[pete6032]

EDIT - I guess I should consider the Kindle Fire as well.

Trying to decide between the two for my parents. I own a touchpad but have never used a playbook so...

They are somewhat tech illiterate. My mom just switched to a qwerty phone and she hates it. My dad has a feature phone and can use it OK.

Some things my parents would use a tablet for
Web browsing
Email (they don't have Blackberries and have comcast and yahoo email)
Going on vacation and emailing back photos
Reading the news
Maybe using it as an e-reader on an airplane
Pretending they were hip because they had one but not using it all that often

Some things they would never use a tablet for
Games
Calendar
HD video
Work/productivty features
Multitasking
Surfing youtube
Skype or other video/audio chat
Downloading tons of apps
Going to a coffee shop and using it for hours on end

Other considerations
My dad has trouble reading smaller text sometimes, is the playbook screen really that much smaller for web browsing?
Neither has ever used a touch-screen keyboard before
The operating system must be as intuitive as possible or they will not use it

[howarmat]

Do you know you can get a touchpad even? There wont be many on the market if any at all except for ebay. At $199 or less on ebay, its hard to beat what you get with the playbook based on what you have listed.

The UIs are similar in some respects so i doubt they would have much trouble with either.

The playbook does a pretty good job rendering text in most situations and should be easy to ready even being smaller. What "e reader" would they need? Kindle or Kobo, pdfs?

[Snafufubar]

iPad.

10 chars.

[robsteve]

The emailing of photos will be problematic unless they were taken by the PlayBook, as there is no way to get photos off a camera and onto the PlayBook directly.

[pete6032]

I looked into the iPads and they're out of my price range. As far as e-reading goes, they don't have any dedication at this point but it would be nice to set up an account for them with amazon or nook or something like that.

[Foreverup]

I looked into the iPads and they're out of my price range. As far as e-reading goes, they don't have any dedication at this point but it would be nice to set up an account for them with amazon or nook or something like that.

if thats the case i say go with the kindle fire or just the kindle reader the you only have to setup one account for them. the playbook you have to setup multiple accounts with the different stores. the kindle will be a lot easier to manage for you.

Sent from my BlackBerry 9810 using Tapatalk

[Chrysalis1156]

I use Kobo for my books & love their Playbook reader. You can set the background to black and the text to white (and set the font size) and it's so easy to read. The Playbook can do the things they WOULD do with it and so much more (with the noted exception of having to load pics from a camera other than the Playbook's, via a computer). The UI is easy to get the hang of. If I were you I'd probably try to find a store with a few tablets up & running and go try them out. I wish you luck & think you're awesome for taking care of your parents.

[Spencerdl]

How about this suggestion...take them with you when you go to purchase or just simply ask them which type of tablet best suits their needs and wants with a description of each, easily found on any of the respective websites.

[jafobabe]

You know your parents more than any of us do, so as spencerdi said.... take them with you and let them test the different ones out, or be there with them and use the internet websites to show them each one.

They may surprise you and know more than you think..

[kennyliu]

They are both decent tabs. The biggest difference is the size. The Touchpad is a dinosaur compared to the Playbook. It is probably one of the biggest and heaviest tabs. But the big size comes with a bigger and somewhat higher (vertical) resolution screen, which your parents may find more comfortable to read on.

The UI is almost the same, but I find the TP to be noticeably more sluggish than the PB. Especially, the browser.

[mikeplus1]

You could take them to a store to try them out, but they will likely want either the iPad or the Kindle, or possibly the Nook. Might as well save the time and trouble (not to mention money), get the Kindle.

[kbz1960]

As far as the pb goes the UI is so easy a caveman could do it. I do however wear my reading glasses while using it. I would have to use them for any 7" screen. The rest I don't know.

[pkcable]

As a playbook fan on I almost hate to say this, but I would suggest the Kindle also. It's VERY easy to use and does most of what they need. The only thing missing would be the camera. The playbook would work also and over all is a better device but there would be a learning curve for them. And ipad is another great choice since it's extremely easy to use, but tons of folks can help them since SO many folks have them. Perhaps you can find a used ipad that is in your price range.

[moegumby]

None of the above, iPad all the way. No future in touchpad or playbook

[madman0141]

I believe mikeplus1 is correct. Take them to the store and let them decide. You never know they may like something completely different.

[JamesDax3]

None of the above, iPad all the way. No future in touchpad or playbook

Careful. I just got a warning for trolling and apparently had my post deleted for recommending the iPad, kindle fire, or Nook Tablet.

[Hawnz]

New HP Touchpad 32g available at Woot for $249.99. From experience with my mother, while the Playbook was fine, she liked the larger screen of the iPad. The weight of the Playbook was a tad too heavy for the size. I would.go for the larger screen.

[Gooseberry Falls]

Better jump on the Woot TP. They only last a day or until sold out. New is pretty unusual:
Woot� : One Day, One Deal
Since you have one, you can show them, which is an advantage. No real OS support, however, unless you convert to android.

The PB interface is pretty nice though. You can always pinch to zoom if text is too small. The 7in form factor is really portable. OS should be getting a few more updates at least.

[moegumby]

Careful. I just got a warning for trolling and apparently had my post deleted for recommending the iPad, kindle fire, or Nook Tablet.

Not trolling, just answering truthfully. Can't see investing in an infrastructure that won't be around long. iPad is established and apps to support it. I have used BB's for years and bought a playbook on launch day. Just sold Playbook, os2 and still empty promises, can't recommend to anyone. Sorry, truth hurts sometimes. Rim did it all wrong and still can't deliver the goods, touchpad? Touchpad who?

[mikeplus1]

New HP Touchpad 32g available at Woot for $249.99. From experience with my mother, while the Playbook was fine, she liked the larger screen of the iPad. The weight of the Playbook was a tad too heavy for the size. I would.go for the larger screen.

TouchPad (26 oz) weighs even more than the iPad 2 (21 oz) or 3 (23 oz) and nearly exactly the same size, but this is nearly twice the weight of the Kindle (15 oz) or the PB (15 oz) and only about 2" smaller in width and height dimensions. All are roughly the same thickness except the iPad is about 0.1" or so thinner maybe. The extra 2" in overall size makes it a little more difficult carrying it around for everyday use in my experience and my PB goes everywhere with me while my larger tablet gets left at home where I have a laptop and a PC already.

Better jump on the Woot TP. They only last a day or until sold out. New is pretty unusual:
Woot� : One Day, One Deal
Since you have one, you can show them, which is an advantage. No real OS support, however, unless you convert to android.

The PB interface is pretty nice though. You can always pinch to zoom if text is too small. The 7in form factor is really portable. OS should be getting a few more updates at least.

Might as well get an Android then if thinking of converting? I still say PB is best build quality and 7" form factor for portability is a sweet spot for me, but Kindle for those that do not need/want camera (everybody I know has a digital camera that beats what comes on any tablet anyway) and want/need simple UI which makes it great choice for some. I recently bought the Kindle for my sis-in-law who has a work issued BB phone and one for my aunt that loves to read books but never owned a smartphone and they both just love them because they are so convenient to take on trips or to just read in bed at night, etc.

[saudadeii]

I looked into the iPads and they're out of my price range.

What is your price range?

[Hawnz]

TouchPad (26 oz) weighs even more than the iPad 2 (21 oz) or 3 (23 oz) and nearly exactly the same size, but this is nearly twice the weight of the Kindle (15 oz) or the PB (15 oz) and only about 2" smaller in width and height dimensions. All are roughly the same thickness except the iPad is about 0.1" or so thinner maybe. The extra 2" in overall size makes it a little more difficult carrying it around for everyday use in my experience and my PB goes everywhere with me while my larger tablet gets left at home where I have a laptop and a PC already.

Might as well get an Android then if thinking of converting? I still say PB is best build quality and 7" form factor for portability is a sweet spot for me, but Kindle for those that do not need/want camera (everybody I know has a digital camera that beats what comes on any tablet anyway) and want/need simple UI which makes it great choice for some. I recently bought the Kindle for my sis-in-law who has a work issued BB phone and one for my aunt that loves to read books but never owned a smartphone and they both just love them because they are so convenient to take on trips or to just read in bed at night, etc.

The weight of the Playbook is too heavy for my mother to hold for long periods. That is why I said for its size. She uses the iPad with a stand.

As for the Kindle, when I did try it, found the screen and videos a bit jerky. But, that was in November.

[anthogag]

Your parents would love the playbook. It's really easy to use.

You probably mentioned multi-tasking as something they wouldn't do...because your experience with other tablets gives you this impression...with the playbook it's so freakin easy to switch between running apps...you could call it 'happy tasking'

Pinch to zoom on the playbook is really smooth.

Web browsing is excellent. Pair the playbook with an OS7 BlackBerry (3G+ phone on 4G network) for fast internet and email ANYWHERE

Being seen with the playbook would make them hip

[mikeplus1]

The weight of the Playbook is too heavy for my mother to hold for long periods. That is why I said for its size. She uses the iPad with a stand.

As for the Kindle, when I did try it, found the screen and videos a bit jerky. But, that was in November.

I use a convertible case with my playbook most of the time, so you could say that I also use a stand and I completely understand. Kindle Fire is not bad with videos, but does not compare with ipad or even playbook in my limited experience.

[smartie88]

EDIT - I guess I should consider the Kindle Fire as well.

Downloading tons of apps
Going to a coffee shop and using it for hours on end

Other considerations
My dad has trouble reading smaller text sometimes, is the playbook screen really that much smaller for web browsing?

If your dad has trouble read smaller text, might be 10 inch tablet is better.for parents,portable is not a big concern. I would rather focus on bigger screen and ecosystem