With so many android tabs flooding the market, it is confusing for a consumer to select the right one. Choosing the tablet with the best performance to price ratio is not an easy task even with the detailed reviews at hand. So here is the information to guide you through the selection process.....
1. Processors (CPU+GPU)
Android tablets and phones normally run on CPU's based on ARM architecture an are SOC or system on chip. An SOC is an integrated circuit tht ntegrates all components of a computer or other electronic systems into a single chip. A typical SOC inside an Android tab or phone has:
a. CPU
b. GPU
c. VPU
d. L1 and L2 cache
e. RAM interface
f. Video coding and decoding engines
g. HDMI Interface
Some SOC's like Qualcomm MSM7227T also contain modern processor and cell network connectivity modules.
What to look for in CPU?
Ideally you should look for a SOC with the highest clock speed. The CPU component of the SOC is used to measure the clock speed. But things get a complicaated with multi core CPU's. If you have to choose between a 1Ghz dual core CPU and a single core 1.5 Ghz CPU, choose the dual core CPU.
Note:
There are NO CPUs for tablets or phones with 3 cores. So the ads you see for Mercury MTab or any other Tab that claims "3 core" CPUs are false and misleading. These companies are clubbing CPU+GPU+VPU inside the SOC to claim multi-core CPU. Any CPU below Cortex-A9 is single core.
Here are some CPUs you will find:
- Qualcomm MSM7XXX family (MSM7227T, MSM7627T)
- Telechip TCC family (TCC8803, TCC 8902)
- Rockchip family (RK28XX, RK29XX)
- Samsung (S5PV210, Exynos)
- VIA Wondermedia family (WM86XX,WM85XX)
- Amlogic family (AM8XXX)
- Freescale family (iMX5XXX)
- TI OMAP family
- Nvidi Tegra family
- Vimicro family (VCXXX)
- Allwinner
- Ingenic family (XBurst)
- Renesas family
2D games and graphics
- Samsung S5PV210
- AMLogic AML 8726
- Tegra 2 and TI OMAP
- Samsung S5PV210 and Tegra 2
- Rockchip RK29XX
- AMLogic AML-8726
- Renesas EV2
- Tegra 2
- Samsung S5PV210 and RK29XX
Note:
From the ranking above it is clear that Samsung S5PV210 is the best all round CPU in the market.
2. User Interface
The screen is the most interacted and visible part of a tablet or phone. If the screen is not good, it does not matter if the tablet or phone has the most cutting edge fastest CPU on the planet, it will suck and you will be frustrated enough to pull some crazy violnt acts on it. In brief, having a igh quality, responsive screen is a must.
Screen
It may be of two types: LCD or TFT. TFT has smaller response time and highest quality and therefore, must be prepared over lcd.
Touchscreen
Tablets and phones come with two types of touchscreens: Resistive and Capacitive.
The resistive screens are cheap and have single point of touch. They are not very responsive and you have to use a stylus to interact with it. So it's better to avoid it.
Capacitive are known as multi touch screen and are the ones where you can use multiple fingers to interact with the device. They are smooth and responsive and you can pinch and zoom and use your fingers to swipe and do other things on the screen. They can b divide into:
2, 3, 5, 10 finger touch
Ideally you should go for screens that support 3 finger touch or more.
Resolution
The higher the better. But higher resolution also means tiny icons, buttons and graphics. High resolution is good when you have to read a lot of texts on web pages and you like to read texts to be ultra crisps. It also means slightly slower performance and more memory consumption.
Look for 800x480, 800x600 and 1024x600 resolutions in 7 and 8 inch tabs. For 9 and 10 inch tabs minimum shold be 1024x600
PPI
PPI stands for pixels per inch, the higher the better. Don't settle for anything less than 144 PPI.
Buttons
The hardware buttons come in two varieties: Feather Touch and Hard Buttons.
If your tablet has hard buttons, make sure they are sturdy. Touch and press them a few times to check their quality.
Viewing Angle
The wider the viewing angle the better it is. If a tablet's screen has a narrow iewing angle, you have to hold it straight in front of your eyes to watch the content displayed on the screen.
3. Memory
RAM
Like any computer, this is the primary memory for a tablet. The more the merrier. Don't buy tablets with less than 512 MB RAM. The performance of tablets with RAM lower than 512 MB is awful. It will be slow, you will often encounter "insufficient memory" messages and applications will close or hang frequently.
NAND / eMMC ROM
This is the memory that contains the actual Android Operating System, drivers, system apps, settings etc. The more space you have the better it is. Do not settle for anything less than 4 Gb.
External Storage
Most tablets support external storage cards of upto 32 Gb. While some support till 16 Gb. Choose the one having maximum capacity.
4. Communication
Wifi
The tablet should support atleast 802.11 b/g standards. Those are the most common wifi and will be so in future. Check the Wifi connectivity of a tablet thoroughly, before buying.
Phone
Not all tabs come with phone capabilities. If you do not want to use 3G USB Dongles and still want to access the internet, you need to have a tablet that supports SIM cards and
- GPRS (2G)
- EDGE (2G)
- HSUPA, HSDPA (3G)
- UMTS/WCDMA (3G)
Bluetooth
It is required if you want to transfer files among tablets, phone and other devices running a different OS without resorting to setting up web servers to do transfers. It can be used to control other devices that support bluetooth enabled remotes o to connect a bluetooth keyboard or mouse to your tablet.
5. Ports and Interfaces
Try to avoid tablets with proprietary ports and stick to tablets with USB or Mini USB ports.
USB Ports
Look for tablets that support USB 2.0 or above, USB OTG, Mini USB. That way you don't need to buy port converters. USB OTG/HOST enables you to connect yor tablet to your computer also they are needed to connect 3G USB dongles, external keyboards, mouse, pendrives and external hard disks to your tablet.
Audio Socket
A tablet will also have a 3.5 mm audio socket to conect headphnes and mic. But you should check the build quality of socket as well as the sound output quality.
HDMI Ports
Som tablets come with inbuilt mini HDMI port which can be used to view videos, games and other content from your tablet on an external screen.
6. Sensors
Accelerometers
Have you seen how the content on the tablet's screen changes orientation when you rotate the device. This is achieved using accelerometers also called as G-Sensors. If they are not calibrated properly you will have hard time playing games that use tilt based controls or changing orientation of the screen.
Compass
Some high end tablets have digital compass in them. It shows your position in reference to the four cardinal directions. This can then be used to plot a route using the inbuilt GPS. Budget tablets will not have them.
Proximity
It detects the presence of objects near the screen. Example, if you are talking on the phone by holding it to your ear, the screen will shut off to avoid accidental press of on screen buttons and the subsequent disruption of ongoing call. It can also be used to dim or put the device and screen on stand by when not in use or nobody is near it. Difficult to find even in high end tabs.
Barometer
A barometer helps the GPS of your tablet to get a better and faster fix on your location by finding the height of your current location. If you are seriously using your tab for navigation purpose you should have it. Difficult to find even in high end tabs.
Light
Ambient light sensor in a tab helps it to conserve battery by dimming or enhancing the brightness of the screen depending upon the surrounding lighy. This is not a common feature in budget tablets and not essential.
GPS
This helps to find your present location and use it as a navigation tool.
7. Power
Capacity of batteries in mobile phones and tablets is measured in mAh, the more mAh you have the better it is. Do not go for tablets with less than 3000 mAh batteries. For 10 inch tablets minimum should be 4000 mAh. Apart from mAh, the running and charging voltage is critical in getting the most battery life. In brief, go for highest mAh and lowest voltage. For 7 inch tab go for 3500 mAh or more running at 3.7V and for 10 inch tablet go for 4500 mAh or more running at 3.7V.
You can use this as guide a general guideline while you are at electronics shop or you are reading through the specification list of tablets or phones.
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