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This is a thread to help some people make a decision as to which tablet is better to purchase.
Staples has a coupon that will take $100 off of any of their tablets in store only. I have been to Staples (Out of stock, will not order online at the kiosk) Best Buy (Will not honor coupon), and the closest office depot is 30 miles away.
The coupon expires on the July 30, so I am hoping that staples is restocking their stores with more inventory.
My question is, which tablet should I/we purchase. I'm talking about a straight tablet, no docks or anything. Posts should be based on personal use and also about current developments in the respective forums (how much development is there for the device).
Thank you so much to anyone that posts a helpful comment.
I don't own an iconia, but I do own a transformer and I player a bit with an iconia, so I can provide some perspective. To me, the biggest difference between the two is the presence of a USB port on the iconia and its absence on the transformer. In order to use USB on the TF, you'd have to buy a dock. If I wasn't in the market for a dock, that would be an absolute deal breaker: there is no point buying a tablet with no USB port.
Aside from that, the TF has an IPS screen if that's important to you, but be careful as some IPS screens suffer from light bleed. It's a sharper and higher quality screen than the one on the iconia, but that will only be truly better if your screen doesn't bleed light.
Having said all that, perchance you are considering a dock, the TF is a better buy. With a dock, you essentially get two devices in one: a tablet and a netbook. The specs are identical, the apps you can run are identical. I think the TF has a slightly more active community on XDA, so if you want roms and custom apps, TF may again be a better choice. I think the TF is also cheaper: nowadays you can get a 16GB TF with a dock for the price of a 32GB iconia (in Canada, anyway).
Good luck with your choice.
Hey thanks man. The screen is a pretty big deal to me (seeing as it is the direct link between the UI and the user) but I have heard of a lot of defects that include light bleed.
I think that the dock is an awesome feature, though I feel that the price is kind of steep. I mean its half the price of the tablet (at least with the coupon it is). I am also really big into seeing ROM development as I am a flashoholic with my Evo. From what I can see there are more original ROM's on the TF forum and more ports on the Iconia Forum.
Thanks for your input. Anyone else?
Well, the dock being "half the price of the tablet" isn't relevant, particularly considering the $100 discount. Certainly, the existence of the discount doesn't make the dock somehow less valuable.
And, it's a perfectly decent price in general, given that it's not just a dock, or a keyboard/trackpad combo, but it also includes a full-size battery. Consider that Lenovo's keyboard dock, which does NOT include a battery, is $99.99.
Really, speaking for myself, I can't imagine owning any other tablet. The keyboard dock, being fully integrated with the tablet, is an entirely different animal than any other tablet on the market.
Good point.
How is the light bleed for you guys? Any other defects that you don't like?
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Imho, price for what you get, there's absolutely no question it's the Iconia. No need for a dock to have USB, SD, or HDMI, it's all there. Add the fact that I was just at Target the other day, and they had them for $399.99 + they gave you a $50.00 gift card, which you could use to purchase a case. A previous poster said that more ROMS are out for the tf, that's a joke I haven't heard before, as one of the tf fanboyz was over in our forum offering to pay the first dev that got the Galaxy rom ported over to the tf. We've had that ROM for weeks.
In the end it will come to personal preferences and money. Do you want to pay more for the tf so you can have connectivity, and lightbleed? If so, then that's the tablet to shoot for, with a 357 magnum!
Just my. 02c
From what I can see, the tf has more original roms and the iconia has more ports. just something I noticed.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA Premium App
hi there. I just won an auction of Asus Tf 101 (with the dock) about 199 NZD (163 USD) with the shipping fee, my total is 176 USD. do you think the price worth it? previously I have bought some crappy android tablets, and this is my first bought something from famous brand. I mainly will use this to read books, comics, maybe watching movies and playing games, but these are not really priority.
Do you think that price is justified? I'm currently living in new zealand, the electronic price here is ridiculously expensive, and the newest one is still priced 400-500+ USD. which is insane since this machine was released 3 years ago. I actually wanted to buy lenovo s6000, but unfortunately they don't sell it in new zealand, and the price is exceeding my budget.
since I probably will use this tablet for 3-4 years, my questions are:
1. is there any way I can replace the battery? (I never bought any hi-end tablet because most of their batteries are not easily replaceable)
2. is it still good for current gaming? not that I like tablet gaming though, but it would be nice if this tablet can play popular 3d games in android
3. for you who have used it for years, can it replace word processing in laptop? is it comfortable to edit documents in this tablet?
4. do I need to put screen protector or it's okay to leave as it is since it's use gorilla glass?
eriol33 said:
hi there. I just won an auction of Asus Tf 101 (with the dock) about 199 NZD (163 USD) with the shipping fee, my total is 176 USD. do you think the price worth it? previously I have bought some crappy android tablets, and this is my first bought something from famous brand. I mainly will use this to read books, comics, maybe watching movies and playing games, but these are not really priority.
Do you think that price is justified? I'm currently living in new zealand, the electronic price here is ridiculously expensive, and the newest one is still priced 400-500+ USD. which is insane since this machine was released 3 years ago. I actually wanted to buy lenovo s6000, but unfortunately they don't sell it in new zealand, and the price is exceeding my budget.
since I probably will use this tablet for 3-4 years, my questions are:
1. is there any way I can replace the battery? (I never bought any hi-end tablet because most of their batteries are not easily replaceable)
2. is it still good for current gaming? not that I like tablet gaming though, but it would be nice if this tablet can play popular 3d games in android
3. for you who have used it for years, can it replace word processing in laptop? is it comfortable to edit documents in this tablet?
4. do I need to put screen protector or it's okay to leave as it is since it's use gorilla glass?
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Click to collapse
1. Yes, but you shouldn't need to since the battery life of the tablet is very good (especially with dock). You need a Torx screwdriver (I forget the exact size) to open up the tablet to get to the battery.
2. It's OK, but not very good for newer 3D games. But this is Android, not a PC. The best games aren't 3D.
3. No. Document writing sucks.
4. No need. Gorilla glass is great. But it is very glossy and is a grease/fingerprint magnet. If you want a protector, I'd get a matte one.
Enjoy your new toy. Flash KatKiss (4.3 or 4.4) on it and you should be happy for a while.
zAlbee said:
1. Yes, but you shouldn't need to since the battery life of the tablet is very good (especially with dock). You need a Torx screwdriver (I forget the exact size) to open up the tablet to get to the battery.
2. It's OK, but not very good for newer 3D games. But this is Android, not a PC. The best games aren't 3D.
3. No. Document writing sucks.
4. No need. Gorilla glass is great. But it is very glossy and is a grease/fingerprint magnet. If you want a protector, I'd get a matte one.
Enjoy your new toy. Flash KatKiss (4.3 or 4.4) on it and you should be happy for a while.
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Click to collapse
thanks for your reply, my tablet will come in few days. I'm so excited to try it.
also just wondering, is it recommended to dual boot ubuntu touch / android? I have seen some people do that, it looks amazing.
I bought mine when it was released and still using it. I also own an Iconia A100 (7")
I used the Iconia for bed reading with Kindle app but use the TF100 for web browsing and taking notes in meetings, it still runs great with 4.4 Kitkat ROM mentionned in an earlier post.
my tablet just arrived today. it looked fantastic, wow. I guess I will root and install a custom rom later.
Have owned a tab 2, for a while. Now it's dead and wandering what to buy next. Apparently the tab 3 is not really an upgrade so just wandering what your thoughts are on the best successor to tab 2 please.
I think its the Samsung Galaxy tab S. A high end tablet with one of the most beautiful displays ever and a sturdy build too. Hope I helped
I just "upgraded" to an older note 8 (2013 version) myself. This will probably be my last post in this subforum. I'd say if you want something new but don't want to break the bank look at refurbs on amazon. I got my note 8 for $125 because of cosmetic damage on the rear case which is covered up nicely with a $4 case.
Jspex said:
I just "upgraded" to an older note 8 (2013 version) myself. This will probably be my last post in this subforum. I'd say if you want something new but don't want to break the bank look at refurbs on amazon. I got my note 8 for $125 because of cosmetic damage on the rear case which is covered up nicely with a $4 case.
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Thanks a lot yes just checked this out the 2gb of ram does it for me, will definitely be getting this. Much appreciated.
Help for contents and box of "new" S4 Black Edition i9505. Is it new or refurbished?
Hi,
I've just bought online in UK a brand new Samsung S4 Black Edition i9505.
However in the box S/M/L sizes eargels are missing (but earbuds are ok and sealed) and the UK charger is a ETA0U70XBE with only 1A output instead of 2A and it's missing its film wrapping. I also noticed that the small seal was not well applied outside the box so it's not clear if the box was sealed or unsealed. I've also found finger prints on the front sticker/screen protector (but not on the screen) and on the camera lens. The metal-plastic terminal of the usb cable is also a little dirty (but comes with plastic wrapping).
OS installed is already 5.0.1 but I thought that S4 comes with 4.4 preinstalled. Or maybe it is due it was assembled recently? Battery was also completely empty.
And I also found this sticker that seal the outside of the box with strange letters: A, B ,C (see attachment). What do they mean?
I would like to know if someone else has similar experience or maybe they sent me a refurbished/open box?
It probably is a refurbished or returned phone.
The box should contain the phone, the USB charger and USB cable (black), in-ear headphones with replacement buds, a manual and I think that's it.
If the box has been tampered with, then I would worry more about the phone itself than the contents.
I also have a black edition (or so it says on the box).
Mine's got a leather-like back cover and the whole phone is pure dark black. The original model had a brighter black tone and it was spotted.
Hi,
thanks for the answer. The only thing missing are the replacement buds but also rest is suspicious as written above.
The charger for example had no plastic wrapping but most of all it's only a 1 amp model. How many amps has your charger? Which model? An EU model (long and slim) or a UK model (bulkier and short)? See attachments. Mine is a UK model but looks like an S3 charger which is slightly different from S4 charger and has only 1 amp output. Does anyone else got a 1 amp charger with its S4???
Mine's a 2.0 Amp EU model, black. It also had wrapping around it.
Did you get any warranty with the phone?
GDReaper said:
Mine's a 2.0 Amp EU model, black. It also had wrapping around it.
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Click to collapse
While mine is a S3/S4-Mini charger at 1.0 Amp with no wrapping...
Did you get any warranty with the phone?
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Click to collapse
The seller said it has 2 year UK/European warranty but it had to say this because he's selling them as new. Of course I had the invoice but it's just a piece of paper printed from internet.
I found a new strange thing: as you can see in the first picture there is a EAN code on the sticker. I searched that code on Google and the result was: Samsung S2 (TWO!).
Does the EAN on your box match with Samsung S4 on Google?
I can't check because my box was sealed on 3 sides, and one of those seals had the number on it and it is now torn apart.
But I don't have any reason to believe it would correspond to anything other than an S4.
The phone was bought from one of the biggest electronics store in my country.
GDReaper said:
I can't check because my box was sealed on 3 sides, and one of those seals had the number on it and it is now torn apart.
But I don't have any reason to believe it would correspond to anything other than an S4.
The phone was bought from one of the biggest electronics store in my country.
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Click to collapse
I checked some pictures of S4 boxes that I found on Youtube, reviews, Google and all the EAN on them match the ones of a S4! So probably the second seal (the one in the attachment of my first message) is a FAKE seal!!!
I found another strange thing: the protective plastic on the front of the S4 was the colored one of S4 white and black mist (see attachment). But on unboxing video on Youtube the Black Edition always have a transparent one!
Which one did you find?
I think that A,B,C has some mean to it.
A- IMEI remains on the box
B- Seller(Vender) keeps it with them so that non can complain whether or not it was steal product,in short security reason
C- Buyer get it stocked on warranty card/ Billl to claim for warranty.
Now that phone is old, it usually stays as was. Nothing to worry about as long as device is fully functional.
dr.patron99 said:
I think that A,B,C has some mean to it.
A- IMEI remains on the box
B- Seller(Vender) keeps it with them so that non can complain whether or not it was steal product,in short security reason
C- Buyer get it stocked on warranty card/ Billl to claim for warranty.
Now that phone is old, it usually stays as was. Nothing to worry about as long as device is fully functional.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the answer. But another problem with the seal was that there was printed a EAN of a Samsung S2 (TWO!) instead of one of a S4. So it was clearly a fake seal. And I've never saw in any unboxing photo or video a seal like that for Samsung S4. I also contacted Samsung UK which confirmed me that the phone was not in proper condition. They also checked the serial number of the device and told me that it was invalid! So it was a refurbished unit.
However I sent the phone back to the seller and received a full refund. Last week I bought a new S4 Black Mist from another seller and this one is perfect. New, sealed (seal with a S4 EAN on it) and with all accessories and plastic wrappings. The OS installed is still Android 4 as expected and not already 5. And a 2A charger. It works very well. :good:
How much did you pay? If it was a good price then ignore the fact it's not new. My S4 was second hand, and I specifically chose it for that reason.
skezza said:
How much did you pay? If it was a good price then ignore the fact it's not new. My S4 was second hand, and I specifically chose it for that reason.
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I paid it 267 euro with shipping. Too much for a used one with missing parts and the wrong charger (only 1A instead of 2A). So I sent it back to the seller.
For the one I bought last week I paid 275 euro with shipping but it's new and sealed (with all accessories and a 2A charger which 2 times faster than a 1A one).
Alfhw said:
I paid it 267 euro with shipping. Too much for a used one with missing parts and the wrong charger (only 1A instead of 2A). So I sent it back to the seller.
For the one I bought last week I paid 275 euro with shipping but it's new and sealed (with all accessories and a 2A charger which 2 times faster than a 1A one).
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Click to collapse
Oh wow, yes that is a lot for a used one. I paid £120 for mine last February. It's in pretty good condition (only a few marks on the silver bezel, no scratches on the screen) but it came only with a single generic charger, and a crappy USB cable. No headset or anything, but I wasn't overly bothered because the phone itself is where the money goes and £120 for an S4 is a bargain, even today. 267 Euro's is over £205, which is absolutely top money, even for a brand new model, so to be told it was used, I would be sending it back tbh.
skezza said:
Oh wow, yes that is a lot for a used one. I paid £120 for mine last February. It's in pretty good condition (only a few marks on the silver bezel, no scratches on the screen) but it came only with a single generic charger, and a crappy USB cable. No headset or anything, but I wasn't overly bothered because the phone itself is where the money goes and £120 for an S4 is a bargain, even today. 267 Euro's is over £205, which is absolutely top money, even for a brand new model, so to be told it was used, I would be sending it back tbh.
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Click to collapse
And most of all the seller was selling it as "new". I even emailed him before buying to be sure and he answered it was new and sealed... And the one he sent me had missing parts and a S3 charger (with only 1A output)!
Anyway 275 euro for the one I bought last week from a different seller is a good price for a really new and sealed S4. It is still a very good mid-range device. I was also considering a Samsung A3-310-2016 which came out in January this year for 240 euro with shipping but the S4 has still better specs and a huge XDA and custom rom support!
Alfhw said:
And most of all the seller was selling it as "new". I even emailed him before buying to be sure and he answered it was new and sealed... And the one he sent me had missing parts and a S3 charger (with only 1A output)!
Anyway 275 euro for the one I bought last week from a different seller is a good price for a really new and sealed S4. It is still a very good mid-range device. I was also considering a Samsung A3-310-2016 which came out in January this year for 240 euro with shipping but the S4 has still better specs and a huge XDA and custom rom support!
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Click to collapse
It's an extremely good mid-range device. The way I like to look at it, is like this:
You can see from my phone history (in my signature), that I go from an i9000 to an LG N4 to a Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G, which is quite a deviation. The i9000 was a premium device at the time and it felt like one. The N4 was a premium device and it really really felt like one (and still does to this day). The Xiaomi was a great phone, but you could tell it was manufactured for the Indian market. It wasn't that it was cheaply made. I actually think Xiaomi are quite nicely made, it was the fact there was never any commitment to updates. Getting Lollipop was a bit like playing a game of roulette. Are they going to get it? Who knows? Kind of thing..... eventually some devs ported it, but rather than the 100's that work on Samsung and the Nexus devices, there were a few kids in their bedrooms doing it. I simply didn't have time to get stuck into any ROM development at that point in time either. The Xiaomi was let down by the lack of devs, the poor camera and the general unreliability of updates and software fixes etc.
So here's the point I'm making. You can own a brand new Xiaomi, which for the money seems decent and performs okay and stuff and yeah, they're decent enough phones, if you're going for a new model....
OR, you can get yourself a second hand S4, which will blow away the majority of Xiaomi phones because here's the thing. It's not just about specs on paper. The camera destroys the Xiaomi camera's, the screen destroys the majority of Xiaomi screens and the fact there are 100's of devs knocking out great ROM's means this phone will last a lot longer than the Xiaomi ones ever will.
My modus operandi has now changed. I will never buy a new device again. Every 2 years, I will buy a last gen Samsung (or other brand) device when they become cheap and enjoy all the benefits of XDA devs and what not
skezza said:
It's an extremely good mid-range device. The way I like to look at it, is like this:
You can see from my phone history (in my signature), that I go from an i9000 to an LG N4 to a Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G, which is quite a deviation. The i9000 was a premium device at the time and it felt like one. The N4 was a premium device and it really really felt like one (and still does to this day). The Xiaomi was a great phone, but you could tell it was manufactured for the Indian market. It wasn't that it was cheaply made. I actually think Xiaomi are quite nicely made, it was the fact there was never any commitment to updates. Getting Lollipop was a bit like playing a game of roulette. Are they going to get it? Who knows? Kind of thing..... eventually some devs ported it, but rather than the 100's that work on Samsung and the Nexus devices, there were a few kids in their bedrooms doing it. I simply didn't have time to get stuck into any ROM development at that point in time either. The Xiaomi was let down by the lack of devs, the poor camera and the general unreliability of updates and software fixes etc.
So here's the point I'm making. You can own a brand new Xiaomi, which for the money seems decent and performs okay and stuff and yeah, they're decent enough phones, if you're going for a new model....
OR, you can get yourself a second hand S4, which will blow away the majority of Xiaomi phones because here's the thing. It's not just about specs on paper. The camera destroys the Xiaomi camera's, the screen destroys the majority of Xiaomi screens and the fact there are 100's of devs knocking out great ROM's means this phone will last a lot longer than the Xiaomi ones ever will.
My modus operandi has now changed. I will never buy a new device again. Every 2 years, I will buy a last gen Samsung (or other brand) device when they become cheap and enjoy all the benefits of XDA devs and what not
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree! :good:
Hi guys, I am sorry because this is probably 1828318th time someone asks this.
I have samsung galaxy s6, I love it. I could get this phone for 120-150 euros, is it worth ? It probably wouldn't be my primary phone, something to have in reserve but I would also use it, one of the reasons I would like to try it because on my sgs6 is first time I flashed rom, so I would also like to experiment with it.
Thank you
It's a great phone, hardware-wise it's perfect. Great chipset (cpu, gpu), 2gb of ram is enough, go for the 32gb version since it doesn't take a sd card. The camera is very good, the screen even better, and it's a nexus, so you have many people working on it. It's cheap and you can find replacement parts cheap and easily on eBay (screen, battery etc.).
If you're planning on buying from eBay (specifically those from honk kong) be careful, I bought 3 of them (1st motherboard broke on its own, didn't have backlight, 2nd came with a literally broken motherboard) because they were all broken or faulty. Suspicious things I found when I removed the back covers. The 3rd was finally good.
I bought 2 of them for 180 dollars [emoji14]
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