Apple iPad or Android tablet??

[katnorman]

I was wondering if anyone uses either of these to read their ebooks on?? My DD will be in 1st grade next year and I'm finding the option of ebooks or digital version more and more. What do you like about it, don't like about it, would you recommend them?? I really like the feature of educational apps for the Apple, but the price tag of the Android :D

Any information would be great!!

Katie

[Satori]

I love my iPad, and read ebooks on it all the time! I just added some great iPad apps too. There are so many to choose from, and more being added everyday. I just added an awesome geography game that came out four days ago.

 

I'm sorry, I don't have any experience with the Android.

[SnMomof7]

:bigear:

[boscopup]

I haven't seen an Android tablet in person, but I must say that after having an iPod Touch and then getting a myTouch 4G smartphone (Android), I really like Android better than iOS. If I were to look at tablets, I'd definitely seriously consider the Android one. Android has really matured in the last couple years. It's a nice OS, and the devices are so much cheaper than Apple products.

 

Oh, and Angry Birds is FREE on the Android platform. You have to pay $0.99 on the iOS platform. :lol: I know, priorities, priorities. :D

[Teaching_Three]

I have an ipad and I use it all the time. I have found so many free apps for my children. I use it as an ereader daily. I have owned a kindle and a nook and decided to go with the ipad. The next best thing would be the actual books themselves! I don't know anything about other tablets to give you advice on that.

[dansamy]

Android is just now entering the tablet foray. There are a number of upcoming tablets that will truly be competitive with the iPad, considering that Android Honeycomb, designed for 10+ inch tablets, has just now been released by Google. Now, the manufacturers have to apply it to their hardware and add any software accelerations and overlays and custom UIs that they may desire to include to "enhance" the Android experience for their customers. (Personally, I think plain "vanilla" Android is great and usually root my devices to install a vanilla Android.) Android Gingerbread (Android 2.3) is also now available and can be used on smartphones and small tablet devices up to about 7in.

 

If you want an Android tablet, look for these specs:

 

• Capacitive touchscreen - so that you can touch with your fingers instead of a stylus/fingernail
  
• Android 2.3 or 3.0 (Gingerbread or Honeycomb)
  
• Flash 10.1 support
  
• Google "experience" support - Android Market, Google Calendar, Gmail, etc
  

After that, the hardware specs are truly a matter of preference and desired functionality. The Cortex A8 processors will run Flash. RAM and storage size are also a personal preference and functionality spec. My Droid X has 512mb of RAM and I find that sufficient for my uses. I have never tried to stream a movie though. I have watched YouTube videos and streamed Pandora internet radio.

[Satori]

I also owned a Kindle but sold it after getting the big, colorful iPad. I can now sleep in the same bed as my husband! That's just one benefit of having a lit-up screen. :) I can read all night long without bothering anyone, I set the background to black and dim the text as night progresses. The Kindle for iPad is awesome. I can also check email/forums/blogs on the iPad, not to mention all the wonderful apps.

 

My husband and I were just discussing how the iPad was one of our best investments. He told me the iPad 2 should be coming out in the next few weeks! I might wait a bit if you were thinking of getting one. Our whole family uses our iPad (DH, myself and DD6), so I can see saving up for a second one.

[sweetbaby]

You can't go wrong with either. Android has multiple free apps. Several have entertained my daughter in waiting rooms, etc. Both systems have Amazon Kindle, Nook, Audible, Borders and Android also has Google Books and other e-readers as well. I don't know why most Android apps are free vs. Apple but I guess that's something to consider. I have an HTC EVO 4G (android) cell phone which has a pretty huge screen so I use it to read e-books to my daughter. She loves it. If I were to invest in a tablet, of course, I would pick the Samsung Galaxy Tab.

P.S. Someone mentioned that Angry Birds is free on android. True. Also, Words with Friends will be added this month. :D

[Lizzie in Ma]

If you had an android tablet you could run the Aldiko bookreader.

In my opinion, and I love my Nook, it is the best format of anything I have seen. I use it exclusively on my Samsung Vibrant.

Drag and drop simple, phenomenal interface and way more tools than anything else out there.

http://www.aldiko.com/

[grace'smom]

I asked a friend about this and she told me that the IPAD apps are thoroughly checked for viruses and the Android ones were free and made by whoever wanted to make them, thus not checked. I do not know if I actually believe her, but it gave me pause enough to ask if any of you have heard something along those lines. It sounds like a line someone told her to get her to buy an IPAD, but could it be true?

[dansamy]

I've never had a problem. It's true that Andoid is open source, just like Linux. However, much like Apple, viruses written to affect Windows machines will not affect a Linux-based OS. Andoird is built on a Linux kernel. There are phone OS specific viruses, both for Android and iPhone. Sorry, Apple doesn't have any special, magic protection from viruses. Both Google and Apple are proactive about removing malware from their markets. However, opening email, browsing to websites, etc. can all lead to infection should a virus be propagating in the "cloud". That's true for all of the phone OSes on the market.

[FlutterbyMommy]

Grace, it is like the phone aps. Yes, individuals make them. You can decide whether to download those or not. Read the reviews and research before downloading any ap.

 

All the devices can get viruses.

[Laura in STL]

We love the iPad here. I equally enjoy reading books on the kindle app and the iBooks app. We also get our magazines on the iPad now.

 

We have always had great service with our Apple products, too. When our iMac's hard drive froze, we took it in to the Apple store to see if they could fix it. Dh is pretty good with computers and had tried several things with no effect. They said the hd was dead, but replaced it for free even though we were past warranty by a few months. Luckily, we back up with Time Machine!

 

I don't have any experience with the Android devices other than a couple friends who can't stand their phones.

[FlutterbyMommy]

Someone in my family works for Apple support, so I like to encourage people to buy it for his job security ;)

 

Honestly though, Apple is most popular because of it slick marketing and being the "hip product" more than anything else IMO. Is it the most affordable? No. Does it have the fastest or most advanced technology? Not in most areas and certainly not its iPhone.

 

However, it has loyal customers and most are happy with the products. That is important. There is nothing wrong with owning an Apple.

 

I typically prefer other products because there are better, more affordable products. I personally own no Apple products. The only one I have considerred is the iPad; but, I am hopeful Android will do it better again and I can go with them.

 

I am trying my best to hold off until summer for a tablet. iPad should be releasing the next generation by then and Android should have successfully moved off its phone OS on its tablets by then. It is difficult though! I would love to have one for books. I spend a small fortune on books and e-books are such a great addition to our library.

[brill123]

I am looking for a tablet which could work as a e reader and browsing internet with online videos.Could i get kindle e books for kids classic literature on Samsung galaxy tab in Canada?

[besroma]

Reviving this thread to see if anyone can offer opinions in light of the new iPads and Android tablets....:bigear:

 

Thanks!

[NittanyJen]

I have and ipad2 and a Nook SimpleTouch e-reader (that's one of the black and white e-ink jobs); my husband uses an android phone. We don't have an Android tablet; my experience with the tablet size Android is limited to goofing around with them in store displays :)

 

I love both my ipad for work (and play!) and prefer my Nook for reading actual books (the backlighting on the ipad gets to me, and the screen feels jittery in terms of being too sensitive to rotating or tapping, and I don't want to engage the rotate lock, because I don't want it engaged for other stuff).

 

I do use the ipad for the kids' textooks, uploaded to Dropbox for access on all of our computers or on the go through Dropbox at any time, and we love that (talk about making Writing With Ease even easier! Or looking up an answer key to grade Lively Latin!). That much reading on it is just fine.

 

For lots of typing on it I do prefer to employ a bluetooth keyboard.

 

As far as ipad vs android . . . both have tons of apps. Amazon has or used to have a 'free app of the day' for Android apps. Most of the time if I find a cool app, my husband can find the corresponding Android app that matches it. From that point of view, it's just a matter of buying the product that makes you the most comfortable in terms of quality/value/price point/understand what you're getting/confidence. That will be an individual choice for each user.

[boscopup]

Reviving this thread to see if anyone can offer opinions in light of the new iPads and Android tablets....:bigear:

 

Thanks!

 

I ended up getting a Toshiba Thrive for Christmas. I love it. It has USB and other I/O that iPad doesn't have. It is a thicker tablet, but I'm ok with that.

 

My kids enjoy using it, and I do too.

[besroma]

As far as ipad vs android . . . both have tons of apps. Amazon has or used to have a 'free app of the day' for Android apps. Most of the time if I find a cool app, my husband can find the corresponding Android app that matches it. From that point of view, it's just a matter of buying the product that makes you the most comfortable in terms of quality/value/price point/understand what you're getting/confidence. That will be an individual choice for each user.

 

This is good to hear because I have read so many posts saying that there are so many more educational apps for the iPad than the Droid tablets.

[InLieuofPreschool]

We got an android tablet with the kids in mind for Christmas. We hated it. Got some iPod touches to try out Apple, and instant love. We have an iPad now, too!

[Tabrett]

I wouldn't get a tablet or ereader for a 1st grader. My dc want to touch the page when they read (track with their finger or touch the word to show me which on they are talking about). They also want to touch my iPad screen when they read. That causes the iPad to try to highlight, turn the page, zoom, go to hyplink, ect...:D Until you are sure your dd is able to read and track with their eyes only, I wouldn't invest in one. Unless your are trying to get one for yourself.:lol:

Now on the other hand, if you are looking to let your dd "play" with interactive children's books, then go for it. But I think they are more like cartoons than reading material.:001_huh:

[lillybell]

I just bought an Asus Transformer. It's an android tablet and I am in love with it now. I have had an Ipod touch for about 2 years so I contemplated getting the Ipad for a while but I really wanted to have access to flash so went the android way. No regrets here yet. I did buy the docking keyboard for it as well so I could have the USB port for a flash drive. The toshiba thrive, already has one withouth having to buy the extra docking keyboard station so that is a plus for the Thrive. I got the Asus though because I got a deal on it. Well my husband actually bought it for me after I have been hounding him for one for a while. Guess he finally caved. So far, I have been able to pull up many of my teacher's manuals on it so I don't have to print them out anymore. Huge time and money saver there, since I was printing them week by week since ink is so expensive. I can also bookmark the page that I left off on in the teacher's manual. Some of the kids manuals, I also open on it and have the kids read from it. Like MR Q's science, since it is a pdf, we can open it up on the tablet and my daughter is able to write her answers straight on the pdf. Another great feature that I just figured out is that I can now access my wifi printer. So if I want to print a specific page from the kids manual, I just print it and my kids can do the worksheets. No more printing huge manuals. I am still playing around with it to see what else this baby can do but so far, I am very happy with it.

Edited June 23, 2012 by lillybell

[WishboneDawn]

I asked a friend about this and she told me that the IPAD apps are thoroughly checked for viruses and the Android ones were free and made by whoever wanted to make them' date=' thus not checked. I do not know if I actually believe her, but it gave me pause enough to ask if any of you have heard something along those lines. It sounds like a line someone told her to get her to buy an IPAD, but could it be true?[/quote']

 

The free android apps are most often lite versions of pay apps. They're either lacking a few features or are supported by ads. The goal is to eventually have you buy the app. There are some freeware apps out there though where they'll never charge. All my apps but one have been free and I've had no issues. Just download from a good site like Google Play.

 

In short, yeah. It was a line. :D

 

EDIT: Not sure how I made that thumbs down thingee! I didn't intend to. Bad thing about tablets...typing sucks.

Edited June 23, 2012 by WishboneDawn

[WishboneDawn]

I am looking for a tablet which could work as a e reader and browsing internet with online videos.Could i get kindle e books for kids classic literature on Samsung galaxy tab in Canada?

 

Yes.

[WishboneDawn]

I have an Android tablet, a Le Pan I got on sale for $179 can just after Xmas. I love it. To me, I just couldn't see buying an iPad when there are so many excellent and much cheaper choices.

 

And once the Microsoft Surface is released I won't see the sense in buyingan iPad at all. If you want to drop a lot of money on a tablet,that's the one to do it on.:Dj

[melmichigan]

And once the Microsoft Surface is released I won't see the sense in buyingan iPad at all. If you want to drop a lot of money on a tablet,that's the one to do it on.:Dj

 

:drool5: I just crashed another computer, but you've convinced me to wait. How long do I have to wait? :D

[cloudswinger]

I have a Nook touch and a Cruz android ereader. I have downloaded books to the Nook for my dd to read, and I download teacher pdfs to the Cruz for my use. Although the Cruz has a color screen, and has a bunch of apps for the dd to use too. So we swap devices around a lot. The Nook is much lighter and the battery lasts so much longer. I think I've had the Nook on for a week solid of reading and it was only about at 60% battery. I ended up plugging it in to download stuff, which also charges it at the same time. The Cruz on the other had lasts about 4 hours. Pretty much dies on me everyday. And there's too much glare on the Cruz to take it outside, unlike the Nook. We could do readalouds outside at the beach with the Nook and it's easy to read.

[Ulpanexpress]

Not much difference in apps on android and apple. The good educational apps are on both platforms. I chose the iPad because I appreciate that it's locked down a bit better than android tablets.

 

I have an iPad but I do not like iBooks since its proprietary. I like being able to read my ebooks from ANY device and the kindle reader is excellent at this.

 

The bad thing about these tablets is that the PC version of the apps are almost always more robust. Take the Skype app for example. The tablet version is downright embarrassing with how much is missing compared to the PC version.

 

My bet is on Microsoft to do really really well with the Windows 8 pro tablet(comes out at the end of 2012) that weighs a little more and costs a little more but offers the best of pc and tablet. It's what everyone needs and neither apple or android are providing this.

[precious4b]

Definately IPad for me :)

[nmoira]

My girls are each getting their own Google Nexus 7 tablets next month, as soon as they are released. I don't like iOS (DH's work iPhone drives me nuts), and have had good experiences with my Android phone and tablet.

 

I am just angry with Apple right now: angry about all the law suits (Really? A tap is a zero-length slide?), and angry about iCloud (Really? My Intel iMac with DropBox and Google Drive support is too obsolete for iCloud? Even after all those years we paid for DotMac and MobileMe?). I'm at the point that I've resolved never to purchase another Apple product even though I quite like their desktops.

[HejKatt]

This is good to hear because I have read so many posts saying that there are so many more educational apps for the iPad than the Droid tablets.

 

I own a rooted Nook tablet and I would agree with what you heard - Google Play (Android marketplace for apps) isn't bad, but more than once I've searched for some apps mentioned on these forums that I couldn't find on Google Play, e.g. Stack the States, Notability.

 

If you envision your dc using the device for schoolwork, I would go for a device with a larger screen. That said, in our family we use the Nook for reading and listening, written work gets done on paper b/c they are developing those motor skills and I expect them to use the laptop when older, thus e-curricula remain an option for us.

 

I guess I'm trying to say..there are more aspects to deciding than apps? Hope this helped.

[besroma]

 

I guess I'm trying to say..there are more aspects to deciding than apps? Hope this helped.

 

 

Yes, thanks!

[Guest normanyclark]

I think Apple iPad is best.It has better apps and Great content.Many of the apps you use on the iPhone can be used on the iPad. If you bought the Android tablet then you would have to buy all new versions of all the apps.