~£200 alternatives to the Kindle Fire

Sanchez · 15 May 2012 at 21:25

So I've finally managed to persuade the other half to invest in a tablet now she's spending a lot of time on the Internet with her being on maternity leave. So far, I think the best for us will be the Kindle Fire. It comes in at well under £200 from the bay, with perhaps the biggest drawback being the 7" screen. We (read I)would prefer a larger 10" screen but everything seems to be quite expensive. Have I missed any glaringly obvious alternatives out there?

I've taken a look at iPads too, although I am a bit of an Android fan boy. Is the original iPad worth a look in these days? They can be had for £239 refurbed from Apple but I see the iPad 2 on there at £259 so it seems a little expensive for an old model. I must say, the idea of iOS is appealing as it seems to get the best games and apps over Android.

b0rn2sk8 · 15 May 2012 at 21:56

I really wouldn't get an iPad 1 now, nor would I get the fire.

iPad 2 for 259 sounds good to me.

Sanchez · 15 May 2012 at 22:31

I suspected that the iPad 1 would be a little long in the tooth by now.

Care to elaborate on why you would avoid the Fire? My sister has one and it seems quite good on the few occasions I've used it (despite the fact hers is gimped because it's being used in the UK and isn't rooted/doesn't have Play installed on it).

I've looked at the Playbook too. Does anyone have any experiences of these? Am I right in thinking that it has Google Play coming to it soon?

POB · 16 May 2012 at 08:08

7" is a great form factor. I had an original iPad and hated it. (1 it was too big, 2 the webbrowsing on the original model was dire with constant refreshing of pages when switching tabs)

I have the Nook Tablet (better than the Fire, as it has 1GB Ram and a microSD slot) Still has IPS Screen.

Starts at $199 if your ever in the USA.

Or you could look at Samsung's new Galaxy Tab 2 range. The 7" is £199 at the CarPhoneWarehouse but has Ice Cream Sandwich.

londonbairn · 16 May 2012 at 09:28

The Tab 7.0 Plus may be a better bet over the new tab (it has 16gb vs 8gb, and 1.2ghz dual core vs 1ghz with the same screen) and is £195 if you hunt around.

Also good chance it has IR

b0rn2sk8 · 16 May 2012 at 11:51

Sanchez said:
Care to elaborate on why you would avoid the Fire? My sister has one and it seems quite good on the few occasions I've used it (despite the fact hers is gimped because it's being used in the UK and isn't rooted/doesn't have Play installed on it).

I've looked at the Playbook too. Does anyone have any experiences of these? Am I right in thinking that it has Google Play coming to it soon?

Fire is simply just not as good, it depends if you can justify/afford the extra £60.

Quality of hardware and software, Eco system, simple to use, no need to root it for normal use etc.

I generally just prefer to have no messing around when it comes to things I use every day, so for me the iPad 2 is the one to go for.