Problem with tablets -- and this includes all of the Android tablets, the iPad, and the Kindle Fire -- is they suck outdoors and they are relatively fragile. Tablets are attempting to do things like replace books and magazines, which you read in bathtubs, on the beach, or outside on a lawn, and they suck in all of those places.
An accidental drop or a little sand or water will turn them into a doorstop, and their displays wash out outdoors. If you want to use one to doodle or draw, their screens are generally not accurate enough -- and even if they were, they typically don't come with anything to draw with.
The Panasonic ToughPad (there's even a 7-inch mini version coming), while much more expensive than an iPad, addresses all of these problems.
It is semi-hardened so it will survive drops or getting wet, and it will shrug off sand. It has a high nit (very bright) non-glare display for outdoor use, so it will work well everyplace except in the brightest of direct sunlight -- and even there you can still see the screen -- and it comes with a built in stylus you can use for drawing.
Besides the display, it has some other decent features that the iPad lacks. It has built-in 4G with a hotspot router that lets you connect your friend's iPad to the Internet, a MicroSD slot for memory expansion, and a micro HDMI to connect to a display or TV. And, of course, it is military specification certified.
Until a product ships in the U.S. with a transflective display -- like the Qualcomm Mirasol (apparently now shipping in Asia) -- and is hardened to boot, the Panasonic ToughPad is my own gold standard for a tablet. I like being outside, and that makes the Panasonic ToughPad my product of the week. This is the product the guys in The Expendables (fun movie by the way) would likely carry.
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