Tablet help.

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pre65
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#1 Tablet help.

Post by pre65 »

I've never owned a tablet, or smart phone, but I'd like to get a tablet in the near future.

I was looking at a Lenovo Tab E10 10.1" device, but some things are confusing me.

It seems to be able to be used as a phone (SIM card needed ?) but also has wi-fi. Can wi-fi be used without a SIM card fitted ?

With a SIM card can I get internet access without wi-fi ?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lenovo-Tab-E ... rk:25:pf:0
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gninnam
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#2 Re: Tablet help.

Post by gninnam »

Yes to both - can run WiFi with no 3G card and if out and about and a SIM installed then you can also surf the net.

But - the spec is poor from the description so would continue to look.
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#3 Re: Tablet help.

Post by pre65 »

gninnam wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 8:09 pm Yes to both - can run WiFi with no 3G card and if out and about and a SIM installed then you can also surf the net.

But - the spec is poor from the description so would continue to look.
Thanks. :)

Re the spec, what should I be looking for ?
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#4 Re: Tablet help.

Post by Mike H »

Could try looking on eBay for a 2nd hand iPad. Or even an iPhone. Someone suggested doing this if you want a good but cheap digital camera, I was astonished how many there are up for sale.


Yes don't need SIM for Wi-Fi, but do for 4G etc. as is part of a phone package.
 
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#5 Re: Tablet help.

Post by pre65 »

Mike H wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 8:24 pm Could try looking on eBay for a 2nd hand iPad. Or even an iPhone. Someone suggested doing this if you want a good but cheap digital camera, I was astonished how many there are up for sale.


Yes don't need SIM for Wi-Fi, but do for 4G etc. as is part of a phone package.
Unfortunately I have an aversion to Apple products. (probably irrational)
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Nick
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#6 Re: Tablet help.

Post by Nick »

I would say it all depends on what you want to use the tablet for.
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#7 Re: Tablet help.

Post by pre65 »

Nick wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 8:30 pm I would say it all depends on what you want to use the tablet for.
Mainly to get used to using one, and occasional internet use when I'm out and about.

My dentist wanted me to update my details, and thrust a tablet in my hand. I felt acutely embarrassed when I did not know how it worked. :oops:

The lady said "same as your phone", but when I showed her my Doro she understood. :lol:
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#8 Re: Tablet help.

Post by Mike H »

:lol:

pre65 wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 8:28 pm Unfortunately I have an aversion to Apple products. (probably irrational)
I can appreciate that, they are nicely made tho must be said.
 
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#9 Re: Tablet help.

Post by Nick »

Well, if you plan to use it when out it needs to be something you can take with you. How big a bag are you willing to take with you? What is your budget? Personally I prefer Android to Apple (IOS), but they both work. May be better just getting a phone, maybe depends on how good your eyesight is given the smaller screen.
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#10 Re: Tablet help.

Post by pre65 »

Nick wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 10:24 pm maybe depends on how good your eyesight is given the smaller screen.
Spot on Nick.

I'd planned on a 10" screen. I didn't envisage needing the most up to date version of software, so second hand is OK, and I'd rather not spend in excess of £100.

As an aside, if I was using a Satnav app on a tablet how much data (on a SIM card) might I use on a 3 hour journey ?
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#11 Re: Tablet help.

Post by jack »

Satnav? Not necessarily a lot. If you use Google maps you can download off-line maps and routed when on WiFi, then no data (or very little) when out and about.

I do this all the time as many places I go have no cellular coverage, but so long as I can see satellites, GPS works and the maps are there...
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#12 Re: Tablet help.

Post by Mike H »

pre65 wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 10:33 pm
Nick wrote: Fri Nov 16, 2018 10:24 pm maybe depends on how good your eyesight is given the smaller screen.
Spot on Nick.

I'd planned on a 10" screen. I didn't envisage needing the most up to date version of software, so second hand is OK, and I'd rather not spend in excess of £100.
Tiny text is only really a prob if the web site you're looking at doesn't have a web page layout specifically designed for a small mobile phone screen. But even then, you can still zoom in. Web sites showing alternative page designs for a phone are much simpler so the text is proper normal readable size for a phone screen, and with simpler links and so on.

Even my site does it, example:
-
Ambit_2255.jpg
-
-
^ If you click on it, supposed to display actual size close to as it appears on my iPhone.

You can also turn the phone on it's side so it shows as landscape, this should make the page wider and hence the text is bigger.

HTH (?)
 
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#13 Re: Tablet help.

Post by Mike H »

It's quite different to this, the 'normal' PC screen view.

http://livinginthepast-audioweb.co.uk/i ... t-fm-tuner
 
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#14 Re: Tablet help.

Post by pre65 »

How good is this one for the money ?

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/10-1-Tablet- ... 1438.l2649
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#15 Re: Tablet help.

Post by chris661 »

Looks reasonable, but absent of reviews. YMMV.

FWIW, here's a story of when I recently bought a tablet.

Context: my mixing desk allows me to control it from an external device over WiFi, which is rather handy. I have an older iPad (3rd gen), which shows 8x faders on the screen. I wanted another tablet so I could control all 16 channels without having to switch between screens, or 8 channels while I'm playing with some EQ, plus redundancy in case one stops working. My phone can run the app, but the screen isn't really big enough to use for mixing a live band.
I'd also use the new tablet for web surfing etc etc. The usual.

I looked around at Android tablets for ages. There's a vast array of different makes and models. Even after some pretty extensive research, I came away with no solid conclusions. If I buy something, can I get it repaired next year? Will there be firmware updates? Will the mixing desk app still run with the new updates?

So I bought an iPad Mini.
I didn't even test it with the mixing desk before I bought it, because I knew the app would work on pretty much any iOS device, from the old iPad 2 onwards. I also knew that if I dropped it, the independent phone shop down the road would be able to replace the screen within a week.

I got a 2nd gen Mini, which has a nice screen. It's smaller, lighter and faster than my older iPad, and it was £110 with a 2-year warranty (second-hand).

I don't like iPhones, because the price-to-performance ratio just isn't there. Their cameras only just got optical image stabilisation, which is something my LG G2 had in 2013.
I don't like Macs for the same reason. A Mac with the same performance as this laptop would've cost 4-5x the price.

The tablets, though, are hard to beat.

Chris
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