Stop Buying $1,000 iPads to Play Solitaire
Stop Buying $1,000 iPads to Play Solitaire
"I see this every week. A senior walks into a shop, and a sales kid—or worse, their own grandchild—convinces them they need the new iPad Pro. It has an M4 chip! It has a LiDAR scanner! It costs $1,200! And what do they do with it? Play Solitaire and check the weather." — Chan
You don't need a Ferrari to drive to the grocery store. If your main use for a tablet is reading the news, watching Netflix, and video calling the grandkids, you are wasting about $800 by buying the 'Pro' model.
Here are the two tablets I actually recommend to my friends who want value, not marketing hype.
The 'Value' Choice: Amazon Fire HD 10 (2023)
The Good
Incredible value ($139), perfect for Kindle books, Prime Video, and basic browsing. Very durable plastic build.
The Bad
Uses Amazon Appstore (no Google Play Store out of the box), shows ads on lockscreen unless you pay to remove them.
The 'Real Computer' Alternative: Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+
The Good
90Hz smooth screen (easy on eyes), 4 loud speakers, full Android experience with Google Maps/Gmail.
The Bad
Charging speed is slower than premium tablets. Face unlock can be finicky in low light.
Chan’s Forbidden Rule
Never let a salesperson talk you into 'cellular' data for your tablet unless you travel daily. You have Wi-Fi at home. You have Wi-Fi at the coffee shop. You don't need another $20/month bill just to check email in the car.
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