Tablets are completely useless/crap and pointless!!

[ShaunAFC3]

Now we use our 5.1 to 6 inches smartphones every single day as our computers and of course laptops and desktops for heavy duty work like video editing, 3D work if neaded but there is tablets like the iPad and Android tablets which they are only giant smartphones with out the calling feature.

I use to love tablets and was a huge fan of them and they was my main computer but my opinion has completely changed about tablets after I got my Samsung Galaxy S6 phone that has a amazing 5.1 inche display and have been using it for over a week now and it is a beast of a smartphone haha!!

Now I don't really think tablets especially the iPads, Android tablets are not that good anymore because they are just like my Galaxy S6 but just have a bigger screen and set it and they don't offer tablet features that is not available on there smartphone counterparts or anything different.

And there are lots of people(including me) that thought tablets are the future and will kill the Laptop and desktop but as it turns out so far it seems completely the opposite way round the laptops are killing the tablets and by that I means hybrids(just basically glorified laptops) Surface Pro 4, Acer Alpha Switch 12 and HP Spectre X2 and lots more and many more people are buying hybrids to replace there old tablets(rather then replacing with a newer tablet) and sales figures from sales reporters like IDC proves that and the tablet sales including the iPad are declining just like netbooks did and usage of iPads are going down as well, So People are using there tablets less and less and not buying them which it is terrible news for the tablet market and tablets manufacturers like Apple/Samsung/LG/Google more.

And to make things 20 times worse so far this year in 2016 big tablet makers like Samsung, Sony and Google haven't announced and released there high end/flagship tablets yet, not surprised tbh, they will never be able to make money out of them anymore and I am sure Apple will abandon there iPads in the future because of the poor terrible sales and the people are not buying and using them anymore.

And all so it does not help that tablet makers like Samsung, HP, Lenovo are focusing making hybrids just glorified laptops with a ability to use it as a tablet) like the Surface Pro 4 then stand along/pure tablets like the iPad, a Galaxy Tab S2, Things are definitely looking terrible for the tablet market.

So after getting my Samsung Galaxy S6 smartphone and been using it for just over a week now, After 3/4 years of using giant smartphones(tablets), I won't be using them anymore and I will just buy a laptop and use my smartphone Galaxy S6 in the future.


In my honest opinion about giant smartphones(tablets), I think tablets are completely useless, crap and pointless because the phones we have are good enough and big enough and still very portable and on the other hand laptops are very portable and very powerful which tablets like the iPad and Android tablets will never have that appeal anymore and hopefully due to the declining sales tablets will definitely become obsolete just like the netbooks did a few years ago!!!

I really hope tablets like the huge IPhone(oops I mean the iPad) and Android tablets die and disappear in the future just like netbooks did(a few years ago).


Anyone think tablets are completely useless and pointless now?? Do you agree or disagree?? And who wants my iPad Air 2 haha??

 

[Zaft]

I disagree, there is a big difference between even a 6 inch phone and a 9.7 inch iPad.
Its not even close.

My iPad air 2 is literally my computer, but it depends on the person.
My wife has a Macbook and prefers it for web browsing but she uses my iPad for video watching.

Also I cant do split apps or picture in picture on my iPhone. So its not just a blown up iPhone.

 

[mclld]

Disagree and good luck with battery life on that S6, especially in place of a tablet

 

[ronincse]

Now we use our 5.1 to 6 inches smartphones every single day as our computers and of course laptops and desktops for heavy duty work like video editing, 3D work if neaded but there is tablets like the iPad and Android tablets which they are only giant smartphones with out the calling feature.

I use to love tablets and was a huge fan of them and they was my main computer but after I got my Samsung Galaxy S6 phone that has a amazing 5.1 inche display and have been using it for over a week and it is a beast of a smartphone!!

Now I don't really think tablets especially the iPads, Android tablets are not that good anymore because they are just like my Galaxy S6 but just have a bigger screen and set it and they don't offer tablet features that is not available on there smartphone counterparts or anything different.

And there are lots of people(including me) that thought tablets are the future and will like the Laptop and desktop but as it turns out so far it seems the opposite way round the laptops are killing the tablets and by that I means hybrids(just basically glorified laptops) Surface Pro 4, Acer Alpha Switch 12 and Hp Spectre X2 and lots more and and lot more people are buying hybrids to replace there old tablets(rather then replacing with a newer tablet) and sales figures from sales reporters like IDC proves that and the tablet sales including the iPad are declining just like netbooks did and usage of iPads are going down as well so people are using there tablets less and less and not buying them which it is terrible news for the tablet market and tablets manufacturers like Apple/Samsung/LG/Google more.


And so far this year in 2016 Samsung, Sony and Google haven't released there high end/flagship tablets yet, not surprised tbh. and I am sure Apple will abandon there iPads in the future because of the poor terrible sales and the people are not buying and using them anymore.


So I think tablets are completely useless and pointless because the phones we have are good enough and big enough and still very portable and on the other hand laptops are very portable and very powerful which tablets like the iPad and Android tablets will never that appeal and hopefully due to the declining sales tablets will become obsolete just like the netbooks!!!!

Well I can only speak from my own experience: I personally use my iPad just about every day because I like reading and checking the news and what have you on a bigger screen. I could of course use my phone for most of it but my preference is my iPad.

As for why the Android manufacturers have basically abandoned tablets: I absolutely blame Google for this. Android working as a tablet OS is just another failed experiment that Google dropped as soon as they possibly could. Honey comb was actually decent and was IMO the first and last time they actually tried to push tablets.

One of the biggest issues has been the absolute lack of tablet optimized apps. On my iPad apps are just soooo much better than they are on an Android tablet. This is mostly due to Google allowing devs to just upscale their apps. Instead of realizing this mistake they basically doubled down and did the same thing with the entire operating system. Honey comb actually had some unique tablet features but since Lollipop it has just been a blown up phone UI with lots of wasted space.

This has become a self fulfilling prophecy at this point: the tablet Android experience sucks so no one buys them, since no one buys them there is no time put in to make better devices and improve the software, etc... The Pixel C last year is a perfect example. It was OBVIOUSLY jerry rigged to run Android instead of some kind of touch first Chrome OS and ended up being buggy and such. It also lacked any decent software features to make its form factor worth while. Unsurprisingly it flopped and Google being Google dropped the whole tablet experiment. Actually I'd say the Nexus 9 (which I owned) had a similar cycle. Was rushed to market and was very laggy and buggy due to the Tegra chip they used and lacked a decent tablet UI so the thing didn't really sell.

Apple seems to still be pushing the iPad fairly hard, and thanks to the Android side absolutely dropping the ball they are basically the only game in town for tablets. I doubt we will see Apple drop the iPad line for quite awhile.

 

[mi7chy]

I disagree, there is a big difference between even a 6 inch phone and a 9.7 inch iPad.
Its not even close.

For one-handed use, around 5.7" is optimal since it fits in the pocket and you always have it with you. 8" is a luxury but less pocketable.

9.7" requires two hands but is too small to be useful for productivity and creativity. Optimal for two-handed use is 13"+.

Knowing this it makes sense why devices between ~5.7" and ~13"+ are stagnant or dead. Been known since the Galaxy Note was released in 2011.

 

[ucfgrad93]

Thanks for sharing your opinion, @ShaunAFC3.

 

[Technarchy]

I just Returned from flying cross country to New York City to see family and there is no way in hell I would rather endure the entire experience on my JB7+ over my iPad Mini 4.

Watching video is better. Reading is better. Any level of productivity is better. Internet is better. The only thing my JB7+ does better is be portable.

 

[tbayrgs]

I'll chime in an agree with others here. I love the larger display on my phones but it doesn't compare to using a tablet. I live on my iPP 12.9 and if I'm heading out for a while, my iPad Air 2 is usually with me as well. My kids' school requires all students 3rd grade and older to have iPads for daily use as well.

Tablets may not grow at the same rate smartphones did over their first years and they'll likely evolve from how they exist now but they're not going anywhere anytime soon.

 

[Klyster]

My Tab S 10.5 is the best for watching video, still nothing out there that competes with it IMO.

I must add that I use it in bed only, it's not utilised as a portable device....

 

[ozaz]

I disagree. There are a number of situations I prefer using my iPad mini instead of my laptop or smartphone, even though I could use the laptop or phone for these tasks.

- Email and internet at the end of the day on the couch.
- Reading documents on the couch and whilst travelling/commuting.
- Watching video on the couch, travelling/commuting, and in bed.

There are also a few niche apps I use on my iPad which don't really have web, desktop, iPhone, or Android versions.

 

[M5RahuL]

A tablet is about as useless as a laptop compared to a tablet!

 

[cube]

An iPad mini is barely usable and not even pocketable.

That is why I'm handing down my new one and keeping my HDX 7" and my Tab 12.2.

 

[Lloydbm41]

Well I can only speak from my own experience: I personally use my iPad just about every day because I like reading and checking the news and what have you on a bigger screen. I could of course use my phone for most of it but my preference is my iPad.

As for why the Android manufacturers have basically abandoned tablets: I absolutely blame Google for this. Android working as a tablet OS is just another failed experiment that Google dropped as soon as they possibly could. Honey comb was actually decent and was IMO the first and last time they actually tried to push tablets.

One of the biggest issues has been the absolute lack of tablet optimized apps. On my iPad apps are just soooo much better than they are on an Android tablet. This is mostly due to Google allowing devs to just upscale their apps. Instead of realizing this mistake they basically doubled down and did the same thing with the entire operating system. Honey comb actually had some unique tablet features but since Lollipop it has just been a blown up phone UI with lots of wasted space.

This has become a self fulfilling prophecy at this point: the tablet Android experience sucks so no one buys them, since no one buys them there is no time put in to make better devices and improve the software, etc... The Pixel C last year is a perfect example. It was OBVIOUSLY jerry rigged to run Android instead of some kind of touch first Chrome OS and ended up being buggy and such. It also lacked any decent software features to make its form factor worth while. Unsurprisingly it flopped and Google being Google dropped the whole tablet experiment. Actually I'd say the Nexus 9 (which I owned) had a similar cycle. Was rushed to market and was very laggy and buggy due to the Tegra chip they used and lacked a decent tablet UI so the thing didn't really sell.

Apple seems to still be pushing the iPad fairly hard, and thanks to the Android side absolutely dropping the ball they are basically the only game in town for tablets. I doubt we will see Apple drop the iPad line for quite awhile.

So... much... wrong... here

1. Android manufacturers have abandoned tablets? Might want to let companies like Samsung, Huawei and Lenovo know this. Samsung have the best tablet on the market with the Tab S2 and soon to be released Tab S3. The regular iPad pales in comparison on everything from hardware to software (I am not including apps when I say software. I am referring to the OS and Samsungs additions). One reason why I dumped the iPad in favor of the Tab S2. (I can not comment on the iPad Pro.)

2. I've seen plenty of apps not optimized for the iPad. Don't think that Android tablets have this exclusivity. It isn't as much on the iPad, but it still exists. The big problem with this on the iPad is that the apps look absolutely horrendous and pixeled out. In fact, I have run across apps on my iPhone that aren't even optimized for the iPhone 6 or 7 Plus models! They are still optimized for iPhone 5 and below! Scaling is at least present and works relatively well on Android. Not so much on iOS... still to this day!

3. You need to look at your self-fulfilling prophecy without rose colored lenses. There are reasons that iPad sales have been tanking for the last 2 years and marketshare has continued to decline since 2012 (albeit with minor bumps from time to time). One reason is that Apple made a phone that is 5.5" in size (finally admitting that Samsung had it right all along with phablets).
The other is because Android tablets have become better (like the Tab S2 I mentioned and Huawei now getting into the picture) and there aren't many first time buyers of tablets anymore (Android or iOS). The point is tablets in general are becoming less appealing to everyone. Link: https://www.statista.com/statistics/276635/market-share-held-by-tablet-vendors/
And Honeycomb?!? Are you fuc...ing kidding me! That was the worst POS OS ever made! And I'm not even talking by Google. I mean EVER MADE!

4. You need to look around more. Hard to see the forest through the trees when your head is buried in your ideology.

5. Google hasn't abandoned tablets. They are moving towards hybrids (which are the future.) Hence, why we are now hearing about Andromeda.

 

[Abazigal]

Like you, I can only speak from personal experience.

As a teacher, I use my ipad for work every day. For teaching in the classroom, for work-related tasks outside of the classroom, and for leisure. To put things into context as to how heavily it is used, my ipad starts the day at 100%, ends the day at 20+%, and I probably clock more hours on it than on my MBA and iMac combined.

There is a huge number of tasks that fall in between what can be done reasonably well on a 5.5" smartphone (and I do own an iphone 6S+), and the sort of tasks which absolutely need a fully-specced out PC to accomplish. And for me, I am performing a large number of tasks on my ipad which I wouldn't be able to carry out as comfortably on a smartphone or laptop.

My computing experience has certainly improved significantly with the introduction of the ipad, and I for one would not want to see it go.

 

[nj-morris]

Very strongly disagree. I own two devices, as per my signature, an iPad Air 2, (9.7 inches) and a Galaxy S6 Edge+ (5.7 inches). The Galaxy doesn't come close to the productivity of the iPad. Sure, the Galaxy is good when you are on the go, but if I had both devices in front of me, I'd pick the iPad any day. Browsing the web for example. MUCH easier. So much more space. And tablet apps generally perform tasks much more conveniently than phone apps. There has been times where I haven't had my iPad, and I've had to rely on my phone, and it's doable, but holy hell is it a lot harder. The screen just limits so much.

And that is also why I hate the term 'phablet'.

 

[JaySoul]

It's a very personal thing.

My iPad lies there redundant for 46 weeks a year, but comes in super handy on holiday.

But if I commuted, I'd probably use it more. If I didn't need a MacBook for content creation, I'd probably use it more... etc etc.

 

[Radon87000]

I disagree completely.The iPad Pro has astonishing battery life and the display is better than on the iPhone

 

[kasakka]

It's a very personal thing.

My iPad lies there redundant for 46 weeks a year, but comes in super handy on holiday.

Same here. After I bought a 5.5" display phone, I started using the iPad much less as I feel just for browsing the net, most of the time the phone is more than good enough. On holidays and trips the iPad becomes a lightweight laptop replacement and I appreciate the larger screen there.

I really hope that in a few years we have phones that simply fold open to a bigger display. That I can see being what kills tablets unless they become more like the Surface Pros and run a full blown desktop OS.

 

[Abazigal]

Eh, the day the iPad runs a desktop OS is the day I stop using mine.

 

[Radon87000]

Eh, the day the iPad runs a desktop OS is the day I stop using mine.

Why so?The Surface is an excellent productivity device if not the best

 

[Isamilis]

I used to use iPad regularly few years ago, but now I use my 6s plus kindle (for reading) comfortably. I used iPad when I attend seminar and need to take notes where usually the desk space is too small for laptop. Other than that, my kids use it for gaming during weekend.

 

[Abazigal]

Why so?The Surface is an excellent productivity device if not the best

Wholly unsuitable for my needs and use cases. Interface isn't optimised for touch, lack of optimised tablet apps, replete with the complexities and problems that come with a desktop OS.

I like that my iPad is essentially a blown-up iPhone. Some people say that as an insult, but to me, that's the whole beauty of the iPad. To me, the iPad continues to represent the best compromise of ease of use, portability and battery life.

 

[ozaz]

useless/crap and pointless.....
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jul/17/ipad-disability-voice-app-quality-of-life
http://www.apple.com/uk/ipad/business/profiles/mayo-clinic/

 

[Zaft]

I will add that my Air 2 is exclusively a home device, I don't really take it anywhere.
Like some have said, its perfect for relaxing on the couch and just surfing, video, reading etc.

 

[ronincse]

So... much... wrong... here

1. Android manufacturers have abandoned tablets? Might want to let companies like Samsung, Huawei and Lenovo know this. Samsung have the best tablet on the market with the Tab S2 and soon to be released Tab S3. The regular iPad pales in comparison on everything from hardware to software (I am not including apps when I say software. I am referring to the OS and Samsungs additions). One reason why I dumped the iPad in favor of the Tab S2. (I can not comment on the iPad Pro.)

2. I've seen plenty of apps not optimized for the iPad. Don't think that Android tablets have this exclusivity. It isn't as much on the iPad, but it still exists. The big problem with this on the iPad is that the apps look absolutely horrendous and pixeled out. In fact, I have run across apps on my iPhone that aren't even optimized for the iPhone 6 or 7 Plus models! They are still optimized for iPhone 5 and below! Scaling is at least present and works relatively well on Android. Not so much on iOS... still to this day!

3. You need to look at your self-fulfilling prophecy without rose colored lenses. There are reasons that iPad sales have been tanking for the last 2 years and marketshare has continued to decline since 2012 (albeit with minor bumps from time to time). One reason is that Apple made a phone that is 5.5" in size (finally admitting that Samsung had it right all along with phablets).
The other is because Android tablets have become better (like the Tab S2 I mentioned and Huawei now getting into the picture) and there aren't many first time buyers of tablets anymore (Android or iOS). The point is tablets in general are becoming less appealing to everyone. Link: https://www.statista.com/statistics/276635/market-share-held-by-tablet-vendors/
And Honeycomb?!? Are you fuc...ing kidding me! That was the worst POS OS ever made! And I'm not even talking by Google. I mean EVER MADE!

4. You need to look around more. Hard to see the forest through the trees when your head is buried in your ideology.

5. Google hasn't abandoned tablets. They are moving towards hybrids (which are the future.) Hence, why we are now hearing about Andromeda.

Ok...how many Android tablets have released this year? Here's Android Authority's best of Septeber list which wasn't updated again. The Pixel C and Nexus 9 are still listed. AFAIK the newest Samsung tablet didn't even get a spec bump from the previous year. Also how much advertising have you seen for Android tablets lately?

I have no idea how you can claim Android has a better tablet experience than an iPad. I'll let this Ars Technica article explain it for me as he's a better writer than I will ever be. Ron over there re visits this subject quite a bit.

I never claimed tablet sales were increasing or not declining. Obviously they are. I'm saying Android tablet sales dropped off way more than iPad sales, which your link shows. I dunno what rose colored glasses have to do with this argument, I have no nostalgia here. I'm not saying Honeycomb was a better OS, I'm saying it was the last time Android was actually designed for a tablet experience.

Ideology? Really? First off I have no loyalty to any brand as IMO that is stupid, one should pick products based on the product not some border-line religious feelings toward one brand or another. Second I have been an Android user from 2009 to last week when I decided to switch to an iPhone. I was also very close this week to returning that and getting a Pixel (you can find that thread on this board) I have had an iPad for a few years since there weren't good Android alternatives but I did use a Nexus 9 for a year, that only made it clear to me that Google doesn't care about tablets anymore. Also I'm still heavily invested in Google products and services, even already pre-ordered a Google Home, so please don't act like I'm some blind Apple follower.

Yeah sure Andromeda...we haven't had anything concrete on this so I think it's still just some internal experiment. I also personally don't see how it would really fit into Google's long term strategy. IMO convertibles are just a stop-gap until the next big shift. As a desktop user myself (been building my own PCs for decades) I don't see desktops and laptops really making it that much longer. This is all speculation though, both my opinion and whatever Andromeda ends up being, so it's all pointless. When we find out if Andromeda exists as a consumer product and then what it actually is we can open up this argument again.