Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

sentinelsx

macrumors 68010
Original poster
Feb 28, 2011
2,004
0
So suppose you are not a musician/artist, have no iTunes affiliation (and no google play affiliation either except for mostly cheap apps etc), and do not use too many apps either.

Would you buy a N7 or iPad mini? Is ezPDF as good as goodreader? Is N10 a better idea for a tablet than N7 if one is not planning to take the tablet outside much?

Fire away!
 

cynics

macrumors G4
Jan 8, 2012
11,959
2,156
So suppose you are not a musician/artist, have no iTunes affiliation (and no google play affiliation either except for mostly cheap apps etc), and do not use too many apps either.

Would you buy a N7 or iPad mini? Is ezPDF as good as goodreader? Is N10 a better idea for a tablet than N7 if one is not planning to take the tablet outside much?

Fire away!

With your requirements I'd go for the N7. The only advantage I see the iPad has over Android tablets is its app selection.

I prefer the browsers with Android compared to iOS and you can access all your web based things you'd have apps for. Facebook, twitter, forums, iCloud, etc etc.

iOS has a lot of really nice tablet optimized apps though.
 

sentinelsx

macrumors 68010
Original poster
Feb 28, 2011
2,004
0
With your requirements I'd go for the N7. The only advantage I see the iPad has over Android tablets is its app selection.

I prefer the browsers with Android compared to iOS and you can access all your web based things you'd have apps for. Facebook, twitter, forums, iCloud, etc etc.

iOS has a lot of really nice tablet optimized apps though.

I hear this a lot too.

What are some of the tablet apps you guys use? I want to know if I will be missing out much.
 

cynics

macrumors G4
Jan 8, 2012
11,959
2,156
I hear this a lot too.

What are some of the tablet apps you guys use? I want to know if I will be missing out much.

Facebook is a good one. On a full size tablet like the n10 it looks like crap, not as bad on the n7 because of the screen size. I use the browser to access it like I would on my desktop.

Google apps look great. YouTube is much better IMO, the same with maps/nav.

Games look and play good.

Anyway that's why I recommend the N7 its a good compromise. But the iPad is very nice too. I just don't care to much for iOS on a tablet, I feel a lot of screen is wasted in the OS itself.
 

marc11

macrumors 68000
Mar 30, 2011
1,618
4
NY USA
So suppose you are not a musician/artist, have no iTunes affiliation (and no google play affiliation either except for mostly cheap apps etc), and do not use too many apps either.

Would you buy a N7 or iPad mini? Is ezPDF as good as goodreader? Is N10 a better idea for a tablet than N7 if one is not planning to take the tablet outside much?

Fire away!

I sold my Kindle ereader and passed on the iPad mini, despite having a ton of iTunes content and purchased a Nexus 7 and have never looked back. Even went and checked out the mini in person, side by side to my Nexus 7, still happy with my choice. My suggestion is to compare them back to back, however I find the higher resolution screen on the N7 to be far better for reading books and magazines.

As for 10 vs 7, it is a matter of personal choice, I like and wanted the smaller form factor.

----------

Don't get the N7, you'll get choppy, laggy performance. Try the N10 if you want to go Android, maybe it's better.

Utter BS.
 
Last edited:

ReanimationN

macrumors 6502a
Sep 7, 2011
724
0
Australia
I sold my Kindle ereader and passed on the iPad mini, despite having a ton of iTunes content and purchased a Nexus 7 and have never looked back. Even went and checked out the mini in person, side by side to my Nexus 7, still happy with my choice. My suggestion is to compare them back to back, however I find the higher resolution screen on the N7 to be far better for reading books and magazines.

As for 10 vs 7, it is a matter of personal choice, I like and wanted the smaller form factor.

----------



Utter BS.

Hardly, I'm far from the only one on these boards who has noted the N7's poor performance. It's just doesn't perform as well as an iOS device, or (I'm not sure about this, just going by what other people have said, I only own a N7) other high-end Android devices. Give one a go in a store, or borrow one from a friend and see how choppy and jerky the scrolling is compared to an iOS device (try them side-by-side). This lockergnome video has a quick example of the difference:


Of course, you may not care about that, in which case the N7's good value for money- it has a higher-res screen than the mini, decent battery life (it did take a hit in 4.2, but is fixed in 4.2.2 apparently) and is really comfortable in the hand. Just test the performance and see if you find it acceptable.
 

sentinelsx

macrumors 68010
Original poster
Feb 28, 2011
2,004
0
Hardly, I'm far from the only one on these boards who has noted the N7's poor performance. It's just doesn't perform as well as an iOS device, or (I'm not sure about this, just going by what other people have said, I only own a N7) other high-end Android devices. Give one a go in a store, or borrow one from a friend and see how choppy and jerky the scrolling is compared to an iOS device (try them side-by-side). This lockergnome video has a quick example of the difference:

YouTube: video

Of course, you may not care about that, in which case the N7's good value for money- it has a higher-res screen than the mini, decent battery life (it did take a hit in 4.2, but is fixed in 4.2.2 apparently) and is really comfortable in the hand. Just test the performance and see if you find it acceptable.


Hmm, the choppiness is noticeable against an iPad mini for sure, but i would say i would not notice it, probably not 99% of the time while using it.

Also almost every video showcasing chrome on N7 shows how horrible it is. No idea why because on my GS3 it was smooth and i had no issues. I preferred using mobile sites in it than using standalone apps, it was that good.

Perhaps if that review is done using say, dolphin, the choppiness in N7 would go away?

Also the maps scrolling wasn't THAT bad at all IMO. Although i barely use satellite view. Standard and sometimes streetview only.

The one thing that makes me salivate over the iPad is how big it looks against the N7 and able to show so much content.

Now can someone show an updated video of latest ezPDF in action on N7 please if you can? Thanks.
 

TheMTtakeover

macrumors 6502
Aug 3, 2011
470
7
I would say go for the iPad. I have a Nexus 7 and its a really nice device, I just prefer what the Apple ecosystem has to offer. But like you said you aren't really a part of either so you should probably head somewhere and check them both out.
 

marc11

macrumors 68000
Mar 30, 2011
1,618
4
NY USA
Hardly, I'm far from the only one on these boards who has noted the N7's poor performance. It's just doesn't perform as well as an iOS device, or (I'm not sure about this, just going by what other people have said, I only own a N7) other high-end Android devices. Give one a go in a store, or borrow one from a friend and see how choppy and jerky the scrolling is compared to an iOS device (try them side-by-side). This lockergnome video has a quick example of the difference:

YouTube: video

Of course, you may not care about that, in which case the N7's good value for money- it has a higher-res screen than the mini, decent battery life (it did take a hit in 4.2, but is fixed in 4.2.2 apparently) and is really comfortable in the hand. Just test the performance and see if you find it acceptable.

Okay so is that you in the video? How many apps are open and running in the background? What version of Android is he running? Rooted? Unless it is first hand use you have to take these videos with a grain of salt. My N7 has zero lag and zero choppiness. Yes Chrome blows, but Dolphin and Firefox are much better.
 

ReanimationN

macrumors 6502a
Sep 7, 2011
724
0
Australia
Hmm, the choppiness is noticeable against an iPad mini for sure, but i would say i would not notice it, probably not 99% of the time while using it.
In that case, the N7 wouldn't be a bad choice then, you'd be saving a bit over getting a Mini.
Also almost every video showcasing chrome on N7 shows how horrible it is. No idea why because on my GS3 it was smooth and i had no issues. I preferred using mobile sites in it than using standalone apps, it was that good.

Perhaps if that review is done using say, dolphin, the choppiness in N7 would go away?
I use Boat Browser, which was the best of the bunch, but it still suffered from lag and choppiness. Nowhere near as badly as Chrome though, even after the update that was supposed to fix performance issues it was still terrible.
Also the maps scrolling wasn't THAT bad at all IMO. Although i barely use satellite view. Standard and sometimes streetview only.

The one thing that makes me salivate over the iPad is how big it looks against the N7 and able to show so much content.

Now can someone show an updated video of latest ezPDF in action on N7 please if you can? Thanks.

It depends heavily on the app, Google Maps isn't too bad, but others are awful. Try and give all the apps you use regularly a test run on one before you buy and see how they perform.

----------

Okay so is that you in the video? How many apps are open and running in the background? What version of Android is he running? Rooted? Unless it is first hand use you have to take these videos with a grain of salt. My N7 has zero lag and zero choppiness. Yes Chrome blows, but Dolphin and Firefox are much better.

No, it's definitely not me. :D He says what version of Android he's running in the beginning. His machines are generally always stock, unless he says otherwise. I can say from firsthand experience that his performance comparison is spot on. Maybe you got the lucky lag-free N7, but every single one I've tried has been choppy and laggy. I did think I'd received a dud at first, given how disappointing it was, but a guy I work with has one which performs exactly the same, as has every display model I've tried.
 

ChazUK

macrumors 603
Feb 3, 2008
5,393
25
Essex (UK)
Performance on my nexus 7 has improved with 4.2.2.

It mat be the fresh install as I did come from a custom ROM bit I've had no hitches yet. It may be early days though so things could change over time.
 

marc11

macrumors 68000
Mar 30, 2011
1,618
4
NY USA
In that case, the N7 wouldn't be a bad choice then, you'd be saving a bit over getting a Mini.

I use Boat Browser, which was the best of the bunch, but it still suffered from lag and choppiness. Nowhere near as badly as Chrome though, even after the update that was supposed to fix performance issues it was still terrible.


It depends heavily on the app, Google Maps isn't too bad, but others are awful. Try and give all the apps you use regularly a test run on one before you buy and see how they perform.

----------



No, it's definitely not me. :D He says what version of Android he's running in the beginning. His machines are generally always stock, unless he says otherwise. I can say from firsthand experience that his performance comparison is spot on. Maybe you got the lucky lag-free N7, but every single one I've tried has been choppy and laggy. I did think I'd received a dud at first, given how disappointing it was, but a guy I work with has one which performs exactly the same, as has every display model I've tried.

Well like I said mine has never had lag; Chrome does not scroll as smooth as Dolphin I will say, but there is a difference between scrolling issues and lag and my scrolling issues was only with Chrome. Otherwise for me, everything is very smooth. Yes iOS is smoother; hard to describe, more fluid, but side by side, the Nexus 7 performed as well and better than the mini in opening apps, displaying text and graphics, multi tasking, etc.

The mini is a pretty device and if you want a pretty device with a larger screen and package the mini is perfect, but if you want better text, a smaller package and better overall performance at a lower price you aren't going to beat the N7.
 

blackhand1001

macrumors 68030
Jan 6, 2009
2,600
37
Don't get the N7, you'll get choppy, laggy performance. Try the N10 if you want to go Android, maybe it's better.

Its much better on 4.2.2. The nexus 10 is butter smooth as well and is very fast. If you can afford it and don't need the portability of the 7 inch the nexus 10 is an excellent option and has the fastest SOC on the market right now.
 
Last edited:

ReanimationN

macrumors 6502a
Sep 7, 2011
724
0
Australia
Performance on my nexus 7 has improved with 4.2.2.

It mat be the fresh install as I did come from a custom ROM bit I've had no hitches yet. It may be early days though so things could change over time.

Its much better on 4.2.2. The nexus 10 is butter smooth as well and is very fast. If you can afford it and don't need the portability of the 7 inch the nexus 10 is an excellent option and has the fastest SOC on the market right now.
Better than 4.2, or better than 4.2 and 4.1.x? 4.2 definitely degraded the N7's performance and 4.2.1 wasn't any better. Still, that's one solid update if it's improved the performance that much. I probably won't get to experience it now, my N7 hasn't received it yet and I've finally gotten around to selling it, I have to post it in the next few days. :(
Well like I said mine has never had lag; Chrome does not scroll as smooth as Dolphin I will say, but there is a difference between scrolling issues and lag and my scrolling issues was only with Chrome. Otherwise for me, everything is very smooth. Yes iOS is smoother; hard to describe, more fluid, but side by side, the Nexus 7 performed as well and better than the mini in opening apps, displaying text and graphics, multi tasking, etc.

The mini is a pretty device and if you want a pretty device with a larger screen and package the mini is perfect, but if you want better text, a smaller package and better overall performance at a lower price you aren't going to beat the N7.
If you're happy with it, then that's fair enough. Mine's definitely been choppy and laggy since day one, but I can see that it's not going to bother everyone in the same way.
 

cynics

macrumors G4
Jan 8, 2012
11,959
2,156
For those using Chrome on Android download "Chrome Beta" it's updated very often and runs notability better. Doesn't support flash though, which I use Firefox for.
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,682
43,740
This lockergnome video has a quick example of the difference:

YouTube: video
Nice video, not because I have an iPad mini but it does a decent jobs showing them handle tasks side by side.

I wonder what site he was on with the fish aquarium.
 

Wolfpup

macrumors 68030
Sep 7, 2006
2,929
105
So suppose you are not a musician/artist, have no iTunes affiliation (and no google play affiliation either except for mostly cheap apps etc), and do not use too many apps either.

Would you buy a N7 or iPad mini? Is ezPDF as good as goodreader? Is N10 a better idea for a tablet than N7 if one is not planning to take the tablet outside much?

Fire away!

I'd get a Nexus 10 over a 7 for the larger screen if nothing else. The advantage the 7 has is it actually fits in a pocket...granted, not as well as an iPod touch, but it fits.

I'm not actually sure how the GPUs compare...I guess the Nexus 10 is better? And the 7 has 4 A9s vs. 2 A15s on the 10. SO I guess the 10 is better all around, but the 7 is no joke, I mean a Tegra 3 for $200-250 is no joke.

I like different things about Android vs. iOS. iOS I love iTunes, actually being able to manage podcasts and iOS programs on my PC. Android...umm...don't even know that there's any way to manage programs save for just deleting and redownloading them, etc.

On the other hand, Android is a lot more open, like I love that you can get Firefox for it. Of course it doesn't really look or work as well as Firefox on a normal PC, but still that's cool.

I think you'd be okay with any of those if you're not tied to iTunes.

Ooooh I should mention I'm having HORRIBLE problems with the lightening cables Apple uses now. I'm literally on at least my fifth since November, they keep corroding, it's bizarre. I actually bought a Nexus 7 to see if I could use it to replace my iPod touch because I can't keep replacing cables every five minutes lol
 

sentinelsx

macrumors 68010
Original poster
Feb 28, 2011
2,004
0
I'd get a Nexus 10 over a 7 for the larger screen if nothing else. The advantage the 7 has is it actually fits in a pocket...granted, not as well as an iPod touch, but it fits.

I'm not actually sure how the GPUs compare...I guess the Nexus 10 is better? And the 7 has 4 A9s vs. 2 A15s on the 10. SO I guess the 10 is better all around, but the 7 is no joke, I mean a Tegra 3 for $200-250 is no joke.

I like different things about Android vs. iOS. iOS I love iTunes, actually being able to manage podcasts and iOS programs on my PC. Android...umm...don't even know that there's any way to manage programs save for just deleting and redownloading them, etc.

On the other hand, Android is a lot more open, like I love that you can get Firefox for it. Of course it doesn't really look or work as well as Firefox on a normal PC, but still that's cool.

I think you'd be okay with any of those if you're not tied to iTunes.

Ooooh I should mention I'm having HORRIBLE problems with the lightening cables Apple uses now. I'm literally on at least my fifth since November, they keep corroding, it's bizarre. I actually bought a Nexus 7 to see if I could use it to replace my iPod touch because I can't keep replacing cables every five minutes lol

The headphones? I never used the bundles ones. The ones bundled with apple devices are crap. Even a $15 cheap sony headset does better IMO.
 

TheMTtakeover

macrumors 6502
Aug 3, 2011
470
7
So suppose you are not a musician/artist, have no iTunes affiliation (and no google play affiliation either except for mostly cheap apps etc), and do not use too many apps either.

Would you buy a N7 or iPad mini? Is ezPDF as good as goodreader? Is N10 a better idea for a tablet than N7 if one is not planning to take the tablet outside much?

Fire away!

iPad mini. Much nicer
 

Wolfpup

macrumors 68030
Sep 7, 2006
2,929
105
The headphones? I never used the bundles ones. The ones bundled with apple devices are crap. Even a $15 cheap sony headset does better IMO.

No the headphones are fine. I like Apple's a lot actually. I mean the lightening cables. The USB side stays fine, the lightening side starts turning green/weird and quits working. I'm on at least my fifth, maybe 6th.
 

sentinelsx

macrumors 68010
Original poster
Feb 28, 2011
2,004
0
No the headphones are fine. I like Apple's a lot actually. I mean the lightening cables. The USB side stays fine, the lightening side starts turning green/weird and quits working. I'm on at least my fifth, maybe 6th.

Wow. That is bad.

Mine hasn't gone through that thankfully. Can you replace them for free or do the Apple "geniuses" force you to buy another one?
 

Wolfpup

macrumors 68030
Sep 7, 2006
2,929
105
Wow. That is bad.

Mine hasn't gone through that thankfully. Can you replace them for free or do the Apple "geniuses" force you to buy another one?

I should be calling but I just haven't bothered, just been buying new ones :-/
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.