The Hardware
Size
Tablet sizes vary from about 7 inches wide to anything up to 12 inches.
Smaller tablets are great if you’re looking for something more portable and easy to fit in your bag. Larger tablets are more cumbersome and not as ideal for everyday travel usage.
Screen
Make sure you get a good screen with anti-glare coating and good colour depth. If you’re able to compare tablets in store, look out for how many fingerprint marks there are on the screens. IPS technology for multi-angle viewing is another good feature.
Screen resolution is important too, and if you mainly want to use your tablet for entertainment – playing games and watching films – it’s worth paying more for a higher resolution and more detail.
Storage
Tablets usually have at least 8GB of storage.
Storage options usually increase by ‘doubling’: 8GB, 16GB, 32GB, 64GB and 128GB. Obviously, the more the storage, the more expensive the tablet generally becomes.
Many tablets give you the option of increasing the amount of storage cheaply by using a microSD card. Remember there are also cloud storage options such as Telitec Cloud, which allow you to save space and store photos, music and film online rather than directly on your tablet.
Processors
Most tablets use at least a dual-core processor. A quad-core processor with 2GB RAM adds to the cost, but also means your device will handle games and play videos much more smoothly.
Weaker processors will still be able to run applications like any other tablet but they will struggle to run multiple applications.
Cameras
Cameras really aren’t the standout feature on tablets and should not be considered replacements for smartphone cameras – which are generally better.
It’s best to think of your tablet as a device for viewing photos and, possibly, making video calls. In this case, you’ll want a front-facing camera.
Getting connected
Wi-fi and Bluetooth are included on the majority of tablets, but 3G and 4G models are available too. If you’ve got a smartphone, you probably don’t need 3G on your tablet as well, unless you are using it out and about for work.
