Back in the day, tablets were the coolest gadget ever, but now the interest in tablets seems to have dwindled. You might be wondering if tablets or worth buying or if there are any better alternatives.
In this article, I’ll answer the question “Are tablets worth it” and then link to a few tablets that might interest you, and finally, wrap it up with some tablet alternatives.
Are Tablets Worth It?
Tablets are worth buying because they’re portable and useful for business, to keep children entertained, and easier for the elderly to use. They can also be cheaper than laptops, and when combined with a Bluetooth keyboard, you can have all the features you need.
Recommended Budget-Friendly Tablets:
But there are lots of great budget-friendly tablets on the market from lesser-known brands with almost identical specs. The list below is a little short, for a full list, visit this link.
Want to get a tablet? Take a look at these budget-friendly models:
1 – Fire HD Tablet 8 Plus 32 GB
The Fire HD is Amazon’s tablet, and many people confuse it with the Kindle, which is also an Amazon product.
The core difference is Kindles were made primarily as e-readers, mostly for reading books. The Fire tablet is a multimedia device that functions the same as most other tablets.
Noteworthy Feature: Fast-Charging!
When it comes to specs, the latest model, Fire HD 8, does not have any mind-blowing hardware, but it comes with a 2.0 GHz octa-core processor, 3GB of RAM, and dual cameras (front and rear). It also has network capabilities (Wifi, Bluetooth, etc), a Micro SD card slot, microphone, audio jack, and built-in stereo speakers.
Before you get into Fire tablets, run on an Android-based operating system called Amazon Fire OS which is not the same as Android or IOS devices. What this means is you’ll have to use Amazon’s apps via their installer.
There is a way to download apps from Google Play using the Fire HD but there’s no guarantee that all the apps will be compatible with your device.
2 – Dragon Touch Notepad K10
You might have never heard about Dragon Touch, but they make all kinds of electronics and appliances. The one we linked to here, the K10, is a 10-inch Android tablet that comes with 32 GB of storage, a quad-core processor, and 2 GB of RAM.
Special Feature: 5 GHZ Wifi
As for the specs, it has an 8-core CPU clocked at 1.3 GHz and 2GB of RAM. The operating system is Android 9.0 Pie, which is the same that most Samsung and other Android phones use. The screen is moderately bright and the resolution is 1920×1200.
It has all the usual connections, Bluetooth, FM, and Wi-fi. You’ll be happy to hear that the Wi-fi is compatible with 5G Wi-Fi networks. It also has an 8 MP camera.
Most people compare this tablet to the Fire HD because they are in the same price range. For a quick comparison, they offer most of the same features, except the Fire HD runs on a different operating system.
3 – Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8.0″
The Samsung Galaxy Tab A is another good mid-range tablet. The most notable thing about this tablet is that it’s made by Samsung which is a very well-known company. The Galaxy Tab A has a screen size of only 8 inches and a resolution of 1280×800.
Under the hood, there’s a quad-core 2.0 GHz CPU and 2GB of RAM. It has an internal memory capacity of 32 GB which is extendable to 512 GB via a MicroSD card.
What about iPads?
While I think iPads are good, I feel like they are overpriced, as is usual with Apple products. If you’re going to buy a tablet, you might as well save some money by buying an Android-based one. That’s my opinion, anyway.
One Apple product that I like is the Apple Magic keyboard, which made the list of my best keyboards for writers. Also if you like Apple products, an Apple Watch or AirPods can be handy too.
Reasons to Buy a Tablet:
1 – Business & Work:
From a business perspective, they make sharing images, presentations, and other documents much easier. You can also digitally sign documents with tablets, order food, fill in data, and much more. It’s a lot easier to hand a tablet to a customer than any other alternative.
Overall, it’s much easier to show clients information from a tablet than a laptop or other device. And tablets are lightweight, so you can slide them into a briefcase with no problems.
For remote workers, you could mount the tablet, pair it with a keyboard & mouse, or even use it with a portable monitor.
2 – Keep Your Children Entertained:
Tablets can be great for keeping children entertained for hours on end. While it’s probably not the best to have a kid glued to the screen for a long time, I’m sure most parents can appreciate the quiet time they can get when their child is using a tablet.
3 – Easy for the Elderly to Use
Maybe your parents want to stay connected but can’t be bothered to learn how to use a laptop or PC.
The user interface on tablets is just much simpler, and you don’t need to worry about hard drives, blue screens of death, updates, and other issues that plague PC owners. For the less tech-savvy individuals, a tablet can be a great way to stay connected with friends and family. You can also easily increase the font and text sizes!
And if it’s a mobile workstation you’re looking for, then you can always buy a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard for your tablet. It can be handy to have, that’s for sure.
You could also use a tablet as a second screen for your laptop or PC, following the steps I outline here.
4 – Digital Art
Most tablets work well with a stylus pen. The S7 series and iPad are a couple of models that come to mind. But did you know you can connect a drawing tablet (also known as a graphics tablet) to one of these tablets to make it even easier to make digital art? You can use them with your phone and laptops too. Pretty cool.
Tablet Alternatives:
2-in-1 Laptops:
In my opinion, the best alternative to a tablet would be a lightweight 2-in-1 laptop. What is a 2-in-1 laptop? It’s a laptop that’s designed to operate as a tablet.
It usually has 360 hinges so you can fold the screen back and use it in tablet mode, taking advantage of the touchscreen. For more information, read my article about whether 2-in-1s are worth it.
Touchscreen laptops are another option. But before you buy one, ask yourself if you need a touchscreen laptop. While more expensive than tablets, 2-in-1 laptops can open up a lot more possibilities because they have a keyboard and multiple ports (USB, HDMI, etc).
The reason I suggest 2-in-1 laptops over regular ultra-thin laptops is that 2-in-1s have all the features of a tablet plus the features of a full-scale Windows-based PC.
For more information about those devices (and several specific recommendations) take a look at my article about 2-in-1 laptops.
Conclusion:
To summarize, tablets are worth buying if you feel like you need one. I recommend looking into 2-in-1 laptops because they work both as a tablet and a laptop. Very convenient.
And some are pretty budget-friendly, such as the Lenovo Flex 14. I hope this article helped in some way. Thank you for taking the time to read it. What do you think about tablets? Leave a comment below!
Sandra Flanagan says
Hello Timothy. I’ve found your advice helpful..Thankyou. I wonder if you could help me further please. The sound has gone on this Apple I pad and I need to replace it with something easy to use. I looked at the Samsung S6 light P615 yesterday. The man in the shop said it was easy to use but he doesn’t know how technically illiterate I am. I am 70 and not very good with todays technology. So long as I have skype and FaceTime, I’m happy. (SAD) !!! My family over in UK all use Apple and they would absolutely tell me to have another Apple I pad but I don’t like to be forever updating things and formats being changed. May sound silly to you,but I begrudge an anonymous being arranging my photos into “albums”. What’s your recommendation for this old bemused nan ?
Timothy says
Hey, it depends on your budget and preferred operating system. I don’t really like Apple products that much either. Personally, I think Android tablets are very easy to use. I found this one, Galaxy Tab A7 that looks like it has what you need. It’s cheap, 10.4 inches, and has a 5 MP front-facing camera for video calls.
Elsie says
Hi timothy, i am torn in btw galaxy A7 2020 3GB RAM 104inch & Newer one TabA7 Light 4GB RAM 8.9Inches. As i prefer compact but worry What if 8.9 inch not good enough do presentation when Business lunches & Drinks at the Bar or Over Coffee. Of course 8.9inch will make me Bring it out with me more often even to the Bar.
Timothy says
Yeah, I’m not sure either, but I think either option is good. The newer one has slightly faster specs and it’s cheaper.
Pamela Parker says
Pam Parker here,
I am 75 and hVe decided to write my memoirs. Mostly for family and friends, but not being tech-savvy I need to get a tablet or another easy peasy device for the dumb founded to record into and it will write for me and then I can edit it latter. Then I need to know how many gigabit I need in a tablet to write my book…i had a big life! Hope you can help me find what I need. Thanks P.P
Timothy says
Hey Pam, that sounds like a big project! I’m not sure a tablet would be best for that, but I’ll share an idea with you. How about using the Voice Typing feature on Google Docs? It’s free, and all you have to do is talk and the text will appear. It’s probably the easiest way, and it works on pretty much any device. If you want to use a tablet, the S-series Android tablets are great, I like the S7 Tablet.