Which is the best iOS / Samsung / Windows / Amazon Fire tablet to use as digital signage and displays?
Which is the best iOS / Samsung / Windows / Amazon Fire tablet to use as digital signage and displays?
So – you have a new project in hand, where we need to come up with a solution for digital signages, kiosks, or other interactive displays, using a tablet based mounts / enclosures.
Let’s also assume that we’ve found the ideal app / program that we’ll be using. Between all of solutions – which one should we go with? How would we go about the selection process?
Some factors to consider are:
– What operating system (OS) does our App work on?
– Screen Size
– Price & Availabilty
Let’s fully discuss each of these different points below:
1. What OS does our App work on?
The first factor that narrows down the exact tablet we’ll be using is – what OS does our desired app run on?
Based on industry trends, iOS tablets may be a good starting point for building your tablet kiosk, since iPads carries the most number of digital signage, kiosk, meeting room booking, and other interactive display apps available - making iPad mounts & enclosures a very safe choice. However, don’t dismiss Android apps running on a Samsing Galaxy mount or Amazon Fire Enclosure for these types of projects, as they do have a substantial library of apps (often at a less expensive cost), or even Microsoft Surface Go & Pro tablet kiosks - working as a full fledged computer - which have great compatibility with legacy software setups!
For simplicity & breadth of choice in apps, we generally recommend starting off with an iOS tablet if there’s not a fixed choice in the app we’re looking to use yet. Even if we decide on an Android or Windows app – most likely, it will have a substantial equivalent, alternative iOS compatible version. i.e. It is more likely that an existing Android or Windows app would have an iOS equivalent/alternative - whereas it’s less likely that an app that is iOS would have a comparable Android or Windows port.
Furthermore, if our project requirements change in the future / before the project is completed, we can easily “do more” than originally anticipated by simply switching between the tons of iOS digital signage, meeting room scheduling / conferencing, or other interactive kiosk display apps available - making iPad based tablet mounts / kiosks a safe, flexible starting point!
2. Screen Size – How big should the screen be?
For the sake of discussion – let’s assume that we will go with iOS. How do we further narrow down our choices, between the various types of iOS tablets?
To narrow down this list, we ask: How big of a screen does the display need to be?
Here is a general break down of these various tablets, into a few categories:
– 12"+ Sizes
– 9-11" Sizes
– Sub-8" Sizes (e.g. 7", 8" tablets)
If we need a more compact form factor – where space is at a premium, for example – we’ll go with a 7" or 8" tablet mount. Keep in mind that the tablet itself has a bezel, and the tablet mount / enclosure also adds to the total width / height. Fortunately, we can easily figure out exactly how large all of the tablet mounting components are by selecting on the VidaMount we want - then scrolling to the bottom of the page - detailed dimensional diagrams & size details are available for every VidaMount!
Alternatively, if we're not sure, then a popular option is the standard 9-11" sizes – plenty of real estate / space for interactive tablet signage, kiosk, etc.!
Lastly, if we want the tablet display to "pop" and draw attention - or if budget isn't a concern and we want people to interact with the tablet mount / device as much as possible - the 12"+ tablet series would often work best - especially when combined with a custom app running animated, eye-catching graphics!
If we still have a few options in terms of size, then the exact selection may depends on the next factor – Price & Availability.
3. Price & Availability
When choosing a tablet mount, the final tablet choice may be dependent on the budget available. For example – say if we need to go with as low cost of a tablet as possible. While an older generation iPad based mount (since they are older and considered outdated models) or Amazon Fire based mounts may be best to help reduce cost. Older iPads may only be a suitable choice if we needed just a handful or so of these tablets, or if we are able to accept used / refurbished / renewed products - as new / unused versions of older iPad tablets may be hard to come by. For Amazon tablet based mounts / kiosks, the starting price is often the lowest out of all tablet options, but we would sacrifice on performance (more on that here).
Alternatively, for best performance, choosing the iPad "Pro series" of tablet mounts or Samsung Galaxy "S Series" of enclosures may be best – since they feature the most powerful processors to provide the smoothest, most responsive user experience.
For lowest cost – yet new – option, we recommend going with a smaller tablet size. Smaller, 7"-8" variants within the same family of tablets are often less than their larger, 10"+ cousins, and are typically in stock, and ready to ship, in brand new, never used condition.
While these general guidelines for building your own kiosk or interactive display with tablet mounts & enclosures can get you started, nothing can beat the advice of an expert! Do you have a project in mind? Pick up the phone, and call us at: 844-4-KIOSKS / +1 516-499-5050! We’d be happy to help with FREE design assistance, hardware selection, and guide you through the entire process to help ensure your project has the hardware that best fits YOUR unique needs!
Go Kiosks!
Team VidaBox
