MST, are they worth the price?

[jnelsoninjax]

I am looking for a new Android tablet, but on a whim, I searched for MST on Amazon, and they have A Surface 10 for $149, I am wondering if that is a good one, I really know nothing about MST's, so feel free to point out things to me.

[Ixion]

It's a surface 2 pro which was a pretty decent Windows PC in tablet form way back when. These days it will struggle with heavy lifting as it's a 5th Gen Core i5 with limited RAM and storage. As long as you go into it with your eyes open it's a pretty decent price for an older piece of hardware which will run lightweight apps on Windows 10 competently.

[jnelsoninjax]

OK, I was mainly thinking of using it for music and videos, would it work for that purpose?

[Ixion]

Should be fine with 1080p (the screen resolution) although it would probably struggle with 4k or more modern video codecs such as h265 which it'll be software decoding, Just think of it as a circa 2013 laptop rather than as a tablet and you'll be in the right ballpark, more capable than most cheap tablets around this price point for sure.

[Jim K Global Moderator]

$150 for a ten year old device.  Unknown battery condition...and the SP2 is a major PITA to swap batteries (1 out of 10 on ease of repairability according to ifixit).

I would just wait for black Friday to see if you can snag some deals.  For example, the Samsung Tab A8 is about $20 more ... A9 should be releasing soon.  Yeah, they're Android but if you're just watching videos/listening to music....

[Good Bot, Bad Bot]

On 06/11/2023 at 09:05, Jim K said:

$150 for a ten year old device.  Unknown battery condition...and the SP2 is a major PITA to swap batteries (1 out of 10 on ease of repairability according to ifixit).

I would just wait for black Friday to see if you can snag some deals.  For example, the Samsung Tab A8 is about $20 more ... A9 should be releasing soon.  Yeah, they're Android but if you're just watching videos/listening to music....

This is the right answer. 

Why do want to spend $149 for a 10 year old, used device that will lose software support in two years and will be slow? An Android tablet is a better idea. The best option for a tablet* is an iPad and is $249 right now (9th gen) --> https://www.amazon.com/2021-Apple-10-2-inch-iPad-Wi-Fi/dp/B09G9CJM1Z/ This will get updates for about four years yet.

*I say this and my iPad is the only Apple product ever owned.

Edited November 6, 2023 by Good Bot, Bad Bot

[jnelsoninjax]

I will not buy anything Aooke, I can't stand them. I just need something to play movies, read ebooks, listen to music, etc. while I am flying home.

[Brandon H Supervisor]

On 06/11/2023 at 14:09, jnelsoninjax said:

I will not buy anything Aooke, I can't stand them. I just need something to play movies, read ebooks, listen to music, etc. while I am flying home.

As far as tablets go, Apple iPads really are hard to beat; especially when you find a good deal on one. They stay stable and get long updates compared to anything else in the tablet space (besides chromebooks)

But hey, not going to push against personal preference. For the most part, I'm with Jim. Be on the lookout for a good black friday deal for something newer. Samsung is king in the Android space when it comes to tablets, everything else is basically junk or old IMO.

Personally I have a Lenovo Duet and love it for simple tasks. It's a chromeOS tablet with included removable keyboard, similar form factor as Surfaces. https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Chromebook-2000x1200-2-Snapdragon/dp/B0C5V7YVLF/
Note: I have the original 2020 version, and the 2023 model has only improved things while still being decently priced IMO.

[Mockingbird]

Surface Pro 2 has a 4th gen Core processor and at least 4GB RAM.

It can easily run Windows 10.

Even a PC with 1st gen Core processor and 4GB RAM can easily run Windows 10.

Edited November 7, 2023 by Mockingbird

[Mockingbird]

On 06/11/2023 at 04:08, Ixion said:

It's a surface 2 pro which was a pretty decent Windows PC in tablet form way back when. These days it will struggle with heavy lifting as it's a 5th Gen Core i5 with limited RAM and storage. As long as you go into it with your eyes open it's a pretty decent price for an older piece of hardware which will run lightweight apps on Windows 10 competently.

I have a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro which has the same specs as the Surface Pro 2.

It runs Windows 10 (and even Windows 11) like a breeze.

I don't know why you think it would struggle.

Edited November 7, 2023 by Mockingbird

[Ixion]

On 07/11/2023 at 00:10, Mockingbird said:

I have a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro which has the same specs as the Surface Pro 2.

It runs Windows 10 (and even Windows 11) like a breeze.

I don't know why you think it would struggle.

I was going by my similar generation uiltrabook which I've recycled for use by my youngest as a school laptop it's fine for browsing and basic stuff but lacks the hardware decoders for 4k streaming and I know MS Teams for example alongside anything else is a struggle. I guess it's all relative as I'm used to using a high end desktop day to day!