Apple reignited the tablet form with the release of the original iPad back in March 2010, but Android-sporting competitors have been hard at work over those twenty months to produce tablets with different focuses and at different price points – making 2012 a great year to buy your first tablet.
Tablets are perfect for giving you a bigger screen than your smartphone to check email, Twitter, and Facebook, to watch movies and to manage your music. They are more portable than laptops, have battery life that will last you all day, and ideal for grabbing when you’re on the sofa or in bed – and apps and games work better than ever on the bigger screen. With most modern smartphones being able to become WiFi hotspots, the tablets here are WiFi only (no 3G), as users should not have to pay two monthly network bills. There is a tablet for everyone and here we run down our favourites.
Best Tablets For 2012
UPDATED: January 2012
1. Apple iPad 2 – Apple updated the iPad with a slimmer body and faster dual-core CPU keeping it at the front of the pack. The App Store is second to none, iOS is easy to use by even the most non-technically minded – the iPad is the tablet that “just works”.
2. ASUS Transformer – The Transformer offers users a combination of the slim Android tablet as well as the productivity of a full keyboard and extra connectors of a netbook – with its detachable keyboard. It doesn’t quite match the iPad in tablet form, but the combination clever, useful and brilliantly executed. The upcoming Transformer Prime is likely to be a real contender for top spot, but it isn’t quite out yet.
3. Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 – The Samsung Galaxy Tab looks and feels very much like the iPad 2 (so much so that it has got Samsung into some trouble), but it is the flagship Android tablet with a beautiful screen and snappy processor, with far more customisation available than on the iPad. With that customisation, however, comes complexity and little confusion – meaning whilst it is a great device once set up, it is not quite as intuitive to use as the iPad – although that might change with its upcoming Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) upgrade.
Runners up: Lenovo IdeaPad K1, Motorola Xoom 2
 Apple iPad 2 |
 ASUS Transformer |
 Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| OS | iOS 5 | Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) | Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) |
| Dimensions | 241.2 x 185.7 x 8.8 mm | 271 x 171 x 13 mm | 256.7 x 175.3 x 8.6 mm |
| Weight | 601g | 680g | 560g |
| CPU | Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 | Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 | Dual-core 1 GHz Cortex-A9 |
| Display | 9.7" LED-backlit IPS TFT ( 768x1024px) | 10.1" LED-backlit IPS LCD (800x1280px) | 10.1" PLS TFT (800x1280px) |
| Storage | 16/32/64GB | 16/32GB + MicroSD slot | 16/32/64GB |
| RAM | 512MB | 1GB | 1GB |
| Camera | 0.7MP (720p@29fps) | 5MP | 3MP (720p@29fps) |
| Battery | 6930 mAh (720h standby/10h talktime) | 9h30 mins (talktime) | 7000 mAh (9h talktime/72h music play |
| Connectivity | WiFi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth, Apple-connector (USB) | WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth, MicroUSB, Mini-HDMI | WiFi a/b/g/n, Bluetooth, MicroUSB |
| Release Date | March 2011 | January 2011 | July 2011 |
COMING SOON: Amazon Kindle Fire, ASUS Transformer Prime
