Last year about this time, the iPad 2 was coming and so were a slew of slates from Hewlett-Packard, Research in Motion, Samsung and a host of others — all of which failed miserably. Here in 2012, the iPad 3 is just around the corner and, once again, an unruly gaggle of mostly Google Android-powered competitors is also vying for your attention and money — is there anything worth a second look?
Fundamentally, in the $499 and up space, unless you have religious objections, the 9.7-inch iPad is the product and that distinction is going to get clearer when the iPad 3 ships. Further, if you’re up for a refurbished model, you can get an original, first generation iPad from $299.
Seriously, Apple is very price competitive in the tablet space.
There are other choices
First and foremost on the list of would-be iPad killers is the 7-inch Kindle Fire ($199). However, the most important thing to about Amazon tablet is that it isn’t really an iPad competitor per se — it’s different and different can be good.
This is a serious media consumption device backed by the world’s second-largest online repository of digital books, movies, TV shows and music. The downside is that if you’re invested heavily in the iTunes or Zune marketplaces, all of that content isn’t playable.
Nevertheless, $199 is a very attractive price.
On that point, I personally believe the Barnes & Noble Nook ($199, $249) is a better device with a somewhat more refined user interface. Further, the more expensive model offers double the storage and better overall hardware specs for just $50 more than the Fire.
Also, casual users will appreciate the fact that Barnes & Noble has thousands brick and mortar stores where Nook owners can interact with a real human being. Additionally, Nook users can borrow books while in store — community is good.
