These overachieving tablets made me fall in love with the slate kind issue

It is honest to say that in as we speak’s large-screened smartphone and thin-and-light laptop-dominated market, pill computer systems are in a little bit of a bind. For the reason that starting, pill makers have tried to carve out a distinct segment for the shape issue, with combined success over time.

Personally, I am an enormous fan of tablet computers. They supply a large digital canvas for content material consumption, inventive workflows, and, more and more, for productivity-based tasks. Handsets and notebooks, against this, are restricted by their small dimension and their devoted keyboard decks, respectively.

It is unclear what the long-term future may have in retailer for the pill computing scene, nevertheless it’s honest to say that the product class has up to now been endowed with a wealthy historical past. Listed here are 5 tablets which have left a serious mark not solely within the client tech area, but in addition in my private slate-loving life.

1 Apple iPad 2 (2011)

What a distinction a 12 months could make

Pocket-lint / Apple

iPad 2

Apple’s iPad 2 introduced quite a lot of advances over the unique iPad, probably the most notable of which being a significnatly thinner and lighter exterior design.

The original iPad is arguably probably the most iconic pill of all time, owing to its touch-first interface paradigm and mobile-first working system. That being mentioned, it is the iPad 2 that modified the sport not just for Apple, however for pill computing at giant.

At 0.34-inches (8.8mm) in depth, and 1.33 lbs (601 g) in mass, the iPad 2 was shockingly skinny and lightweight for its time. As a direct sequel to the unique game-changing iPad, the iPad 2 showcased the potential for the pill kind issue to shock and awe in its thinness

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2 Microsoft Floor Professional 3 (2014)

The slam dunk that Microsoft wanted

Pocket-lint / Microsoft

Floor Professional 3

The Professional 3 was Microsoft’s third-generation try at constructing a Home windows-powered pill below its Floor model identify, and it helped to cement the now-popular 2-in-1 PC kind issue.

When Microsoft launched its first-generation Floor pill {hardware}, reactions have been combined. The {hardware} was seemingly unrefined, Home windows 8 was head-scratching to navigate, and the third-party cell app scenario appeared reasonably bleak.

The Floor Professional 3, then, was a milestone launch for Microsoft. It was this third-generation try at constructing a Home windows-based slate that lastly ticked all the correct packing containers. The internals have been lastly power environment friendly, the design and exterior construct have been perfected, and it turned clear that the corporate’s 2-in-1 PC system was right here to remain.

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Again in 2012, Google teamed up with Asus to launch the Nexus 7, a mini Android pill – as we speak, I am nonetheless holding out hope for a Pixel Pill Mini.

3 Asus / Google Nexus 7 (2012)

Compact tablets are endlessly charming

Pocket-lint / Asus / Google

Nexus 7 (2012)

Google’s first try at crafting a mini-sized Android pill, the 2012 Nexus 7 was constructed by Asus and featured a 7-inch show, an Nvidia Tegra 3 processor, and 1 GB of RAM.

There was a time frame wherein mini-sized tablets have been all the trend. Google capitalized on the early hype surrounding 7-inch slates by partnering with {hardware} maker Asus and constructing the now-iconic Nexus 7.

At launch, the Nexus 7 was pretty unremarkable from a {hardware} perspective, however its buttery-smooth interface, constant Android replace cadence, and engaging $200 (roughly $277 adjusted for 2025 inflation) price ticket made the tab an immediate hit available on the market.

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4 Apple iPad Professional (2018)

The very best pill redesign of all time

Pocket-lint / Apple

iPad Professional (2018)

Apple’s 2018 iPad Professional got here in each 11-inch and 12.9-inch sizes, and served as a serious pill redesign with symmetrical bezels and a boxier feel and look.

Apple has been constructing Professional-level iPad fashions since way back to 2015, however every part modified with its third era mannequin in 2018. This specific mannequin served as a serious redesign, sparking the development of angular chassis radii, rounded show corners, and uniform, symmetrical bezels.

The 2018 iPad Pro was so forward of its time from a design perspective, that Apple did not really feel the necessity to change it in any significant approach till the discharge of the seventh era Professional in 2024 — a full six years later.

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5 Google Pixel Pill (2023)

A pill that dares to do issues in another way

Pocket-lint / Google

Pixel Pill

The Google Pixel Pill was launched in 2023 and gives Gemini AI together with sensible dwelling integrations. These make this a forward-looking pill and provide flexibility in its use.

The most recent pill on this record, the Pixel Tablet, is a reasonably distinctive system. Google has had its arms within the pill market for a few years now, with each Android-based Nexus slates and ChromeOS-based Pixel tabs launched in years prior.

With the Pixel Pill in 2023, Google took a novel strategy — it shipped a mid-range pill with a devoted speaker dock accent within the field, and marketed the system as an at-home way of life accent. I applaud the corporate for tackling the age-old difficulty of pill juice draining whereas on standby, and for making the show helpful at any and all instances of the day.

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