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Originally Posted by Matt D

You said "I'd say get one of the Samsung Galaxy Tab varieties". At the moment, that's just the 10.1, as the 7.7 isn't out yet it would seem. No date or no price from what I can find.

You only mentioned the new generation when saying at the end "Not to mention the far superior AMOLED high-def screens on the latest models. "... which as previously mentioned is only on the as yet unavailable 7.7.

Well the Galaxy Note and Galaxy Tab Plus also have it. And a few others. But yes, they're not widely available yet.

The 10.1:

Yep, already said it has the same CPU but more RAM. What you missed off your list though is that it has an inferior GPU. Personally, I'd rather have the GPU than the RAM. The iPad 2 doesn't suffer from the lower RAM, but definitely benefits from the superior GPU.

I disagree here. I'd rather have more RAM. None of my Galaxy devices have any issues with graphics despite the slower GPU. I have however, crashed a few iOS devices owing to lack of RAM. Interestingly, despite the slower GPU, the Tab still plays 1080p video while the iPad doesn't. Why? Only Apple would know...

Better connectivity? How so? Like the iPad, it has a proprietary dock connector and requires an adaptor to use SD cards and an adaptor to use an HDMI cable.

Better wifi, better 3G, better bluetooth.

Higher resolution screen? True, but not by anything you could call a significant amount (like iPhone 4 compared to earlier iPhones and other smartphones, or Nexus Prime compared to all other smartphones. OK, phones not tablets, but you see the difference).

So iPhone 4 is significantly higher resolution than other smartphones that have 960x640 (0% increase) or 960x540 (18% increase) while the difference between the Tab and the iPad 2 (30% increase) is not significant? Lovin' the logic of an Apple fanboi...

The only reason it's a higher resolution is because the Tab 10.1 is 16:9 while the iPad 2 is (sadly for videos) 4:3.

Yet the resolution is higher in both dimensions.

Format support? Solved by a variety of apps. HD videos without converting to .mp4? Solved by a variety of apps.

So you lose the only real reason to get an iPad - ease of use - because you have to install a ton of apps and convert your videos to get them to play. Aside from the easy-to-use interface, tell me one thing the iPad (2) can do that any cheaper Android tablet can't.

Cameras? True, but... who cares? When would anyone ever want to use a tablet to take photos? It's not suited for planned photos, it's not suited for spontaneous photos. If someone's at a wedding, a party, on holiday, at the zoo, out on a Friday night, or wherever, whatever, etc. etc. they'll surely use a dedicated camera or a camera phone. Who would ever whip out a tablet to take photos? The only use for cameras on a tablet,

So as long as a feature matters to you it matters to everyone, and if the iPad loses on something it becomes "who cares"? To be honest more people care about the camera than they do about 512 vs 1GB RAM or 1.0 vs 1.2Ghz CPU. Cameras are one of the headline features of portable smart devices these days.

IMO, is for video calling / chatting...And the iPad 2's cameras are perfectly fine for that.

IMO they're not. VGA resolution might have been fine for video calling ten years ago. But that doesn't explain the other camera on the other side of the device, which can't be used for video calling. And if nobody uses the camera, why do things like this exist:

http://www.sw-box.com/Tourmate-Optic...d-2-Black.html

(Ridiculous as it may be)

Flash? LOL. Again... who cares? The overwhelming majority of tablet consumers don't, as they all have iPads (which will hopefully help drive the decrease of the use of Flash in general). The iPad 2 does not need Flash for BBC iPlayer (app, website), 4oD (app), ITV Player (app), YouTube (app, website), live streaming Freeview TV (app, website), Sky/BBC/C4 news (apps), Sky Go (app), Facebook games (app) etc. ... What other uses are there for Flash? Adverts? I don't want to see those. Browser games? I don't play those. Sure, some do, but it's hardly a loss and there are some excellent games on the App Store. Flash based websites? Abominations... I have never missed Flash when using my iPad, and tbh I rarely - if ever - even use it on my PC.

I care. Somehow my opinion is worth less than yours? Yes, the majority of major sites have, thanks to Apple's marketing clout "mobile" version of sites designed for iPad or iOS devices. But some don't. Take speedtest.net for example. The the web version requires flash - there's an app but it's significantly inferior (accuracy wise) to the flash web version. I don't like m choices being restricted by what a now-dead person once thought I should or should not be able to do with my property. I make my own decisions, thanks.

Incidentally most speedtest sites that are any good use flash or java. Neither of which the iPad has. And no, in most cases the app version is far inferior (that includes iPlayer and Youtube).

Just because the overwhelming majority of people are lemmings with low standards doesn't mean everyone has to be. Some of us can think for ourselves.

Phone calls? Why would anyone want to make calls with a tablet? Wouldn't it be a bit big? OK, use a handsfree kit, but... why? I wouldn't want a second mobile number for my tablet, and I wouldn't want to have to faff around swapping the SIM from my phone into my tablet and vice versa.

Why not. Why carry two devices around when you could just have one. Isn't that the point of all these convergence smart devices that do everything? Why carry a second device just to make phone calls with? If my tab can do everything my phone can (which the Galaxy series *can*) then you don't need to waste another half a grand on an iPhone. But then again, some people like wasting money like that.

Plus of course there are more iPad apps available than Honeycomb apps. OK, Honeycomb tablets will also run non-tablet Android apps, but then again, the iPad will also run non-iPad apps.

Far more free apps on Android though. In fact, I don't think I've ever had to pay for an app. Even Angry Birds is free. Yes, iTunes has a bigger app market, and they also cost more. You can still get the same thing... for less on Android.

Oh and I guess you forgot how I mentioned as a media device, the Galaxy wins in just about every respect. So basically for what the OP wants (web surfing and playing HD movies in MKV or XviD):

For movies:
Galaxy Tab has 10% worse quoted battery life to iPad (Tab loses)
Galaxy Tab has HD display, iPad 2 doesn't (Tab wins)
Galaxy Tab has plays XviD and MKV out of the box, iPad 2 needs additional apps for both (Tab wins)
Galaxy Tab plays 1080p videos. iPad 2 can't cope with 1080p MKV at all (and needs them downconverted) (Tab wins)
Galaxy Tab has widescreen display, iPad 2 is 4:3 (Tab wins)
Galaxy Tab has stereo speakers (if you're stuck without externals). (Tab wins)

Dunno about you but the main clincher for me would be waiting an hour for each and every full-HD MKV video you have to be converted into an iPad-compatible format. That would bug me more than anything else. With the tab you just copy it straight on.

For web browsing:
iPad has a 4:3 ratio, ostensibly better for reading (Tab loses)
iPad browser is locked down, Apple does not allow alternative browsers. Tab lets you use any browser you want, including ones that support Flash (Tab wins)
iPad and Tab have similar browsing longevities under WiFi (Draw).
Galaxy Tab has faster and more power efficient 3G radio (Tab wins)
Galaxy Tab has faster and more efficient Bluetooth (if you want to use an external modem for your internet). So whether you get one with or without 3G, Tab wins on speed and battery life with anything but wifi.

So... For what the OP wants, Galaxy Tab - 9, iPad 2 - 3.