A Non-Authoritative Android Tablet Buying List: What to Get, What to Avoid (2010)

[xaueious]

I ordered some Android tablets about a week ago for my wife and two daughters (ages 9 & 8). I bought:

1) Zenithink ZT-180 10" Android 2.1 for the missus (replacing a laptop in which she only does email, facebook, youtube, internet)
2) Anhub 7" RK2808 Android 1.5 for my 9-yr old daughter
3) Generic 7" VT8505 Android 2.0 for my 8-yr old daughter

I ordered before finding this site, but from what I'm gathering, it appears as though my wife is getting a pretty good, stable device & my daughters are getting something I am going to be spending a lot of time on fixing/upgrading, but should suit their pre-teen needs for media. Is this a pretty accurate expectation based on your experiences?

On Amazon Anhub, every listing they have is expensive.

All three devices you ordered have poor track records of build quality. The ZT180 has traditionally been plagued with issues, unless you are sure you are getting a new revision ZT180. It is about $120 on Ebay, and I can assure you it is not worth more than that money.

I don't know what words of consolation I can provide now.

 

[blackstone]

I have been holding out for the Archos 70 or 101 for quite a while now but I have recently seen a few people talking about the A81E+. You have only given it one star in your review though. Is it really that bad? Should I hold out for the Archos and is the Archos worth the extra cash?

 

[Lubi77]

All three devices you ordered have poor track records of build quality....I don't know what words of consolation I can provide now.

Yikes. Guess it isn't gonna be a very Merry Christmas then.

 

[ftanl]

For cheaper chipads what's your take on the 2 versions below?



10.2" ePad Android 2.1 Hdmi WiFi GPS MID Tablet PC

CPU/ ARM 1GMHz
256 mb
2gb nand flash
1024/600 TFT LCD
Android 2.1




10.2" Notebook WiFi Google Android 2.1 MID Tablet PC

CPU/ 1G mhz
256 mb memory
2GB nand flash
1024/600 tft lcd
Google Android 2.1 with marketplace

 

[imjayson]

hey xaueious,
just want to say thank you for this awesome post.

i realised you did not include flytouch2 in your buying list. is it a bad choice? i'm looking to get an OEM one here:
Buy mid, tablet pc, umpc, 10.2" Android 2.1 tablet pc MINI Netbook Laptop MID UMPC Tablet PC Touch Screen+WIFI+3G+GPS+Camera+HDMI+RJ45 at **************

any advice for me?

Thank you!

Regards,
Jayson

 

[xaueious]

About the A81E+, if it has any stars, I give it some merit. It means it's worth a shot if you have no other ideas.

I haven't looked at the Flytouch II in enough detail to recommend it. It isn't that bad, from what I heard. But I do not recommend it just yet because of the shipments with 1024x576, and firmware hassles. It will be one * if I recommend it because you don't know what you are getting.

 

[imjayson]

well i'm not sure y my post got deleted, but thanks for the answer xaueious.

 

[xaueious]

well i'm not sure y my post got deleted, but thanks for the answer xaueious.

Because I saw your original post unapproved and thought you double posted

 

[blackstone]

Thanks xaueious.

Looks like its the archos for me then.

 

[CoolerKing]

I've tried the 8 inch form factor and it feels just a bit too big and about 5 ounces too heavy for me... This should mean that 7 inch is the perfect form factor for me..

Is Telechips really worth recommending for 2.2 and up? it seems like a major drawback that they need to port all the code before it works.. and the Cortex A8 doesn't have this problem?

Also, I've found the 7 inch E11 with TCC8902 that is supposedly equiped with Android 2.2.. but I suppose it's some fake version? (it's mentioned here: http://www.slatedroid.com/index.php?topic=8916.0 )

 

[xaueious]

For Telechips, it's ARM11, 150MB RAM (typical), and Mali200. That means even if it gets further upgrades to Android, it doesn't improve in end-user functionality by that much in my opinion. Android 2.3 would be a significant upgrade though...

 

[CoolerKing]

I was looking for the M701 now but it's really confusing with all the different versions.. so far I found that:

- M701 = G10 (no hdmi)
- M701-r = E7002 (with hdmi and remote control)
- G12 / G13 dunno what these are

Do you happen to know if the M701-r is the only version where the memory card sticks out?

 

[charles]

I agree with listing. If the Samsung Tab was closer to the Huawei in price it would be a winner. However at $600 US it is over priced.

 

[xaueious]

Updated recommendation comments on Nook Color:

AOSP available soon. Foxconn quality.
Fixed link thanks to gadgetrants

There are different versions of the M701. They have fixed the microSD slot in newer versions, along with adding HDMI. The newer the batch, the better. I thought the M701-R was already the newer version and the microSD card doesn't really stuck out much.

 

[CoolerKing]

is the iMito iM7 worth recommending?.. I'm not sure why it's cheaper than all of the HDMI versions of the M701

also, most of these models are claiming that the ram can be upgraded to 512mb.. do you know if this is an easy operation?

edit: hmm, I guess the iM7 is a DAWA D7 version (like the GenTouch78) and that the build quality is not up to par with the M701