Best 10" Android Tablet

[machrono]

Wife wants new faster tablet. Don't want to buy anything with USB-C. Everyone we know with that has problems and all our current devices are standardized on micro USB, so does anyone have an opinion on what's the best/fastest +/- 10" micro USB android tablet available today?

Bonus if it can be rooted and has custom ROM support.

[sholling]

That's easy, Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 9.7". I have an S2 (love it) and the S3 is supposed to be even faster. The S3 does have USB-C but you can just add an adapter on the end of your microUSB cable. Or buy the older S2 and save a couple of hundred dollars. I went with the S2 precisely because it's cheaper and I don't need any more power than the S2 has however the S2's microSD slot is theoretically limited to 128GB. Again that's enough for my limited tablet needs.

[machrono]

It is confusing a bit because she has a several year old sm-t530nu, which is supposedly the equivalent of the Samsung tab 4, so her initial search was to try to find a tab 5, 6, or 7, etc.!

Would the S2 be appreciably faster (do you think she will notice a difference) over her current tab, and do you have the specific model # of that S2?

Thanks in advance and happy holidays!

[sholling]

It is confusing a bit because she has a several year old sm-t530nu, which is supposedly the equivalent of the Samsung tab 4, so her initial search was to try to find a tab 5, 6, or 7, etc.!

Would the S2 be appreciably faster (do you think she will notice a difference) over her current tab, and do you have the specific model # of that S2?

Thanks in advance and happy holidays!

I'm not sure how your processor compares but I think yours has an older quad-core 1200Mhz processor, 1.5GB of RAM and a 1280x800 display.

I could be wrong but I believe that the Galaxy Tab S2 is two generations newer with an 1900+1300 octa-core CPU, 3GB of RAM, and either 32 or 64GB of storage (+SD Card) and a 2048x1536 9.7" display.

The Galaxy Tab S3 is the latest generation and sports a slightly faster CPU, more RAM, and a much faster higher-resolution display than the S2.

Phone Arena has a comparison:

https://www.phonearena.com/phones/compare/Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-4-10.1,Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-S2-9.7-inch,Samsung-Galaxy-Tab-S3/phones/8406,9385,10420

The best thing to do is get out and give them a try before spending any money.

Just to avoid confusion when you shop, Samsung's low-end tablets are the Tab E series. Their mid-range products are the Tab A series. Their top of the line are the Tab S series, with the Tab S3 their latest and greatist.

[ramathorn]

Huawei?

[sholling]

Huawei?

They make decent products and so does Lenovo, but tablets are a poor selling niche product and few companies put much effort into their Android tablets.

If I were rich I'd buy a top of the line Microsoft Surface Pro Windows 10 tablet but that's $2700.

[MrFancyPants]

Can't go wrong with Samsung. I've had a Galaxy S 8.4 pro for a little over 3 years and it's been great, zero issues with it. Has the brightest and most vivid screen I've ever seen. Very well built. I use it primarily for reading e-books and casual internet browsing, every once in awhile watch a movie. I don't play games on it so speed isn't all that important, but for average use its fast enough.

I haven't had a chance to use the newer Galaxy tablets, but I'm sure they've improved on the one I have.

Sent from my SM-G935P using Tapatalk

[Dan_Eastvale]

For Samsung though USB-C seems to be the new standard.. The new phones have it also. I like it on my Note 8.

[gorn5150]

I bought an ASUS ZenPad 3S 10. It is really nice. And it is a fraction of the cost of a Samsung. It has USB C but I think most high end android tablets will have them. I've had no problem at all with USB C.

[Bushwack44]

IMO (and I'm a bit old school regarding tablets), find a Google Nexus. I bought when new and still streams video flawlessly (plus use for reading and misc internet things). I did recently change the battery after 5 years (it's a DIY - battery cost $79 on Amazon). Granted, its not as responsive as the newer processors available. But once an app loads, it's a smooth runner.

If looking for a new tablet, Samsung owns the market.

[sholling]

IMO (and I'm a bit old school regarding tablets), find a Google Nexus. I bought when new and still streams video flawlessly (plus use for reading and misc internet things). I did recently change the battery after 5 years (it's a DIY - battery cost $79 on Amazon). Granted, its not as responsive as the newer processors available. But once an app loads, it's a smooth runner.

If looking for a new tablet, Samsung owns the market.

I don't recall any Nexus Tablet having a way to expand storage. Mine sure didn't. Frankly a current generation $150 Amazon Fire 10 Tablet runs rings around my old Google Nexus 7. After years of being pretty bad Amazon finally got it right and if you sideload the Google Play Store it's a very credible tablet even if the interface is pure Amazonland.

[Anonreg_89323423]

Bonus if it can be rooted and has custom ROM support.

That's my biggest prerequisite. When you're looking for a tablet, google the model number along with "xda root" in the title to see if there's a forum on xda-developers about it.

[dms1]

I have the Samsung Tab S2 and Tab S3, they both work great. I noticed Frys is still selling the S2 for around $250 and Costco was selling the S3 for $450.00 in the last month. The S3 has USB C port, I have not had any issues with it so far and have also used\tested some USB Micro to USB Type C Adapters and they are working fine as well. Both of my Tablets have 400GB SD cards and have no issues with movies or music on them.

[machrono]

Update: got her the S2. She loves it!!!! Way faster than the old one. Installed TWRP and Resurrection Remix Nougat 7.1.2.