GADGET
GIZMO SPECIAL APPLE VS GOOGLE VS MICROSOFT WHICH ONE IS RIGHT FOR YOU?
Samsung
Galaxy Note 10.1 (2014 Edition)
» A stylus can change how you use a tablet and the Note 10.1 proves it in spades. The S-Pen and the Air Command software is a delight, whether you’re taking notes and converting them to digital text later or quickly adding a Web page to your scrapbook. It’s a perfect mesh of good hardware and software. » Samsung’s done a good job of covering for Android’s shortcomings on a large screen. Things like the Multi Window View, for instance, let you run two apps side-by-side, taking advantage of the real estate. Sadly, the Play Store still doesn’t have a great » llection The faux of leather tablet-ready cover apps on the . back isn’t exactly premium as the plastic on the front belies what lies beneath, but it doesn’t feel cheap – and that’s good enough for now. » Even with two quad-core processors, the Note 10.1 sometimes lags and stutters. It’s a pity because that’s not what you expect from the flagship Android tablet. » Without a SIM card in the tablet, it’ll last you for 15 hours of average use. But put a SIM card in and the battery life drops to just over 8 hours, which is pathetic for this price. On video it does 9 hours. » Rs 50,000 for a tablet is crazy. In fact, the 2014 Edition doesn’t offer that much over the previous one, which is still a great device and better value for money. Buy the new one only if you specifically need a hi-res screen.
Specs: 1.9Ghz + 1.3Ghz qual-core CPUs, 10.1-inch display (2560x1600), 8MP rear camera, 2MP front camera, 32GB + MicroSD, 3GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and 8220mAh battery Price: Starts at Rs 49,990
VERDICT
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 is a fantastic device, especially for creative professionals, but it’s grossly overpriced. Buy it only if you absolutely want the top-of-the-line Android tablet around – but know that it’s not value for money.
» A stylus can change how you use a tablet and the Note 10.1 proves it in spades. The S-Pen and the Air Command software is a delight, whether you’re taking notes and converting them to digital text later or quickly adding a Web page to your scrapbook. It’s a perfect mesh of good hardware and software. » Samsung’s done a good job of covering for Android’s shortcomings on a large screen. Things like the Multi Window View, for instance, let you run two apps side-by-side, taking advantage of the real estate. Sadly, the Play Store still doesn’t have a great » llection The faux of leather tablet-ready cover apps on the . back isn’t exactly premium as the plastic on the front belies what lies beneath, but it doesn’t feel cheap – and that’s good enough for now. » Even with two quad-core processors, the Note 10.1 sometimes lags and stutters. It’s a pity because that’s not what you expect from the flagship Android tablet. » Without a SIM card in the tablet, it’ll last you for 15 hours of average use. But put a SIM card in and the battery life drops to just over 8 hours, which is pathetic for this price. On video it does 9 hours. » Rs 50,000 for a tablet is crazy. In fact, the 2014 Edition doesn’t offer that much over the previous one, which is still a great device and better value for money. Buy the new one only if you specifically need a hi-res screen.
Specs: 1.9Ghz + 1.3Ghz qual-core CPUs, 10.1-inch display (2560x1600), 8MP rear camera, 2MP front camera, 32GB + MicroSD, 3GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-ac, Bluetooth 4.0 and 8220mAh battery Price: Starts at Rs 49,990
VERDICT
The Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 is a fantastic device, especially for creative professionals, but it’s grossly overpriced. Buy it only if you absolutely want the top-of-the-line Android tablet around – but know that it’s not value for money.
Acer Iconia W4
» The Acer Iconia W4 has great battery life for its size, lasting over 12 hours of average usage. On pure video playback, it runs for almost 7.5 hours. That’s as good as most others. » It’s got good build quality and a lovely screen that has wide viewing angles and bright, rich colours. Sunlight legibility is an issue though. And the tablet is quite heavy, so it’s uncomfortable to use it for extended hours. » You get 43GB or 11GB of storage after Windows 8 has finished updating and you’ve installed crucial apps. That’s pretty good, plus Acer has included a microSD slot so that you never run short of space ». The cameras – both rear and front – are low quality, delivering images with a lot of noise and terrible focus. Only use the front camera for video calls; it’d be better to pretend there’s no » mera Windows apart 8 from has severe that. problems as a mobile operating system for smaller screens. On the 8-inch screen, the Desktop mode is practically unusable, which negates the best part of Windows – the familiar interface you know and love. You are mostly going to want to use the new touchscreen-friendly Modern UI, which is still far behind iOS and Android right now. For basic tasks like Web browsing and email, the Iconia W4 is fine; but if you want to play games, use it for multimedia, or just fool around with cool apps, Windows does not deliver. » It struggles to deliver smooth performance, especially if you are a power user and multi-tasking on it.
Specs: 1.33Ghz qual-core CPU, 8-inch display (1280x800), 5MP rear camera, 2MP front camera, 32GB memory + MicroSD, 2GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-n, Bluetooth 4.0 and 4960mAh battery Price: Starts at Rs 24,999
VERDICT
The Acer Iconia W4 minimises the screen size you need for a full Windows experience, but at the cost of good, useable experience. While portable, it sacrifices core productivity. Buy it only if you specifically want a Windows tab; if the OS doesn’t matter, go for an Android or iPad.
» The Acer Iconia W4 has great battery life for its size, lasting over 12 hours of average usage. On pure video playback, it runs for almost 7.5 hours. That’s as good as most others. » It’s got good build quality and a lovely screen that has wide viewing angles and bright, rich colours. Sunlight legibility is an issue though. And the tablet is quite heavy, so it’s uncomfortable to use it for extended hours. » You get 43GB or 11GB of storage after Windows 8 has finished updating and you’ve installed crucial apps. That’s pretty good, plus Acer has included a microSD slot so that you never run short of space ». The cameras – both rear and front – are low quality, delivering images with a lot of noise and terrible focus. Only use the front camera for video calls; it’d be better to pretend there’s no » mera Windows apart 8 from has severe that. problems as a mobile operating system for smaller screens. On the 8-inch screen, the Desktop mode is practically unusable, which negates the best part of Windows – the familiar interface you know and love. You are mostly going to want to use the new touchscreen-friendly Modern UI, which is still far behind iOS and Android right now. For basic tasks like Web browsing and email, the Iconia W4 is fine; but if you want to play games, use it for multimedia, or just fool around with cool apps, Windows does not deliver. » It struggles to deliver smooth performance, especially if you are a power user and multi-tasking on it.
Specs: 1.33Ghz qual-core CPU, 8-inch display (1280x800), 5MP rear camera, 2MP front camera, 32GB memory + MicroSD, 2GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-n, Bluetooth 4.0 and 4960mAh battery Price: Starts at Rs 24,999
VERDICT
The Acer Iconia W4 minimises the screen size you need for a full Windows experience, but at the cost of good, useable experience. While portable, it sacrifices core productivity. Buy it only if you specifically want a Windows tab; if the OS doesn’t matter, go for an Android or iPad.
Apple iPad Air
» The iPad Air is thin and light enough to hold in one hand, even while reading, which is impressive – it’s not something that can be said of other tablets of this size. The build quality is excellent and the aluminium and glass body (with diamond-cut chamfered »ges The ) gives display it a is premium identical feel to . the previous two iPads and just as impressive. It’s got pitch-perfect colours, and the viewing experienced is helped by apps designed to take advantage of the high resolution. » With over 4,75,000 apps optimised for the large screen, Apple has the best selection of apps you’ll find on any platform. For utility and entertainment, Android and » Windows iOS 7 is don vastly ’t match different up. from its predecessor aesthetically, but functionality-wise, it’s more or less the same. Apple’s tight-fisted approach to software means you still get limited customisation and lack of features such as widgets or proper multitasking that you get on Android and Windows, respectively. The new OS is slightly buggy and has the odd stuttering here and there in the UI. » The Air lasts for a full 10 hours of continuous use, which is as good as any top-of-the-line tablet. It can play video for 12.5 hours before running out.
Specs: Custom A7 chip with M7 co-processor, 9.7-inch display (2048x1536), 5MP rear and 1.2MP front camera, 16/32/64/128GB options, 1GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-n, Bluetooth 4.0 and 8,820mAh battery Price: Starts at Rs 35,900
VERDICT
The iPad Air combines stunning design, superb display, leading collection of apps and games, generally excellent performance and praise-worthy battery life into one sleek and light package. Four years on, it is still the best all-round tablet for most common users.
» The iPad Air is thin and light enough to hold in one hand, even while reading, which is impressive – it’s not something that can be said of other tablets of this size. The build quality is excellent and the aluminium and glass body (with diamond-cut chamfered »ges The ) gives display it a is premium identical feel to . the previous two iPads and just as impressive. It’s got pitch-perfect colours, and the viewing experienced is helped by apps designed to take advantage of the high resolution. » With over 4,75,000 apps optimised for the large screen, Apple has the best selection of apps you’ll find on any platform. For utility and entertainment, Android and » Windows iOS 7 is don vastly ’t match different up. from its predecessor aesthetically, but functionality-wise, it’s more or less the same. Apple’s tight-fisted approach to software means you still get limited customisation and lack of features such as widgets or proper multitasking that you get on Android and Windows, respectively. The new OS is slightly buggy and has the odd stuttering here and there in the UI. » The Air lasts for a full 10 hours of continuous use, which is as good as any top-of-the-line tablet. It can play video for 12.5 hours before running out.
Specs: Custom A7 chip with M7 co-processor, 9.7-inch display (2048x1536), 5MP rear and 1.2MP front camera, 16/32/64/128GB options, 1GB RAM, GPS, WiFi-n, Bluetooth 4.0 and 8,820mAh battery Price: Starts at Rs 35,900
VERDICT
The iPad Air combines stunning design, superb display, leading collection of apps and games, generally excellent performance and praise-worthy battery life into one sleek and light package. Four years on, it is still the best all-round tablet for most common users.
Mihir
Patkar and Prasad Naik MM140213
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