The GSMArena tablet buyer's guide: February 2015

Full-sized tablets

Finally we come to the big boys - the tablets exceeding 9" in screen diagonal. This is where the behemoths live and where users with demands for the largest screens reside. As usual we'll list devices starting with the cheapest and moving our way up the ladder until we reach the best there is.

The first name in this section is the Asus Transformer Pad TF103C. It commands the lowest price among our chosen list of tablets and for a little extra offers a dock complete with a battery of its own. Otherwise the Asus Transformer Pad TF103C isn't very inspiring in terms of specs. It has a good Intel Atom Z3745 with a dual-core 1.86GHz processor, a 10.1" IPS LCD display but only 1GB of RAM and a low resolution of 1280 x 800px that's stretched rather thin over the display canvas.

For the money the Asus Transformer Pad TF103C is great, but generally we'd look for higher resolution options at this display size.

The Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ is next up and is the cheapest FullHD 10" tablet to be found. It manages this by using a lowly Snapdragon 400 chipset which isn't up to par with most of the competition in this guide.

The Lenovo Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ has a good display and an innovative design with a 3-stage kickstand that allows the slate to stand on a desk. There are also two speakers under the display that project frontal stereo sound.

Finally the price for the Wi-Fi only version of the Yoga Tablet 10 HD+ has gone down slightly. There's also a 3G unit available but that has gone up in price, so those looking to stay connected outdoors better look elsewhere.

An old fan-favorite the Asus Memo Pad FHD10 is getting long in the tooth but still has a lot to offer. It uses a 1920 x 1200px display and offers all the goodies a good tablet should - stereo speakers, storage expansion and an adequate chipset. This tablet also offers LTE but that model has gone up in price since last time we visited.

The Memo Pad FHD10 is also well priced at the moment, making it a competitive option on the market. Keep in mind that the slate doesn't have its own stand or keyboard dock and is pretty heavy to balance for prolonged periods of time.

Samsung's excellent Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 deserves a mention too. It has a very high-resolution display and all the bells and whistles of a high-end full-sized slate - stereo speakers, great chipset, expandable storage, 8MP camera, great battery life and is attractively priced at the moment.

It's in line to receive Android Lollipop but even as it is the Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro 10.1 has a very capable software package, geared toward great productivity with Samsung's Multi Window which is even more useful on such a big display.

The last mention in this category for Android is the Asus Transformer Pad TF701T - this is Asus' high-powered transformer tablet with a 2560 x 1600px display stretching over 10.1 inches. The Tegra 4 by Nvidia handles processing and has a potent GeForce mobile graphics card for high-end gaming.

The shortcomings of the Transformer Pad TF701T are the lack of LTE, the lack of Android Lollipop (so far) and the fact that the slate is cumbersome without its dock. But the price for the tablet alone is worth it and, if you need to, adding a dock to the package isn't that expensive.

Finally we come to what many consider is the best full-sized tablet around. We won't get into that debate but there's no point in denying that Apple have the best-seller on their hands. The Apple iPad Air is a year old but shows just how good Apple is at making tablets - the screen (which uses specs that are 3 years old) is great, the body is among the slimmest at this size and there's a quality A7 chipset running the show.

The Apple iPad Air is streamlined with a great aluminum body that's just 7.5mm thick. Apple has managed to accommodate stereo speakers and a 128GB option into the tight spot. Then there's Apple's iOS 8 which runs as smooth as you'd like and also offers a superb app catalogue that's tailored specifically for the iPad Air's display. As with everything made by Apple the iPad Air suffers from low customizability as well as no option to increase the built-in storage, aside from paying a premium for the next bigger variant. The iPad Air has gotten cheaper since last we saw it, though.

And at long last we arrive at the Apple iPad Air 2. It's more expensive than its predecessor but makes up for it with an even slimmer and lighter body, a TouchID home button, better camera, laminated display (meaning better viewing angles and lower reflectivity), a brand-new chipset which we found is among the best in the world and, if you insist, a golden color option.

What we like about the iPad Air is further improved on the Air 2 but the drawbacks are the same - non-expandable storage, costly storage upgrade and limited productivity features and customization options.

The Apple iPad Air and Air 2 aren't the best tablets when it comes to connecting with other devices but if you live entirely in Apple's ecosystem they are easily the best tablets you can buy.