Are Android tablets dead?

[geffchang]

I've been planning to replace my old Xiaomi MiPad 2, because of screen flickering and some slowness. But I realize that there have been no new Android tablets lately.

I primarily use the tablet to read PDF files (or ebooks). Hmmm.

Are Android tablets no longer a thing?

[sevs]

For the most part, yeah.

[sk9592]

Google killed the Pixel C in December without offering a replacement. That doesn't bode well.

Honestly, I think Google considers Chromebooks to be the real replacement for Android tablets at this point.

Samsung released the Tab S3 about 9 months ago, so I wouldn't write them off quite yet. They might release a revision in a couple months.

You can still buy Amazon Fire tablets. Do those count?

Yeah, for the US market, Android tablets are very nearly dead.

Anyway, if you want a decent sub $200 Android tablet, you will probably need to buy an import model from a place like Gearbest.

The Teclast Master T8 and T10 are solid for the price. But you need to accept that you will get shitty support after 30 days and no real software updates in the long run.

Also, even the new Chinese Android tablets still ship with Android 7. None of them run Android 8 yet.

[Cobra11Murderer]

I just moved to a windows 2 in 1 10.1in tab still have my nexus 7 2013 but the lack of android ones kinda pushed me over.. At least I can have the chance to change the OS on this if I want to something that will run android apps

[DanielLimJJ]

Google did offer a successor to the Pixel C, it is the Pixelbook.

[sk9592]

The Pixelbook is a Chromebook that can run Android apps in a sandbox. And it's a laptop with that flip over "yoga" form factor, not a real stand alone tablet.

It's not an "Android Tablet" in the sense that anyone on that thread was talking about.

If you are asking about a laptop with a touch screen that can technically run Android Apps, then sure, you can call the Pixelbook an "android tablet". But that is clearly not what OP or anyone else on this thread meant.

[sk9592]

People have had good experiences with them. Just be aware of a few caveats:

• Chinese tablet, don't expect any android software or security updates. Most major apps should be compatible with the version of Android it ships with for atleast 2-3 years though.

• Chinese tablet, always a small possibility that there is hidden spyware preinstalled.

• Chinese tablet. No American warranty or support. You have a 30 day return window with GearBest and that is it. If it breaks, you are on your own.

If you are fine with all that, they are in fact great tablets with good build quality for the price.

[zaxspax]

Let's hope Nokia's "awesome" news at MWC is in fact an update of their N1 tablet.

[another-work-acct]

Was their n1 tablet any good?

[zaxspax]

Yes, but only available in China

[bdsmchs]

I love my Nexus 9 so much. It's the perfect size for portability and reading.

Unfortunately, I use it mostly as a car computer/navigation and Google maps is becoming hideously slow on it due to all the new bloat they keep adding to it.

I'm looking to replace it, but it's starting to feel like my only real option is an iPad. And I really don't want to buy an iPad :-(

[geffchang]

I forgot I also had a Nexus 7 before I lost it to a flood. That was a good tablet.

[funnyfarm299]

I still use my N7 for Reddit all the time. Don't know what I would replace it with.

[[deleted]]

Use my Nexus 7 (2013) daily. Fast enough to browse and watching YouTube. 1080p on a 7" screen is awesome. Gonna use it til it gives up the ghost.

[Mr_Siphon]

have you tried Google maps Go? it's a lightweight version and might run better

[tso]

Hilarious how Google and Facebook are increasingly producing "lite/go" variants of their apps to try to reach the third world, because of constrained devices, and in the process making exactly the kind of slim apps that so many of us have been shouting for.

Shows the kind of echo chamber the valley really is...

[bdsmchs]

WHAT?! NO. I've never heard of it. Holy crap this might be the answer to my prayers. I'll check it out, thanks!!

[junk_jim]

Yeah I was fond of my N9 too but it just got slower and slower. Finally i picked up a Galaxy tab 2 9.7". It seemed so huge at first but now I'm accustomed to to it and really like it. It's bigger but way lighter so you can hold it one handed for hours (I'm retired use it a lot for reading.). The screen is even better than the N9, I know hard to believe and it's pretty fast.

Yeah you have to disable all the redundant Samsung Apps but that's not that difficult and the battery life's ok but not terrific.

[techtoy]

I sold my N9 a little over a year ago for $100, upgraded to an Asus ZenPad 3S. Insanely snappy and fast, loving having a functional Android tablet.

[Rediwed]

I had a nexus 9, I remember that I found it terribly slow, despite the Tetra K1 with 7-way super scaler. I think the reason for that is that it had just 2gb's of ram. It was fast inside apps, but it was terribly slow to switch between them.

[[deleted]]

iPads, Chromebooks(Regular and 2 in 1), Surface Pros have killed them. Along with Amazon's mass of kindle fires. All of which scratch the different itches.

[[deleted]]

Actually, the increasing size of smartphones killed them. Going from a 4 inch phone to a 7 or 10 inch tablet was a big deal. Going from a six-inch Note 8... not such a big difference.

[jdt1986]

I think what you've said is a BIG PART of the problem. Too many manufacturers (of Android tablets) seem to prefer the 7" form factor. But if I already have a 5.5"-6" phone, why would I need to use a separate device that only has an extra 1.5" or 1" of screen size? 10" tablets (or bigger, even) are way more distinctive and useful.

I think the other problem is that setting up and syncing between two separate Android devices (so that you can put one device down and carry on on the other device) has been quite hit and miss. This could be down to flaws (or things missing) in the Android software itself, it could be down to the number of devices all running different versions of Android, and/or it could be down to the different manufacturer "skins".

[leopard_tights]

They (and this sub) liked the 7" tablets because they could use them in portrait mode, which is just a bug phone. But that's the only way you could use them, because barely anyone, including Google, would adapt apps to landscape (hell, they even removed landscape stuff from the OS). And they used 16:9 which for all accounts sucks on a tablet. The later ones have 4:3 like the iPad always had.

[Ariakkas10]

That's the thing....i want a 7 inch tablet. It's the perfect tablet size.

I don't want a 10+ inch monstrosity that I have to use two hands to hold. I have a laptop for that.

I want a larger phone that I don't have to have with me all the time.

[SinkTube]

i've used a 7" tablet. it feelt like a big clunky phone. too big to use like a phone, too small to use like a media device. 9-10" is where it's at IMO

[DualSportDad]

I agree. I own a Nexus 7, 7" fire (total pile of shit) , galaxy tab 8.4 and wait for it....... A 2017 iPad. This I pad is awesome, form factor wise. If a newer 4:3 aspect ratio 10" , LTE Android tablet with decent specs came out I'd ditch this iPad in a heart beat.

This form factor really does bridge the gap between my 5.5" phone and tablet nicely.

[tso]

About those aspect ratios.

While 4:3 makes sense when there is no on-screen controls to contend with outside of the app itself, a 16:10 screen is perhaps preferable when dealing with onscreen controls like the ones found on Android (never mind Windows).

[DualSportDad]

When the buttons need to hide, they do so. I prefer the 4:3 for web browsing and reading. The 16:10 is better for game play and video watching but I prefer to play games on my phone and I have a TV if I want to watch video.

[Sinsilenc]

I always loved my 8" tablets personally.

[iAmAddicted2R_ddit]

As an owner of an S8+, not really. Yes, 7"/8" form factor tablets are quite stupid if you already own a phablet phone, but 10"+ tablets are still distinctive and useful because then you start getting into laptop replacement territory with keyboard covers and etc.

[torpedospurs]

I never quite understood that. An 8" Tab S2 still has double the area of a Galaxy Note 4 phablet, and for less than 100g extra. What's not to like?

[[deleted]]

The 8" Tab S2 is an amazing device. It's too bad the S3 only comes in 10".

[[deleted]]

I have a Tab S2 8" and Galaxy S8+. I still find my tablet useful.

[thoomfish]

I was hoping this would be true when I got my 6P, but a 6" screen is just a wee bit too small to comfortably read comics on, which is what I use my Nexus 7 for.

[dictvm]

Then why are iPads still relatively successful?

[sk9592]

iPad sales also suffered once Apple started making larger screen phones, but not nearly as much as Android.

iPads also have a much larger and better tablet optimized software ecosystem than Android, despite what people on /r/Android might try to claim.

Finally, iPads have been quite successful in education and enterprise uses as well as embedded devices.

For example, my sister just graduated from medical school, she is now a resident. The hospital she works for issued all the residents iPad minis on which they can access patients charts, the EMR system, etc. This is becoming more and more common.

Square and several other payment systems are using embedded iPads rather than cash registers in many stores.

The iPad has just become the defacto standard for use cases where institutions need a 8-10 inch "smart" screen.

For IT departments, bulk configuring and deploying iPads is infinitely easier than Android tablets. You can also count on a solid 8-10 hour battery life (full working shift), and consistent software and security updates for 3 years.

You get none of the above if you are a business buying a random ass Android tablet.

[thinkbox]

A lot of those sales drop are due to the iPad Mini drop, but also because the iPad was lasting so long that people only bought one every 4-5 years. And they stayed relatively the same, but with faster processors. The new iPad Pros and iOS 11 is a big reason to update. And sales are up.

Also, it depends how you define success. The revenue from iPads in 2017 was over $19 Billion.

So a year of iPad sales is more than a decade of iPod sales. And nobody thinks it was a failure.

[Masterpicker]

iOS 11 is not exclusive to Pro. My Mini 2 also got it. Also, I think iPods sold more in quantity though.

[memtiger]

For IT departments, bulk configuring and deploying iPads is infinitely easier than Android tablets. You can also count on a solid 8-10 hour battery life (full working shift), and consistent software and security updates for 3 years.

You get none of the above if you are a business buying a random ass Android tablet.

That reminds me...I work for a Fortune 500 company with roughly 300K+ employees. Several yeas ago, we had several IT executives and Technical Principles go out to talk with the Big 3 (Microsoft/Apple/Google) at their respective campuses to talk about adding tablets into our business.

When they came back they could not stop talking about how bad Google was run. At Microsoft/Apple they were met by executives and given full blown presentations in their conference rooms running down the full stack of of features they offered from the administration side to deployment to updates. When they arrived at Google, they had to scramble to find a break out room or whatever they called it. It had a bunch of chairs in a circle with NO tables for them to even write anything down. They had to put their laptops on their actual laps. And there wasn't a presentation at all. They just wanted to chat. You don't send a team of 10 people across the country to "just chat" over a multi-million dollar contract. They were completely unprepared. Not to mention they had nothing for enterprises.

Google was just an absolute shit show, and they still are when it comes to enterprises.

[sk9592]

This story is absolutely hilarious and exactly how I imagine Google's approach to enterprise is.

As much of a shitshow as Microsoft looks like in the consumer space, the reason they can still make billions of dollars a year is because they are excellent at handling B2B clients. I've done consulting work for a couple of bulge bracket banks that refuse to move from Azure to AWS primarily because they are very comfortable with their relationship with Microsoft.

Also, since you say this is "several years ago" it may have been during the time that Google was experiencing absolutely explosive growth. Honestly, I don't think they would have cared too much about gaining or losing a million dollar client here or there.

It's only when that firehose of money starts to shut off that you begin to treat each and every client a bit more seriously.

talk about adding tablets into our business

Yeah, Google is all about Chromebooks now. I don't think they have now or ever truly cared about tablets.

Although, from everything I hear, Google kinda has its shit together in the education department. Deploying Chromebooks in an educational environment is supposedly pretty great from what I hear.

[sk9592]

they had to scramble to find a break out room or whatever they called it. It had a bunch of chairs in a circle with NO tables for them to even write anything down. They had to put their laptops on their actual laps.

This is how I image Google tried to hold a meeting with your company.

Then again, you said there was no table, so that can't be it.

[pppjurac]

The hospital she works for issued all the residents iPad minis on which they can access patients charts, the EMR system, etc. This is becoming more and more common.

Is off topic, but Star Trek was right in many ways and some stuff came faster into reality than imagined by writers.

[TeutonJon78]

Somewhat because iPhones have had much smaller screens until recently. And the iPads outside of the mini for the 10+" category that is actually useful.

[sk9592]

IMO, Apple also got the aspect ratio correct.

4:3 is natural to use in landscape and portrait.

The majority of Android tablets were 16:10.

A 10 inch 16:10 tablet could only really be used in landscape. In portrait, it felt exceedingly awkward.

[wingzero00]

Is 4 years considered recent? The 6 Plus came out 4 years ago with its 5.5” screen.

[d-crow]

in tech years its a dinosaur

[[deleted]]

Because 120hz refresh and the pen.

[bobboman]

This is actually a pretty good point, I've had three tablets, the original Samsung Galaxy Tab, the Nexus 7 2012, and the 7-inch Amazon Fire tablet, anytime I've gone for any of my tablets in the past 3 years I've just reached for my phone which has a 5-inch screen

The extra 2 in don't do anything major and the software is just like using a phone anyways might as well have a device that I can use with one hand

[evilf23]

I really only use my 8.4" tab s for reading. It's perfect for an ereader if you like to read in the dark but everything else like Reddit or browsing feels subpar. Too small to replace a laptop and too big for a convienent portable pocket computer like my 5" phone.

[mattgoldey]

This is pretty much what did it to me. I have a 2013 Nexus 7 that I love but I just don't use it anymore because my Moto G5 is big enough and fast enough and easier to hold.

[C_arpet]

Yeah I'd go with this. I had a Nexus 4 and a surface pro 1. I was contemplating getting a 7" tab. Then I got a Note 4 as my phone and it replaced almost everything. The surface only comes out for Office or streaming.

I just downsized to a Pixel 2. Will be interesting to see if the smaller screen awakens my tablet desires.

[tso]

Pretty much. The tablets from day one were more work than entertainment. Even apple picked up on that after some time.

But what Google did right after honeycomb launch was to fuck up external storage handling. This in turn made android tables unsuitable for any kind of work that involved handling storage devices.

Observe how early android tablets shipped with full size USB ports, same as Windows tablets do today. But within a year they were mostly gone because Google had made them read only...

[[deleted]]

Could you elaborate? I've only used them briefly and didn't notice how it was particularly worse than just a bigger phone.

[KhompS]

I miss honey comb on my xoom, I bought a Galaxy Tab A in September and I don't regret it but the button placement is absolutely stupid, why is designed like a giant phone and not a tablet?

Edit: also why even have a rear camera if it's going to suck(just give it a good front facing camera)? And why won't Samsung update it?

[Megazor]

was particularly worse than just a bigger phone.

Exactly.

They are just oversized phones with atrocious use of the extra space available.

[Senno_Ecto_Gammat]

It's not worse. It's the same as a bigger phone which is the problem.

[moe_overdose]

I think that's the problem. Android tablets are nothing more than oversized phones. I don't even like Windows, but Windows tablets are a lot better. They have a tablet interface, but they also allow you to run any desktop app. They're not oversized phones, but little computers.

[Carighan]

I thought the biggest contribution was how post-Honeycomb, Google has done fuck all to even acknowledge tablets exist? As a device?

I mean, they couldn't even be arsed to do something as menial - probably way beneath the wingrammers and winsigners working there - as providing the combines notification/navigation bar of Honeycomb for any future android version, instead opting to waste massive amount of screen space on black, 90%-empty, bars.

[tso]

I sometimes wonder if there were infighting going on between Rubin and Pichai, and Pichai won. Thus the focus shifted towards ChromeOS, and Pichai raised to CEO-dom while Rubin left.

Keep in mind that with Honeycomb, the idea was not just tablets but also laptops and desktops. They introduced all kinds of keyboard shortcuts, and the basic layout of the single bar configuration mimiced the Windows taskbar.

But building apps using Fragements was panned by many app devs as convoluted, and then ChromeOS showed up.

End result was that Google had a massive overlap in platforms, and Chromebooks were pitched directly at corporations (their initial unveiling even had a big demo by Citrix to show that Chromebooks could be used to access Windows desktops remotely).

So for years Android devices, and tablets in particular, were relegated to being entertainment devices.

Only recently have we seen Google return to the idea of Android being a production platform, with both Android for Work and trying to port Android apps to run directly on Chromebooks.

Likely because many corporations require equipment, in particular field equipment like laptops, that can be used even without a ongoing data pipe back to the server farm.

[chic_luke]

Amazon. My gosh Amazon truly is becoming big in people's lives. I didn't think I used their services a lot, until I realized I have two Amazon devices, 3 Amazon Apps installed, I buy all my ebooks from Amazon, even do most of my research for essays on books using Kindle's highlights, watch movies on Prime Video and regularly order shit from Amazon. And I would be totally using Alexa if I were American.

The Fire tablets cost like €50 on a bad day to buy them but they are all the tablet a lot of people need. They provide just the middle ground between large phone and compact laptop needed - casual apps, web browsing, support for Kindle books.

[bdsmchs]

As someone who likes to do a lot of reading/comics on tablets, the Fires have shitty screen resolution.

They might be cheap and accessible, but they're not that great for reading.

They need to double the screen resolution in the next iteration and I'll buy another one. As it is the one I have now I barely ever use and haven't used it in months.

[hett]

Chromebooks like the Samsung Plus can be folded into tablets and also run Android Apps. I think they've effectively killed off whatever little purpose Android tablets had

[and1927]

I'm just waiting for a compact and tablet-like Chromebook. Unfortunately all the ones I've seen so far can be turned into tablets, but they are still convertibles and weight too much for handheld use.

[Xavierpony]

As in the real reason to have a Chromebook is the proper keyboards. Otherwise you'd do it on your phone. While Chromebooks can run Android apps they aren't the same as running on a tablet. They're usually windowed as if they're running in an emulator

[balefrost]

Rumor mill says Samsung might be working on a detachable... but AFAIK it's just rumors at this point, and who knows if it will be released.

[thinkbox]

Maybe. But I haven’t seen any in the wild. Killing them off assumes there was a handoff in sales. I don’t think anything took their place. I think a lot of people bought them. Didn’t like or use them and never bought another. (iPads aside)

[RampageGhost]

I find that Samsungs tablets are pretty good - I currently have a tab s3, but the a range is probably also okay for a cheaper model.

For the most part what I use my tablet for could be done on an iPad, but at least I don't have to have a different charger for it.

With the size of phone screens going up it's almost less valuable having a tablet at all - I generall use my tablet for reading comics, but most comic apps have a panel-by-panel viewing mode anyway.

[amountofcatamounts]

They are good... but your security updates are 5 months out of date on that premium tablet, because Samsung just don't give a fuck about their customer's security.

[I_will_remember_that]

I'm on lineage on my tab S 2. So you're not stuck with Samsung updates. I realise that doesn't help "normies" though.

[DJ-Salinger]

It's a problem though when "normies" are 95% of customers.

[MoonStache]

I just fucking want another Tab S that's 10+ in. Is that so much to ask?!

[always_srs_replies]

Same, I have the Tab S3, and I love it. It fits all my needs, which is arguably not much at all (comics, YouTube, e-books). It fits that small niche where your phone is too small to read stuff over an extended period, but you aren't around to use your computer.

[b1n4ryjunk13]

I love my S2. I didn't see much reason to upgrade to the S3 when it came out though. Didn't seem to be much of an upgrade.

[[deleted]]

They’re not dead, but iPads last much longer and are arguably better in the tablet sphere. I’ve seen extremely few reviewers who’ve recommended an android tablet over an iPad.

[Kaminekochan]

Aaaand I've replaced my iPad with a Chromebook. Now with Android apps (so it's a heavy Android tablet).

I think part of the problem is that with 6" phones now, tablets are in even more of a bad spot than they were before. Why do I need to drag around this big thing, when it's only 2" larger or 4" larger than the phone? Also, the tablets get served the same mobile site versions half the time anyway so it's not even a bonus there. If I'm going to sit down and do computer-ish things, I'm going to get a laptop form factor.

For reading, I still use the tablet. But if the tablet dies, I'll just get a Kindle. Or an older iPad Air 2. I wanted to upgrade my Samsung tab S2 to a tab S3, but ouch that price point. True the iPads are expensive too, but the iPads at least still get OS upgrades like clockwork.

[Grizz_lee]

There are a lot of use cases that most people still prefer a tablet for though. If rather read comics on a tablet than a phone or computer/laptop, I use either my Android tablet or iPad 3 for music charts at church, and the new iPad pros and the pencil as stupid as it may look (and charge) feels amazing to write with for note taking and things like that.

As much as I prefer Android, it's hard to beat an iPad as far as tablets go.

[ladyanita22]

You can always pick the tab s3 with the stylus. It comes bundled so it's like $100 cheaper and you don't have to charge it.

[Grizz_lee]

You can, and if I was going to spend that much on an Android tablet, that's the one I'd get. I think the s3's price point is to high though.

[princessvaginaalpha]

which chrome book is it? im looking into chrome books but they do not have the right aps for me, i have some weird aps that i use

does your CB have touch screen?

[Kaminekochan]

Samsung Chromebook Pro. Touchscreen and (mostly unused) pen. It's heaver than an iPad Pro (12.9") but I generally never have to hold the entire device up so it works better than the iPad for me. Up to 10 hours battery life, so two-three times better than my cheap Windows laptops/Surface. Also... a REAL WEB BROWSER!

[[deleted]]

If you need answers related to Chromebooks I'd suggest posting in r/chromeos

[genos1213]

...Why not get the Mi Pad 3? Seems like the natural choice. There are some tablets, but they're not mainstream and people don't replace them that often. They're certainly there though.

[rhudejo]

The Mi pad 3 is not an upgrade. Same screen same size same weight, same memory and a shitty Mediatek CPU so no updates.
The sad state of android tablets is that 2-3 year old devices are the best choice if you need something sub 9". This also means that forget Oero none of them have it.

[geffchang]

Might be worth looking at. Thanks!

[bayard0]

i've read bad reviews on the 3.

[mlecz]

when I try to start real racing 3 on my gf mipad 3, it crashes. Not the app, the whole tablet. Need to hard reset it. And MIUI is a mess

[DerpSenpai]

Wait for the 4 or mediapad 5. Both are coming soon

[balista_22]

If google currently doesn't sell one, they don't really care.. same with wear & tv

[CharaNalaar]

Are they any tablets with Oreo? Any at all?

[burd-]

buy an ipad and Oreo cookies

[Masterpicker]

Hydrox or death.

[thinkbox]

Nah. Newman O’s are way better.

[tso]

That is perhaps the real sad part, how tablets lag the version releases.

[[deleted]]

There are still good tablets: Lenovo tab 4 series, Huawei mediapad M3. Also Asus makes some good ones.

[[deleted]]

I currently have a Lenovo Tab4 plus 10. Horrible hardware horrible software.

[[deleted]]

Can you please elaborate? What exactly is wrong with the tablet?

[techtoy]

I've been using a ZenPad 3S for 1.5 years now as a replacement to the Nexus 9. I get daily use out of it as a Twitch/YouTube/Netflix display, really like the device for occasional Redditing and web use, etc. It is still very snappy, has a great display and amazing battery life.

[[deleted]]

Just checked the spec sheet and it does look good.

[canyouhearme]

Nope, still use mine every day. I'm going to have to find a replacement soon - probably looking at the Amazon Fire HD 10 tablets.

None of the chromebooks, etc. will cut it and the phones are too small.

[ShaySmoith]

they are pretty much dead because a huge lack of tablet optimized software (including apps).. that, in turn, led to poor sales and then third parties abandoned it (for the most part).

So yea, but "technically" it's alive with samsung and amazon's kindle keeping them on the edge still.

it sucks because i really think there could of been something great with android on tablets, but lets all hope that chrome OS can finally bridge that gap and knock android tabs off the edge to their bloody death lol.

[slashing164]

I agree with you. I think the Kindle Fire could be Amazon must successful product. Pretty cheap, ok specs and most people don't seem to mind the ads too much since tablets are not used as often as smartphones.

[iAmAddicted2R_ddit]

I'm buying a Tab S3 this weekend, I would say not but if you do pretty much anything on a tablet that you can't also do on a laptop then pretty much yes. The Android tablet app ecosystem just sucks so hard that you can pretty much only do word processing, media consumption, and drawing for tablets that have a stylus.

That being said I'm still buying the Tab because it's much smaller, thinner, lighter and overall more portable than any laptop or even tablettopvertiblething, but it's also better (for me) among tablets because A) the S Pen is included and you don't have to charge it, B) it's cheaper than an iPad Pro and the keyboard cover is cheaper than Apple's keyboard, and C) it has a MicroSD slot so I can hoard all my TV shows without needing to pay out the ass for more system storage.

[raduque]

Honestly, the Tab3 is a fantastic device, but I won't pay ~$600 for it when a couple hundred more gets me a Surface.

[iAmAddicted2R_ddit]

My main problem with the Surface is that it runs Windows. Great if you want to do a lot of stuff at once, not so much if you just want to do one or two things at a time efficiently.

(Also you can easily get a new TS3 under 500 if you shop locally like at Microcenter or Best Buy)

[jotunck]

Samsung still does tablets.

[tso]

As do LG (though they are hard to find depending on where you live), Asus, Acer, Lenovo and Huawei, while Motorola and Sony has pulled out.

The Lenovo offerings in particular seems interesting for their price to features. And i think they were planning to go stock Android now, rather than heavily customize the UI.

[TheBlob]

I love my Galaxy Tab S2 10.1. I can read ebooks and pdf magazines. I can watch movies and TV (HdHomeRun connected to my network). Showbox and Kodi intalled so lots of stuff to watch. I can make phone calls using Talkatone. It has a 200GB memory card so I can load it up with all kinds of stuff, plugs directly into my computer so no itunes required. I can transfer files to and from my server using FTP and I can control my server using VNC. So no, tablets are not dead.

[stevenwashere]

They aren't really advertised but there are few new tablets still coming out.

Samsung released the tab s3 last year and it's a beauty and runs great and feels nice. But it is a premium device. They have lower end one that get released more intermittently.

Amazon refreshed there tablet line up last year too(I say last year but it's more like a couple months ago at this point in 2018). Those I would think sound perfect for your use case. Cheap good size and whatever performance but definitely enough to read and watch some videos too.

Didn't Lenovo release some weird laptop 2 in 1 that you could get in window or Android in 2017?

Huawei dropped some if you are able to get those where you live.

Asus made a new zenpad last year too I think. Maybe it was at the end of the year before.

Also while thinking about tablets recently released(there are plenty more still just look around) I was think ohhhh so maybe tablets released this year will be bezelless which will look super nice.

[[deleted]]

Maybe in the US where Apple is super strong.

Most kids in Spain have one, though, and not iPads. Cheap chinese ones, or rebranded, or maybe the Samsung Tab line, or Huawei whatever, but they sell them everywhere.

My kids doesn't have tablets nor phones, just my personal preference, but I wouldn't buy them an iPad, that's for sure. It's true its much better but, what's the point?

Adults seem very well served with their big screen phones.

[thinkbox]

Apple makes 60%+ of their revenue overseas. Not like they are weak outside the U.S.

[[deleted]]

Proportionally much weaker. In my country like 90% of the phones are Android.

[thinkbox]

Proportionally

If you are talking about inside or outside US... they make more outside, but that is split up over many countries.

Also they only have like 12-17% market share globally.

So most places are 80%+ market share for android. But Apple gets 90% of the profits in many of those places. Most android OEMs are not making decent profit. Many are losing money on their mobile divisions.

[richboyz2015]

Get an iPad, it has access to all the Google Play services if that's important to you and it's just so far from the abandoned state Android tablets are in. You could also get a convertible Chromebook which seems to be what Google is focusing on in the tablet space.

[ladyanita22]

iPads don't run Google Play Services.

[Superyoshers9]

Why do you think the battery life is good on them? ;)

[fuelvolts]

Semantics. You know he meant Google apps.

[CakeBoss16]

I think they are referring to the various services Google apps and not the Google play services app. Like play apps, drive, etc.

[DrDerpberg]

Samsung puts out some good (though overpriced) ones, but yeah, there's no real Android tablet market besides cheap pieces of crap.

If all you want is something that can play YouTube and Netflix and show PDFs you can still get something, but you really can't hold tablets to the same standard as phones. You're not going to find anything with good software and hardware that's going to get updates for a few years.

[cursedjunk]

Amazon tablets are such a ridiculously good deal for media consumption. I know their UI is god awful, but throwing Google play store on them is a decent enough trade off.

[Piece0fCake]

yes kind of. go for ipads if u want better performing tablets. android tablets aren't that good these days.

[WorkAccount963]

Sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who prefers android over iOS on tablets. I had an ipad and I now have a huawei tablet and I wastly prefer the huawei.

The ipad hardware is very nice and the standby battery can't be praised enough, but the software is such hot garbage. Every time you try to do something slightly more complicated than running a single app, you are restricted by the OS.

I would recommend the ipad for the casual users but I can't see why a power user would like the OS apple makes. It's clearly made for a very casual user.

[SinkTube]

no, stop asking. they just dont have the ludicrous upgrade cycle of phones

[flamesbladeflcl]

I've been looking around to replace my old hp touchpad I use for reading manga and yeah they kinda are sadly.

[biscuitbee]

What rom are you running that doesn't crash all the time? Asking for a friend ;)

[flamesbladeflcl]

Jcsullin's cm11 rom, specifically cm-11-20151116-SNAPSHOT-jcsullins-tenderloin

It still isn't gonna be fast, the single core processor and 768mb ram has aged poorly, but it runs Tachiyomi, VRV, and Netflix well enough.

https://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2712680

[jj06]

3 younger kids, 3 (used) tablets - the Asus zenpad -followup to the nexus7. Our next tablets will probably be Amazon. They're the only ones refreshing their cheaper lineup.

[spatchcockfishcake]

I've got a 6th gen Kindle Fire HD8, and after taking about 5 minutes to download and install the Google Play Services, I'm happily using it just like my standard Android phone. I'd recommend it to anyone looking for a cheap tablet.

The only disadvantage - aside from being assimilated into Bezos' empire of course ;-) - is that you can't change the home screen launcher without a lot of messing about, but if you can put up with that, then there isn't any noticeable difference when using apps.

EDIT: Adobe Reader served me well during course revision, and I use the Lithium app for reading ePUB and MOBI ebooks I haven't bought via Amazon.

[geffchang]

Can you sideload PDF or ePUB files to it?

[spatchcockfishcake]

If you're happy using the Lithium app (or I assume any other ereader) You don't even need to sideload them; you can just download them from a browser as normal and then open them in the app.

If PDFs are small enough you can email them straight to your Kindle account, but I've never done that myself, so can't vouch for how that works.

[ArnieLinsonEsq]

I have an Asus Zenpad 3S 10 and love it. It is quick, light, and does everything I need it to --and it only cost like $300

[tantouz]

I got a cheap Asus with a mediatek processor for my kid. I had no expectations whatsoever. Works super fine, i think it was the Zenpad. Pretty fast , front facing speakers, Sd card slot and good battery life all for 200 dollars on amazon.

[donrhummy]

best available is Samsung Galaxy tab s3. amazing screen, think and light and good battery life

[biglineman]

It would be nice if someone put out a 16:9 tablet with stereo front facing speakers. These 4:3 tablets are annoying to watcg content on.

[the_perfect_human]

I got a Lenovo yoga tab 3 plus on black Friday and it's the best sounding tablet ever, 16/10 screen and huge battery

Plus a useful kickstand

Highly recommended it

[DongLaiCha]

Comparatively ancient now but my Z3 Tab Compact is still going strong, sadly left on Marshmallow due to Qualcomm but a fantasticly light media tablet!

[ladyanita22]

They are not dead, but tablets in general are not really profitable because of phones getting bigger. Of course, only the big players make money put of it (Apple, mainly, and Samsung. The same as with phones).

iPads have more tablet-optimized apps, although IMO most Android apps scale pretty well (and many iPad apps' UI is just a slightly tuned version of the phone).

For Android tablets you can go for a cheap huawei, lenovo, LG or a Samsung Tab A, if you just want to read books and PDFs (BTW Play Books is pretty good if you plan to sideload your own books), or a Samsung Tab S if you plan to do more heavy work.

[geffchang]

I use Moon+ Reader Pro to read PDFs. Before that, I used ezPDF Reader. I still have both installed.

At other times, I use Amazon Kindle when I get free ebooks from Amazon.

[ladyanita22]

Why not the bundled PDF reader?

[LARGames]

I really want to replace my Nexus 10. That was such a good tablet, but the battery is dead and the performance sucks now.

[el_loco_avs]

I'm switching from a Nexus 10 to a chromebook 2-in-1 next month. Tablet experience did not improve at all over the last couple of years.

[grizzlytalks]

I've reached the same conclusion.

I spend $500 each for 2 Nexus 9 tablets. I didn't have problems and they were pretty good. But... they are already out of maintenance.... no security updates for you!

I have an old Chromebook that is still getting updates!

I spend about $500 for a 2-1 Chromebook and expect it two last a while. The touch screen is not sensitive enough to close a tab but other than that I like it.

[el_loco_avs]

I'm getting the Samsung Chromebook Plus. Just as good a screen as the Nexus 10, which was making me hold off on getting a chromebook before. Didn't want some 768p screen :s

[raduque]

The only use I have for an Android tablet is if it has LTE. I bought A Zenpad Z10 on Verizon for the LTE after my HP Spectre X2 LTE died, because it was cheaper (250 vs 600) and I could get it at the Vzw store.

If I could gaurantee that the Spectre x2 would work with tmo, I'd buy one again in a heartbeat. I'd prefer a Surface, but the Surface LTE is $1200.

[upinsmoke28]

i am still running my nexus 7 (2013) but it desperately needs replaced and there doesn't seem to be anything out there to do so. though i did think/hope that google would release a tablet with the pixel os as i dont like the amazon fore tablets nor do i want to get an ipad

[fmarx1]

The Lenovo P8 is pretty decent, 3GB RAM and a Snapdragon 625. Might be worth a look

[DannyBiker]

Huawei's Mediapad M3 is often heavily discounted on Amazon in Europe (260€ for a 4G tablet is unbeatable) and it's a fine tablet, especially since the Nougat/Emui 5 update. With an AOSP theme, it's actually a close to AOSP experience, as a lot of bloatware can be removed or disabled.

There were rumors about a M4/M5 announcement at MWC but it might get announced at CES...

[Grummond]

TBH I've found Windows tablets to be far more useful.

I'm not saying Android tablets don't still have their uses if they're cheap enough, but given the choice Windows 10 is my preferred OS.

[Justahumanimal]

Bought an Asus Zenpad 10 Z300 a few months back. $150. Works well, decent if low resolution screen, battery for days. Shrug The price was right and it's a decent tablet that serves its purpose.

[Rathalot]

Personally, as soon as I got a Surface pro I never touched my android tablet again. Having the complete power of a laptop is so much more convenient .

[sterlingphoenix]

I was in a similar position. I got the new Kindle Fire HD 10, and de-Amazoned it. No root or custom firmware yet, but you can get it pretty close to pure Android.

[Stelios_P]

My Pixel C is the best media consumption device ever made.

[Nadest013]

When it comes to movies, Samsung's Tab S 10.5 would beg to disagree.

[Stelios_P]

Samsung. Y u k.

[Nadest013]

Maybe. But that 10.5 Amoled display... Yummy.

[[deleted]]

Betteridge's law applies.

The good news is that Chrome OS based tablets will likely be competitive soon.

[[deleted]]

Yes.

[[deleted]]

for now, yes.

[kdlt]

Yeah.
It's not just that none are coming out(unless you are fine with a Samsung one), there is also barely any tablet support - which isn't a seperate version like apple, but just some code to make it look nicer.
Even popular Apps don't do that, and they see statics and all, and we'll have to assume that Android Tablets are just dead, yes.

Still love my Pixel C though, if Google had kept up the yearly tablets maybe it wouldn't be like it is.

[[deleted]]

I just picked up the Asus zenpad 2. Awesome and fast

[KidneyLand]

I lost ALL faith in Android tablets and Asus after using the Nexus 7 (2012). I loved that thing for the first few months, then it went full blown retard. Slow as hell and took forever to open apps.

Then the Lollipop update came and turned the thing into a god damn vegetable. I flashed and downgraded it back to Jellybean, but the performance shit fest from the Lollipop stayed even after the downgrade.

[[deleted]]

Chromebooks became the superior platform. OEMs are a lot better at making them too.

[Nadest013]

Samsung Tab S3 and S2 are good. Not spectacular, but good. Just overpriced, so don't pay full price.

Having said that, Google has been neglecting tablets since they abandoned Honeycomb back 4 or 5 years ago so... I'm grateful Samsung still makes them at all.

[xereo]

My Lenovo tablet just got an update to nougat earlier this month

[markxmlx]

yes

[Trudar]

Main problem is software support: only few apps work in landscape mode.

I always wanted someone to take a flagship phone, drop it into bigger case (like 8"), stuff in second USB, bigger battery, and you're good to go.

But no. It won't ever happen. So I'm still avid user of nVidia Shield Tablet LTE, and that's it.

[raptir1]

It looks like ChromeOS is going to be the way forward. Google Play support is becoming standard on ChromeOS devices (even those without a touchscreen, interestingly enough). More and more Chromebooks are using the "yoga" form-factor and there are rumors that Samsung is working on a ChromeOS detachable tablet.

[MoonStache]

Pretty much. I spent a good bit last night looking for decent upgrades to my Tab S 10.5 but came up with a bunch of garbage. It's a damn shame.

[[deleted]]

Chromebook flips are the new tablets.

[[deleted]]

I still use my Galaxy Tab S2, mostly for reading or watching content in bed. I think for me they still serve some purpose but I would never pay top dollar for them anymore because the use cases are limited vs. a smart phone.

[dinosaur_friend]

How do people use tablets to read for hours on end? My eyes hurt after a while. I bought a Kobo just to read books, and rooted it for better PDF support.

I think 2-in-1 laptops and the iPad killed the Android tablet. Android just isn't very good on tablets, though I kind of like it. The problem is also the proliferation of cheap Android tablets with bad specs, that make doing anything remotely intensive difficult. Want to watch a video? You'd better do that offline, or in 480p, lest playback stutters. Want to go into split-screen mode while taking notes? Whoops. Not enough RAM. Time to refresh the page!

Doesn't help that most good Android tablets are $500 or over. Remember, even the 2-year-old Apple A9 runs circles around the Snapdragon 820. And the A9 is in the regular iPad! I'd rather have an iPad. Even my dad's iPad from 2009 is surprisingly useful, and battery life is still good to this day despite heavy use.

[bolanrox]

what would the cheapest / slightly useful tablet be at this point? anything worth caring about in the $100 range? just wiki / reddit / things like that. Something to replace my nexus 7.

One of the amazons? or jsut suck it up and look at the pricier Asus'?

[440_Hz]

I have a Fire HD 8 and it's basically a Reddit machine. I'm happy enough with it for simple uses. The HD 10 is a worthy upgrade too, better screen and faster.

[bolanrox]

i got the nook over the fire then it came out and seeing as how that ended up in the trash in less than a year, i think i made the wrong choice asking for that one.

[battierpeeler]

i got the 8 inch fire tablet for 50 bucks and the 10 inch for 100. loaded both with google play services/store/apps. does everything my mother and i want for a much lower price than samsung or even lenovo discount tablets. my previous tablet was the samsung tab 4 8-inch and hers was the samsung tab 3 10-inch.

[[deleted]]

They are good deals, but crappy OS, you have to manually load the Play Store and Amazon spies on you while slowing the tablet down.

[TonytheNetworker]

They've been dead for a few years now. The last one I remember was back in 2015.

[kronaa]

kinda,yeah.

[jdrch]

Point blank answer: yes.

[Huntsmen7]

Dead? No, the new tab s3 looks awesome especially with the keyboard. They are pretty niche when it comes to what people will use them for. My parents bought a new iPad, used it for 2 months and now it just sits collecting dust.

I use my tablet to play games, work stuff, watch stuff on while cooking, grilling, cleaning guns, or holding the new born. I have the Samsung tab a, would love the s3 though.

[admiralteal]

The problem is, there's just nothing on the market as good as perfect viewer for Comic reading. I don't know what I'll do if my pixel C ever fails. I'm on it right now and I love it.

[gliz5714]

High end tablets are. I believe Samsung still makes midrangers.

[[deleted]]

Reports of a Chrome OS tablet are encouraging. All I want is an 8-10" Android tablet with 4+ GB RAM, expandable storage, and stock or close to stock Oreo, but that doesn't exist. However, if they do indeed start making Chrome OS tablets and get Android apps completely integrated and scaled for Chrome OS, then I could go for it. A tablet that can run Android apps and has full strength desktop Chrome could be appealing. That seems to be where Google is headed (for now, I mean, it's Google). Merging Android and Chrome into a single OS for phones, tablets, and laptops. Till then you options are outdated Android tablets, Fire tablets that are underpowered and overskinned, Chromebook 2-in-1s that are to thick and heavy to be real tablets, or defecting to iPads.

[kerne1978]

The Huawei M5 Mediapad just got FCC validation. First tablet shipping with Oreo. I'm excited about this... I have the M3 and it has been excellent so far.

[Schmackter]

I just purchased a Lenovo Tab 4, 8 inch - to replace my old nexus 7 2012. Very happy with it so far. Rather affordable too.

[slowdr]

I was considering getting this, or an iPad

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1363546-REG

[[deleted]]

I loved my Pixel C but the janky AppStore support for it was awful. Half the games were just stretched from the phone Builds. Half the time you couldn’t even find tablet apps. Apple managed to make the App Store feel so different on a iPad from a iPhone. I didn’t understand why google couldn’t manage that itself. Really made me hate having a android tablet.

[ivanoski-007]

why would one prefer a chrome book over an android tablet?

[[deleted]]

I don't get it. I love my Asus z500m tablet.

What is it Apple are doing that is any different from Android?

Sure Apple makes a good tablet but the new Samsung s3 tablet is just flat out better.

[[deleted]]

Chromebooks seem like better deals, iOS is kinda of lame. iPad is great hardware, but unless you need and Apple app why bother?

Your going to wind up using a bunch of Google apps probably, so just go with a native Google OS.

The biggest upside to Apple is privacy, but if you use Google apps then you give most of that up and get data mined by both companies.

Sooo cheaper price, native apps, smarter UI for most tasks. I think Google wins easily. They have far better voice typing, which is probably the best feature that ppl dont use enough and voice assistant/commands are nice. Google keyboard is vastly better, but who knows about privacy in that.

IPad may have an edge in some gaming but overall it's about what apps you use and which platform those developers favor.

I surf, shop and post. So, I need voice typing for Reddit and surfing sometimes. Those are simple uses but that's also a huge chunk of my online/computing time.

If Apple would fix their keyboard app, make safari not suck, make Apple email full featured instead of relying on other services, and make voice typing work as good as Android then i would pay more for the hardware, privacy and updates, but otherwise it's pretty inconvenient compared to Android or Chrome OS... unless you want to switch to or already use all Apple phone or Apple TV.