It’s pretty obvious now that the tablet has become a “must” purchase. Along with the high powered computer and the latest smartphone, a good working tablet may be the one piece or the ultimate status symbol missing from your digital device collection. There are a lot of options out there for the perfect tablet. There are a lot of devices, operating systems, app markets and I’ll say it, hacks, to make your tablet work for you.

The Gang of Four

I’ll make the statement that there are four major tablets that are popular today. Though each have varying degrees of popularity, they are all produced by the biggest companies today and have a lot invested into them. Apple has the iPad, Google has the Android based tablet, Amazon has the Kindle and Microsoft has the Surface.

If you have not been living under a rock for the past couple of years, you should know that the iPad and Android based tablets (Nexus, Galaxy) are the kings of the tablet world. The Kindle and the youngest incarnation, the Surface, bring up the rear. All of the aforementioned devices are top notch machines, but before you decide on purchasing one, you will have to commit to more than a machine -- but a lifestyle.

An example of this is the iPad, Apple’s foray into the tablet market and quite possibly the most popular tablet in the market today. But much like the iPod and the iPhone, using the iPad requires becoming a user of the iTunes store. It is required to purchase apps/movies/music, update operating system software and to sync apps, music, movies to your desktop and other devices. It is truly what you see is what you get -- you can’t really work around Apple infrastructure to improve your iPad. All improvements and upgrades available for the iPad must pass through Apple’s strict guidelines and approvals -- so there really isn’t a burgeoning hacker or after market mod developing community. If you want a clean app market and operating system, go with Apple.

The Android based tablet runs on varying releases of their operating systems. The Google Nexus and Samsung Galaxy Tab are examples of these. For apps and other media, Google Play is the market similar to that of iTunes. Android is quite developer friendly to the degree that there is aftermarket firmware community that creates mods and optimizations to make the Android run faster and efficiently. Cyanogenmod is an example of this type of firmware -- while it does offer the opportunity for customization, it does push the limits of the devices. It is a fascinating feature of the Android but use it with precaution and a little knowledge of the system.

Kindle and Surface bring up the rear. Start with the Surface: it runs on Windows 8 and it has a keyboard. But for now, that’s it -- it also offers a blossoming app market. Microsoft has already had a delayed start in the tablet race but their device has plenty going for it with USB enabled ports and a lower price.

As for the Kindle, it runs on the Amazon app market, which is much smaller than iTunes and the Android market. But, the Kindle can run Android apps. This can be done by rooting the device, which disavows the warranty or you can download an applicable app that runs an Android market app. From there, you can download and run a YouTube app (the Amazon app store nor the Kindle have a dedicated Youtube app), Google Play and Google Chrome. They don’t run perfect (you can’t log in with your Google account) but you can use YouTube with Chromecast. It’s simple and interesting which at first may only be fitted for e-book readers but it is turning into a customizable and hackable device.

There are a lot of choices of tablets out there. A lot of people swear by the iPad and Apple’s software but some want to customize and get their hands “dirty” with mods and customization. Find out what works for you and what capabilities and apps you need.

Image credit: Siddartha Thota on Flickr