I picked up a couple of new tablets recently and thought I'd share a bit about them in case any of you are thinking of picking one up because they both are pretty awesome for their own reasons.
The first one is the Surface II. It replaces last year's Microsoft Surface which wasn't too successful. This one has freakishly high screen resolution and a quad core processor that is really fast. The main reason I though that some of you might be interested in hearing about it is that it is a Windows RT tablet and comes with Office 2013. Considering the tablet costs about $430 and Office usually costs a couple hundred bucks on its own, that's not too bad of a deal. I use Excel a lot a work and am usually in my truck and this tablet is perfect for that thanks to its size. Unlike the Ipad, the Surface can actually be used for serious work. The memory can be expanded up to 65Gb
Windows RT (8.1) runs fast and I've had no problems so far. I picked up the keyboard cover my tab which is sort of like the Smart Covers that IPad put out a couple of years ago except this one doesn't suck. It attaches magnetically and the keyboard works great and is even backlit. You can either get that or a touch keyboard that has virtual keys (lame).
That tablet is oddly shaped since the screen mimics a monitor or wide screen TV but it looks outstanding. There is also a kickstand that makes it easier to watch movies or do work. The Surface doesn't quite replace your laptop bt it comes very close.
The only real drawbacks to the Surface II that I've seen so far is that there are nowhere near as many apps in the Windows Store as there are in ITunes(only about 125,000) . Also, Windows RT can only run apps; no installing programs like regular Windows 8 which is no big deal to me since this is just a tablet.
The keyboard covers are a bit expensive at $130 or $129 for the touch one. Anyone looking for a tablet that they can use for fun stuff and work should check out the Surface II
The other tablet I picked up is the Google Nexus 7. I got this one because I bought the original Nexus 7 last year and thought it was a pretty great tablet. The new one is way better. The screen is actually considered better than the IPad Mini with Retina Display by CNET. It has a Tegra 4 processor and is both thinner and lighter. The new Nexus 7 is really the main reason I wanted to tell you guys about these tablets because of one awesome feature: it's a full-fledged GPS. Most tablets and phones have navigation apps that act like GPS's but have to be connected to WI-FI or use your cellular data. The Nexus 7 does not. I downloaded Co-Pilot for $9.99 and the tablet works like any other GPS out there, of course this one has a sweet looking 7" touch screen and a quad core processor that allows it to be far more responsive than the Garmin I'm gonna dump on my wife. I've been driving around Wyoming for the past couple of week and it works flawlessly with ZERO internet connection. All this and the new Nexus 7 only costs $229 for the 16gb and $269 for the 32gb. Unfortunately there is no slot for more memory.
Everything else is pretty standard for an Android tablet except that the Nexus runs really fast. Every review that I've read so far names it as the best 7" tablet you can buy right now, which they all also said about last year's Nexus 7.
I just thought I'd let you guys know about these tablets if you didn't already because I'm so happy with them. There are so many tablets out there now that it's too easy to pick up a piece of crap and waste your money but here are two that I think are really good.
The first one is the Surface II. It replaces last year's Microsoft Surface which wasn't too successful. This one has freakishly high screen resolution and a quad core processor that is really fast. The main reason I though that some of you might be interested in hearing about it is that it is a Windows RT tablet and comes with Office 2013. Considering the tablet costs about $430 and Office usually costs a couple hundred bucks on its own, that's not too bad of a deal. I use Excel a lot a work and am usually in my truck and this tablet is perfect for that thanks to its size. Unlike the Ipad, the Surface can actually be used for serious work. The memory can be expanded up to 65Gb
Windows RT (8.1) runs fast and I've had no problems so far. I picked up the keyboard cover my tab which is sort of like the Smart Covers that IPad put out a couple of years ago except this one doesn't suck. It attaches magnetically and the keyboard works great and is even backlit. You can either get that or a touch keyboard that has virtual keys (lame).
That tablet is oddly shaped since the screen mimics a monitor or wide screen TV but it looks outstanding. There is also a kickstand that makes it easier to watch movies or do work. The Surface doesn't quite replace your laptop bt it comes very close.
The only real drawbacks to the Surface II that I've seen so far is that there are nowhere near as many apps in the Windows Store as there are in ITunes(only about 125,000) . Also, Windows RT can only run apps; no installing programs like regular Windows 8 which is no big deal to me since this is just a tablet.
The keyboard covers are a bit expensive at $130 or $129 for the touch one. Anyone looking for a tablet that they can use for fun stuff and work should check out the Surface II
The other tablet I picked up is the Google Nexus 7. I got this one because I bought the original Nexus 7 last year and thought it was a pretty great tablet. The new one is way better. The screen is actually considered better than the IPad Mini with Retina Display by CNET. It has a Tegra 4 processor and is both thinner and lighter. The new Nexus 7 is really the main reason I wanted to tell you guys about these tablets because of one awesome feature: it's a full-fledged GPS. Most tablets and phones have navigation apps that act like GPS's but have to be connected to WI-FI or use your cellular data. The Nexus 7 does not. I downloaded Co-Pilot for $9.99 and the tablet works like any other GPS out there, of course this one has a sweet looking 7" touch screen and a quad core processor that allows it to be far more responsive than the Garmin I'm gonna dump on my wife. I've been driving around Wyoming for the past couple of week and it works flawlessly with ZERO internet connection. All this and the new Nexus 7 only costs $229 for the 16gb and $269 for the 32gb. Unfortunately there is no slot for more memory.
Everything else is pretty standard for an Android tablet except that the Nexus runs really fast. Every review that I've read so far names it as the best 7" tablet you can buy right now, which they all also said about last year's Nexus 7.
I just thought I'd let you guys know about these tablets if you didn't already because I'm so happy with them. There are so many tablets out there now that it's too easy to pick up a piece of crap and waste your money but here are two that I think are really good.
