The original Ipad by apple has had a great first year. Although pc tablets have been around for many years, the sluggish and unfriendly performance offered never captured the publics' imagination to the great degree. Now, using the unimaginable success of smartphones through the years, it was time for that tablet to make a comeback. Apple have exploited the lack of competition in this end of the market to build a sizable advantage on the competition, mainly from Android. However, never to outdone by Apple, Google have moved swiftly to update their OS for tablets and help companies like Motorola and Samsung obtain own tablets for the market quite quickly. But gets the "rushed" launch of the Galaxy Tab hampered their momentum?
The original Tab was released to the market using the smartphone version of Android and commentators felt it was a bad move, especially considering how well the iPad performed. However, with Honeycomb now being drip-fed on the latest and a lot powerful Android tablets, the arena has been levelled somewhat.With the iPad 2 featuring an updated dual-core processor, the Android tablets quickly followed suit with the Motorola Xoom and Galaxy Tab 10.1 featuring similar engines. They are widely considered the "Big 3" in the tablet world at the moment, RIM's playbook and other such tablets aren't exactly garnishing the best reviews. All of the "Big 3" feature updated Os's, front and rear facing cameras and HD video recording. Both Android tablets have 1080p playback, whereas the ipad2 only manages 720p. Many reviewers have commented around the fact that, despite having a slightly lower resolution, the iPad 2's screen just looks better. The 2 Android tablets will be the clear winners when it comes to the cameras, with both featuring 2MP front facing and also the Xoom having a 5MP rear, the Tab an 8MP. The ipad 2 can only run a VGA front facing camera, with the rear rumored to become 3-5MP. Apple will undoubtedly address this shortcoming with their annual hardware update of the iPad, probably due Spring/Summer 2012.
Android 3.0 has now been fully optimised for tablets, although Googles frustrating policy of just making the latest versions on select machines remains. This can not really modify the high-end Android tablet customers, nevertheless the lower end will have to make do with older builds. Widgets and full Flash support have reached place, Androids main ammunition from the seemingly unstoppable ipad2. This will no doubt make a sizable dent in Apples market share, but many (including myself), expect Apples domination within this market to go on for years to come. Recent figures released point to the iPad having 89% of worldwide and 97% people traffic. Android comes on extreme measures in the past several years, taking a sizable chuck from the smartphone market. Non 'premium' smartphones are doing excellently for the Android brand, offering consumers a complete smartphone experience in a fraction of the price of a new iPhone 4 or Galaxy S2. Honeycomb and future Android updates will continue to improve their tablet experience also, offering a flexibility an Apple device won't ever have.
Apple, I feel, will continue to dominate the tablet sector for a long time. With the iPad and iPad 2, they have built a brand people want. Microsoft has had tablet PCs out for a long time and been unable to convince people or even the vendors they are the future. Apple has generated a lifestyle tool in the iPad. A 'tablet pc' may seem daunting for casual users, an iPad is 'just a large iPhone', but the public love it. Now with iOS5 coming coupled with the iCloud and iTunes Share services, it's ease of use can only improve. Better multitasking, tabbed browsing, notifications and multi-touch gestures are some of the new features available for the iPad and iPad 2 this September. Unlike the most recent versions of Android, these will probably be directly available for download for your device, no limitations. iTunes will be the biggest music store on the planet, the new features in iCloud and iTunes share will only increase this.
The winner here? Well both iPad 2 and Android equivalents are fantastic devices, similarly priced so when it comes down to it, really quite similar. Choice has never been better and buyers have a wealth of literature at their fingertips to assist them to choose. Apple continues to dominate I suspect, however Google can not be written off and can continue to steal the iPad's business, albeit slower compared to what they may like. So, the true winner here is you, the customer. Choose wisely, and also you wont be disappointed.
How to get a a Free 3DS,
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