The REAL tablet wars are about to start

[AustinChief]

Up until now the choices have actually been rather spartan when you compare the tablet market to the PC space. That is about to change in the next two months... and prices are going to reflect the change. (Though I doubt right away, it will take some time to shake it all out)


New tablets coming soon:

Windows 8 tablets: these are the most interesting due to the fact that they can double as a laptop and run x86 based programs. In theory these should dominate the market over time but in reality pricing will determine their adoption rate. Color me skeptical for now.

Windows RT: meh... basically windows version of an Android or iOS tablet, I see very limited potential here but who knows.

iPad Mini: Also will depend on pricing. If it isn't at least CLOSE to the $200 price point, I can't see any compelling reason to purchase one other than the typical Apple fan "have to have the cool new thing" factor. Of course, we know jack shite about their specs so I could be way off here... but it's always good to have more choices.

As for all the other Android tablets... I see a number of major price drops heading our way.. take a look at the new Kindle Fire HD 8.9 at $299 and the Nook HD+ at $269.. that's unreal. We are about to have quality tablets getting close to the $250 mark.

EDITED TO ADD RUMORS:

Google is supposedly releasing a $99 tablet and a 10.1" Nexus with REALLY high end specs (made by Samsung) both are rumored to start manufacturing in December.

Any thoughts?

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by KILLER_CLOWN

I understand but you could literally play for 4 or 5 years in just Skyrim with all the awesome mods. The game is simply breathtaking and just fun to walk around in without even doing quests.

I play individual games for a long time but even I can't play a game for THAT long. I'd get bored with the premise after a bit. I tend to wear out individual games and I never spend time on more than 1 game at a time, but I also don't usually play the same genre back-to-back. Once I finish Skyrim, I'll probably go to NCAA 2013. I played Fable 2 for months, then Fight Night Champion, then Amalur.

Let's put it this way - I've played Fable 2, Amalur, and similar games for hundreds of hours on XBox and have NEVER downloaded DLC for those games. When I'm done, I'm done.

[KILLER_CLOWN]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

I play individual games for a long time but even I can't play a game for THAT long. I'd get bored with the premise after a bit. I tend to wear out individual games and I never spend time on more than 1 game at a time, but I also don't usually play the same genre back-to-back. Once I finish Skyrim, I'll probably go to NCAA 2013. I played Fable 2 for months, then Fight Night Champion, then Amalur.

Let's put it this way - I've played Fable 2, Amalur, and similar games for hundreds of hours on XBox and have NEVER downloaded DLC for those games. When I'm done, I'm done.

Fair enough.

[Braincase]

[Sure-Oz]

Want an Ipad mini cause i dont have an ipad but have android phone. Seems still too pricy $315 for 16gb. be nice if the price was a bit lower.

[HC_Chief]

This sums up Apple perfectly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyWSEwKPo8s

[AustinChief]

Ok, now THIS is what I was talking about!!

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33198_7...nd-nook-color/

Nook Color (2 year old 7" tablet) is now selling for $139 - slap Jelly Bean on it and that's not a bad deal.

They also have the 1 year old Nook Tablet with 1 gb ram selling for $179 (not such a great deal when you can get the Nexus 7 or Nook HD for only $20 more)

We aren't there yet but we are quickly approaching the price point where tablets will really start to fly off the shelves.

[Bewbies]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

Ok, now THIS is what I was talking about!!

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33198_7...nd-nook-color/

Nook Color (2 year old 7" tablet) is now selling for $139 - slap Jelly Bean on it and that's not a bad deal.

They also have the 1 year old Nook Tablet with 1 gb ram selling for $179 (not such a great deal when you can get the Nexus 7 or Nook HD for only $20 more)

We aren't there yet but we are quickly approaching the price point where tablets will really start to fly off the shelves.

Tablets aren't flying of the shelves now? How many tens of millions more need to sell before they reach that classification?

[memyselfI]

Originally Posted by Sure-Oz

Want an Ipad mini cause i dont have an ipad but have android phone. Seems still too pricy $315 for 16gb. be nice if the price was a bit lower.

I bought a 10" 32gb Asus Transformer tf300 for $399 in April. I love it. Comes with a microSD slot. It's still sells for around $350-370 brand new but will probably drop a bit more closer to Conspicuous Consumption Day.

When I went to purchase my tablet I went to pick up the Ipad 2 that had just dropped in price. I compared the two and went with Android because the hardware specs were so much better.

I don't have a lot of money so I tend to buy for value more than name or popularity.

[DaveNull]

I don't get buying devices like this primarily on hardware specs. For me it's much more about the software.

I did play with a 10.1 note the other night...pretty cool stuff if you're into the Google/Android ecosystem.

[Crush]

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 kicks so much ass. The s-pen is a godsend for people who want affordable digital ink.

[memyselfI]

Originally Posted by DaveNull

I don't get buying devices like this primarily on hardware specs. For me it's much more about the software.

I did play with a 10.1 note the other night...pretty cool stuff if you're into the Google/Android ecosystem.

Well it wasn't simply the hardware specs.The SD card slot, the 16gb of additional storage which when adding a $25 32gb micro SD card gave me a total of 64 GB of storage for around $430. The 64gb Ipad 2 was running around $700 IIRC. Plus the update and hack ability of Android made it a much better deal. I've been using Android since the first week the TMO G1 came out.

[KILLER_CLOWN]

I bought a decent Android tablet last year and dabbled with it but It honestly didn't get much use. I play with my Vita more than the tablet, it just didn't appeal much to me.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by DaveNull

I don't get buying devices like this primarily on hardware specs. For me it's much more about the software.

I did play with a 10.1 note the other night...pretty cool stuff if you're into the Google/Android ecosystem.

I guess I don't understand that. You can always change the software, but the hardware is pretty much set in stone.

[KILLER_CLOWN]

Originally Posted by DaFace

I guess I don't understand that. You can always change the software, but the hardware is pretty much set in stone.

I don't either, in a proprietary piece of equipment you want the most powerful hardware you can get. You can always change the software but in order to improve the hardware you have to replace the entire unit.

[DaveNull]

That's not what I mean. I can see hardware coming into play when comparing within a category, but if you're comparing across platforms it makes less sense.

It will probably become harder to compare ARM tablets over time this way since it appears that Apple is starting to do more custom work than many of the others.