Best tablet for basic reading?

August 17, 2011 7:51 PM

Looking for a tablet recommendation, there are so many out there I can't figure out what I need.

The primary thing I want to do with a tablet would be to read files I have stored via Scrapbook, a Firefox extension. Word files and pdfs would be important too. I don't need constant internet access, so anything requiring a mobile plan is out. Wifi would be good. If I could attach it to a keyboard as needed that would be stellar as well.

My question is: what is the cheapest available tablet that is still of good quality that would allow me to do what I want? I'm not willing to pay extra for the Ipad's big name when something less fancy will meet my needs.

I'd prefer non-hackable options, as I don't know that I'd feel confident implementing the new ROM.

I've looked at previous threads but the market is changing so fast I thought it might be worth asking again

posted by gilsonal to technology (11 answers total)

A couple of my friends have gotten Acer Iconias and really like them. They're about half the price of iPads.
posted by L'Estrange Fruit at 8:05 PM on August 17, 2011

Amazon's Kindle would do most of what you require (view PDFs and other documents, no mobile plan, wifi enabled). If you're set on a tablet, though, there's Samsung's Galaxy Tab.
posted by Telpethoron at 8:09 PM on August 17, 2011

I have an Asus Transformer and love it. It's wifi-only, and you can buy a dock that has a keyboard.
posted by cp311 at 8:24 PM on August 17, 2011

I should make sure I'm clear, it would be a deal breaker if I couldn't run Firefox, since it would be a pain to translate thousands of files saved in Scrapbook to docs manually.
posted by gilsonal at 8:29 PM on August 17, 2011

You can run Firefox on the Android platform. I have the Samsung Galaxy tablet (on Verizon), and it's pretty okay.
posted by elmer benson at 8:43 PM on August 17, 2011

My 5 year old grand daughter raves about the HP Touchpad. YMMV.
posted by Marie Mon Dieu at 8:44 PM on August 17, 2011

You need a Windows tablet, e.g. HP Slate. Although there is an Android version of Firefox, it doesn't look as though there is a version of the Scrapbook extension that will work with it.
posted by kindall at 8:45 PM on August 17, 2011

Although there is an Android version of Firefox, it doesn't look as though there is a version of the Scrapbook extension that will work with it.

I stand corrected. And I only kinda love my Android tab.
posted by elmer benson at 9:04 PM on August 17, 2011

Used iPad v1 16GB wifi are about $350 on Craigslist in Los Angeles. The one I bought had six months left on the warranty.
posted by conrad53 at 10:39 PM on August 17, 2011

Firefox doen't work on iOS devices. The iPad is out.

I just tried it on my Asus Transformer (Android Honeycomb 3.2). The Scrapbook extension isn't compatible with the current Android version of FF (Fennec v6). Looks like a Windows slate is the only way this will work for you.

It looks like a Scrapbook problem. You might inquire with the Scrapbook authors.

Right now, out of the box, you're only option appears to be a Windows tablet.
posted by bonehead at 5:44 AM on August 18, 2011

Probably the best Windows7 tablet right now is from ASUS. It's the same price as an iPad, and will have significantly worse battery-life and performance. If Firefox (with extensions) is a deal breaker, you'll get a lot more bang for your buck with a laptop since you're eliminating 99% of the tablet market with that one requirement.
posted by blue_beetle at 6:00 AM on August 18, 2011