Best 7" Android for <$150?

[Todd33]

I want to get my son one but not spend a lot. These are what I see on the market.

Nexus 7 (old) - ~$140 no SD, no HDMI, Tegra 3 16GB. This is the baseline IMO.

Hisense Sero 7 Pro - $150, like the Nexus with SD and HDMI. SAme Tegra 3. Walmart

Dell Venue 7 - $150, 2GB RAM, SD, Atom x86 (worried about compatibility)

Nook HD - $130, no cameras, low end dual core

Anyone have a Venue and know how they perform? Anything I miss?

 

[Commodus]

I'd look at either the ASUS MeMo Pad HD 7 or Hisense Sero 7 Pro. Neither is blazing fast, but they'l certainly be quick enough.

 

[s44]

Hisense Sero 7 Pro - $150, like the Nexus with SD and HDMI. SAme Tegra 3. Walmart

Huh, the screen seems to be IPS.

There's an insane refurb deal at eBay/Newegg.

Dell also has the Venue 8 on sale for $130+tax.

 

[Todd33]

I'd look at either the ASUS MeMo Pad HD 7 or Hisense Sero 7 Pro. Neither is blazing fast, but they'l certainly be quick enough.

I corrected my list, I had the Sero there misspelled. The MeMo looks interesting, it will have the same x86 worries as the Dell and it is a bit above my cost threshold.

Edit: Amazon has a typo on the MeMo, it says Celeron, but the reivews are all ARM A7, and pretty bad benchmarks.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I'm torn between the Nexus 7 2012 and the Dell Venue 7 (or 8).

The Nexus 7 has Nexus going for it. I think it's the only tablet with Android 4.3 and is in the process of getting updated to Android 4.4. Android 4.3 adds TRIM that helps maintain performance. And pure Android usually runs better as well.

The Dell Venue 7 and 8 are brand new Android tablets. They are the only ones with 2GB of RAM in this budget category, which I think will help the tablets stay relevant longer. Also the Z2560 seems to be better performing than the Tegra 3 and worse SoCs these other tablets are using. I haven't heard any bad things about compatibility.

I don't like the Sero 7 Pro because it only comes with 8GB of storage. It has micro SD, but still a lot of apps will only install on internal storage and you get only about 5GB out of box.

The 7 inch MeMo HD is a lowly Mediatek A7 processor yes (the 10 inch version has the Atom). I don't think this is worth buying.

 

[Joe1987]

I'd get this refurb 2nd gen n7: http://www.ebay.com/itm/12121913700...5337259887&campid=5337259887&afepn=5337259887

New: http://www.ebay.com/itm/ASUS-Nexus-...d=100011&prg=1005&rk=1&rkt=5&sd=360795472797&

 

[Ravynmagi]

NT

 

[jhansman]

I picked up the Nook HD because for $80, I figured it would do whatever I would want from and 7 incher (including BT and an micro SD slot). If I keep it (coming on Friday) and once the warranty expires, I'll probably put CM10.x on it, or whatever is the hot full-blown Android experience. Looked at the Nexus 7, but couldn't cough up the cash.

 

[Oyeve]

I have the Memo HD 7" and dig it. Its nit blazing fast but the screen is decent and its fast enough for me. The mSD slot is a major plus IMO. Its been playing all the latest games just fine and the HD screen is pretty damn good.

 

[Todd33]

I ordered the Dell and will test it out and decide if I will keep it. I'm mostly worried about 3D performance and game compatibility, it is for my kid.

Thanks for the feedback guys. Keep them coming.

 

[Channeledbymodem]

I picked up the Nook HD because for $80, I figured it would do whatever I would want from and 7 incher (including BT and an micro SD slot). If I keep it (coming on Friday) and once the warranty expires, I'll probably put CM10.x on it, or whatever is the hot full-blown Android experience. Looked at the Nexus 7, but couldn't cough up the cash.

This +1. Nook HD with CM on the emmc is my favorite tablet of the several I own.

 

[Nec_V20]

I would take a look around for a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0

I have had one for over one and a half years now and it is solid. The specs aren't good on the screen but everything else about it is simply strong and robust like Wifi, Bluetooth connectivity etc.

Back in the day I chose this tablet over the Google Nexus 7 (2012) because the deal-breaker for me was the SD slot.

With the release of the Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 you should be able to pick one up really cheap.

 

[Oyeve]

I would take a look around for a Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0

I have had one for over one and a half years now and it is solid. The specs aren't good on the screen but everything else about it is simply strong and robust like Wifi, Bluetooth connectivity etc.

Back in the day I chose this tablet over the Google Nexus 7 (2012) because the deal-breaker for me was the SD slot.

With the release of the Galaxy Tab 3 7.0 you should be able to pick one up really cheap.

I had a tab 2 7". I went with a memo HD 7" and gave the Tab 2 7" to my son for 2 reasons, one, the Tab 2 7" got real slow and two, the proprietary charger sucked. The memo HD uses standard musb and is faster and fairly cheap now.

 

[notposting]

Fwiw, a buddy of mine picked up the Asus Memo pad at Microcenter for $99 the day before Thanksgiving. Giving it to his 8 year old daughter for Christmas. Seems plenty fast enough, responsive screen, etc.

I think as long as you get a "name" brand that is somewhat respectable you should be fine (ie, not the no-name $50 jobbies you will see on sale over the holiday season).

 

[Nec_V20]

I think as long as you get a "name" brand that is somewhat respectable you should be fine (ie, not the no-name $50 jobbies you will see on sale over the holiday season).

It is one of the banes of my existence, people coming over with something they picked up "as a bargain" but it isn't working properly and ask if I could fix it.

My usual reply is, "The only way I am going to fix that piece of no-name cr@p is with a hammer and plenty of heft".

If they have bought it locally I go with them to the store and get it replaced with something that us usable.