Feedback on a tablet buying guide....

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Dreal

417 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1350971 24-Jul-2015 09:20

roobarb:
Dreal: I am hoping the guide can be used internationally, so I am not sure means of sourcing is an ideal topic.

As buyer, knowing I can source overseas is important but I should be made aware of tax obligations and consumer rights differences.

Dreal: Do people buy second hand tablets?

Not sure if PeterReader will kick in...

http://www.trademe.co.nz/computers/tablets-ebook-readers

Yeah, I suppose that local versus international can be somewhat generalized to other countries.

I could say something about that.

Personally I'd be wary of buying second hand because the device lifetime is not really not that long. The combination of lithium, chipsets, flash memory, digitizers, ports etc.

Although for expensive devices it's perfectly understandable. I could include some information on what to be aware of when buying second hand.

Tap That - Great cheap tablets and tablet accessories. Windows and Android, NZ based

Wade

2225 posts

Uber Geek

#1350993 24-Jul-2015 09:43

I like the layout, maybe bigger pictures and or fontsize to break up the words a bit more

What about adding some kind of visual feature matrix as a form of summary/TL:DR... say ram --> 1GB good, 2gb great, 3+gb beast..... resolution --> 720p good, 1080p great, 1440p+ awesome etc etc

Maybe like a car dealer specification/feature sheet where they list the features down the left and the various models across the top but instead have good / better / best columns and list the critical spec in each column?

roobarb

653 posts

Ultimate Geek

Trusted

#1351007 24-Jul-2015 09:57

Inphinity:
You don’t really need to know what GHz and GB are (the G roughly stands for thousand, and M stands for hundred, roughly)

While I understand you're trying to make this a numpty-readable article, this bit makes little to no sense, and I feel only serves to confuse. It's neither technically accurate, nor does it provide clarity for an uneducated reader.

To be honest, it's so wrong that I would doubt any claim to be technically knowledgeable and not trust any advice!

Dreal

417 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1351042 24-Jul-2015 10:26

Wade: I like the layout, maybe bigger pictures and or fontsize to break up the words a bit more

What about adding some kind of visual feature matrix as a form of summary/TL:DR... say ram --> 1GB good, 2gb great, 3+gb beast..... resolution --> 720p good, 1080p great, 1440p+ awesome etc etc

Maybe like a car dealer specification/feature sheet where they list the features down the left and the various models across the top but instead have good / better / best columns and list the critical spec in each column?

That is a great idea. Actually brilliant, the summary part! Really good idea

I sized the pictures small so they can fit on a mobile device, but I really should make them adaptive instead (and increase the font size a little)

Tap That - Great cheap tablets and tablet accessories. Windows and Android, NZ based

Dreal

417 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1351050 24-Jul-2015 10:30

roobarb:
Inphinity:
You don’t really need to know what GHz and GB are (the G roughly stands for thousand, and M stands for hundred, roughly)

While I understand you're trying to make this a numpty-readable article, this bit makes little to no sense, and I feel only serves to confuse. It's neither technically accurate, nor does it provide clarity for an uneducated reader.

To be honest, it's so wrong that I would doubt any claim to be technically knowledgeable and not trust any advice!

Fair call, there's no real excuse for getting things that wrong. For some reason the years of IT, and growing up with computers, fell out of me the afternoon I wrote that.

Tap That - Great cheap tablets and tablet accessories. Windows and Android, NZ based

1101

3122 posts

Uber Geek

#1351219 24-Jul-2015 16:06

since its a guide aimed at non tech savvy types.....
What Id recommend adding in

- an Android or IPAD is NOT A PC . If they expect to run particular programs or tasks , they need to check that their is a compatible app for it.
Some non savvy users expect Android & IPAD to be used in a similar way to their PC/notebook .
Perhaps explain that Android/IPAD is more just like a bigger smartphone (without the ph, usually)

- make some mention on just how terrible the very cheap generic Tablets are.
They can be quite bad & ruin the experience .
for me , going from an unusable generic to a Samsung was like going into the future by 10 years
Also, the cheaper tabs can be unreadable in sunlight. With mine, even sitting next to a window made it very hard to read
Also, generic versions may have a hacked in , non official Android install.

- mention that Samsung have a habit of not offering any Android uprades to newer versions . So you will be stuck with the ver of Android it was sold with
Also mention that many are still sold with old versions of android
But in reality , this wont make any difference for the average user.

- note that while the IPAD or Win tabs generally have similar gui/interface between similar models & brands, the Androids user interface can be quite differenet between Brands.
For Example samsung hacks in the Touchwiz interface, hated buy geeks, loved by non geeks . I personally like touchwiz, as thats what Im now used to
And that Brands like samsung add in apps that are annoying, unwanted, and cannot be removed

1101

3122 posts

Uber Geek

#1351225 24-Jul-2015 16:26

here are specs from a random Tablet , specs taken off the warhouse stationary page (below)
dont expect tablet CPU's to be intel or ARM

Galaxy Tab3 7 Lite
1.2Ghz Dual Core Marvell Processer
7" Display
1GB RAM + 8GB Memory plus add up to 32GB by microSD
2MP Rear Camera
2 year manufacturer warranty

This is why the whole CPU speed spec is such a muddy mess to try & compare one to the other . Just how are novices are meant to make sense of cpu specs ?
1.2Ghz = OK, and bad, sometimes, but it really depends, sometimes , depending on what generation and brand CPU :-)
marvel CPU, well is that good, bad , who knows, perhaps there are several different generation marvel CPUs that could be

So perhaps, rather than even mention CPU speed in your guide, suggest they google search the model for some user reviews instead ?

How realistic are the CPU spec's you recommended , for a 1st time buyer on a budget ? My Tab2 only has a Dual-core 1 GHz , and its plenty fast enough for what I do with it .
Im not sure the av 1st time user needs a quad 2Ghz CPU in an andoid tablet .

just my 2c
:-)

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gzt

17111 posts

Uber Geek

Lifetime subscriber

#1351229 24-Jul-2015 16:27

It is a difficult task you have set yourself there. The variety is huge so maybe dividing into high med low cost bands and what you will get for that band and what is can do makes more sense as a guide. Ie; no HD video below x, all have otg etc. Not the answer but hope it helps. : )

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