Looking to buy a tablet under $300

[jason41987]

hey everyone, im looking to do a lot more traveling and was looking to get a tablet to travel with, for general web browsing, GPS, photos, music.. so...

budget is around $300, willing to go a bit higher if theres something certainly worth it

needs to have gps

would prefer a high definition screen if possible

and im undecided if i just want to travel to wifi hotspots for communication, or if i can get one i can use with a 3g or 4g data plan and a skype phone?

so what would you suggest and why?

 

[samuelspark]

Nexus 7. Highest performing tablet for $200. Even beats out a lot of $500 ones.

 

[jason41987]

hmm, the nexus 7 doesnt have a rear facing camera?.. i would like a rear facing camera for photos, and for augmented reality applications

 

[jason41987]

anyone?

 

[envy14tpe]

Samsung has a great tablet. but looking at close to $400.

However, if you like headaches and don't mind looking like an idiot that takes pictures with a tablet then I suggest Apple. You could buy one iPad or 2 tablets. It's up to you.

 

[delaro]

30 second scan of Amazon "used or refurb"

Toshiba Thrive (10.1 16gb front and rear cameras) $217

MOTOROLA XOOM Android Tablet (10.1-Inch, 32GB front and rear cameras) $229.

ASUS Transformer TF300 T-B1-BL (10.1-Inch 32 GB front and rear camera) (Blue) $264

Also Craigslist and Ebay are a decent alternative, I have used all to provide my wife and 3 kids each with a $400+ tablet for under $300.

If you have any knowledge at Flashing it is easy to find Bricked units for around $150 as I did with the Motorola xoom, 15 minutes of research and you have a nice $400 tablet for just a little work.

My finds
Viewsonic Gtablet $50
Motorola Xoom 32gb $143.00
Toshiba Thrive $80
Sony S Tablet $112
Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 $215

 

[jason41987]

well, im strongly opposed to ipads, not a fan of apple products at all, however, i do like android

umm.. im willing to go more for a tablet thats really good... right now im trying to determine if i need 3g/4g or not for data while traveling, or if im better off waiting until i find a hot spot to use the web browsing... i had intended on using a soft phone with the tablet when connected to wifi... so an unlimited data plan (if anyone truly offers one) would probably work well for me

 

[jason41987]

if i was willing to up my limit for something better... what would you say to a pantech element?... a touchscreen tablet that is already waterproof... i could probably come up with a protective hardshell to install onto the tablet... to sort of make a durable, rugged tablet out of it that can be mounted to the handlebars of my motorcycle while i travel to be used as GPS navigation, and it does have 4g/3g so i can also use it for onboard communication

another question i have is if 4G is dependant on GSM or CDMA frequencies or if 4G is a frequency of its own.. meaning a 4G tablet would be able to use a 4G or 3G data plan from any manufacturer?

 

[delaro]

Sounds like your better off with a SmartPhone. Tablets with 3G/4G are a lot less popular and more expensive. I don't see a 10 inch tablet being a compatible thing with a bike of any kind, it's just a bit bulky for the limited space. A decent smart phone would be more to your described needs and fit perfect along with being made for more impact resistance.

How 4G works, that is a thread in its own I suggest you just read a bit about it.

http/electronics.howstuffworks.com/4g3.htm

This is a decent start.

From my experience 4G can be fantastic or just slightly better than 3G depending on Location and Carriers as well as how much they have decided to upgrade their infrastructure, here it isn't all that great but if I drive into the city I see 10mb/s or better. Tablets that offer it normally are bundled into a provider, you maybe able to pick up a different provider as you would with a unlocked smartphone I guess it all depends on the tablet. I don't own one with it, I use a mobile hotspot @ $25 per month for 2gb.

 

[jason41987]

so 3G and 4G run on their own frequencies and infrastructures, right? meaning 3G and 4G is independant of CDMA and GSM?.. meaning a 3G or 4G device with data plan should work with a data plan from any manufacturer?.. hmm, that seems to be the impression i get though nothing confirmed.. it seems sprint, and probably soon after, verizon will be sharing the networks with AT&T and t-mobile, so i guess CDMA will die at some point in the near future anyway

ive thought about getting the smart phone... but for frequent, regular web browsing and GPS navigation im not entirely sure how well that smaller screen would work for those uses.. i mean, obviously a tablet would be a bit odd to use as a phone, would need a headset, or ear piece... but i think a much smaller smart phone, though better for calls, wouldnt be as comfortable to use for web browsing or navigation.. maybe i could get the tablet for everything else... and get a basic, less expensive phone for communication?... i know acer, asus, and kindle all make 4G capable tablets with HD screens so id probably focus my efforts around these for a tablet... but if i use the phone for calls i could always wait until i was at a hot spot to use the tablet

so maybe thats the better choice.. get the kindle, acer, or asus that doesnt have 4G, use this for web browsing, skype, while at a hot spot, the GPS works reguardless, and then with the money i save, get an inexpensive phone too

another option could be to have a portable 4g/3g hot spot wired to my bike itself... so as long as i was within sight of it, id have my own internet, and it wouldnt require me to have a 3G or 4G tablet

 

[jason41987]

im going to stop looking for 4G... im going to buy a smart phone to use for traveling, but im still looking for a tablet to play around with and use around the house... so, id like something with a high definition screen, HDMI outputs good, wifi of course.. probably a larger 9 or 10 inch screen.... so, probably kindle fire HD, acer iconia, or the asus tablet

 

[jason41987]

you know.. i was looking at that google nexus.. and i really like it a lot, i just wish it had a rear facing camera.. that would have been a deal maker for me.... i did read though that the motherboard has the neccessary pieces for a rear facing camera.. perhaps one would be installable at a future date as an end-user mod?... i really wanted to play around with some augmented reality apps though :-(

 

[jason41987]

well, i want something bigger though, i think i might increase my budget and get an asus transformer

 

[Tibbs01]

well, i want something bigger though, i think i might increase my budget and get an asus transformer

I would think the transformer infinity would be right up your alley if you are increasing your budget.

 

[jason41987]

yeah tibbs, thats what im thinking... was looking at the transformer infinity, the acer iconia 700 something, and i forget the other one i was looking at too... but i read about the iconia having some major heat problems with the CPU being right behind your hand, and that it gets pretty hot... if the asus doesnt have those issues id rather go that route.. twice the performance of the new ipads and half the cost

 

[atun]

try products from lenovo..they are cheap but good. Or you can browse amazon..com