Tablet vs. iPad vs. PC?

**louiswinthorpe111** · November 7th, 2011, 05:32 PM

I'm considering getting my 2 older sons, 12 and 9, a tablet for Christmas. I'm not tech savvy by any stretch of the imagination, so I have a couple of questions.

What's the difference between an Android tablet and a iPad? I'm not going to get my kids an iPad or anything, but I was considering laptops, but the Android tablet is somewhat interesting to me. Especially since it's going to be on sale for Black Friday.

My kids don't do any serious computing, mainly facebook, youtube and online games. Should I get them laptops or would a tablet work for them?

My mom got them Kindles. If I go with the tablet, I'll have her take the Kindles back.

**KrisNine** · November 7th, 2011, 10:16 PM

I have an iPad and the first gen Kindle. To me, the iPad serves the purpose of an e-reader, something to browse the web with, something to play games on, etc. It doesn't really replace my laptop, but it's basically replaced my Kindle. I love it for the things you mentioned. Plus, the iPad has a Kindle app and I can bring all my books over. I don't know the price point of the Android, but the iPad can run you around the cost of a cheap laptop, so if you think they'll need a laptop in a year or two, you may want to look into one now.

**Jexxifer** · November 8th, 2011, 05:01 AM

I agree with Kris - if you think they might need a laptop soon you may want to find one now instead. There are Kindle reading apps for PC/laptop, Android tablets and iPad - and you don't even have to have a Kindle to take advantage of them.

I love my Kindle but I'm a huge reader and like the e-ink display; if your mom got one of those styles it's not really great for games (mainly a few word games) unless she pre-ordered a Kindle Fire (which is color and is more like a tablet - surfing, apps, etc).

The main difference between iPad and Android tablet is the operating system, just similar to the difference between a mac and PC.

One thing to consider is how your wireless is in your area. If you have have good wireless connectivity in your area it shouldn't be an issue which to choose but if you opt for or have to use 3G/4G it will add to the cost of the equipment and you'll have to have a data plan too. It could add major cost to the tablet over time.

**Butterfly** · November 8th, 2011, 05:43 AM

I have a 12 year old and he has a laptop...we got it for him when he was around 9. I think a laptop is a lot more practical then an iPad or other other tablet...You should see my son type.

I have an iPad and a Kindel...Don't touch my Kindel anymore since I got my iPad. I use mine as an eReader, emailing, etc...I think it would be frustrating to play some of those computer games on. My son plays Minecraft and other internet games.

**louiswinthorpe111** · November 8th, 2011, 05:22 PM

Android tablets are going to be $99 at Kohls on Black Friday. So an Andriod tablet is a cheaper version of an iPad, PC style?

So just forget the tablet and just get them laptops?

**MohandasKGanja** · November 8th, 2011, 06:16 PM

There are a lot of different Androids. Most of the good ones seem to be running the Honeycomb 3.0 O/S, which is the version that is optimized for tablets (like Samsung, Hp, and others).

The new color Nook (coming out Nov 17, I think) uses Android Gingerbread, which apparently, is more geared toward smartphones. But since the color Nook is only 7.0 inches, it probably is more like a large smart phone than a tablet.

It's difficult to tell exactly what Kohl's is selling. Apparently, it's the Pandigital line of Android 7-inch tablets. However, there are at least two different Pandigital's - the Novel and the Supernova. It sounds like the Novel (which is lower cost) uses a resistive screen, while the Supernova uses capacitive. If I remember correctly, capacitive screens (like the Ipad) allow multi-touch for easier screen navigation and use of apps. It seems like a fairly slow version of the Android, and kind of heavy blocky. But not bad for a kid.

Pandigital's version of Android is not certified by Google, which means that you can't buy from the Android app store.