In light of the recent events in China where a 17 year-old boy reportedly sold his kidney to pay for an iPad 2, we thought it might be fun to entertain a similar proposal for an Android tablet. Let’s be clear, as much as we love tech there’s not a chance we’d condone this type of behavior. Here’s your top three reasons not to sell your kidney for an Android tablet.
1. There’s 60 new Android tablets arriving this year
Unlike the world of Apple where there’s a single tablet, updated yearly, Android tablets are a dime a dozen. Literally, there’s dozens of Android tablets being announced each month and if you’re having a hard time choosing today — wait until the end of summer. Not only are there a seemingly endless number of tablets, but Android’s greatest asset is pushing the hardware envelope, leading to cutting edge components in each revision. Android delivered the world’s first dual-core smartphone and it’ll likely deliver the first quad-core tablet.
2. Best pricing requires a contract
The complete tablet experience begins and ends with a mobile data connection. Using your smartphone as a mobile hotspot is nice, but GPS capability in the car transcends the tablet from novelty to necessity. Google, without a doubt, has the best free turn-by-turn navigation solution on the planet, Google Navigation. Unfortunately, without a GPS receiver and data connection, a WiFi-only Android tablet will fail to deliver the goods. This brings us to the dilemma — carrier contracts.
In order to land the best pricing on that 3G-enabled (soon to be 4G) Android tablet, you’ll need to sign up with a contract. SIM-free pricing, while possible, is a tough sell considering competing netbooks and entry-level laptops offer better performance and smaller dents in your bank account. With dozens of Android tablets and a trend for cutting-edge hardware, a two-year commitment seems like an eternity in the world of mobile technology.
3. Resale value
If you’re still not convinced handing over a kidney for an Android tablet is a bad investment consider this: the Motorola Xoom 32GB WiFi-only edition, released only a month before the iPad 2, is readily available for under $500 via Buy It Now auctions on eBay. Meanwhile the iPad 2 16GB WiFi edition sells, on average, for $550. The equally match 32GB iPad 2 sells for $650, used. Knowing there are an endless stream of Android tablets, likely packed with better features, faster processors and more memory, does not sit well. In the resale market this spells trouble. As much as we hate to praise Apple, the premium price its products command extends to a higher resale value. If a kidney is at stake I’d at least want a year of certainty my tablet was the best tablet available.
We’ve hope you enjoyed this insightful look into the world of Android tablets. As much as we’ve poked fun, the truth of the matter is Android tablets are leaders in hardware innovation. For that reasons alone, you can rest well knowing a manufacturer with something bigger and better is down the road. It’s nice to have options, don’t you think?
