What is an android tablet device

Tablet

A tablet may refer to any of the following:

1. A tablet, tablet computer, or tablet PC is a mobile computing device designed to be held in one or two hands. It is approximately the size of a hardcover book (seven inches or bigger), and resembles a large smartphone. The picture is an example of the ASUS Nexus 7 Android tablet.

Tablets let you do many of the same things as a traditional computer. They can browse the Internet, connect to social network apps, and display HD videos. They excel at applications that do not require a large amount of precise user input.

Early tablet devices used light pens or a stylus as their input device. However, today all tablets use a touch screen as their primary input device with the option to connect external devices, such as a keyboard. Most tablets only have a few physical buttons; the back, power, and volume buttons. Everything else can be done using your fingers.

Today, the top two operating systems used with tablets is Apple iOS used with iPads and Google Android used with Android tablets. A tablet can have apps installed on it to perform a function. For example, the Safari app on iPads is the browser that allows you to browse the Internet. On Android tablets, the Chrome app is often the default browser.

History of the tablet

The concept of a tablet was first sketched by Alan Kay while at Xerox in 1971. Since then, there have been many iterations of tablet devices, including the PDA, a predecessor to the tablet. The first successful tablet and the tablet most of today’s tablets resemble is the Apple iPad, which was first released in 2010.

See our tablet computer history page for a more complete history of tablet computers.

Is a tablet a computer?

Yes, a tablet is considered a computer. Although a tablet uses a specialized operating system and input devices, it shares many similarities with a traditional computer.

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2. Microsoft Tablet PC is a term coined by Microsoft when they introduced a specification and edition of Windows XP called the Windows XP Tablet PC edition. Microsoft Tablet PC allowed handwritten recognition and a Windows computer to be used with a Pen (Stylus).

The Tablet PC edition could not be purchased by itself, but did come pre-installed on Tablet PCs, such as the HP TC1100 tablet PC. With the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2, the Tablet PC edition became part of Windows XP.

3. A tablet is an alternative name for a graphics tablet.

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Android Tablets

Android is customisable, easy to use and works perfectly with all your favourite apps.

Get more done and have some fun

Ready when you are

All your music, photos, documents and Gmail are there waiting for you as soon as you sign in to your Google account.

From work to play

Get things done and entertain yourself from anywhere. Easily and quickly switch between creating and editing documents, browsing the web, watching films and listening to music.

A tablet that listens

Use your voice to get things done. Say “OK Google” to ask a question, send an email, set a reminder, get directions or whatever you need to do.

Your apps are all here

Choose from over 1.3 million apps on Google Play. Plus, your favourite Google apps are already on your device, easy to access and run smoothly.

Apps Carousel

Explore a selection of Android applications that you can use to make your Android phone, tablet, wearable, auto console and television one-of-a-kind. Use the previous and next buttons, as well as the keyboard arrows, to change the displayed item.

Get more out of your Android tablet

Turn your mobile device into a portable Wi-Fi hotspot and share its Internet connection with up to 10 other devices at once.

Open your device’s Settings menu. Under “Wireless & networks”, touch More > Tethering & portable hotspot. First make sure that you set up your Wi-Fi hotspot under “Set up Wi-Fi hotspot” and then select the box next to “Portable Wi-Fi hotspot” to start sharing your data connection.

Easily switch between activities with the Overview button that can be found to the right of your Home button in the navigation bar at the bottom of your screen.

Because photos are automatically backed up and synced to the cloud with Back up & sync, you can take a selfie from your phone and tweak it on your tablet.

Open the Photos app, touch the menu button and select Settings. Touch Back up & sync and then switch on back up.

Open the Photos app on your tablet, select a photo and touch the pencil icon to start editing.

Get the information that you want when you need it most with Google.

To view the Google Now cards that are waiting for you at any time, open the Google app and scroll down to see all of your cards.

With multiple user accounts and guest modes, you can share your device with others while keeping your personal stuff safe and sound.

You must be the tablet owner to add users. To add a new user, open your tablet’s Settings menu and under «Device», touch Users. Touch Add user or profile, then touch User and finally touch OK. Touch Set up now if you’re with the new tablet user. If not, touch Not now and complete setup later.

On Android 5.0 Lollipop, pull down the notification bar and tap the round icon of the current user on the top right. Select «Guest» to switch to the guest account, and when they’ve finished you simply switch back.

Google Play helps you to bring your iTunes library or locally stored files to your Android devices and the web so that you can access your music anywhere.

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What Is an Android Tablet?

Here’s what you should know before buying an Android tablet

If you’re thinking about buying a new tablet, you have many choices, including the Apple iPad, Amazon Fire, and hundreds of Android tablets. If the number of available apps is important to you, consider an Android tablet that uses the Google Play Store. Here’s everything you need to know before you invest in a new Android tablet.

Information in this article applies broadly to Android tablets made by different manufacturers (Google, Samsung, Lenovo, and others).

Android Tablet Cost and Other Considerations

There are many things to consider before you buy a tablet, including the processor, display size, camera, and amount of RAM it has. While high-end Android devices like the Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 can cost several hundred dollars, there are budget tablets under $100. Still, the actual specifications matter more than the price tag, so you should know what to look for.

Not All Tablets Have the Latest Android

The Android mobile operating system is mostly open-source, which means anyone can download it and design a device around it. That’s why there are many devices with Android or variations of it, and why many phone manufacturers (Apple excluded) make Android devices.

The array of Android manufacturers means there’s no standardization in the Android world. Thus, it’s common to find new tablets that run an Android version that is one or two releases old.

In 2020, the latest version is Android 10. A device with an older version will work fine, but it won’t have access to the latest apps and features.

Not All Tablets Connect to Google Play

Because anyone can make an Android tablet, some manufacturers use the mobile operating system to build a different platform. This means they choose whether to include the Google Play Store, the official app store for the Android operating system.

Amazon’s popular Fire devices, including Fire tablets, are based on Android but don’t have access to the Google Play Store. Instead, these devices use the Amazon Appstore. It’s possible to install the Google Play Store on a Kindle Fire, but that requires advanced technical knowledge.

Make sure the tablet you purchase has access to the apps you want.

Some Tablets Require a Data Plan

Android tablets can be sold as Wi-Fi-only ​or with 3G, 4G, or 5G wireless data access. These tablets are often sold at a discount in exchange for a contract with a cellular service provider, just like phones.

Read the fine print when you check the price to see if you’re committing to two years of payments on top of the price of the device. Also, check to see how much data is included in the plan. Tablets can use more bandwidth than phones, so you’ll need a plan that expands if you need more data.

Is a New Model Coming Soon?

Before you buy a new Android tablet, find out if a newer version is due soon. If you like or need the new features offered by the next model, wait for that one since it may be available at about the same price. If you don’t need those features and are happy with the current model, wait for the price to drop following the new release.

Beware of the Modified Android

Just as device makers are free to modify the Android user interface on phones, they’re also free to modify it on tablets. Manufacturers say this sets their products apart, but there are disadvantages.

On devices with a modified user interface, such as the HTC Sense UI or Samsung One UI, apps may need to be rewritten to work properly, which means you’ll wait longer for OS updates.

Also, when someone shows you how to do something on Android, it won’t always work the same way for a modified version.

Android Accessories, Features, and Capabilities

Your tablet’s manufacturer plays a role in the types of accessories and features it supports. For example, Samsung is one of the largest manufacturers of Android devices. When someone makes a case for Android devices, they usually consider Samsung first. Samsung also has a strong ecosystem around its products, with exclusive apps, integration with smart devices, and wearable tech such as Samsung smartwatches. A smaller manufacturer probably won’t be able to offer as much support.

Consider the other devices you own, as well. Maybe you want to control your smart TV from your tablet, but the Samsung tablet you’re looking at doesn’t integrate well with your LG TV. Look for a tablet that is compatible with your other devices.

If you want to install apps outside of the Google Play Store, make sure you can root your Android tablet. Rooting, also known as jailbreaking, provides access to all the settings on the device. While this is easy to do on most devices, some manufacturers make it impossible.

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What is Android and what is an Android phone?

10th February 2014

Android is now a decade old and the most popular mobile operating system in the world. You’ll find it on mobile phones, tablets and even on TVs and in cars. So what actually is Android? Here’s all you need to know about Google’s mobile OS.

Here we’ll help you to understand what Android is, what it can actually do, what are the best Android devices you can get, how do you use Android apps and plenty more besides.

What is Android?

Android is a mobile operating system which is found on a variety of modern devices, the most popular being smartphones. On top of that, you’ll also find Android on tablets, TV streaming boxes and other portable gadgets.

Android is basically a piece of software which allows your hardware to function. The Android OS gives you access to apps, including many of Google’s own creation. These allow you to look for information on the web, play music and videos, check your location on a map, take photos using your device’s camera and plenty more besides.

Without Android, none of this would be possible.

Android phones are highly customisable, so they can be altered to suit your personal tastes and needs. For instance, you can set your own wallpaper, themes and launchers, which completely change the look of your device’s interface. You can download new applications to do all sorts of things like check your Facebook and Twitter feeds, manage your bank account, order pizza and play games.

How to get started with Android

Check out our guide on how to set up an Android phone, for an idea of what you’ll need to do to get started. One of your first tasks will be to create a Google Account (or sign in with an existing one). This gives you email functionality and also provides a great way to backup your contacts, save your files online and so on.

The benefit of this is that if you lose your phone, all of your numbers and important data will be saved. The next time you get an Android phone (or other device) and sign in with your Google Account, all of your contacts and numbers will be displayed in your new phone’s address book immediately. No need to transfer them over or back them up anywhere else.

In fact, you can sync your personal info across all kinds of Android devices. This includes favourite websites, calendar entries and purchased apps. This is all backed up seamlessly, in the background.

What apps can I get on an Android phone?

There are millions of apps and games available to download from the Google Play store (formerly Android Market). There are camera apps that allow you to take pictures with artistic effects and music players which allow you to stream songs from the web or create playlists. You can customise the appearance of your Android handset with a number of wallpapers based on pictures you’ve taken yourself or downloaded from the internet too.

An example of a widget on the home screen of an Android phone. This one lets you access music playback from Spotify without having to open the application.

There are also various on-screen widgets to download which allow access to, and the alteration of, settings on your phone, without the need to dive through menus as you would on non-Android devices. You can pretty much create your own system of shortcuts and menus to better suit how you uniquely use your phone.

You can also download a huge range of games for your Android phone to keep you entertained on the go. Here are our favourite Android games of all time.

Asphalt Overdrive is a simple to play, tricky to master racing game.

How can I download apps onto an Android phone?

The majority of apps can be downloaded from the Google Play store (the equivalent of Apple’s App Store), which includes a mix of free as well as ‘premium’ apps that you have to pay for. Some apps have ‘lite’ versions which are free, in the hopes you’ll enjoy them enough to upgrade to the full premium version. Others – like Pokémon GO – are free but include adverts or the ability to make in-app purchases.

The same account that lets you backup your contacts can also have financial details added to it, giving you the ability to purchase content from the Google Play store directly. You can pay either by debit or credit card and initial setup takes less than five minutes from a computer.

Although there are well over a million apps available to Android users in the Google Play Store, some developers choose to make their apps available to download from their own sites or alternative app stores. In order to download them, you have to change some settings on your phone before visiting these sites on your Android device’s web browser. By downloading apps outside of the Google Play Store, you do run the risk of attack in the form of data theft or by leaving yourself more susceptible to viruses, so be careful if you choose this route.

Should you upgrade or change your Android phone; log into your Google account and you’ll be able to download your previously owned apps again, without being charged. In recent years, Google has expanded Google Play to offer more than just apps, with books, magazines, music and movies available for purchase and download in much the same way too.

Who actually makes Android phones?

Any handset maker is free to make an Android phone if they want to. The likes of Motorola, HTC, Samsung and Sony, Acer, Alcatel, Asus, Huawei, LG and ZTE have all made Android phones (and tablets). Blackberry has put out several Android phones since 2015, including the Priv and the KEYOne. And Nokia is enjoying a resurgence in 2017, thanks in large part to its new Nokia 3, 5 and 6 phones which run Android OS.

Does Google make any Android phones?

Although Google owns the OS (Android), the company has not made any of the smartphones on which it runs in-house (it did make the Android-powered Pixel C tablet in 2015). However, it has partnered with various handset manufacturers over the years to make its own-brand smartphones under the ‘Nexus’ name.

[From left to right] Google Nexus One (HTC), Google Nexus S (Samsung), Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Google Nexus 4 (LG), Google Nexus 5 (LG), Google Nexus 6 (Motorola), Google Nexus 5X (LG), Google Nexus 6P (Huawei), Google Pixel (HTC), Google Pixel XL (HTC)

Google’s Nexus phones were typically the first to receive new updates and were considered to be the flagship Android phones, even though some other Android devices sported larger screens, better cameras and more powerful hardware.

In 2016, Google shelved the Nexus brand name and replaced by launching two new phones called the Pixel and Pixel XL. For all intents and purposes, these new phones enjoy all the same benefits as the Nexus devices did and are essentially the spiritual successors to the Nexus line.

You can expect to see some new Pixel 2 phones in 2017.

Android updates

Google is constantly working on new versions of the Android software. These releases are infrequent; at the moment Google is releasing a big Android update once a year. Check out our handy, comprehensive guide to every Android version out there.

Versions usually come with a numerical code and a name that’s so far been themed after sweets and desserts, running in alphabetical order.

• Android 1.5 Cupcake
• Android 1.6 Donut
• Android 2.1 Eclair
• Android 2.2 Froyo
• Android 2.3 Gingerbread
• Android 3.2 Honeycomb – The first OS design specifically for tablets, launching on the Motorola Xoom
• Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich: The first OS to run on smartphones and tablets, ending the 2.X naming convention.
• Android 4.1 Jelly Bean: Launched on the Google Nexus 7 tablet by Asus
• Android 4.2 Jelly Bean: Arrived on the LG Nexus 4
• Android 4.3 Jelly Bean
• Android 4.4 KitKat: Launched on the LG Nexus 5
• Android 5.0 Lollipop: Launched on the Motorola Nexus 6 and HTC Nexus 9
• Android 6.0 Marshmallow: Launched on the LG Nexus 5X and Huawei Nexus 6P
• Android 7.0 Nougat
• Android 7.1 Nougat: Launched on the HTC-made Google Pixel and Pixel XL
• Android 8.0 Oreo: Rumoured to be launching on the Google Pixel 2 and Pixel XL 2

The latest public version, Android Nougat, makes the OS even faster than ever with a feature called ‘instant apps’. It also offers improved battery life with Doze on-the-go and adds native VR support. Here’s what’s changed between the different Android versions.

When does Google announce new versions of Android?

As previously mentioned, Google tends to put out a fresh new version of Android once a year (although minor updates roll out constantly).

When it comes to Android, Google often releases a beta version in the first half of the year. This often coincides with Google I/O, a big developer event held annually around May. At Google I/O we usually find out more about the new Android update, including the best features and any UI improvements.

Like Android phones, Android tablets come in all shapes and sizes. These can range from the 7-inch screen of the Asus-made Google Nexus 7 to far larger displays, such as the 10-inch display found on the Nexus 10.

Somewhat confusingly, some older Android tablets; like the original Samsung Galaxy Tab, launched running Android 2.2 Froyo – a version of Android designed for phones, whilst Android 3.0 Honeycomb was the first release of the OS specifically for tablets.

Older Android tablets which didn’t run on 3.0 Honeycomb couldn’t benefit from things like the redesigned YouTube app, improved widgets and certain tablet-specific apps like SwiftKey for Tablets.

This fragmentation between Android phones and tablets was eliminated with the launch of Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, which was designed to operate on either type of device and scale accordingly. Android Jelly Bean introduced a number of improvements for both the smartphone and tablet experience over the likes of ICS (Ice Cream Sandwich) and that trend continues with the latest release, Android 7.0 Nougat, which brings features like split screen support to the table.

Do Android updates cost anything?

Android updates are free to download and install. Updates bring a number of new features and changes to Android each time. Generally, with each update, the speed and overall performance of Android is improved upon.

Most of the high-end Android phones are scheduled to receive updates first. Most Android phones will have at least one update during their life cycle, with some having two. A life cycle is usually around 18 months, but depending on the phone this can be longer. These updates differ from app updates, which are smaller, incremental releases for individual applications installed on your Android device.

How do I update my Android device to add new features?

Android updates are normally received OTA (Over The Air), that is, sent directly to your Android phone without the need for a computer. Normally, once your Android phone or tablet is due to get an update, you’ll see a notification in the bar at the top of the screen. You’ll then be prompted to connect to WiFi to avoid incurring extra data charges – updates can be quite big and downloading them over a mobile data connection isn’t advised as it may result in expensive data charges.

Updates are generally one-stage processes and relatively straightforward, but in some cases, you may need to backup/save any media (photos, movies, music) or apps you’ve downloaded before updating.

When beta versions of Android are announced, you can download them early to any recent Google-branded phone (e.g. Nexus or Pixel handsets). Right now Android O is available to download in beta. Here’s how to update your Android phone, for everything you need to know.

How can I change the look and feel of my Android phone desktops?

Android phones from the likes of Huawei, LG and Samsung all sport a very different look and feel to the stock Android found on Google’s own Pixel phones. That’s because each manufacturer tends to add their own software overlay to Android, known as a ‘launcher’, which changes the design of the home screen, additional desktops, app logos and so on.

Luckily, if you feel like refreshing your Android phone’s software design, it’s incredibly easy to pull off. Just check out our guide to changing your Android launcher to learn how.

What is Android TV?

As the name kind of suggests, Android TV is based on the same Android software found on mobile phones but tweaked to work on TV streaming devices. For example, the Nvidia Shield TV runs off Android TV. This smart box connects to your telly and offers you full access to apps, games and the web. You can even perform searches for all kinds of content.

Check out our complete guide to Android TV for all that you need to know.

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