Right now I think the 7" of choice is the Nexus 7 at $199. But compare it closely to the Fire HD....depending on what you want to do the Fire might be a good choice as well.

Kinda stuck here as Im old school.........I cant convince myself that a tablet can function the same as my laptop..(had same problem going from tower to laptop).......I have a Nook tablet and have yet to use it.

now that Cell phones are jumping in and becoming the new replacement , I guess a good pair of Bi-Focals and convincing myself its finally time to get rid of my old radio shack Brick phone is in order soon...

 

What ever happen to soup can and string method....Must have left them in my first motorhome 1966 Winnie brave.   number 9 off the assembly line , miss the old girl!!!!

Like Bill said, a tablet is only suitable as the ONLY computing device for a limited number of people. However, I do know people that ONLY "consume"
information - emails, web browsing, etc - and for them the tablet works well. IF you only respond to emails and don't really do any other "production" then the tablet would also likely work well for you IF you get an external keyboard. But honestly, in that case it is a toss up between the tablet and a Netbook (which will be around the same price).

For almost everyone the tablet is a supplemental device. I pick up the tablet FIRST if just looking for something or checking an email. But if I have to DO any work then it is the laptop.

I'm actually about to ditch my laptop and go back to a full desktop computer, which is a huge step for me.

I find that my iPad is functional enough to be my carry-everywhere device, that I hardly ever take my laptop anywhere. I can keep up on e-mail, surf the web, manage my finances, create documents, edit videos & photos, remote into my servers, etc. - which is enough for me to be away from my full on computer for a couple days.

When I am in a full on creation mode for work, then I'm at my desk in my comfy ergonomic chair and 30" monitor, bluetooth keyboard and trackpad.

This leaves my high end Macbook Pro essentially being a desktop computer docked into my monitor all of the time, and never really utilizing the portability of it. I can get a lot more power, hard drive space, memory, etc. by going with an iMac setup on my desk instead. I may keep a Macbook Air around (netbook size) for if I need to do any extended travel away from the RV.


The iPad Mini should be announced mid-month - which is rumored to be around 7.9" in size. I'm intrigued by this, as the iPad is a bit heavy and large to be carrying around all the time like I am. So I'm curious to see if the new mini model will be large enough to continue to be such a highly useful device in my life.

Obviously, we're very much Mac people - so other brands aren't a consideration for us. But I will say, I'm not sure I'd like the complexity and expense of having to keep up with devices on two different operating systems. For instance, that's two sets of updates to keep installed and learning two different systems. Not to mention not being able to share any media or apps we purchased between the devices.

- Cherie

I agree with you Bill that Netbooks are going away. I'll never own an Ultra - it simply has too many negatives and few positives relative to tablets or a fullsize laptop. And unlike Cherie, I'll NEVER own a desktop as long as I'm fulltiming. But I'm not running a business, either.

I'm looking forward to a really nice 10" Android tablet...actually I was holding out for the 11.6" Samsung, which seems to have gone back to the vaporware category. I have the 7" Nexus, but sometimes the larger screen is really nice. But, like Cherie, I like the 7" size for carrying around. And now that my S3 has a free hotspot the tablet simply connects..... I do need a larger tablet for showing pictures of RVs to prospects. So I guess I'm going to have to break down and buy a Transformer, or something similar....We will see what the next "wave" of 10"-ish devices look like....

Right now if I had a sudden need for a 7" tablet the Nexus 7 would be it. My only downside is it has no storage slot, but since it has a micro USB I use an OTG cable (under a $1 off Amazon), to make it a full USB to use a USB flash/thumb drive with it when needed. The Kindle Fire's don't interest me since they are geared too much for Amazon, missing useful parts like a GPS and I want the full Google experience and apps.

Just dumped the iPhone 4s for a DROID .... no comparison on user friendliness, IMHO.  GPS s a biggie, so the Apple products are useless too me.We bought the Samsung Tab2 7.7" (a tad bigger than the 7.0") becuase I wanted something I could stash in a side pocket of my purse or use as a GPS device when Terry has the DROID Charge in the other vehicle. Also bought the keyboard, so now I have access in our mobile office unit via the VErizon network.

 

When we can upgrade in March with a new free device, we will replace the Samsung Charge phone with the Galaxy S III, unless of course, there is something newer AND BETTER on the market by then.

 

NO MORE APPLE ANTYHING for this family!

 

WE couldn't easily synch all 256 contacts on the iPhone into Verzion Backup, so I lost some and hand to manually enter the others.

There really is no comparison Apple vs. DROID, and I am NOT into name-brand "keeping up with the Jones" stuff. If it works for me, I don't car wwhat name is on the outside. Thank goodness I was gifted by the Apple, I wiuld have been REALLY mad at myself if I had fallen for their marketing hype and paid top dollar for it!

folivier: I think you are getting different security systems mixed together. WiFi security and internet security are not really that related. The main issue with banks and financial accounts is are they using secure connecting protocols, normally https instead of http on their browser. People use internet cafes all around the world to access their bank accounts using https.

folivier - Most banks that provide online access tend to also have smartphone & tablet apps that gives you a very secure connection if you don't trust the device's browser.

Like Bill said, it's not the WiFi itself that insecure - but the connection protocol. If it's https, you're as safe as it's gonna get. And if you don't trust that, then you really should reconsider banking online at all.

- Cherie

Adobe has quit supporting Flash for Android, so if you want Flash support you need a "real" computer. Many of those Flash websites are not getting upgraded, the owners don't have the money or desire to get a rewrite done.