable. If you opted for a very cheap make, perhaps an obscure brand, you might find out that it couldn't use the Google Play Store, thus denying access to thousands of good Apps. I can see my UK CCTV system in France and the French one in the UK, ditto various IP cameras, IP-controlled sockets, and weather stations, all through installing Apps from Play Store, so this can be very important, depending upon how you will be using the tablet.

Good luck!