Thoughts on Honeycomb Vs IOS - Samsung Galaxy Tab Vs iPad 2

keith_d99

Hi all,

Have a buddy travelling from the States - and trying to choose between Samsung Galaxy Tab and iPad (both same price - working out at €350)

Just wondering if people on here have experience of Honeycomb? How is the app quality + quantity???

I am an iPhone owner - so would like to experience the freedomness of Android on a tablet, but wondering if Android (Honeycomb) is quite there yet in the Tablet world!

Tis a tough choice!

Thanks in advance!
Keith.

srsly78

Galaxy Tab can refer to the old one or the new one. Old one was terrible. New one is better.

With regard to android vs ios the usual applies:
iOs is locked down crap but does have a lot of good apps available. Android gives you a lot more freedom tho and is more like having a real laptop/computer.

alanucc

I presume the OP means the Galaxy Tab 10.1, as the old tab doesn't have honeycomb.

I would also appreciate opinions on this, I'm eyeing up the Samsung atm. I currently have a GSII with a good few apps, so android would appear to be the better choice vs iPad (?)

keith_d99

Sorry lads - it is indeed the 10.1 link

keith_d99

Getting to grips with versions of Android.

If I buy Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 - there is no guarantee that I will get Ice Cream Sandwich (and apps).

Is this not a major drawback of Android????

At least with Apple, you are more or less guaranteed a couple of year's iOS updates. (For instance my 3GS - 2 years old - gets iOS 5 come September).

daz801

seen as it's a top end android tablet i'd say it will get official version updates for the next year or two.....others mite work with it for longer

mraie

am in the same boat. Prefer android and the freedom it gives, however saw this review and thinks it gets to the heart of the matter

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/samsung/8684333/Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-10.1-hands-on.html


while the tab 10.1 is great bit of hardware the operating system lets it down. Was in PC world and saw this for myself when I have the ipad and galaxy side by side. While the lag is short it is very annoying on the tab. This on top of no usb or mirco usb connections justs puts me off. Going to wait for the next generation in 6 months. Right now I think the ipad with its OS and apps lead has the edge.

Atomic Pineapple

Strange that there's lag reported in that article, we have the Xoom and the iPad2 in work and the Xoom is a much better user experience with no noticeable lag.

On top of that the switching on the ipad is so annoying that I actually turn it off.

kyote00

I have an Acer iconia with 3.1 running. 3.1 supports lots more USB stuff.....

I've have connected USB hd and flash drives, USB wireless mouse and keyboard, a Xbox USB controller and my camera using usb/pictbridge...

I tried the xoom, galaxy, Acer and Asus and ipad2....

The ipad2 UI is dated looking and lack of USB (without some white apple connector do hickey) put me off....

Wh1skeyjack

I've had the 10.1 for a few days. I also have an ipad 2 so I can compare the two.

Pros:
1. Better screen than the iPad2, thinner and lighter as well
2. Honeycomb seems to be quite a nice OS, it's my first android device though so I'm still learning to get the best out of it.
3. Decent battery life, lasts a few days if you use it intermittently.

Cons:
1. Seems a bit laggier and less snappy than the ipad2 when changing orientation, unlocking it etc.
2. The big one: haven't been able to get it to play 720p mkv. Not well at any rate, very stuttery and laggy. Tried a few different players but it seems from browsing a few forums that the 10.1 can't handle high profile mkv, which seems very strange.

keith_d99

Wh1skeyjack wrote: »

I've had the 10.1 for a few days. I also have an ipad 2 so I can compare the two.

Pros:
1. Better screen than the iPad2, thinner and lighter as well
2. Honeycomb seems to be quite a nice OS, it's my first android device though so I'm still learning to get the best out of it.
3. Decent battery life, lasts a few days if you use it intermittently.

Cons:
1. Seems a bit laggier and less snappy than the ipad2 when changing orientation, unlocking it etc.
2. The big one: haven't been able to get it to play 720p mkv. Not well at any rate, very stuttery and laggy. Tried a few different players but it seems from browsing a few forums that the 10.1 can't handle high profile mkv, which seems very strange.

Surprised about the MKVs
Is there an update due on the 10.1???

mickoneill30

Wh1skeyjack wrote: »

2. The big one: haven't been able to get it to play 720p mkv. Not well at any rate, very stuttery and laggy. Tried a few different players but it seems from browsing a few forums that the 10.1 can't handle high profile mkv, which seems very strange.

Have you tried Mx Player

Features

I haven't tried it myself on mkvs but it's meant to be optimised for the dual core processors.

Wh1skeyjack

mickoneill30 wrote: »

Wh1skeyjack wrote: »

2. The big one: haven't been able to get it to play 720p mkv. Not well at any rate, very stuttery and laggy. Tried a few different players but it seems from browsing a few forums that the 10.1 can't handle high profile mkv, which seems very strange.

Have you tried Mx Player

Features

I haven't tried it myself on mkvs but it's meant to be optimised for the dual core processors.

Cheers for the tip on mx player, makes a better effort than the other but still results in laggy video and out of sync. I think it's a combo of mkv and ac3 audio that's giving it fits. Going to try some other encodes. In contrast the ipad2 using avplayer hd does it perfectly. Annoying.

Cyrus

Wh1skeyjack wrote: »

Cheers for the tip on mx player, makes a better effort than the other but still results in laggy video and out of sync. I think it's a combo of mkv and ac3 audio that's giving it fits. Going to try some other encodes. In contrast the ipad2 using avplayer hd does it perfectly. Annoying.

i saw some mention in the reviews of mxplayer about ac3 audio, mentioned it didnt handly it properly (a common theme) bue that dice or something like that did? maybe take a quick read thro the reviews

edit/

here is the comment i saw:

guess I will have to go back to Dice player since it appears to be the only one that can do hardware acceleration and decode AC3 in mkv files without problems. The interface of MX is cleaner and I like it better but if I can't hear the movie its really not that helpful.

Crackity Jones

I was looking at the Samsung today in Currys. It has a nice screen alright but I didnt really like the feel of the plastic back. I thought the screen on the Asus EEE was really clear and vibrant and was super quick loading Apps etc. OP any reason why the Asus doesnt figure in your considerations?

I'm in the market myself for a tab and would like to try out Android as I have an iPhone 4 but would people recommend I stay within the apple ecosystem and get an iPad 2? Apart from apps and upcoming IOS 5, the iPad I think will have the better resale value which is a plus.

keith_d99

Crackity Jones wrote: »

I was looking at the Samsung today in Currys. It has a nice screen alright but I didnt really like the feel of the plastic back. I thought the screen on the Asus EEE was really clear and vibrant and was super quick loading Apps etc. OP any reason why the Asus doesnt figure in your considerations?

I'm in the market myself for a tab and would like to try out Android as I have an iPhone 4 but would people recommend I stay within the apple ecosystem and get an iPad 2? Apart from apps and upcoming IOS 5, the iPad I think will have the better resale value which is a plus.

Have seen some great reviews of the Asus, but also came across an owners thread on AVForums, where they didn't seem to happy with it! From what I have read review-wise the Samsung 10.1 is king of Android tablets at the mo - and since I am getting from States, budget can stretch to that.

iPad will no doubt keep it's value better, and apps seem to be streets ahead than android, but I have an IOS 5 device in the iphone, so would like to give Android a go in the Tablet world.

cornbb

Well this might help you narrow your options down a little...


http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/08/09/major-android-setback-galaxy-tab-banned-in-europe/

Crackity Jones

cornbb wrote: »

Well this might help you narrow your options down a little...


http://tech.fortune.cnn.com/2011/08/09/major-android-setback-galaxy-tab-banned-in-europe/

might become a collectors iteam for those that have them!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/samsung/8691707/Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-10.1-blocked-in-Europe.html

keith_d99

Was all set to buy Samsung Tab 10.1 from the States (still can) - would ye still buy???

Wh1skeyjack

Cyrus wrote: »

i saw some mention in the reviews of mxplayer about ac3 audio, mentioned it didnt handly it properly (a common theme) bue that dice or something like that did? maybe take a quick read thro the reviews

edit/

here is the comment i saw:

guess I will have to go back to Dice player since it appears to be the only one that can do hardware acceleration and decode AC3 in mkv files without problems. The interface of MX is cleaner and I like it better but if I can't hear the movie its really not that helpful.

Dice player did the trick nicely, not 100% perfect but a hell of a lot more watchable than the others I tried!

mickoneill30

keith_d99 wrote: »

Was all set to buy Samsung Tab 10.1 from the States (still can) - would ye still buy???

With stuff like Apple trying to ban it, I'd go out of my way to buy it:D

Professey Chin

If apple want it banned then they see it as a threat :pac: