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Consumer Reports ranks iPad top among tablets

by Dana Franklin Apr 5th 2011 at 3:00PM

Consumer Reports on iPad 2Apple's iPad 2 is king of the tablets according to a comparative review released by Consumer Reports (CR) today. The publication's lab evaluated 10 of the "most-promising" tablet devices from Apple, Archos, Dell, Motorola, Samsung and ViewSonic. The 32 GB iPad 2 with Wi-Fi plus 3G (US$729) scored Excellent in most of the 17 testing criteria, beating the second-ranked Motorola Xoom.

"So far Apple is leading the tablet market in both quality and price, which is unusual for a company whose products are usually premium priced," Paul Reynolds, Electronics Editor at Consumer Reports said in the publication's press release. "However, it's likely we'll see more competitive pricing in tablets as other models begin to hit the market."

Notably, the iPad 2's strongest rival, the Motorola Xoom, tied with Apple's original iPad for second place. Critics admired the Xoom's 10-inch screen and extra conveniences, like a built-in memory card reader, support for Adobe Flash content and 4G wireless upgradability. Meanwhile, the iPad 2 trounced the competition in battery life, surviving 12.2 hours while looping a video clip. The inexpensive Archos 70 Internet Tablet landed at the bottom of the ratings.

The caveat-free, top-ranking results for the iPad 2 are a welcome departure from the publication's recent (and befuddling) stance towards Apple's mobile products. The iPhone 4 from AT&T and Verizon each received CR's best ratings. Even so, the publication recommended avoiding Apple's latest iPhones, citing signal attenuation issues caused by placing a finger over the gap between the device's outer antennas. Rather than revise its testing criteria to account for the "death grip," the independent buying guide simultaneously praised and pummeled the iPhone 4 with an it's-the-best-but-don't-buy-it ranking.

Fortunately, the iPad 2, which doesn't rely on antennas in the same way as its smartphone cousins, won its crown without any tarnishes. It's yet another reason to go out and buy one.

[via Boy Genius Report]



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Apple's iPad 2 is king of the tablets according to a comparative review released by Consumer Reports (CR) today. The publication's lab...
 

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Emil

"... the iPad 2, which doesn't rely on antennas in the same way as its smartphone cousins, ..."

I think you need to check your facts - the iPad 2 3G relies just as much on antennae as does the iPhone 4.

April 06 2011 at 7:06 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to Emil's comment
Dana Franklin

The key words are "rely" and "in the same way."

Certainly, the iPad *has* antennae in it. But, the iPhone is, well, a phone. Disrupting the 3G signal could cause a call to drop in areas with poor signal strength. I am not sure users would notice fluctuations in 3G signal strength on the iPad in such a frustrating way, if at all.

April 07 2011 at 10:53 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
zeeko30

Consumer Reports is worthless and has been for many years. Please stop giving them publicity.

Yes the iPad is the best tablet to buy now....but if you want to know why read sites like Engadget and Gizmodo for real reviews.

April 05 2011 at 5:17 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Randy

Consumer Reports is for losers. Who gives a crap what they think?

April 05 2011 at 3:50 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
2 replies to Randy's comment
bluemonq

Apparently TUAW does.

April 05 2011 at 4:26 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
tdowling

The AARP crowd, mostly

April 05 2011 at 5:47 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Billy Mabray

Just to be clear: Two of their favorite things about the Xoom (SD card slot, 4G) are things they couldn't possibly have tested because they don't work yet.

There's that solid investigative journalism we've come to expect from Consumer Reports.

April 05 2011 at 3:35 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
3 replies to Billy Mabray's comment
jonathan ober

I'm sorry...but as an iPhone owner since day 1 in 2007 and two iPads now is no support for Flash really still a caveat which the bar is lowered too? I haven't been on a website that when I got there was like, well this would be better with animations and flash running on the site. I actually don't miss it. I am a website designer/developer. I have made a living over the past 8 years developing UI for various companies and corporations...yes I even made flash sites...but I also made those stupid Flickering/Moving Text. But we aren't (typically) still using that out dated code. So perhaps instead of whining about Flash not being supported understand something...times change...Apple sees it as changing, heck even Adobe is starting to 'wise up'. Isn't it time that the rest of us realize that when Apple gets rid of something or stops supporting it, the rest of the world goes that direction. Remember the mouse? We all ended up using one to some extent then they got rid of the buttons on mice, the cord, and with the trackpad, to some extent the mouse all together.

I can't wait for the day when ANALyst start reporting the iPad or next i'Whatever' as great because it was the future, dropping some outdated, legacy format that Apple saw fit to end early on it's iDevices and did it first.

April 05 2011 at 3:30 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
1 reply to jonathan ober's comment
arsenal6

html5 suppose to rule the as3-based world

April 06 2011 at 12:54 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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