I enjoy tech gadgets, and I tend to have quite a few of them. I have a variety of computers, a Flip video camera, a Verizon Mifi, and I change phones fairly often. With that in mind, people are often surprised I don’t have an iPad, so I thought I’d explain why.
The iPad
First off, the iPad is great! I’ve used them before, they’re amazingly slick, and some of my favorite apps like Evernote and Nozbe look awesome on there. There is no doubt that right now the iPad is the best tablet out there. If I had to buy a tablet today, I’d certainly get an iPad.
Android
The holdup is Android. I had an iPhone for a few years, but for most of that time I knew I’d switch to Android eventually. I use Gmail a lot, and I knew that Gmail on Android would be far better than the mail app on iPhone — and I was right. However, I was sticking with iPhone until a few things happened on Android:
- Waiting for improvements to the Facebook app. At the time, it was awful.
- Waiting for the release of the Evernote app.
- Waiting for the release of the Dropbox app.
- Waiting for some kind of better Twitter app.
Eventually, all of those were met and I’ve moved over to Android and I’m (probably) never coming back.
DroidPad?
It’s been no secret that there are Android tablets coming out, and we even saw a few last year (like the Samsung Galaxy Tab). However, they just weren’t very good. I could have picked up an iPad at that point, but it would have been just like when I had an iPhone — counting down the days until there was a decent Android alternative. The time has finally arrived.
The Motorola Xoom
For quite a while, I thought I’d be moving to a Notion Ink Adam. It had the potential to be an awesome tablet, but it’s had shipping delays, screen problems and a host of other minor issues that held me back.
While I was debating whether or not to pre-order an Adam, news of the Motorola Xoom came out and my decision was made. Despite a somewhat higher than anticipated price, the Xoom looks to be an amazing tablet. You may have seen their Super Bowl ad, which clearly took some shots at Apple:
As with the phone, email is the killer app for me. The Xoom has a crazy-good Gmail app, along with some impressive email widgets. All in all, it should be a great machine.
It’s expected to be released on February 24, so look for a full review sometime after that.
Do you have an iPad? Are you waiting for a Xoom? Do you think tablets are a waste of money? Share your thoughts in the comments.
