The run up to the holiday season has begun and, with Christmas around the corner - that’s right, we said it - all the tablet manufacturers have just finishing polishing their brand new keyboardless computers to see whose is shiniest.
There are those that run Windows, those that run Android and even a certain famous pair that run an operating system all of their own. So, which are you going to be stashing under the tree or weeping upon as you open come the big day? Just before you make your mind up, here’s our view on the hottest new tablets of the moment.
1. MICROSOFT SURFACE 2 & SURFACE 2 PRO
Yes, those rather expensive but rather swish flagship Windows tablets are back with their high end hardware and beautifully designed set of keyboard and case accessories. Once again, the difference between the two is all about which version of the famous OS that they come with and all that that entails.
Pro is the word that Microsoft uses to indicate the full version of Windows 8.1 which brings all the access to all the apps and all the desktop software that you could possibly need. It’s essentially a computer in tablet form. The straight Surface 2, on the other hand, means that you get Windows 8.1 RT with no real desktop experience and no opportunity to run anything other than the Windows apps and the Office suite.
As for specs, the Pro has a next-gen, dual-core, Intel Core i5 CPU; a 10.6-inch, Full HD display; 4GB of RAM and a stylus to poke the screen with. The non-Pro Surface 2 has a mobile style, Nvidia Tegra 4 quad-core chip instead; 2GB of RAM and the same screen. Both come with bags of style and a rear kickstand.
Price: £359/£719 (Surface 2/Surface 2 Pro)
2. NOKIA LUMIA 2520
The Surface series is going to be given a serious run for its money this year with Nokia releasing a Windows 8.1 tablet of its very own. Ever-so-slightly smaller with a 10.1-inch, Full HD screen, one would be forgiven for mistaking the Lumia 2520 for a Surface series tab given its nifty stand and wafer of a keyboard cover, but the bright red rear and large Zeiss branding next to the 6.7-megapixel rear camera are a dead give away.
There’s 4G mobile broadband embedded plus a 2.2GHz, quad-core Snapdragon 800 CPU which is really the hallmark chip of all the top tabs of the moment. A nice big battery and microSD card slot are all very positive signs. The only real pity is that it’s a Windows 8.1 RT experience and not the full monty.
Price: $499, UK TBC .
3. APPLE IPAD AIR & IPAD MINI WITH RETINA DISPLAY
And hot off the press comes the very latest iPads. You didn’t think we weren’t going to mention these, did you? In a lot of ways, there’s not an awful lot that’s different about them on paper than the previous model but, as ever, there’s something very desirable about them nonetheless.
For the iPad Air, it’s all about design. There’s no Touch ID fingerprint reader, the screen is the same and the rear camera’s no great shakes but, at 469g and with a 7.5mm profile, it’s the thinnest and lightest full size tablet on the streets.
As for the iPad mini 2, well, the clue is all in the name. The build of the body is very much the same but the 7.9-inch screen is now a fully-fledged Retina Display which means proper movie watching and pin sharp gameplay. Great stuff.
Price: £319/ £399 (iPad mini with Retina Display/iPad Air)
4. GOOGLE NEXUS 7 (THE NEW ONE)
Having an identical name to the last model doesn’t help but the new Google Nexus 7 is still one of the hottest tablets around. The price hike up to £199 for the basic model now seems ridiculously cheap once again with the new iPad mini heading up beyond £300 itself.
For that, Google lets you have a Full HD display, front and rear cameras and a quad-core Snapdragon processor with 2GB of RAM to back it up. Sadly, the storage sets of either 16GB or 32GB are not expandable with SD cards but you can’t have it all, now can you?
Price: £199/£239/£299 (16GB/32GB/4G)
5. TESCO HUDL
And, if you thought that was a cheap Android tablet, here comes the real device for the people right now and that’s the Tesco Hudl. The specs are considerably more muted than the Nexus 7 but there’s still a lot by which to be pleasantly surprised.
The chassis of this 7-inch unit is a little on the basic side but what lies behind the 1440x900px screen is a quad-core chip and a very reasonable GPU as well, all pushing an up-to-date Android Jelly Bean operating system. The memory could be bigger with only 1GB of RAM to play with and the front and rear cameras are pretty poor in practice but this still offers bags of value and is a great, cheap way to get in on the tablet action.
Price: £119
6. ARGOS MY TABLET
Quick to prove that its bargain basement is even deeper and more full of cheap stuff than Tesco's, Argos has launched the Argos MyTablet in conjunction with hardware manufacturer Bush.
Again, what we’re looking at is a 7-inch Android tablet but the specs do drop quite dramatically in comparison. The screen is nowhere near HD at 1024 x 600, the processor is a more basic dual-core model, battery life sinks to more like 5 hours and on-board storage is just 8GB, although, again, there’s a microSD slot to beef that up.
So, why would you want the MyTablet over the Hudl? Well, because it’s £20 cheaper still. That’s why.
Price: £99
7. AMAZON KINDLE FIRE HDX.7 & 8,9
The Amazon Kindle Fire HDX tablets have taken a big stride away from the Tesco Hudl and other ankle-biters and now join the new Google Nexus 7 also complete with Full HD screens and quad-core processors.
You’re still not free to access the full Google Play app store, which is a bit of a bummer, but all of the Amazon movie, music, cloud storage and reading services are not to be sniffed at. The improved UI even includes a Mayday button which gives you immediate technical support from the Amazon IT team at any time of day. So, which size is it to be?
Price: £199/£329 (7-inch/8.9-inch)
8. LG G PAD 8.3
Another in what is already an impressive array of smaller size tablets is the LG G Pad 8.3. As its name suggests, the star of the show is an 8.3-inch screen which makes it closest in size to the iPads mini and mini with Retina Display. It has an impressive resolution of 1900 x 1200, a 1.7GHz quad-core processor, 2GB RAM and both front and rear cameras of 1.2MP and 5MP respectively. All very nice.
What makes the G Pad 8.3 a little more interesting and original, however, is the QPair system which allows you to pair this tablet with your Android smartphone and manage all of your contacts, messages and internet connection from either. Switching between the two is said to be seamless and that should save on getting another SIM contract too.
Price: £259.99
9. ACER ICONIA W4
Proving that a Windows tablet doesn’t have to be massive, there’s is an 8-inch screen device available in the shape of the Acer Iconia W4. Hot off the heels of the suitably successful W3 model, this newy runs Windows 8.1 and has a whole heap of nice, brushed metal Acer accessories to go with it too.
It has the same basic chassis as the W3, it includes HDMI, USB and SIM ports, but this time the screen is much better with an IPS panel and a resolution of 1280 x 800. Probably best, though, is that you’re getting the full, non-RT version of Windows and without having to pay a premium for it.
Price: $299, UK TBC
10. DELL VENUE 7, 8, 8 PRO & 11 PRO
Now that you’ve reached our final slide in the hottest tablets around, you might find yourself more confused than when you began. Should you buy a Windows tablet or an Android one, and should it be big or little?
If you can’t make up your mind, then you might want you take a look at the Dell Venue tablet family because there’s two of each type to choose from. The key to it all is that the word ‘Pro’ equals Windows.
They each have 1280x800px screens apart from the Dell Venue 11 Pro that has a Full HD display. There’s also 2GB of RAM across the board along with front and rear cameras too.
Price: $149/$299, UK TBC (Android/Windows 8.1)
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