TABLET AFTERLIFE SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

Above: The Tesco Hudl 2. Who would have thought that a supermarket giant would put out a pretty decent tablet, huh? I think it puts a lot of manufacturers to shame! You can pick one up for £99 these days! Here's the Synapse Circuit Hudl 2 review: Hudl 2 OK, it's got an Intel chip inside but it seems to do the business (for a change)...

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
IS THE TABLET DREAM OVER?
DOES THE PC STILL RULE?
Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! It’s awesome to see you as always! I thank you so much for reading my articles! And I hope that I have inspired you to take on some tech projects! The world of creativity is at your fingertips! Get stuck in! You will figure it out as you go along; you’ll be glad that you took the first step!

Did you abandon your PC for a tablet and didn’t go back? Do you think that the advent of the “phablet” has killed the tablet? What’s on your mind regarding the tablet? Are you planning on getting one? Read on!

#Tablet #AndroidTablet #iPad #Surface

FRUSTRATED
A couple of weeks ago I threw my ASUS Fonepad 7 LTE tablet across the room out of sheer frustration! I was using Facebook and the experience was sooooooooooooooooooooooooo freakin’ slow that I gave into multiple angerisms and through the air the tablet went! When it landed I was surprised that it was reasonably intact save for minor crack in the screen...

Look, I never expected for the ASUS Fonepad 7 LTE phone / tablet hybrid to replace my PC but to augment it but I never expected that running a rudimentary app that is Facebook would be so freakin’ frustrating. That right there is the problem for the Android tablet. I think so many companies are cutting vital corners in a bid to keep the costs reasonable. As I have said so many times: cutting corners on any device gives an overall negative impression and in the case of Android it has so many manufacturers representing it that I am surprised that Google haven’t pressed specific standards upon them. I have had my tablet for around 18 months or less and already it is obsolete. Before I cracked the screen I could have taken it to one of those computer exchange shops only to be insulted with a crap offer. I will still use the darn thing but no more Facebook (obviously). Despite my experience thus so far with the Android tablet I remain undeterred...
iPAD
Above: Unwanted iPad models. I think Apple should scrap an iOS based iPad in favour of OSX! Don't worry about creating the thinnest tablet in the world... Add the USB C type socket and Apple could be laughing all the way to the bank (again). Anway, from where I am standing the iPad is experiencing a backlash from dissatisfied users. Just look! 

Should I go iPad? Well, no. Why? I am glad you asked... Although the iPad is beautifully crafted and features some great apps I do think that it’s too pricey for what it is and that I may as well get a Macbook or something. Besides I am a PC person with so many darned PCs that I could perhaps create a little PC shop of my own!

App-wise I am not convinced still that the iPad is the best... I’ve said it a thousand times that there is very little that the Android tablet can’t do when comparing the two platforms. And, of course, I can do so much with any one of my Android handsets; the Google equivalent to Microsoft Office suffices. At the moment I am quite content to augment the PCs with my Android handsets and (crap) tablet.

But I would imagine that the iPad is powerful enough to take the place of a computer. We’ll get to the computer in a bit...

For many Apple enthusiasts the iPad mini impacted on the sales of the larger iPad and now the iPhone 6 Plus has practically knocked the final nail into iPad coffin. I have pointed out to you that these computer exchange shops can’t get rid of the iPad models fast enough! The iPad would make a whole lot of sense if it were competitively priced.

THE SURFACE

Above: The Samsung Galaxy Note 4. You're probably wondering why I haven't placed a picture of the Microsoft Surface here... The reason is to illustrate that I find it beneficial to use the Galaxy Note 4 for writing articles in Google Docs, sketching out musical ideas using Soundcamp and Caustic 3 and making notes with S Note that can be exported to PDF! 

I think that the Surface tablet – the pro one – is the pinnacle of the tablet concept. As I have pointed out many times before the tablet PC is a Microsoft concept that was scrapped as it was too expensive then (and now to a certain extent).

I really do not see where Apple is going with multiple operating systems and overpriced tech... Whereas with the Surface I don’t have to mess around with apps but make use of proper software! Yes, I am repeating myself... This is for the benefit of my new readership, so bear with me! The cost of the Surface Pro is quite steep. As a hardcore PC user it makes more sense for me to invest what I would have spent on a Surface Pro on a powerful kickass desktop PC – as much RAM as the motherboard can hold, massive hard drives and so on!

The PC is a solid workhorse that it needs replacing around every 5 years. And if you know what you are doing you can replace components or build a PC from scratch! And the reason why PC sales are in decline is simply because many households only use the PC for web browsing, social networking and emailing; you can do all that on a phone let alone a tablet. Certainly you are able to do word processing with Google Docs on your phone; Google Docs is just one of the productivity apps that negates the need for Microsoft Office with Slides (PowerPoint compatible); Sheets (Excel) and PDF Viewer. With the Google Cloud Print app you can print your documents with compatible printers. Cool!

Also, where I am concerned, I have to ask: Do I really need the power of the Surface tablet on the fly i.e. when I am travelling? Would I be better off with a laptop? And so far I am unable to say that I need a Surface Pro or laptop. The one big issue I have would be the battery life and the possibility of carrying a chunky power cable around with me... No!

ANDROID
Above: The HTC Nexus 9. I do like it... It's a grand looking 64-bit tablet but I think it's a tad too big for me... Why didn't Google do an 8" tablet? 

Yes, for me the Android tablet makes a lot of sense... Why? Well, I am noticing that the apps are getting so much better. I think that app developers are slowly but surely coming around to the Android tablet. I think app developers are afraid of two things:-

1. Apple would stop talking to them if they created Android versions of popular apps.
2. They feel as though the tablet market in general is in decline.

Above: Helio X20! Helio Kitty! I am just looking forward to the announcement of new phablets and tablets this year with powerful 64-bit chips inside. Mediatek looks like it's going to blow Intel mobile devices chips out of the water! The Intel chip inside my ASUS Fonepad is pretty horrific! I am beside myself as the experience is beyond disappointing! 

I, myself, feel that the tablet market in general is in decline but with the right specifications the Android tablet could make a sharp comeback! Android has hit the 64-bit mark and there are quite a few chip making companies looking to gain the upper hand. Enter MediaTek and the Helio™ X20 - the world’s first mobile processor with Tri-Cluster™ CPU architecture and ten processing cores (Deca-core). That bit of news shows me that things are getting better for Android in general – not like it was bad in the first place!

Once again, Samsung seems to be the only manufacturer looking to produce power and quality across the board. Other manufacturers need to follow suit to remain in the game let alone stay competitive. Us Android folk want power (at least to run what I call the base apps: Facebook; Gee Plus; Gmail; YouTube and so on), quality of build – the Fonepad pops to the touch that it feels like I am holding a DVD / Bluray case and affordability. As per usual I don’t mind the Samsung plastic builds just as long as I get the performance and a solid feel like it is with the Galaxy Note 2 and 4.

I think just before Christmas this year we should see some more formidable tablets from Samsung, NVIDIA, Huawei and possibly HTC. I like the Nexus 9 by HTC but I do like the smaller form. I thought that the supermarket chain, Tesco, did well with the 8” Hudl 2 tablet with front-facing speakers. Maybe Hudl 3 will feature a 64-bit CPU / System on Chip this year – that is if Tesco can arise from its financial difficulties at the moment.

Ah, speaking of finance... I think the idea that developers can’t make money from the Android platform is mute as a few months ago it was announced that the Play Store had surpassed the App Store in sales. Although there is piracy on every platform you will find that people will pay for good apps just as long as the price is reasonable. It is also a myth that developers have a hard time with Android as it caters for multiple screen resolutions... I would love to develop apps and may invest in a course at some point... Anyway, let me conclude...

CONCLUSION
Above: The powerful and underrated Samsung Galaxy Tab S! In my opinion it is better than the iPad. Of course, the choice is entirely up to you. I am quite sure that Samsung will release a 64-bit Galaxy Tab S later this year.

For my needs the Android tablet is the most effective way to compute on the go (I often travel at the weekends). It’s not only effective cost-wise but it has an appealing small form factor and I am able to use it as a sketchpad in that I am able to transfer the outputted files into powerful PC programs such as DAW (digital audio workstations), video editors and so on. I can also arrive at a finished article using a phone or tablet.

But I am very sure that the power-apps will come; at the moment the onus is on entertainment i.e. gaming followed by media streaming... Maybe the Android platform suffers a little from the reputation as inexpensive media consuming products... Hmmmm...

I think that the onus lies with the manufacturer to have some decent apps pre-installed that can make use of the power. So far, I see only Samsung making such a great effort with S Note, Video Editor and the remarkable DAW, Soundcamp. Yes, I know... ...it seems as though I am the biggest Samsung fan in the world but I have to give them credit where it is due! Samsung is on the ball!

There are a few things that I would like Samsung to do – seeing as I have a couple of Galaxy Note handsets (2 & 4) – is to enable me to create the following from its SNote application:-

1. Publish to Kindle eBook.
2. Publish to APK including video and audio.
3. Publish to Interactive PDF with video and audio.

FINALLY: IS THE FIRE OUT?
Above: The Google Nexus Player as realized by ASUS. I have to get one! 

I am referring to the Amazon tablets... It appears as though the fire has gone out of the Amazon tablet range. Do you have an Amazon tablet? Is it something you find appealing? I think that the Amazon tablet has lost its fizzle due to a number factor:-

1. Using a forked version of Android is not appealing – at least to me. I feel that Amazon would have been better off embracing Android from the start. As a result I think people are somewhat confused, “What kind of tablet is that?” “Is it Android?” Creating a device to act as a gateway to an online store is not a great idea. It’s pretty much like the cage that Apple has built for iTunes and the App Store. Why close an open ecosystem?

2. The advent of a growth in the smart TV streaming market! Why spend roughly £90 on a tablet to stream media to your TV when you can pay considerably less for something like Google Chromecast, Nexus Player, Roku, Now TV and, of course, Amazon’s own Fire TV stick!?

These smart TV devices could be having an impact on the Android tablet market too – especially as it is viewed by many as an entertainment device. Whenever I see people with a tablet on the street they are usually consuming media such as a video or busy mother’s will give under 11 year olds an Android tablet to keep them occupied.

Again, I have to say it; Samsung is the only manufacturer I can think of that is pushing the use of the tablet beyond an entertainment device. And considering that one of Google’s fortes is advertising I don’t think they are doing a good job in convincing the masses that having an Android tablet is vital. And come to think of it I am not seeing a great amount of advertising on tablets beyond Microsoft’s Surface! I have understood that the Nexus 9 hasn’t been a great success for Google and I reckon it’s because of the size; going from 7” to 9” is a pretty big jump for those who, like me, prefer the small form. Apparently, Google has no plans to release another tablet this year... Gosh! Maybe that is a good thing... Perhaps Google will concentrate on tablet app development and a thoughtful marketing campaign.

As a consumer all I can do is sit and wait for a tablet that’s right for me! What’s your ideal tablet?

Thank you so much for reading Synapse Circuit!

Expect more reviews, news, opinions, competitions and more from Synapse Circuit! 

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT EXPLAINS THE DECLINE IN TABLETS

The rare sighting of an iPad in the wild as it were.
It's an iPad mini by the looks of it. 

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
EXPLAINS THE DECLINE IN TABLETS
ANDROID iOS WINDOWS

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! It’s so wonderful to see you as always! I hope that all is well with you! I also hope that you are taking on some tech projects and challenging yourselves! Don’t worry... ...the iClone 6 Pro review is coming very soon... Oooh, yeah!

You may or may not have heard or read that tablet sales are sliding across the board iOS, Android and Windows. Here’s an insight into why this is happening...

#Tablets #AndroidTablets #iPad #iPadMini #WindowsRT #WindowsSurface

iPAD

Above: The state of the iPad... Filling up CEX shops with no buyers.

The iPad is no doubt a wonderfully crafted tablet and therefore it is really outstanding in the field of tablets. Not only is the iPad and mini great to the look and touch the applications are to be reckoned with! Let’s recap as to why the iPad and mini sales are on the decline:-

1. Too expensive; if the iPad was an expenditure that would last at least 3 to 5 years it wouldn’t be so bad but it is renewed every year and twice in 2013 if I am not mistaken. So, Apple users are better off with a Macbook Air.

2. The Lightning connection to my mind came as another nail in the iPad coffin. Overnight many iPad peripherals were made obsolete. Charming!

3. The advent of the iPad mini meant that the standard 10” model was compromised somewhat.

4. Finally, the iPhone 6 Plus rendered the both iPad models dead in the water!


Above: Another computer exchange store in Central London unable to shift second hand iPads.

Still, if I were an Apple user I would want to pick up an iPad second hand! But even in second hand / computer exchange stores the iPad is still priced uncompetitive. Maybe – just maybe the cost of the second hand iPad will come down greatly when the computer exchange shops can’t shift them.

WINDOWS RT / SURFACE
Yes, Microsoft botched up the first wave of Windows tablets with the Titanic-like Windows RT operating system that hit a few icebergs... However, Microsoft did pick up the slack and came back with the Surface! The Surface is truly outstanding and very desirable since it uses the full Windows operating system which means no silly apps but fully functioning software! I want one! Yeah, I know... Who would have thought that I would find myself taking a fancy to the Surface, eh? But here’s a recap as to why Windows tablets are tanking:-

1. Yes, the price is the main killer! As a result many Windows folk would prefer to invest the money into a decent desk or lap top!

2. As mentioned in the first point; the Windows laptop is very compelling as you get a decent processor for the money.

3. The Windows desktop PC is very persuasive still as one can swap out the graphics card or add cards such as a professional soundcard for music making for example. I would rather invest the cost of the Surface into a full on desktop PC for graphic design, video editing and music making!

ANDROID
The Android tablet was supposed to be the saviour of the tablet phenomenon. What happened to the promise? Google and Android OEMs did their best to undercut Apple and Windows but at what cost?

1. Google seemed to let manufacturers run wild with the tablet; there were no standards as one could pick up a £50 Android tablet made by an unheard of manufacturer from China.

I think too many consumers thought, as with the budget handset, that these cheap Android tablets were on par with the iPad. Windows RT wasn’t an issue as it was the wrong product and wrongly priced. And, again, like the budget Android handset of yesteryear (you don’t see much of them these days), the Android tablet can be made obsolete with app updates. Once the usual app suspects get updated (Facebook, G Plus, WhatsApp, etc) the underpowered cheap or otherwise Android tablet may not be able to cope with the demands on the processor.

2. Unrealistic... It appears as though Google and manufacturers did not invest a lot of forethought into the Android tablet. By this I mean that Google didn’t, as far as I know, invest into a chip processing plant and design powerful CPUs that could have been mass produced and therefore bring the costs down. If you look at what Samsung has done with creating its own Exynos SoC for Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge it goes to show how important it is to mass produce powerful chips and place them in worthwhile products... It goes back to standardization. Google seemed to rely on the hardware of manufacturers. Although Google gives its manufacturers a chance to shine I reckon they should have worked more closely with Samsung to produce powerful cost effective tablets that had a bit of longevity in them. Asus had some pretty interesting tablets on the market but were priced too high...

3. The apps weren’t there. The iPad was streets ahead and when the Android tablet threw down the gauntlet to Apple it was clear that it wasn’t really ready. The hardware was not up to par and, again, the apps were nothing to write home about. 

4. As an amalgamation of all the points above today’s Android tablet is still quite iffy in build – as much as I appreciate plastic builds I don’t think that the Android tablet should pop so to speak when handling it. Yes, the Android tablet body can be very flimsy compared to the iPad. Some Android tablets are like DVD covers in that it can yield to the touch. Not good!

“Intel inside...” Once upon a time the Intel chip meant and still means something in the PC world but when it comes to the Android tablet (and phone) I have yet to be convinced! Whenever I see “Intel inside” I cringe. Last year I got the Asus Fonepad 7 LTE to replace a defunct Motorola RAZRi (also with an Intel CPU inside) and today I may as well use the hybrid tablet and phone as a rather expensive coaster for my coffee table. The Asus Fonepad 7 LTE struggles with Facebook, Messenger and just about every worthwhile application... It is crap! I am now planning to replace the device that is crap as a phone and even worse as a tablet! I don’t know what Asus was thinking with the Fonepad 7 LTE but it doesn’t live up to the promotional material. I can reel off a bunch of other complaints against the Fonepad 7 LTE but I shan’t bother...

So, from my experience with the Fonepad 7 LTE I can say that my expectations may have been unrealistic as a consumer... OK, I fell for the promotional blurb but I should have known better as someone who tests hardware and software. If I want a decent tablet I have to pay for it and as much as Google might want to undercut the competition the fact is that a powerful Android tablet will cost handsomely!

The future of Android tablets lies in better everything: internal hardware, build quality and applications. I can see that Samsung are up for taking on the iPad with the Galaxy Tab S models and HTC did put out the 64-bit Nexus 9. The 64-bit CPU should revolutionize the Android tablet as it has the handset. I would like to see Android manufacturers move away from these underpowered novelty tablets once and for all this year because good products are a calling card.

I am looking to get a serious tablet this year and it is going to last a lot longer than 6 months!

UPRISING
The Android tablet could rise as could the Windows Surface. With Android it is just a matter of getting the power and quality right! Motorola has shown what can be possible with budget handsets, Moto E and G, and although there are no known plans for Motorola to do the same for the tablet there has got to be a few manufacturers that will do it for the tablet. I am quite sure that it’ll be Samsung that will release a serious 64-bit tablet this year but what other manufacturer or manufacturers will produce a serious pro Android tablet? HTC? LG? Asus? Could the Chinese manufacturers such as Huawei and Lenovo take the market by surprise?

And with Windows it’s getting the price down a fair bit and it is getting there!

There’s life in the tablet yet! We’ll just have to see how the rest of the year plays out! The forthcoming Google i / O in 7 days could reveal the powerhouse tablet we’ve been waiting for along with a better version of Android that is leaner, faster and easier on the battery consumption. Lollipop is by far the best and most ambitious version (as it should be) but I feel that it could be a lot better still! I feel for the Android developers as they’ve got their work cut out for them! But the fact that 5 of my Android handsets have Lollipop shows me that Google is on the ball – albeit a tad behind with what was set out at last year’s i / O! I can see that there is scope!

As for the Android tablet apps I can see that the quality it getting better all the time. According to the news Google Play Store has surpassed the Apple App Store for profits going to developers and this will certainly mean that iOS developers will release keep releasing more Android versions that will almost certainly see an increase of Android tablet sales. Many of us Androids have been waiting for the 64-bit chip before making a serious tablet purchase and now that it is here we’ll see...

Thank you so much for reading Synapse Circuit!

Expect more reviews, news, opinions, competitions and more from Synapse Circuit!

Please check out the Synapse Circuit site here: Synapse Circuit.com

TABLETS IN THE WILD iPAD SYNAPSE CIRCUIT

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
TABLETS IN THE WILD

Goodhour, Synapse Circuit Readers! It's great to see you as always! I'm sat here with my Mom drinking wine and eating her chocolates! Hee, hee... Happy Mothering Sunday! Mother's Day is everyday!

Have you got a tablet? If so, is it an iPad? Samsung Galaxy Tab? NVIDIA Shield? ASUS MeMo Pad? 

#Tablets #AndroidTablets #iPad 

A RARE SIGHT
As you know I've been paying attention to what's happening on the streets with regards to the use of tablets on the streets of London, UK.

Yesterday, 14 March, I witnessed a very rare sight - the iPad in the wild! For every iPad I see there must be about 10 Android tablets - the majority being a Samsung Galaxy Tab of some description.

Many Apple fans were expecting an announcement of an iPad 'Pro' along with news of the Apple Watch and typically Cook skipped the iPad altogether. Just like the 5C turned out to be a lead balloon the iPad has gone the same way. With the advent of the iPhone 6 Plus the iPad has become obsolete.

Somehow, Tim Cook has to reinvent the iPad and and convince the consumer why it's desirable. Lately Apple products are proving to be undesirable and thus irrelevant in a world where technology is becoming inexpensive and more powerful. 

Apple bets on its brand as the technology is very much an afterthought. In the eyes of the impartial tech spectator Apple looks very unfocused. Would Jobs have allowed the products from such a cloudy vision to materialize?

Thank you for reading Synapse Circuit.

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT A TABLET OR TWO FOR CHRISTMAS

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
A TABLET OR TWO FOR CHRISTMAS...

Good evening, Synapse Circuit Readers. How’s it going? Are you all set for Christmas? Are you still in a fluster as to what to get for tech-presents? OK! Calm down... Synapse Circuit is here!

Are you confused about which tablet to get? I don’t blame you! There are so many on the market at the moment and they are mainly Android! Let me take you through the paces!

#Tablet #Android #iPad #Samsung #Google #Nexus #ASUS #Archos #Acer #Lenovo #Tesco

JARGON
By knowing the jargon you will get to know what to look for in a tablet! Okay, let’s get started!

As you know, tablets come in different sizes – especially these days! Once upon a time the Android tablet championed the 7” screen and has now entered 8” and beyond territory! So, one of the first things to look for is resolution!

RESOLUTION & PPI
These days a good 7 to 8 inch tablet features a screen resolution of 1280 x 800 which is not quite HD (high definition); a true HD screen is 1920 x 1080 and a tablet featuring a true HD screen is going to be more expensive than the average Android tablet (we will get to the iPad in a bit). The 8” Hudl 2 tablet from Tesco features a HD screen of 1920 x 1200 (which is slightly higher than the standard 1920 x 1080)! Still sticking with the screen the next aspect to look out for is pixels per inch = ppi! Basically, the higher the number the better the screen - the harder it is to see the dots (pixels) that make up the images. To keep costs down manufacturers tend to deliver just enough to get by i.e. 1024 x 600, 131.96 ppi to deliver a tablet under £100!

So, expect to get what you pay for – depending on what the tablet is intended for i.e. games, Internet / media, productivity and social networking and so on.

CPU
The central processing unit is a very important aspect – especially if the tablet is intended to consume multimedia (video) and games! Today’s CPU is either dual or quad-core; you will find that there are a lot of cheap Android tablets on the market feature a dual-core CPU. Naturally, it is desirable to have a fast quad-core CPU – especially if the intention is to play intensive games! Android tablets have just gone into 64-bit and it is not yet clear as to what 64-bit CPUs bring to the table. That said, the ideal is a 64-bit quad-core CPU with a decent speed i.e. 1.33 GHz and above! Again, the better the CPU the higher the cost will be. And you will find that there are key CPU manufacturers that determine the power and cost. The most serious tablets feature the Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU! Then Intel has become a staple on inexpensive tablets such as the aforementioned Hudl 2 (Tesco).

Ideally you want a tablet with a quad-core CPU.

RAM
Having a good amount of RAM ensures a good all-round performance from the operating system running smoothly to applications and demanding games! The more RAM the better!

STORAGE
The more storage you have on the tablet the more apps and media you can store on them. Some tablets are so cheap that when you look at the storage option you can see why! There are some tablets out there offering a pitiful 4GB of storage! I’d recommend a minimum of 16GB! And many tablets allows for a microSD slot to expand the storage! Note that some tablets allows for up to 32GB of microSD card storage.

WI-FI
All tablets allow you to connect to the Internet by the way of Wi-Fi; if you have broadband at home you can use the tablet to surf the web, make video calls and interact with social media.

3G / 4G
Many tablets offer a built in 3G or 4G connectivity so that it is possible to make and receive calls or connect to the Internet. However, don’t be fooled into thinking that you can use your mobile SIM to make calls and be connected to the Internet simultaneously; no! You either have a mobile or data SIM. It’s a bit of a pain but never mind!

Now you know – if you didn’t before – all the essential components that make up a good tablet!

Right! Let’s launch into what’s on the marketplace!

iPAD
The iPad tablets are some of the best tablets on the market but they are expensive and locked into the Apple ecosystem; it may be overkill if you own a MAC computer! Certainly with the advent of the iPhone 6 Plus the iPad is pretty much dead. A MAC computer owner would have worked out that he or she is better off with a Macbook Air for portability and powerful performance to compliment the iPhone.

The iPad may come into its own if you do not have a computer at home or you want to replace an old PC / MAC that has seen better days! What is happening in many of today’s homes is that they are replacing the desktop computer of yesteryear with a tablet of some sort be it an iPad or an Android. The iPad mini can represent good value and may even be a prospect for the Apple fanatic that wants to buy into iOS and OS X ecosystems.

Let’s look at the Android platform...

ANDROID
You will find that the Android tablet is cost effective enough to serve both PC and MAC platforms in that many of the productivity applications can output to the respective computing formats i.e. Microsoft Office (Word, Excel and PowerPoint), MIDI (musical instrument digital interface) is compatible with the MAC and PC so one is able to use many of the outstanding music composition apps. Yes, the Android tablet can act as a sort of notepad / sketchpad for the main computer as there are many folks out there that still use a desktop for serious productivity.

Fortunately, the Android tablet comes in at a lower price point than the iPad is able to. It is possible to get a decent enough tablet for under £100 these days. However, if you didn’t know about the key components as mentioned above (screen resolution, CPU and RAM) you could have purchased a cheap tablet for let’s say, £40, thinking that you have got a decent all-purpose tablet. You should know better now!

With Android tablets it is about the intended use... What do you or the intended want to do with the tablet? If gaming is the desire then there is no way that you can expect to pick up an Android tablet for under £100! Check out the Archos GamePad 2 for £140 if you are looking for a cost effective gaming tablet for little gamer in the family! He or she’ll be happy with quite a powerful yet portable games platform. Here’s the review: Archos GamePad 2

It could be that you want a tablet as some sort of accessory without breaking the bank then it could be that the use is to consume media, make use of productivity apps that are only available on the tablet and to keep up with the social networking. There are so many choices here! The Tesco Hudl 2 is a very good choice for £129! You can read the review here: Tesco Hudl 2

But if the Hudl 2 doesn’t excite you for some reason I would say take a look at the ASUS tablets:-

MeMO Pad 8" (£130)
Android 4.4 (KitKat)
189 pixels per inch
Intel® Atom™ Processor Z3745
microSD card slot

MeMO Pad 7" (£99.99)
Android 4.4 (KitKat)
215 pixels per inch
Intel® Atom™ Processor Z3745

microSD card slot

ASUS MeMO Pad 7 ME176CX (£120)
Android 4.4
Display 7" 1280x800
Intel®  64-bit Atom™ Z3745 Quad-Core, 1.86 GHz
Memory 1GB
Storage 16GB

That’s pretty good spec!

Now if you want a decent combination of tablet and phone there is the Fonepad 7 4G LTE

Fonepad 7 ME372CL (£199)
4G LTE
Display 7" 1280x800
2X2:Intel® Atom™ Multi-Core Z2560 Processor 1.6 GHz with Intel Hyper-Threading Technology
Dual front speakers
16 GB of internal storage
1.2 MP front-facing camera and 5MP rear camera

Check the review here: Fonepad 7 4G LTE

If you want something on par with the iPad then I won’t hesitate to recommend the Samsung products:

Samsung Galaxy Tab S 10.5" (£379.00)
Android 4.4 (KitKat)
Super-AMOLED 10" 2500 x 1600 282.7 pixels per inch
Samsung Exynos 5 Processor (1.9 GHz + 1.3 GHz, octa-core)
RAM 3GB
Storage 16GB

Samsung Galaxy Tab S 8.4" (£319.99)
Super AMOLED 1600 x 2560 pixels, 8.4 inches (359 ppi pixel density)
3 GB RAM
Internal storage 16 / 32 GB
Card slot microSD, up to 128 GB

Then there is the Google Nexus 9
Android 5.0 (Lollipop)
CPU NVIDIA Tegra K1 (2.3 GHz, dual-core)
RAM 2GB
Storage 32GB
Screen size 8.9" 2048 x 1536, 288 ppi
Front-facing BoomSound speakers
Main camera 8 MP camera
Front-facing camera 1.6 MP

The Google Nexus 9 is manufactured by HTC and it is a pretty good tablet. I would have preferred that either ASUS or Samsung have done the Nexus 9 because of their respective proven track record in creating some of the best tablets on the market today! If you want to experience the latest Android 5, Lollipop operating system then this is the tablet for you!

ANDROID: IN-BETWEEN
There are loads more tablets that I didn’t get to review this year simply because there wasn’t enough time plus there are many of these tablets that were released a couple of years ago at least! There are tablets from:-

Acer
Archos
LG
Lenovo

I would give these manufacturers some serious consideration as you now know – if you didn’t before – what to look for! The manufacturers above are more than capable of delivering decent Android tablets. I hope that in 2015 I will get to bring you more reviews of a wider range of products. Going back the present... You will find that there are great tablets on the market from Samsung in particular as they do not seem to stop producing! The Galaxy Tab series is definitely worth a look!

AVOID
I would advise you to leave those unknown cheap brands alone! A lot of these tablets cut corners in build and components. When you take a closer look at such tablets you will see that they aren’t worth the bother!

If you are going to buy online then I would advise you to stick with well known brands as they will have a repairs department should anything go wrong. Even if you spent as little as £30 on a tablet and it stopped working after a couple of months that is still £30 wasted! So, don’t do it!

EXCLUSIONS
I have purposely left out Amazon Kindle Fire, Microsoft Surface and other Windows based tablets. Why? I am glad you asked!

The Amazon Kindle Fire tablets, to me, are really a means to buy into the Amazon shop; it uses Android in the background and such an experience does not appeal to me. The Microsoft Surface is so cost prohibitive that you are better off with a laptop! And the Windows based tablets aren’t rich with apps. I feel the Windows tablet platform isn’t quite ready yet. But if you just happen to own a Windows handset you might want to compliment that handset with a Windows tablet.

HAPPY TABLET SHOPPING THIS CHRISTMAS!

THANKS FOR READING...
Please check out the Synapse Circuit site here: Synapse Circuit.com

Yes, I am well aware that the site is due an update soon! It’s coming...

Synapse Circuit for tech news, opinions, articles, reviews and competitions. You will find interactive PDF magazines, videos and links to free legal software! Check it out at Synapse Circuit dot com

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT APPLE TALK

 SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
APPLE TALK
Good evening, Synapse Circuit Readers. How are you? I hope that all is well with you! It seems as though summer is coming to an end here in the UK... It’s cloudy and heavy rain is expected here in London while it rains elsewhere in the UK!

Here are some observations that I have made with Apple...

#Apple #Samsung #Google #SteveJobs #TimCook #iPhone6 #iPhone6Phablet #GalaxyNote4 #GalaxyAlpha

APPLE TO RESURGE?
The tech-media have it in mind that Apple is set to make a massive comeback and that Google should be frightened. Is this the Apple bias that we discussed last night? But according to Apple notably Tim Cook, “...the iPhone and iOS operating system are the best selling in the world...” So, how can Apple resurge if they are out ahead against the competition?

Yes, the tech-media say that Apple have mass produced 150 million iPhone units and is set to make a massive deal regarding the launch of the iPhone 6! Now this I have gotta see! Personally, I do not believe this... I don’t believe that Apple have mass produced 150 million iPhone units as I have stated in another article. They may as well have a trillion iPhone 6 devices ready to unleash upon the world!

SMOKE ‘N’ MIRRORS
In previous articles I exposed how the iPhone 5 and 5S bombed; yes sales were respectable but Apple wasn’t expecting respectable results. Apple was expecting a landslide of iPhone sales and it didn’t happen. Apple, Cook and co has a habit of exaggerating everything from the operating system being the best in the world to “record sales”. Then further on down the line the true figures are revealed and down goes the share value of Apple Corp.

Sometimes it is hard to tell if Tim Cook is fooling himself (and Apple) or the public with such boasting that has no basis in reality. Yes, I understand about PR and how it is important to present a positive outlook to inspire the public and that this could in turn increase sales but the stark reality is that Apple has fallen behind mobile device innovation since the iPhone 3. Some could argue that the closed nature of the iOS operating system meant that it was behind from the get go! It is certainly an interesting point... The harsh reality is that there are so many handsets out there that have beaten the current iPhone many times over! The most dangerous threat to Apple is the Chinese manufacturers that have produced high-end handsets at a mid-range price!

THE WIZARD OF ODD
That’s right! I am talking about the late Steve Jobs! What’s Apple’s worst enemy – if you want to put it in such terms – that has damaged the image of Apple (beyond repair perhaps)? Google? Google’s Android has certainly permeated the world and has markets yet to explore. Samsung? Samsung has gone from strength to strength with handsets and tablets to the point where it covers all the market points: premium – not just one handset but two, Galaxy S and Note. But no, it is not Google or Samsung. Apple’s worst enemy is the spectre of former CEO Steve Jobs. By all the accounts that I have read about the man he comes across as a megalomaniac and that divide between the showman and the mask slipping has created a schism within Apple whereby current CEO Tim Cook feels or felt that he has had to carry on with the ‘us against them’ campaign towards the competition. All these mad utterances about going “Thermonuclear” etc against Google Android have done Apple no good at all.

Apple can talk the talk but is just not able to walk it – at least up until now! Lately, it seems as though Tim Cook is making steps to burn that crazy mask of megalomania and drop the Patent Wars with Samsung outside the USA. Cook is also said to be in talks with Google to re-evaluate the patent system. These are very good signs indeed that Apple is, at last, ready to move forward. This is what I call exorcising the ghost of Jobs! May the man rest in peace... Amen. Cook has been straight jacketed with regards to moving Apple and its mobile devices forward...

PO-FACED


What you know about design is what I tell you is design...
Originally the iPhone was designed around your thumb and now it’s designed on Android screens.

Every time I see the documentary style videos featuring Jony Ives yammering about the importance of “design” I almost wet myself with laughter because the iPhone hasn’t undergone any real design in appearance. That Ives can sit there in all seriousness and go on about the virtues of Apple’s design principals without cracking a smile is beyond me. I think the iPhone is the worst design of all the handsets on the planet combined. The iPhone is awful! I don’t mean to offend the diehard Apple fan but you have to acknowledge that the Samsung Galaxy S5, Notes 2 & 3 looks better as does the LG G3 and HTC One M8 for starters! As mentioned before the Chinese manufacturers are creating beautiful looking handsets of a very high standard such as Oppo, OnePlus, Huawei and Xiaomi to name a few! Oh, let’s not forget Lenovo that has recently acquired Motorola! The Chinese are hungry and the aforementioned manufacturers are earning their way to top positions – each one of them are seeking Samsung’s crown at the very top!

From what I have seen of the iPhone 6 leaks it does not look like a major design departure just a little bigger! It seems to me that tech-media with a leaning towards Apple are more in love the designs of concept artists versions of what could be the iPhone 6! It would be good – great even – if Apple surprised its loyal fanbase with a revolutionary design for the sixth incarnation of the iPhone and the phablet 5.5” version – even though the notion of any handset below 6 inches can no longer be considered as a “phablet”. The phablet has evolved to be between 6 and 7 inches due to new designs that includes a thinner bezel.

Apple just has to look at what Samsung has done by the way of design with its flagship Galaxy S4 and S5 to understand that a “back to basics standard” approach does not yield in great sales due to the fact that design is very much what the consumer sees as part of the innovation. Consumers want the future yesterday! Design is the key to any mobile device manufacturer! Apple will do well to revisit its design ethos! What Apple should do is to continue to build bridges with Google, Samsung, Microsoft, etc and get back to competing with actual innovation instead of all the pointless litigations that tells the consumer that the competition must be better than Apple because they aren’t doing anything innovative and throwing a tantrum will not change that fact.

iPAD
Recently it has been acknowledged that the iPad has lost the grip it once had on the tablet market and it is not surprising as such a premium tablet does not have much of a lifespan. The addition of the 7.9” iPad mini – against the wishes of Jobs – has effectively cannibalised the 10” iPad. The price of “premium” standards has put the iPad and mini variations out of the reach of most people. You only have to look on the streets to see that the iPad and tablets in general haven’t yet taken off like the handsets. It looks to me that Apple has conceded that it is unable to compete with the vast array of Android tablets and it appears as though they will use the iPad in a different way (as mentioned in another article): a personal or business digital assistant. But does it have to be this way? Why can’t Apple use plastic like Android for future iPads that ought to reduce the costs somewhat? Why does an LTE version have to be so expensive? Apple - like with the onetime immovable ideal iPhone size – has boxed itself into a corner because it prides itself on using premium costly materials that do not stand up to the shocks of everyday use; it is too precious to take out in wild of the streets. So, what’s the point? In any event I see the iPad used by businessmen / women and students mostly. This is a very different thing compared to Android tablets whereby I’ve seen the average person – for want of a better expression – using tablets from Samsung, Google and Asus as they would a smartphone.

It is said that the market for tablets is waning but I do not think so. From where I am standing it looks as though many people are waiting for new products to be released – especially first time tablet buyers like me. I know that there are many people waiting for the new Nexus tablet or tablets. I know that some people are considering waiting for Android tablets with a built in mobile broadband connection. The sales of tablets seem to pick up towards the end of the year as that’s when folk make seasonal purchases i.e. going back to school in September and Christmas. I would be curious to see the sales figures for tablets for the Fall! I am sure that there will be a sharp increase of tablet sales. ~

Second hand iPad devices make a lot of sense of Apple fanatics but even then they are still quite expensive. I am curious to see what will happen to the iPad once the much rumoured 5.5” version of the iPhone 6 is released; this anticipation is why the iPad sales have stalled. I know for a fact that some impatient iPhone and would be iPad users have defected to the Samsung Galaxy Note as it offers the advantages of a big screen, mobile connectivity and pretty much a good set of applications for business. I do think that the quality of the apps for the iPhone has been a little overplayed because when you think about business use, for example, you just want a good set of equivalents to the Microsoft Office components: Word, PowerPoint and so on. Android is more than capable as a tool for business. Sure, it may be lacking more of the creative applications but that situation seems to be changing all the time as developers release tablet oriented apps. Through reviewing a few tablets of late I came to understand that there is a whole other world of applications that exist just for the tablet. No, not even for the phablet but the tablet! I wasn’t totally convinced before but now I want a tablet!

For Apple fanatics it would be ideal for the Macbook to lose the keyboard and become a tablet! How expensive would that be? But therein lays the problem for both Microsoft and Apple: the laptop is small enough so that the tablet seems surplus to requirements. The Surface tablet is ridiculously expensive compared to that of a decent and powerful PC laptop and the iPad seems like overkill if you already own a Macbook.

TABLETS:
THE ANDROID ATTRACTION
What makes the Android tablet more of an attractive proposition to both PC and MAC users is that the Android tablet is cost effective and compact. When I had a state of the art laptop costing just under £2k (yeah, I know) I hated to take it on the road with me. I worried about theft, forgetting and dropping it. It only takes a few seconds for a thief to snatch a laptop in a public place; you think its resting in a chair in a cafe but while you’re chatting away the person walking by has picked it up as though it is his or hers and the customers do not even notice. The Android tablet can be used more like a sketchpad to complete projects on the PC or MAC but the quality of the apps are so good that one can complete a number of creative and business projects. As everything is going digital one does not have to think in terms of physical printing anymore. There are a few decent eBook apps for Android for the creation and publishing of eBooks. While this is also true of the iPad the drawback is the cost and cost may be less of an issue if the iPad is used as the sole computer.

However, there is a growing trend for Android tablets to feature an inbuilt mobile broadband 3G and 4G for far less than an iPad plus a vast majority of such tablets feature memory expansion through the microSD card! The Android tablet user appears to have it all: mobile broadband on the go, the possibility to make and receive voice / video calls, storage to microSD and cloud! All the above costs considerably less than the iPad and mini variants! Wow!

That’s something to think about!

THANKS FOR READING...
Please check out the Synapse Circuit site here: Synapse Circuit.com

Yes, I am well aware that the site is due an update soon! It’s coming...

Synapse Circuit for tech news, opinions, articles, reviews and competitions. You will find interactive PDF magazines, videos and links to free legal software! Check it out at SynapseCircuit dot com

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT APPLE’S PSYCH WAR

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
APPLE’S PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
Good evening, Synapse Circuit Readers. I hope that the weather is treating you well! It is so hot even after a torrent of rain that I sit sweating in front of the computer!

If the two tech God’s aren’t battling in court over patents they are certainly engaging in a psychological battle... Here is the latest...

#Apple #iPhone #iPad #Samsung #GalaxyS5 #GalaxyPrime

PROFITS?
In the past I’ve exposed how Apple’s PR puts a spin on their sales only for a more realistic figure to surface further on down the line. I saw this with the iPhone 5; the reaction from the public (as far as London goes) was not positive contrary to Apple’s smoke ‘n’ mirrors PR machine. I have revealed that smartphone retail outlets in London say that Samsung Galaxy S2, S3 and S4 are the preferred choice over the iPhone 5, 5S and 5C and not forgetting the HTC One M7! Here’s an article I wrote earlier: Is the iPhone finished?

This year I have seen that the Galaxy S5 is dominant over the iPhone 5S / 5C on the streets by a large majority. We know this is because of the larger screens that Samsung, LG, HTC and other manufacturers have to offer. This is why Apple is backtracking on the iPhone’s thumb policy / ethos and will bring out an iPhone 6 with two different screen sizes: 4.7” and 5.5”.

I read a newspaper on Wednesday, 23, July, that states that Apple sold 35.2 million iPhones in the 3 months to June and sales are up by 13%! Now I find that very hard to believe due to the fact that the article (if you can call it that) does not specify if this is the 5S, 5C or a combination of both. I just don’t buy it – pun intended!

GET READY FOR THE LAUNCH
This exaggeration of iPhone sales figures is, I suspect, to gear people up for what promises to be the biggest ever iPhone launch in history! It is rumoured that 80 million iPhone 6 units will be manufactured for the launch in September! WOW!!! But I seriously doubt that. I reckon that half that figure will be manufactured. Oh, it is a little odd that there’s no mention of an iPhone 6 C in the pipeline. Hmmmm... So, how many iPhone 6 5.5” units will be manufactured?

The reality is that Apple has been losing money since the advent of the Thunderbolt connector; this pissed a lot of Apple fans off as it meant that their peripherals were not compatible and they would have to shell out for adaptors. So, all this PR about Apple’s record profits even though the demand for the iPad has gone down is just to get the public geared up for iPhone fever in a bid to recreate the glory days of old whereby fans would line up overnight to be amongst the first to lay hands on the device that came from the iClouds!

The fall in Apple’s mobile devices is attributed to them being so good that people do not see the need to upgrade. Hmmmm... But if iPhone and iPad customers are so satisfied with their products that they do not feel the need to upgrade then how has Apple achieved its record sales? iTunes????

CANNIBALISM
Not wishing to blow my own trumpet – yet again – but I could see how that Apple have trapped themselves with being verbally derisory towards the competition and then stealing their ideas and by the release of “new” devices that are essentially bigger or smaller products of the original. The iPad mini has cannibalized the iPad and I reckon that the iPhone 5C may have eaten greatly into the 5S sales. But we know that Apple are pretty exceptional at putting on more than a brave face on things however on closer inspection you can see that things haven’t been adding up for Apple.

There is a reason why iPhone fans couldn’t enjoy the larger screens that Android and even Windows users are enjoying and it is because a larger iPhone screen will cannibalise the iPad mini! But such is the demand by iPhone users for a bigger screen that they have had to cave in but not before collaborating with IBM to make use of the surplus iPad units to be adopted for use in business – presumably for use as a PDA (personal digital assistant) or make that BDA (business digital assistant).

SAMSUNG
Yes, Apple’s smoke ‘n’ mirrors is really aimed at Samsung; the aim is to make it look like no matter what Samsung achieves that they will never beat Apple when the exact opposite is true. Samsung by the way has reported a loss of profits and I will write about that in another article.

Even talk show host and comedian Conan O’Brien had to poke a bit of fun at Apple’s imminent iPhone 6! Check it out here: Conan O’Brien

There is a lot of truth in that joke and I can imagine that Apple is fuming! Ha ha ha! But you can’t take anything from Samsung as they’ve given the world the Galaxy Note – amongst other great devices - and that’s what this rumoured iPhone 6 5.5” is aimed at! It will be interesting to see how the two devices will square up: iPhone 6 5.5” vs. Galaxy Note 4. The Galaxy Note 4 rumour mill is ramping up and it is predicted that Samsung will have an Unpacked event in the first week of September; probably the 4^th as it is the fourth Note.

Another reason why I am not convinced about Apple’s profit gain is that the article mentioned the operating system as being the best and that’s why iOS devices have such a strong customer loyalty. We know that Android surpasses iOS in use; iOS 8 has borrowed so much from Android and, like I have stated before, it is all good! iPhone and iPad users ought to enjoy what Android has had for years.

Anyhoo! With iPhone and iPad users not upgrading as they are satisfied with current models and consumers turning to Samsung, LG and HTC the question has to be asked again: How is Apple able to report such profits?

THANKS FOR READING...
Please check out the Synapse Circuit site here: Synapse Circuit.com

Yes, I am well aware that the site is due an update soon! It’s coming...

Synapse Circuit for tech news, opinions, articles, reviews and competitions. You will find interactive PDF magazines, videos and links to free legal software! Check it out at Synapse Circuit dot com

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT TABLET TALK

Above: NVIDIA Shield gaming tablet.

SYNAPSE CIRCUIT
TABLET TALK
Good evening, Synapse Circuit Readers. I hope you have had a good day and if your day is still unravelling there is still time!

What’s happening in the tablet world? Let’s have a look....

#Tablet #NVIDIASHIELD #iPad #GalaxyTabS
iPAD
Though iPad sales have fallen two quarters in a row, Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook said on Tuesday he isn't concerned, and teased that his company is working on new innovations that, along with the newly announced IBM partnership, could help reinvigorate growth.

How is it that iPad sales have been declining while Android tablets continue to grow? Okay, I will answer that question...

Apple is blessed with the OS X operating system and such wonderful toys as the Macbook Air and therefore Apple fans have worked out that they are better off with a serious computing device that has a considerable amount of longevity to it than to feel obligated into purchasing a new iPad every year or so! Apple would be better off squeezing a Macbook Air into the body of an iPad – BookPad Air! Yes? Why not? An iPad is more of a luxury these days! Besides, when Apple releases the much rumoured 5.5” inch version of the iPhone it will be bye-bye iPad!

ANDROID
Android doesn’t have the burden of a computer system – yet – and therefore it is easier for Google and associated manufacturers to create a tablet for just about any niche market: Pro; children; games; entertainment and so on. Manufacturers are able to develop tablets at considerable price point and yesteryear’s tablet going very cheaply at the moment! One can pick up a Samsung Galaxy Tab 3 7” for £140 and possibly cheaper! True, the Galaxy Tab 3 7” is Wi-Fi only but it is not a big deal to share your smartphone’s data connection whilst on the move. But at home it is just fine for browsing, entertainment, social networking and so on! The children ought to be satisfied playing on it and thus frees up your smartphone and / or PC / laptop! It would have been something if Samsung had put in a 3G compatible chip in it!

7” is the new phablet size!

It seems like years away when I picked up the Dell Streak and thought it was ginormous! Then when the Galaxy Note made its appearance and upon reviewing it I felt that I had to have one! Fast forward to the first Nexus 7; when I picked it up it was so remarkably comfortable to hold in one hand! Gosh! So, when those 6” phablets came out they seemed – at least to me – like the standard smartphone. My Galaxy S2 really feels like the dainty iPhone these days compared to my Galaxy Note II! I love the fact that I can easily fit the Note II in a trouser or jacket pocket! I am so used to watching video content and surfing the web on a big screen! It is delightful! I can no longer see myself ever going back to a screen smaller than 5”! I have a couple contracts to be renewed next year and I do not think I will be getting a handset but whopping phablets instead! One of my Motorola RAZRi has gone caput already! Never again!

CONNECTED
In one of my articles I asked manufacturers to just add 3 or 4G and have done with it! It is so inexpensive to add network capability to a tablet and I feel that Apple exploits this for far too much money – no wonder iPad sales are in decline! People want to feel liberated! Not everyone can share the data connection of their mobiles; some networks do not allow it unless the consumer takes out a rental phone for over £38! Many network providers in the UK want to exploit yet another SIM for rental to hold the consumer in yet another cage! Set them free! In the age of financial uncertainty give the consumer something to be happy about! Okay, okay... I am off the soapbox now! Ha ha!

It is good to see that there are a number of tablets with a built-in data connection. And it is foolish to read tech journalists feeling self-conscious to make / receive a call on such a tablet! It is ridiculous! I don’t care who is watching me take a call on a tablet / new phablet! It was not so long ago that these journalists were saying that they felt self-conscious using the Galaxy Note to make and accept calls; I bet they feel stupid now! Besides, there is also the Bluetooth earpiece! Oddly enough, even Bluetooth users are being made to feel foolish as this comes up regularly with comedians looking to make a cheap laugh! Okay, I am really off the soapbox now! Hee hee....

The original Samsung Galaxy Tab had 3G on it but for some reason it couldn’t make calls; I tried to take a call on it once and all I got was a bunch of white noise! It almost deafened me! It is good to see that some manufacturers have taken the initiative to add a data connection on their tablets such as the Asus Fonepad, £149! It looks pretty good and I may get one to replace my dead RAZRi but there again it has an Intel processor in it – the Fonepad! Hmmmmm... Not too keen on Intel processors just yet.

There’s also the Archos 70 Xenon 7" for a mere £79.99 that features a 3G connection; sure it is not the most powerful tablet in the world what with MediaTek MT8312 processor (1.2 GHz, dual-core) and 512 MB of RAM onboard but it could really work!

This trend continues with the Huawei MediaPad M1 that retails at £219 but with a 4G connection and it is very tempting! It features a quad-core 1.6 GHz, an 8” 800 x 1280 pixel resolution (~189 ppi pixel density) and 1GB RAM! It is pretty good for a 4G device even though the screen is of a low resolution. Then how about...

...NVIDIA AGENTS OF THE SHIELD TABLET
Huh? Huh? I am liking this one in particular! The NVIDIA Shield is pretty juicy for an 8” 4G tablet! Look at the spec:-

Tegra K1 (192 core Kepler) GPU, 2.2GHz Quad Core CPU, 2GB of RAM and an 8” 1920x1200 multi-touch Full HD display! YES!!! It comes in two flavours:-

16GB Wi-Fi £239.99

32GB Wi-Fi & 4G £299.99

What’s not to like? Incidentally, the Shield design looks quite similar to the HTC One M8 and the aforementioned Huawei MediaPad M1which is not a bad thing. The NVIDIA Shield could very well be my first tablet as the specs make it ideal for the purpose of making music on the fly!

MICROSOFT ON THE SURFACE
It is funny how things work out, huh? It wasn’t so long ago when Tim Cook was laughing at Microsoft’s effort, the Surface! But it turns out that Microsoft have the best idea; instead of creating yet another operating system in the sea of OpSys’ Microsoft are doing its best to pack what is essentially a laptop into a tablet form; Surface Pro 2. It is pretty expensive for the top of the range powerhouse of a tablet... £1,279.00 gets you:-

Intel® Core™ i5-4200U Processor (1.6 GHz, 2.6 GHz with TurboBoost, 3 MB cache)
8GB RAM
512 GB storage
10.6" screen, 1920 x 1080 (207 ppi)
USB 3
MicroSD card reader
5MP camera
3.5MP webcam
Battery lasts up to 15 days

Now that’s what I call a tablet but at that price it is too much to swallow! Oh, you do get the full version of Windows 8.1! The cheapest Surface tablet with the full version of Windows 8.1 is £649! The latest Surface Pro 3, as far as I can see, isn’t yet available in the UK! Goodness knows how much that will cost! I have seen a comparison between the Surface Pro 3 with i5 processor compared to the Macbook Air and that indicates how powerful it is. But I would imagine that the serious Windows user would invest in a top of the range multimedia / gaming rig for best value! I’ve said it once and a thousand times, “The Surface Pro must come in at a lower price point...” Who would feel comfortable taking such an expensive tablet on the road? If you’re not given to clumsiness there are thieves to consider and they are bold! The top of the range Surface Pro ought to come with a taser or some “smart-weapon” that temporarily incapacitates as opposed to being lethal! Ha ha!

Microsoft’s Satya Nadella reckons that the Windows operating system will be the same for all devices! This I have to see! I wonder how long that will take... ...we see that Android “L” is going be compatible with 64-bits and will be able to run on numerous CPU architectures. It could very well be that Android will be able to run on a PC! Fancy that?! Android on a PC could be very interesting.

However, I would imagine that most PC users would rather go for and Android tablet instead of forking out what is an arm and a leg for a Windows tablet! I know that’s my thinking! I mean just look at the Microsoft Office compatible alternatives available for Android! Do I really need a Windows tablet? Hmmmm... I don’t think so somehow!

Oh, here’s a question: When Android eventually becomes 64-bit does that mean music making apps will be able to utilize VST instruments and effects? Is this feasible? In any event I am sure that someone will come up with some great instruments to take up the lead where Single Cell Software Caustic left off! I have to say that because of music apps such as Caustic I want a tablet more than ever!

Hey, soon I will be able to bring you a review of Archos GamePad 2! It looks pretty darn good! Watch this space!

THANKS FOR READING...
Please check out the Synapse Circuit site here: Synapse Circuit.com

Yes, I am well aware that the site is due an update soon! It’s coming...

Synapse Circuit for tech news, opinions, articles, reviews and competitions. You will find interactive PDF magazines, videos and links to free legal software! Check it out at Synapse Circuit dot com