About To Take The Plunge For A Tablet...Need Advice!

Rayj00

Senior Member
Sep 27, 2011
5
0
I am pissed that Apple refuses to support Flash as well as their prices so I count them out

I'd like an Android tab 10.1" .
I'm just confused on which one to purchase. I've seen some Android tabs advertised for as low as $159. I really don't want to pay $399 or $499.

Now I am new at tabs in general but have heard that they can be "rooted"? What is rooted? I would like to bring any tab I do get up to the most current version of Android. Is that easy?

Are any of the tablets located at

Android Tablets


able to be upgraded?

Is there a nice tutorial on whatever "root" is and upgrading the OS?

Thanks and appreciate your responses.

Ray
 

Androidicus

Member
Sep 4, 2011
46
2
Rooting is simply gaining (the equivalent of) Administrator rights that allow you full control of the OS e.g. customization, installation of non-official apps (homebrew), etc. It's not as a big deal as it sounds since Rooting is now automated using a variety of programs -- Z4Root is the most famous, followed closely by Universal Androot that is an off-shoot of a developers tool.

As for OS upgrades...

It depends mostly on the hardware in your device. Tablets are mobile devices, so this means they have limited CPUs, RAM, etc.

At the very minimum, you are going to need Android 2.2 (Froyo), 2.3 (Gingerbread), or better because these versions support Adobe Flash that 95% of web pages now use. Android 3.2 (Honeycomb) is the latest Android OS and is made specifically for tablets (vs. earlier versions that are cell phone OSes running on a tablet). Honeycomb means better visual scaling for tablet as well as better kernel optimization and this means faster response and less battery usage, too.

Not all tablets can be upgraded to the latest OS (Honeycomb) due in part to the more stringent hardware requirements mentioned earlier. This is why I said, you want your OS to have at least, Adobe Flash compatibility at the bare minimum.

Now, as far as what tablet(s) to buy...

Right now, I would just WAIT.

There is a big discussion on this here:

http://www.androidtablets.net/forum...aka-should-i-buy-samsung-galtab-10-1-now.html

However, bottom line is this:

Buy a good, quality tablet from a name brand because the old saying applies here: You get what you pay for.

The good news is a lot of the tier one tablets (Nvidia Terga 2; Dual Core, IPS screens) will more than likely come down in price in the next few months. So, this would be a good way to enter the tablet market without spending an arm & a leg if you are still unsure. Plus, the added benefit is the second gen tablets will be out by the holiday season most likely. The possibility of Kal-El (Quad Core) CPUs and enhanced graphic chips is just too great to go out and buy a current gen tablet right now, at full price, IMO.
 
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