Android-Apple-Microsoft

I would avoid the Windoz based strictly on that all Windoz systems are more vulnerable to viri/hacks/etc.

The android tablets we have are generally safe, we got an MS-Office compatible ap for them from the Google-store.

I haven't used an iPad, but Apple tends to keep their OS locked down well enough the vulnerability should be low. I would be very surprised if there is not MS-Office compatible ap for iOS (but I have never looked either)

Choosing for my wife, it was her choice, not mine. She liked the Apple iOS devices her grandchildren had already taught her to use, so got her an iPad for her last birthday when she could no longer handle a laptop in her bed, and she used it for the rest of her life.

Internet access, email, Facebook, movies. For reading, she stayed with the Nook she got two years before, liked that better than the Nook or Kindle app on a heavier tablet.

The brand new Dell Venue Pro 8 has Windows 8.1 with MS Office. It is currently priced at $299 list from Dell, but it can be had right now for $240 from Microcenter. I have several tablets (iOS and Android) and am looking forward to evaluating Windows 8 on one as it's the only logical HW for that version of Windows.

The Kindle Fire HD might be a good choice if you are doing a lot of book reading. My wife loves hers and she does her Facebook stuff and surfing as well.
If you see posts from someone using any kind of a take-off of the Windows names (Windoz, etc.) they are just likely Apple fanatics.

X2 Consider one of the Kindle E books first, then an Android based Tablet second.

My wife and I both have NextBook Android tablets that we use for reading and Internet access, among other uses. I prefer Android so I can run the same apps on my smartphone. Our e-reader app of choice, for instance, is Moon+ Reader Pro, and we download mostly free or low cost books from Amazon and other sources, including our library service. I use a program on my laptop (Calibre) to convert book formats as needed, and then automatically send them to the tablets using DropBox. Moon+ Reader's DropBox support also automatically synchronizes my current reading position on the tablet with my phone, and vice-versa. Very handy...

Bill.Satellite wrote:
The Kindle Fire HD might be a good choice if you are doing a lot of book reading. My wife loves hers and she does her Facebook stuff and surfing as well.
If you see posts from someone using any kind of a take-off of the Windows names (Windoz, etc.) they are just likely Apple fanatics.

Or spent 30+ years working in the industry

I use Apple, Windows, and Android devices. For browsing, videos, email, etc, any of them would work fine. I would focus in hardware. For Android, the Samsung products have a great reputation. I have used Polaris Oftice and been able to read and make small edits on Office files. I have a 2nd generation iPad which serves me very well. You can buy a refurbished one from Apple with full support and warranty for $200, but (and I can't say this enough) the productivity apps like Numbers and Letters (excel and word knockoffs) are no where near as good as the Microsoft originals. I can read anything with minor formatting, but editing is a real pain. I would be able to tell you about Microsoft tablets, but everyone was sold out by the time I got there today :( . However, the responses seemed to be pretty good when I asked about it on this forum.

n7bsn wrote:

Bill.Satellite wrote:
The Kindle Fire HD might be a good choice if you are doing a lot of book reading. My wife loves hers and she does her Facebook stuff and surfing as well.
If you see posts from someone using any kind of a take-off of the Windows names (Windoz, etc.) they are just likely Apple fanatics.

Or spent 30+ years working in the industry

Not really. If Apple was really that good they would not only have a 20% market share. The Windows platform is excellent, dependable, easy to learn and use and has more software available than any other platform. Only if you drink the Apple Kool-Aid can you not acknowledge this.

Bill.Satellite wrote:

Not really. If Apple was really that good they would not only have a 20% market share. The Windows platform is excellent, dependable, easy to learn and use and has more software available than any other platform. Only if you drink the Apple Kool-Aid can you not acknowledge this.

So by your line of reasoning, market share trumps quality?
So, GM is better then Mercedes?
Fleetwood is better then New Horizons, Excel, etc

Yes I intentionally listed companies that had a large market share and went bankrupt or had to be bailed out at large expense.