I need to get a touchpad that I can use while I go to some of my long doctors appointments. I want one that has a USB port for thumb drives, can play movies and music, connects to the internet, and I can use as a reader. It would be great to have one that I can also attach an external keyboard as well. I need the best value that is something I can afford. Any ideas? I can go for a new or used one, so any feedback would be great.
I made a thread regarding tablets and writing a while back. I found that about only a handful (see 3) are on the market that have a full-sized USB (Maybe 2 on a certain model) which you can actually use to connect a geekstick. Their prices range for 200-500 I believe. Most tablets only have mini-usb jacks that are good for only things with the adapter for it or charging and generally can't well connect with a regular usb hardware. So gotta be careful about that as they all say USB 3.0 or even full sized instead of saying "USB drives that aren't tiny" Would you consider a bluetooth keyboard? It really opens up the possibilityof what tablets would work for you and they aren't overly expensive and come in different sizes (I even saw a rollup one). They range from anywhere to as low as $50. I believe the Dragon tablet has a USB that can connect a keyboard or flashdrive (only one plug I think) but if it's about having a copy of your writing than you can just use dropbox and keep it updated on your tablet and home machine without issue. It also has lots of memory and an expansion slot for additional storage. Does everything you'd want as well and is a samsung product (Or at least runs on Android firmware) I have also heard lots of good things about iPad minis but I personally use a Samsung Tab 3 and have zero complaints. I watch movies, take pictures (Quality is a bit crappy if you get the lower end model), go on the internet (It's how I'm on WF ALL day), and I have no problems writing with it and my keyboard. It was all about 150$ but I got mine on Kijiji. The store price seems 170 for the tablet and 50$ for the keyboard. Rather cheap in my opinion for how much I am personally getting out of it. Only issue is that it tends to heat up when using apps that take a lot of power (shocker) but I only ever had it actually overheat once. And I meant apps like games, movies only tend to get it mildly warm at worst. Though, you can still safely play games on it without worrying about it overheating as generally it doesn't get too hot. Wishy washy at best. Any tablet at 7" seems a good size to me, bigger might be better depending on your carrying capacity and your needs/preferences in screen size though for writing I can just zoom as much or little as I like to make the words bigger without changing font size. I personally wish my tablet could double as a phone because I use it so much and it'd make my life much easier. The only reason I have a smart phone is for the touch keypad as well as for the internet to find numbers or my location with the gps. Also, stealing wi-fi is a friggin endeavor if you want to be connected everywhere you go gotta learn all the hotspots and see what passwords you can find
Well I have been looking at some 7" deals on Wal-Mart.com that are around $60-$75 but I always wonder just how good they are. I bought a Cruz tablet used awhile back and it doesn't even work really. It's basically a paper weight I wasted money on. I just have to find something because I have one doctors appointment where I might be there for 3+ hours every month and they don't have WiFi, so I would like to watch some movies or type up some stories and listen to music. So I want something that works, but doesn't have to be extra expensive. I'm just afraid to get burned like the first time.
Yeah, I'd be hesitant too to get one if I had been previously burned but I made sure to spend a fair bit of money on mine and go with a known brand just as they're more likely to work well enough or perfectly. There are quite a bit of bad reviews for dragon tablets, seems like they are a 50/50 kinda thing. One of the reasons I didn't get it was due to just that and went with a samsung tab. Also, if you buy it from a retailer, odds are there is a return policy and a warranty in place without additional charge so you'd be protected from faults for the most part. I've had my tablet for nearly two months now and no real complaints. Best decision ever for my writing life and versatile to boot. Ask if there are any floor models that you can play around with to see if it'll fit your needs. Usually it'll give you a good idea of how it feels and if it'll work for you. Anything under $300 is most likely a good buy from a trusted brand. It's won';t be the fanciest but it performs well.
I'm thinking something like this for the price, and it has a micro USB but I have an adapter that I can hook it up to my computer at home and put the movie and music on it and delete it later. 8 GB of memory isn't much, but it does have expandable microSDHC card slot, and it works off Jelly Bean Android OS so I can get upgrades like VLC player for it. http://www.walmart.com/ip/Double-Power-EM63K-with-WiFi-7-Tablet-PC-Featuring-Android-4.2-Jelly-Bean-Operating-System-Black/33620133
It seems fine but it seems the one usb port is used for the keyboard and the charger which may be a bother at times. No mention of battery life which is odd and there's no customer comments either... try googling it and see where else it appears. Don't mind technical reviews unless they state that even basic fuctions such as media players or apps tend to overheat or stutter or the touch screen dies fast.
