Recommendations for a fast Android Tablet

[Qs Laptop]

FWIW, I have a Samsung Galaxy Tab S7, and it's by far the best tablet I've ever owned, accompanied with the keyboard for same. I use it literally every day at home and it's excellent for travel, so I think I'm getting my money's worth despite paying more than the OP wants to spend. I think the idea of getting the S6 Lite might be a good one.

In terms of operating system upgrades, my recollection is that Samsung now leads even Google in how many years of OS updates they offer. Is this just for phones? I had assumed it was for tablets too.

Samsung had the lead for a couple of months. Google Pixel 6, just released a couple weeks ago with Android 12, now leads in this category with three OS upgrades and five years of security updates.

Google does not make tablets anymore, though there are rumors of a Pixel tablet being developed.

I just checked and my S7 is running Android 11, One UI version 3.1, last security update was in September.

Thanks for that info.

My Samsung phone --- a Galaxy S21 --- is also running Android 11 and One UI version 3.1, last security update was last month (October). So pretty much the same at this point anyway.

Just got Android 12 for my Pixel 5a and of course Google Pixel has monthly security and software updates.

A minor thing that I like about having two Samsung devices is that when traveling I can take photos with my phone and then very easily transfer them to the tablet for easier viewing. Or just transferring any files to/from tablet or my wife's phone.

That is a nice feature.

Indeed these devices have no dedicated wired audio output; you use the USB-C power slot with a little dongle for a wired headphone or speaker or whatever. For travel, I bought a little unit that plugs into the USB-C power slot and allows me to plug in both a power cord and a wired headphone, though I have since found wireless headphones that I like better.

I've got a set of wireless ear buds and I could not imagine going back to wired headphones.

I guess the main thing that I notice about this tablet is all of the things that I DON'T notice --- I've owned several tablets over the years and each and every one has been somewhere on a "this is annoying" spectrum for various reasons. I just don't get that with current higher end Samsung devices.

Isn't that great?!!

I periodically get tempted to look into newer products by competitors --- such as the latest Pixel phones. But I expect I'll stick with Samsung going forward so long as they keep producing products that don't bug me (and I'm a guy that's pretty easy to 'bug' with techno and other failures ... just ask my wife ).

The thing that has kept me away from Samsung phones is their UI skin they place over stock Android. It's gotten a lot less intrusive lately, but in the past there were tons of complaints that it slowed down the phones, especially as ownership got into a year or so. Last August I almost bought an S20 FE but opted for the Pixel 5a. Talk about a phone that just "works" and doesn't produce things that bug me.

 

[YB88]

Good feedback on the Pixel. My son-in-law has had good luck with Pixel's too. The Samsung skin doesn't bother me, I guess I'm just used to it and/or not too picky in this regard. My wife still has an old Huawei tablet (with wi-fi pretty much always turned off for obvious reasons), and for that I did get a different launcher as their UI was annoying --- so I do know what you're talking about, I think.



All things being equal, I prefer to keep my devices 'stock' --- other than perhaps disabling any "can't uninstall" bloatware, and of course disabling Samsung's 'Bixby'. Bloatware bothers me a lot less than in the past, as newer devices have a lot more memory, so as long as it's disabled, who cares?


I've rooted phones and tablets in the past and just don't want to have to mess with that going forward.

 

[Qs Laptop]

I see that Samsung has a Black Friday deal on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 for $349 with a trade in of a phone or a tablet.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I see that Samsung has a Black Friday deal on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7 for $349 with a trade in of a phone or a tablet.

Yeah...... look at the deal without the trade! And that is a Maximum Trade. They offered me $10 for my S7 which I am not about to trade in.

IMHO It is a lost leader.

 

[walkinwood]

Another vote for the Samsung S6 Lite. It has a fantastic screen, fast enough processing and I find I can do most of my daily compute functions (email, messaging, photography) on it. It works wonderfully, paired with good blue tooth earbuds, to stream movies too. I now leave my notebook at home on short trips.


There is much made about the S-Pen, but I haven't used it at all. I guess I should look into what it does.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Another vote for the Samsung S6 Lite. It has a fantastic screen, fast enough processing and I find I can do most of my daily compute functions (email, messaging, photography) on it. It works wonderfully, paired with good blue tooth earbuds, to stream movies too. I now leave my notebook at home on short trips.


There is much made about the S-Pen, but I haven't used it at all. I guess I should look into what it does.

That was going to be our choice. But I checked it out at Best Buy and found the screen too small for our needs. We will go to the S7+ (Plus) when the price comes down.

Unfortunately it is fetching premium bucks right now, there are a few lost leaders, but it is not worth $650 to upgrade right now. Then we would have to get a keyboard and cover. It does not look like there will be any Black Friday sales worth taking advantage of for it.

 

[Freedom56]

We still have a ASUS Zenpad Z10 from 2017. I was thinking of upgrading but, the newer models don't have the high resolution 2K display that this one has. The newer models have lower resolution HD displays. I'll wait until 4K tablets before I upgrade again.

 

[Sojourner]

Wire cutter (NYT product review site) says the SAMSUNG Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is “by far the best value for the money”. It’s $329 at WalMart.

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is on sale for $249 at BestBuy today.
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-galaxy-tab-s6-lite-10-4-64gb-oxford-gray/6403872.p?skuId=6403872

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 Lite is on sale for $249 at BestBuy today.
https://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung-galaxy-tab-s6-lite-10-4-64gb-oxford-gray/6403872.p?skuId=6403872

Thanks for this. We decided against the lite, DW & I visited the store to get a hands on and found that the screen size was too small for our old eyes. We have decided on a S7+ OR we will wait for the S8 due in the first or second quarter of 2022. Only reason is they only support Android SW versions for 2 years. (Damn that built in redundancy!)

 

[Sojourner]

Thanks for this. We decided against the lite, DW & I visited the store to get a hands on and found that the screen size was too small for our old eyes. We have decided on a S7+ OR we will wait for the S8 due in the first or second quarter of 2022. Only reason is they only support Android SW versions for 2 years. (Damn that built in redundancy!)

The 10.4" screen of the S6 Lite is big enough for my needs, but I could see how a heavy tablet user might want something bigger. I mostly use mine for reading books, very light web browsing, maybe occasionally watching a short video or TV show while traveling. Today's Black Friday price seems like a good deal on this highly rated tablet.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

The 10.4" screen of the S6 Lite is big enough for my needs, but I could see how a heavy tablet user might want something bigger. I mostly use mine for reading books, very light web browsing, maybe occasionally watching a short video or TV show while traveling. Today's Black Friday price seems like a good deal on this highly rated tablet.

I agree, but DW does not like the screen format Width vs Height (Aspect Ratio) of the lite vs the plus. She watches a lot of YouTube videos.

 

[NW-Bound]

If a tablet runs Android 9, by definition it can't be fast. The Galaxy Tab S6 Lite runs Android 10.

My wife has a Samsung Galaxy Tab. Out of curiosity, I looked and saw that it runs Android 6. Dang!

My wife is not unhappy with it. She uses it to surf the Web and watch videos, and it is plenty fast for her.

PS. I bought this Tab in 2019. Looks like it was already obsolete when I bought it. I've got to pay more attention next time.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Being as the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7+ is approaching its last OS update. I have decided to wait until the new year when the S8 comes out.

 

[Qs Laptop]

Being as the Samsung Galaxy Tab 7+ is approaching its last OS update. I have decided to wait until the new year when the S8 comes out.

Probably the best course of action. Be ready to pay about $650.

 

[Lsbcal]

So far I think the Samsung Galaxy Tab Lite 64gb will fit the bill. Remember it is DW's surfing, Pintrest, Youtube, FB, Email etc, machine. Currently she is using an iPad Air (0 Generation, so I suppose it is a Gen 1). She uses a plug in headset to listen to her craft videos and I noticed that a lot of new devices do not have a socket for one. It is as slow a Molasses, but does suit her needs although she does complain on occasion. I personally find it unusable. She tells me to wait till the battery pegs out, which does not look as if that is going to be soon. I am torn.

I was hoping for a sale but with the current supply chain issues, it maybe wishful thinking.

You may be set on a tablet but if not I bought this Chromebook some months ago and it is a great value I think:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B087N8HZVJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I think a tablet is really good for reading when having breakfast (no food on keyboard) and for travel when flying (to reduce weight). However, a good smartphone works for even Kindle reading and is more versatile with better app support. So all depends on your needs.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

You may be set on a tablet but if not I bought this Chromebook some months ago and it is a great value I think:

We ruled out the Chromebook due to their lack of flexibility when not connected to the internet.

A tablet works better in both scenarios.

 

[Lsbcal]

We ruled out the Chromebook due to their lack of flexibility when not connected to the internet.

A tablet works better in both scenarios.

I have not tried tethering to a phone but if that would nullify the objection then I'd look at that. Link to how to do that:

https://support.google.com/chromebook/answer/7457148?hl=en

 

[RetMD21]

You may be set on a tablet but if not I bought this Chromebook some months ago and it is a great value I think:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B087N8HZVJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I think a tablet is really good for reading when having breakfast (no food on keyboard) and for travel when flying (to reduce weight). However, a good smartphone works for even Kindle reading and is more versatile with better app support. So all depends on your needs.

Did you look at the x360 line? It's nice to have a keyboard but it folds out of the way so that you could use a table like mode. Best of both worlds?

 

[Lsbcal]

Did you look at the x360 line? It's nice to have a keyboard but it folds out of the way so that you could use a table like mode. Best of both worlds?

I didn't know about that one. Makes sense as it has a touchscreen so one can eat breakfast without the worry of messing up the keyboard. Good pricing too.

Ergonomically I like to read at breakfast with my iPad held up at head height and so I use a nicely designed holder for that. I use the laptop for sitting in my easy chair when I don't need a large screen which my desktop has.

So a little of everything for me. But this all depends on your usage model which can be very individual.

 

[RetMD21]

I didn't know about that one. Makes sense as it has a touchscreen so one can eat breakfast without the worry of messing up the keyboard. Good pricing too.

Ergonomically I like to read at breakfast with my iPad held up at head height and so I use a nicely designed holder for that. I use the laptop for sitting in my easy chair when I don't need a large screen which my desktop has.

So a little of everything for me. But this all depends on your usage model which can be very individual.

My main use for my tablet is to consume media, especially the free magazines from the library. It would be nice to use one less device.