All iPads Are you tempted by other tablets?

[Digitalguy]

As Ludatyk said, you will mainly get biased answers here.
Someone in the Apple ecosystem will have a clear incentive to get an iPad.
Also, someone who doesn't own an Android tablet will be more inclined to stay on what they know better.
Anyway I am a Samsung phone user and mainly Windows user (although I own several Macs).
I have many iPads (M1 pro, M2 pro and M4 pro and a couple of minis)
And I also have several Android tablets (Samsung Tab S4, S7FE, S8 ultra and S9, plus Lenovo Tab Extreme, Lenovo Yoga 13 and a small 8" Chinese tablet)
I also have many Windows tablets (wring from a Surface book 3 13", but I consider them a different type of device)

I use iPads much more and I doubt I'll buy more Android tablets anytime soon, but not because they are not good, they are very good, but for a series of reasons:
- I prefer the iPad aspect ratio (especially for PDFs while I don't mind black bars for videos)
- iPads have more pro apps (music in my case)
- I prefer the Magic Keyboard, although I miss the "native" kickstand option (not built-in but much lighter than third party solutions for iPad)
- iPads tend to have more and better accessories (better matte screen protectors, cases etc.)
- Remote desktop works much better on iPads, while Android apps can barely make use of trackpads.

However Android tablets, and Samsung in particular, have some advantages over iPads:
- price: after a few months from launch you can find something like the Samsung ultra tablet for half the price from third party sellers (which by the way you can get in a 1TB 16GB RAM version, contrary to what someone said)
- you can get larger sizes like the 14.6" Ultra
- they have better "second display" apps (something like what Sidecar is). Sidecar pales in comparison to some third party apps on iPad and Android apps are even better. So currently my main use for my Android tablets is as zero latency, battery powered, pen enabled external display.
- until before iPadOS 26, they had much better multitasking (and I am not even considering DEX), now iPadOS 26 is very similar to Samsung OneUI in terms of windowing etc, so I would say they are kind of equal now.
- they work better with Android phones (I mainly use Lumafusion on my S9 and no longer use it on iPad because it's easier to quick share with my phone).
- you can manage RAM better (give priority to some apps, etc), while on iPads you are at the mercy of reloads
- they last longer (yes, I know Apple fans will jump to the ceiling when hearing this). In the past, they had much shorter support, but they remained compatible with apps for much longer. Now Samsung flagship that the same 7 OS updates and still have much longer compatibility with apps (after 5-6 years from end of support iPads become almost useless, while on Android most things still work fine).

Where for me it does not make much difference, while iPads are technically better is:
power (flagship Samsung devices are powerful enough and tend to have more RAM than iPads)
brightness (Samsung get up to 900 nits, but I never use max brightness since I find them very bright already)
apps optimization: while tecnically the iPad is better, most Android apps scale perfectly fine on tablets (other than Meta ones) and there are workarounds to make them work just as well as on iPads (web apps, Samsung special tricks etc).

 

[Ludatyk]

- they work better with Android phones (I mainly use Lumafusion on my S9 and no longer use it on iPad because it's easier to quick share with my phone).

You haven't tried using LocalSend? I have it installed on the Mac, iPad and Android phone... works great. Blip is another one, haven't tried it yet though.

 

[TracerAnalog]

I've been thinking about buying a Samsung Galaxy Tab S11 Ultra, which supposedly will be announced next month. It could be a sort of replacement for the iPad Pro 13, which I want to buy but is way expensive.

For example, with discounts, I could buy the base 256GB 5G Tab S10 Ultra + official keyboard (comes bundled with the S Pen) + 512GB MicroSD for almost 1.000€ less than the equivalent iPad Pro 1TB 5G + Apple pencil + MK.

The problem is app support, as always, which is not ideal on Android tablets. Anyone tempted by other brands? Maybe because they offer good alternatives for way way less money? The long term support is still better with Apple, but Samsung does offer 7 years of OS updates.

In the end it's about the apps, the OS and the ecosystem. Cost aside, I've tried some Android tablets (and phones) in the past, but I always came back to Apple. Others are happy in the Android world... It might be best if you could try an Android tablet out before committing. Maybe a store with a good return policy? Buy it online from Amazon?

 

[klasma]

- Remote desktop works much better on iPads, while Android apps can barely make use of trackpads.

What do you mean by that? I regularly use a Magic Trackpad with an Android tablet, and it supports all sorts of gestures, no complaints here. I haven’t used it for remote desktop though.

 

[ignatius345]

E-ink tablets, absolutely.

I bought a Boox E-ink tablet that runs Android for a friend recently… honestly it was remarkable (no, not that tablet).

Marco (a pretty serious Apple guy) did a video review of a couple e-ink tablets, they're an entirely different vertical.

Had occasion to play around with a ReMarkable tablet and it is just lovely. I very very much wish Apple would release an e-ink device. I don't see it happening but I do wish for it. I just love the way they work without backlight, and feel a lot "calmer" somehow than LCD displays.

 

[martint235]

I very recently had a Samsung S10 Ultra and it is a fantastic piece of kit. I think it knocks the normal iPad out of the park and gives the M4 Pro a run. I had it coupled with a OnePlus 13 which is also a great bit of kit. But, and this is where Apple wins hands down, the ecosystem sucks. I don’t want to put effort into making things talk to each other.

 

[sparksd]

I was a day one Android adopter and owned multiple Android phones and at least six different tablets. I was a power user, working on custom ROMs, etc. Bought an Air 2 to try out and am now on the M4 13" & Mini 6. I tried the S10 Ultra last year but on a whim but returned it; I just find the Apple offerings to be much better from an overall system perspective.

 

[Ludatyk]

I was a day one Android adopter and owned multiple Android phones and at least six different tablets. I was a power user, working on custom ROMs, etc. Bought an Air 2 to try out and am now on the M4 13" & Mini 6. I tried the S10 Ultra last year but on a whim but returned it; I just find the Apple offerings to be much better from an overall system perspective.

Perhaps you mention it before and I missed it. Or maybe I'm not mistaken... you prefer Windows to Mac? What's the reason(s) for that?

 

[sparksd]

Perhaps you mention it before and I missed it. Or maybe I'm not mistaken... you prefer Windows to Mac? What's the reason(s) for that?

I do prefer Windows. I've used it since its inception (including MS-DOS) both at home and work and have a good level of expertise in it (I'm a retired s/w & h/w engineer). I've never had issues using it and while I have used many different Macs in other environments over the decades (going back to the Apple II & Lisa), I've never felt a need to change my personal usage. I'd certainly never denigrate Macs - they are quality machines.

 

[Digitalguy]

What do you mean by that? I regularly use a Magic Trackpad with an Android tablet, and it supports all sorts of gestures, no complaints here. I haven’t used it for remote desktop though.

I mean that most remote desktop apps cannot use the trackpads, the only exeption being Splashtop, but it's not as good as the apps you can find with iPad. Trackpads on Android itself work fine.

 

[Digitalguy]

You haven't tried using LocalSend? I have it installed on the Mac, iPad and Android phone... works great. Blip is another one, haven't tried it yet though.

I regularly use Blip, it's great, but it's not like Quickshare or Airdrop, at home it works fine, but try to trasfer something on a plane or where you don't have wifi and it doesn't work.

 

[okkibs]

some people are not willing to spend that much for a tablet just to be a consumption device.

Sure if installing youtube and streaming tv is your requirement then any Android tablet will do. As will any cheap iPad. That's a low bar.

 

[Digitalguy]

I do prefer Windows. I've used it since its inception (including MS-DOS) both at home and work and have a good level of expertise in it (I'm a retired s/w & h/w engineer). I've never had issues using it and while I have used many different Macs in other environments over the decades (going back to the Apple II & Lisa), I've never felt a need to change my personal usage. I'd certainly never denigrate Macs - they are quality machines.

Same here, I do prefer Windows. I have been using DOS since 1992 and Windows since 1999 (well actually since 1997 but it was no my computer). But I got a 11.6" Macbook Air back in the day as a secondary machine to test MacOS and then a Retina 2017 Macbook, mainly used as a youtube machine... Then I got a M1 mini in 2021, tried to make it my main device but couldn't not get used to window management and monitor management, so went back to Windows.
Recently however I got a 15" M3 air 24/512GB for a great price ($950) and I started admiring Macs again, I love the hardware, less the OS, but I am trying to find workarounds to all the things that are missing or are bad on MacOS (with apps like Scroll reverser, BetterDisplay, BetterTouchTool, DockDoor, Ice, Maccy, Command X etc.) and I am now regularly using it and I even started using my M1 mini again as my secondary desktop with a touch/pen monitor (espresso display 17 pro). I can confidently say that Macs are here to stay in my workflow, although Windows is not going anywhere either (at home it's still my main machine and on the go I want cellular support).

 

[Ludatyk]

Sure if installing youtube and streaming tv is your requirement then any Android tablet will do. As will any cheap iPad. That's a low bar.

I think you being disingenuous... the OP is discussing the Tab Ultra S10, which is a very good choice if the user is not willing to spend almost a 1000£ (imo).

I would recommend the user give it a go... report back and let us know their experiences. It doesn't always have to be about Apple.

I regularly use Blip, it's great, but it's not like Quickshare or Airdrop, at home it works fine, but try to trasfer something on a plane or where you don't have wifi and it doesn't work.

I believe you can use hotspot to be the bridge to transfers when not on an Wifi...

 

[ZivaD]

I’ve used a few android tablets at work over the years, they have always been terrible, they have no polish and the os is just so flat and utilitarian, no thanks.

 

[russell_314]

For a tablet, absolutely not. There’s zero reason I could think of for me to get an android tablet. If I wanted the same quality hardware, it’s not going to be cheaper. The user experience will still be worse.

There’s only a few reasons I can think of that would make sense to buy an android tablet.

If you had a small child that was very destructive. A $50 tablet from Walmart would be perfect.

Brand loyalty. You think Samsung or whatever brand is just absolutely godlike. You are willing to use an inferior product to have a brand you like.

Some unique use case where you needed to run a specific app or do a specific thing that’s not possible to do on an iPad.

If I missed any feel free to let me know 😂

 

[BigMcGuire]

I have had several Samsung Android Tablets. They had nice bright screens but ... the app experience was so terrible I sold or gave them away. 2018 was peak iPad for me. The 2018 iPad Pro 11' was perfect. After years of that, I eventually left iPad doing almost everything I needed on my Mac. Spent a year reading books (some 500+ pages) on my iPhone with no problem.

But... Best Buy having a $370 sale on an iPad mini 7? Got that last month and have been really happy with it.

It's more about the ecosystem for me now. iMessage, iCloud, I am heavily invested into the Apple ecosystem and don't see that changing anytime soon - and I plan on getting all the usage out of this mini that I can. Threw a matte screen protector on it and I take it everywhere (using my iPhone as a hotspot if I need to).

TLDR: Nope, not even a little, especially now.

 

[Allen_Wentz]

No, I am not tempted by other tablets.

 

[muzzy996]

I've barely been tempted by the last few generations of iPad Pro's let alone other brands.

 

[GMShadow]

I wouldn't buy the Tabs at launch - as others have noted discounting is pretty steep on them. There also aren't expected to be any real improvements, so getting a Tab S10 Ultra on closeout from Samsung may be a better option.

I have an S8U on the side more as an Android testbed/media device, main thing I'd point out is the things are hueg and not super portable. I still use my iPads a lot more, but it's not useless by any means.

 

[williamofockham]

short answer no. mainly my attitude to google/android , but whatever floats your boat

 

[SoyMaxV]

I've tried a few, owned the Tab S9+ which was kinda great in terms of hardware but software was just not there.
The OS worked beautifully well, and Samsung's implementation of Android has been my favorite for many years now (contrary to what it used to be) but as you well said the app availability is just not good enough.
In my case what made me definitely switch back to iPadOS was Shapr3D.

 

[Eric_WVGG]

Had occasion to play around with a ReMarkable tablet and it is just lovely. I very very much wish Apple would release an e-ink device. I don't see it happening but I do wish for it. I just love the way they work without backlight, and feel a lot "calmer" somehow than LCD displays.

My big thing is e-books, I read maybe 2-4 books a month, all on iPad Mini. Would love to switch to e-ink for that, but I’m already deeply invested in Apple Books, don't want to rely on Amazon any more that I already do, and there's really nothing else viable.

 

[grammatica]

While the hardware might be nice, especially on Samsung tablets, the support for tablet apps is just not there. iPad is still vastly superior for apps.

 

[FatLouie]

My big thing is e-books, I read maybe 2-4 books a month, all on iPad Mini. Would love to switch to e-ink for that, but I’m already deeply invested in Apple Books, don't want to rely on Amazon any more that I already do, and there's really nothing else viable.

My iPad Pro M4 has also served as an e-reader. Does a good job at it for me, others may be more demanding when it comes to e-readers. Every time I considered buying an e-reader, I would stop and think that I would then be carrying around two tablets; in the end, it just didn't make sense for me to purchase an e-reader.