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[Eddie73]

It's been my plan for awhile now to buy a tablet for some reading convenience.

Topics on this are a bit old so I'm wondering what the latest consensus is.

Is the Ipad Air 2 still the golden standard? Are any other models just as good now?

Should I be getting something bigger than the 9.7 inch? I told 10-11 inches is the best way to go for reading comics now.

[paw broon]

Eddie, I'm biased, so bear that in mind while reading this.
I use a Samsung 9.7 tablet.  This is a new one and the screen ratio on these is about perfect for comics.  I read comics with perfect viewer, free on the Google store.  Samsung tablets, and a lot of android devices have micro sd card slots and I load up cards so I always have piles to read.  My computer mag regularly says high end android tabs are better value than Apple. That's my suggestion.

[misappear]

Co-incidentally, I use the exact system that Paw Broon is using.  The tablet has both a USB and a micro SD card slot.  I load up stuff from the USB onto the SD instead of using internal drive space.  Each SD becomes it's own library.  Changing cards takes three seconds.

The district where I teach requires iPads.  They are cumbersome, needing updates often.  I have had older apps (like Comic Zeal) develop glitches as older apps lose support.  I have also seen a lot of student machines that have quite literally bent in their "protective" cases.  I don't like the proprietary nature of Apple.

I also use a Lenovo tablet laptop. folding back the screen, I do read a lot of comics on it.  That's more "on the couch" reading because a laptop's battery doesn't come close to a regular tablet. Also, I tend to read CB+ directly from preview versions on the laptop.  It's a really nice size and fit.

I read a lot of Cinebook, and older Dargaud and such.  On either tablet or laptop, I tend to read those landscape. enlarging and scrolling, because the text is generally smaller.

As you probably know, modern comics use much smaller print than GA and SA books.  Hence, I often read a digital copy of a modern comic landscape as well, regardless of machine.  Sixty-three year old eyes can't hack the smaller details, I guess.

[Eddie73]

Thanks, guys. I'll look seriously into an Android, and potentially save myself $200-300.

My reading up on the ipad was that the resolution was significantly better than with Android. Not that that would affect a comic book display. I think the difference would come in if I also wanted the tablet to play video.

... Yes, Ipad Air 2 has twice the pixels:
2,048 x 1,536 px (264 ppi)

Samsung Galaxy Tab A:
1024x768 px (132 ppi)


The Samsung Galaxy Tab A 10.1:
1920x1200 px (224 ppi),

[paw broon]

I hardly ever watch video on my tablet, preferring a big screen tv.  When I'm on the bus or train, I read comics or newspapers on my tablet.
Just a thought on Perfect Viewer.  The app. is very controllable and, like misappear, I also read  foreign g.n.'s and oversize comics - old British weeklies can be much bigger than ga or modern American comics - and reading landscape is a good way to enjoy them.  PV has options to alter the display so you get the most from whatever size you're reading.  There's also a pdf add-on for PV and imo it's the best option for reading pdf comics.
My Galaxy S2 tablet has the amoled display and the only word to describe the quality is, stunning.
Keep us posted on how you get on.

[Comeekz]

If money is not an object, you can view a comic page at almost exactly actual size on an iPad Pro (full size). I just tested it by placing a comic on top of the screen and it fit almost perfectly. Of course you can zoom and out as needed, but it's kind of nice to be able to see a full page just as if you were holding the real thing. The heavier weight can be tiring, however, unless you have it resting on something.

[Eddie73]

A year later and looks like I may finally purchase that tablet.

Great sales for Black Friday.

Between these two options, which do people recommend:

Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 32G $279.99 ($220 off)

Apple - iPad (Latest Model) with WiFi - 32GB - Silver $249.99 ($80 off)

[misappear]

Buy the Android. You can load stuff to a micro card which is just faster and easier than cloud to iPad. At least for me. I

[paw broon]

What misappear said.
As I noted up the page a bit, I'm a bit biased against "i" stuff, mainly because of what  some of the computer mags have to say about them. 
I think the performance of the free android app, PerfectViewer, is so good that it should swing it for you.  And it has a free add-on for viewing comics in pdf format.  Once added to PV it automatically, and very quickly, opens any pdf comic with none of the standard pdf reader gunge appearing.  I'm just now looking at a pdf format comic and it displays exactly as a .cbz comic does.
I'm not sure just how much capacity I've used on the micro sd card in my tablet at the moment but I have so much to read on there, it'll be a while before I change it out for the next one.
I bought a couple of the publisher humble bundle offers and got a pile of tpb's and G.N.'s - some good Dark Horse stuff included - and I'm currently reading early, daily, Rip Kirby stories.  I already have the Spanish language collections, which I bought in Palma, but my Spanish isn't that good, so the daily strip files are great for me.
Let us know what you decide on.

[Eddie73]

Swapping out data cards seems sweet, but not so much of an issue.

It looks like 32G can hold ~500 comics, which is a ton.

And my habits... I don't travel. 80% of time time I'd be reading at home; perhaps 10% one the bus.

So if storage size isn't an issue, perhaps the ipad then.