Picking a tablet

[xray 99]

I have little working knowledge of high tech devices.

I would like to buy a portable device that would allow me to access the internet, e-mail, etc. I don't play games, though I can see myself downloading e-books, newspapers, etc. I would prefer a tablet over a smart phone.

Which tablets offer the ability to create documents, print them with ease, etc?

[derekb]

Which tablets offer the ability to create documents, print them with ease, etc?

Your main choices are really apple or one of the myriad android tablets. I prefer android devices for various reasons. Printing documents from a tablet, that's an interesting challenge. I've never tried accessing a networked printer from a tablet, but the easiest tactic would probably be using dropbox or google drive (solutions to the same problem) and printing from your computer.

I've got one of the Acer Iconia tablets and I like it for general internet and travelling lighter than a laptop.

[fuse]

As much as I despise apple, it's probably the best game in town for a tablet.

Big problem with android tablets are dedicated apps. Still not too much of them.

[KeeFus]

I bought the Ipad 3 (or the "new Ipad") for my wife. We are very pleased with its performance. If you do get it be sure you get the extra Apple insurance. It costs an extra hundred bucks but it will pay for itself. For example...my wife left hers sitting on one of those flemsy lunch boxes one morning...a few minutes later we heard a loud crash. We found that the Ipad had fallen off the lunch box (which was on the kitchen counter) and when it hit the floor the screen cracked from one side to the other. I scheduled an appt at the Apple store and walked out a short time later with a new Ipad. I did have to pay $50.00 bucks but that was A LOT chaper than buying another Ipad.

[SGT_Calle]

I really like my iPad, I use it for nearly everything around the house.
I've also heard good things about the Nexus 7 lately but I'm no Android expert.

[ford.304]

I would look up a good list of things you can do on android that you can't do on a (non-jailbroken) iOS device, and then decide if those things are important to you. If they aren't, get an iPad.

On a tablet, I own a Xoom I got from work. It's... definitely not as good, overall, as an ipad. But it's ok. You get an actual filesystem, which is nice, instead of the weird mess of "are you kidding me I can't just open a zip file" you get sometimes on the iPad. But the general user experience is nowhere close to as polished, the browser is worse, and the app/game selection is *much* worse.

[bigslim]

I am an Apple fan boy, Macbook Pro, iPad 2, iPhone 4, so I am biased to say the least but the iPad is the does everything I need it to do. If for no other reason than it just works there are a ton and a half of great apps that will solve what ever problem you are having. You can use Apples Pages to create word docs or you can get the MS Office app. Use Dropbox to transfer files back and forth in the cloud. Simple Note is great for storing little snippet's if info. You can get the iPad with or without 3g wireless data access if you need connectivity on the road. Bottom line is the iPad is a great consumption and creation device.

Mike

[xray 99]

Thanks to all those who replied.

[Jay]

Apple also has a wireless printing protocol on the iPhone called AirPrint, unlike Bonjour on a Mac its a fixed driver so you have to have access to a printer that is compatible, I assume this feature is also on the iPad but without owning one I can't be sure.

[JodyH]

I have both a iPad 2 and a Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 (and a Galaxy Tab2 7.0).
I prefer the Galaxy by a wide margin due to the open ended app availability, I detest iTunes (actually I hate it with a purple passion). The Android system also allows you a lot more freedom behind the scenes than the locked down iOS.
To me the iPad feels like a big smart phone and the Galaxy feels like a small computer.
I have no problems printing from my Android phone or tablet to my Brother networked printer with a Brother print app.