The Android Tablet Problem
I have seen professionals, such as medical personnel and mechanics, carry tablets with them to do whatever work they need to do. In these cases, a larger screen makes sense. Tablets could also be useful for students who need some sort of portable screen to do their schoolwork.
I feel the same way about laptops. For decades, I have known many people who wanted a laptop instead of a desktop computer, but they really didn't need the portability. They just thought laptops were "cool." However, laptops often cost more than desktops and are full of compromises. The components are designed for portability, which means you take a hit in performance, while the keyboard and screen are far worse than what you can get with a desktop.
Portable devices are also almost never upgradeable, even for things like memory and storage.
If I needed a portable screen, then a tablet would make sense, but I don't. I paid around $420 for a 16-year-old 32-bit iPad, and I never got my money's worth out of it. I still have it, but it is so out of date that it won't run anything.
The best tablets, which cost quite a bit of money, can outperform a desktop computer, especially the ones from Apple, which are almost always more powerful than their Android counterparts. However, who needs super-desktop performance in a handheld device? Only people who do high-productivity work, such as video editing, really need that kind of performance. But for this kind of work, why not use a desktop computer?
The low-end iPad (https://www.amazon.com/Apple-iPad-11-inch-Display-All-Day/dp/B0DZ77D5HL) has performance comparable to that of a good-quality laptop and outperforms some older desktops. For the mundane tasks that most people will perform on a tablet, this is more power than they need. In past years, budget iPads have been discounted on Black Friday to around $220, which would be a steal today. I suspect they won't be quite that cheap this Black Friday.
I've seen budget Android tablets that aren't as powerful, but they are less expensive and still perfectly adequate for basic tasks.
When it comes to Apple versus Android, I definitely prefer Apple's operating system. It is more intuitive, far less complicated, and, in my experience, less prone to viruses. I've seen people get viruses on their Android phones. My past experience with tablets is that I also prefer the feel of Apple devices in my hands. They seem to have a better tactile experience.
Amazon makes the Fire line of tablets. Although they retail for $150 or more, they are often half-price on Black Friday, and I paid $80 for mine. The newer models aren't much more powerful than the 2019 model I bought, and their processor performance is poor. However, they were designed for streaming video, listening to audiobooks, and reading books, whether from Amazon or another company such as Netflix. At these tasks, these cheap tablets work amazingly well. They can also play some Android games.
If I needed a portable screen for watching videos, then a Fire tablet would make sense, but I don't. I found mine useful exactly once, when I took it on vacation.
For basic Internet tasks such as web browsing and email, Fire tablets work, but they are slightly slow.
