Best Tablet Money Can Buy _TOP_
Fortunately, we can help you find the right tablet because we review the best from all the major manufacturers every year. We put these devices to the test, both in our lab and the real world, and we've come to a few key conclusions about the best tablets out there. Amazon tablets are generally great for kids and anyone on a tight budget, for example, while Apple's iPads are best for students and creative pros. That's especially true now that an M2 chip powers Apple's latest iPad Pro.
best tablet money can buy
Thanks to the addition of M1, the iPad Air 2022 is almost on par with the iPad Pro. That isn't to say the Air is now a Pro replacement, but the gap in power is considerably smaller. This, along with the iPad Air's relatively affordable starting price, could make this model more compelling than the iPad Pro for budget-minded shoppers who still want the best iPad their money can buy.
Overall, the latest iPad Air is an almost perfect tablet. While there's still some room for improvement, it's hard to put this sleek, powerful slate down. This is arguably the best tablet for most people, and one of the best iPads to boot.
The Galaxy Tab S8 is good at a lot of things, but it's best at being a premium Android tablet. You can use it to get work done in a pinch, but in my experience it's best enjoyed as a speedy all-purpose device for making work and play a bit more enjoyable. On the couch its great for gaming or reading comics, and at work it's nice to have as a note-keeping device or secondary display, especially if you go to the trouble of investing in the Galaxy ecosystem and making your workspace DeX-friendly.
Android fans can point to a true iPad competitor, at a much more affordable price. Retailing for $229 (and on sale often for much less) the Galaxy Tab A7 is a great 10.4-inch tablet for consuming content. Whether you're browsing the web or streaming movies, you get to focus on your content more, thanks to its super-thin bezels that are thinner than what you get with Apple's $329 iPad. Oh, and it's got endurance to spare, lasting 13 hours and 13 minutes on the Tom's Guide battery test. Oh, and it's also got an iPad Pro feature that Apple makes you pay a lot for: facial recognition to unlock the device.
And just like Apple's pricier tablets, the Galaxy Tab A7 charges over USB-C, so you can continue to cut non-reversible microUSB cables out of your life. And while it's not as fast as the iPad and its screen isn't as bright, neither is a serious problem at this price. Especially when Samsung gives you true Android with the Google Play app store, and not the watered-down Amazon Fire tablet experience.
Sometimes, it takes a second try to make a thing go right. The Surface Go 2 takes aim at all the flaws of the predecessor and knocks them all down. First of all, thinner bezels make way for a bigger screen, arguably the most important part of a tablet. The Surface Go 2 has a 10.5-inch display, compared to 10 inches for the previous model.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra ($1,099) is the first tablet that casts a literal shadow over the iPad Pro. With its ginormous 14.6-inch OLED display, this Android slate makes the 12.9-inch iPad Pro seem cute by comparison. And with the optional keyboard attachment and improved multi-window mode, the Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra could potentially replace a laptop.
Take almost everything we know and love about the iPad Air, but shrink it down to a size and weight that's super-easy to use with just one hand and you have the iPad mini 6 (2021), which may be the iPad you've been waiting for. It has the Apple Pencil 2 support with the flat-edged design, the much-smaller bezels and nearly everything else we love about an iPad. Currently, Amazon has the market cornered on sub-10-inch tablets with the pricing of its Fire slates, but the new iPad mini gives quality-focused folks an alternative worth investing in.
Of course, the 11-inch iPad Pro 2021 still thrives at the little things. Its bright and colorful display is sharp, its four speakers provide much larger sound than you might expect from such a thin device and. And if you're willing to pony up the cash its amazing (optional) Magic Keyboard offers the simplest and smoothest tablet typing experience there is.
In October 2022, Apple released the iPad Pro 2022, which upgrades the processor to the more powerful M2 chip. It's a great tablet with solid performance, but only a nominal upgrade over the 2021 version.
The Microsoft Surface Pro 9 isn't a bad or worthless machine. It's powerful enough to handle everyday computing tasks, has a decent screen for watching videos and is lightweight enough to comfortably take wherever you go. It may not redefine the 2-in-1, but if you want something that's suitable as a laptop or tablet, this machine gets the job done.
If you're a writer who loves pen and paper, you know that the iPad and its Apple Pencil don't really feel right. That's where the reMarkable tablets have jumped into the fray, offering a real-feeling writing experience, with a unique screen technology that uses digital paper and the Marker stylus, which feels more authentic when you press its nib against the screen. The reMarkable 2, however, is a much more seductive device, now measuring a sleek 0.2 inches and ditching its plastic frame for a sleeker metallic chassis.
Performance-wise, though, the Tab S6 Lite won't be blowing people away if they try to multitask. There's also the matter of Android tablet apps, which still could use more love and care from their developers.
The Amazon Fire HD 10 (2021) takes an already-good tablet and applies incremental upgrades, such as a slightly brighter screen, 1GB more RAM and a smaller, lighter design. While it probably isn't a must-have for anyone who bought the 2019 model, it's a good demonstration of Amazon's ability to put out a value-driven slate that's good enough for many.
Android folks have a wider set of options, but since Android apps aren't thriving on tablets as much as anyone would hope, this is a good time to consider all of your options. Yes the Galaxy Tab S6 has a fantastic screen and Android apps, but isn't Windows 10 a more capable platform? If you're nodding your head "yes," then the Surface Go 2 is the best tablet for you. That all being said, if you've got a big enough family, and you're all living in the Amazon Prime ecosystem, go for the Fire 7 if you're trying to fit to a budget, and the Fire HD 10 if you are tired of devices that don't have USB-C.
With more offices and schools opting for virtual attendance or hybrid schedules, a tablet can be a great alternative to a laptop with its portability, ease of use, and connectivity options. A good tablet is something that should have a long battery life, a respectable selection of apps and services, and more functionality than just a screen to watch YouTube videos.
Below is a list of tablets designed to fit specific needs and budgets. Whether you're looking for a low-cost device for your kids or something that can effectively replace a computer to take to school, there's a tablet for everyone.
I limited what I included in this list to tablets that offer a reliable experience, along with a mix of affordability and features. Not all tablets are created equal, so we used our years of research, personal experience, and knowledge about the products included here to make suggestions.
Apple's tried-and-true tablet, the base model iPad, is arguably the best value out of Apple's tablet lineup, and experts agree. Avi Greengart, a consumer tech analyst at Techsponential, said the iPad is the most versatile tablet on the market today.
"There's an endless array of accessories, there's a lot of iPad-specific software, and you can use it for watching content, for browsing the internet, for games, for education, etc.," he said. "For productivity, you can add keyboard or pencil to it. It's also powerful enough for light computing tasks that consumers think of when they're looking for a tablet."
Amazon's Fire tablets run the company's forked version of Android, complete with Amazon's services baked right in. You won't find any of Google's own apps, or even the Play Store, on a Fire tablet. However, Amazon's own App Store has many of the same apps that regular Android devices have access to -- including Netflix, Facebook, and Spotify.
The Fire HD 10 is affordable, faster than ever, and doubles as an Echo smart speaker, with Alexa awaiting your commands. ZDNET's Jason Cipriani tested this cheap tablet for a few weeks and was impressed with its versatility and performance, noting it can "work, in a pinch, if your main laptop or computer is being repaired, or you're looking to do light work while traveling." You can get it with 32GB or 64GB of storage, but don't fret if that's not enough. It has microSD card support for up to another 512GB of storage.
The touchscreen is 10.1 inches and is in full 1080p high definition. Battery life should be good enough to get you around 12 hours of use, or enough to get through a full day of use. It's not the fastest tablet available, but the Fire HD 10 is a perfect budget tablet for someone who wants to browse the internet, watch videos, or check email without spending a ton of money.
If you're looking for an Android tablet, the Samsung Galaxy Tab s8 Ultra is one of the best Android tablets. The Tab S8 Ultra features a 14.6-inch Super AMOLED display, runs on the Android 12 operating system, and Samsung's S Pen stylus is included in the box. When ordering your Tab S8 Ultra, you can equip it with 512GB of storage and 16GB of memory for $1,399, however, it's likely overkill.
ZDNET's Matthew Miller reviewed the Galaxy Tab S8 and said, if you can get over the size of the tablet, people who sketch or draw will enjoy the S Pen and the large display. He also described the tablet as a "nice demonstration of Samsung's technical innovation."
Dan Gookin, an author of technology books, said that Samsung's lineup of tablets is the best option for Android users who want good hardware in a tablet: "I believe Samsung is the only major player left for the Android tablet market, which makes them a good choice if you want to stay on Planet Android," he said. 041b061a72