Ever since the Apple iPad was released in 2010, the tablet has made a huge impact on the computing world. Never before were people able to carry a compact computer with a touch screen and do their work. The original tablets were seen as only being capable of reading and playing games. As time has passed, people are starting to realize that you can do productivity and business work with these marvels, as well (although, not as fast as with a laptop). Work can be done on them (I am using my iPad to write this article) and within the next few years, I foresee the tablet as being the only choice of computer. If you are considering getting one of these, you have to ask yourself, “Which one do I buy?” A year ago, there was only one answer: The iPad. Today, more and more companies are following suit with their own versions. Here’s a look at five of these.

THE APPLE iPAD2

The Apple iPad started it all. This year, the iPad 2 was released with a camera and a sleek, new size. Face it, when it comes to the tablet market, there wouldn’t be one without the Apple iPad. In the consumer world, this is called ‘market defining’. The iPad2 offers two cameras (one with video), a dual core A5 CPU, and it is thinner than it’s previous model. One of the benefits I really like about the iPad is that you don’t require a 3G Data Package – and you can purchase it from month to month. That way, if you are on vacation, you can rely on the 3G service if there is no internet connection, but be off the program while you are working from home, work or in a coffeeshop. Still no Flash ability, which the competition likes to boast about, but the iPad2 is still ahead of the pack when it comes to portable computing.

MOTOROLA XOOM

The Motorola XOOM (pronounced ‘zoom‘) is the first real competitor to the iPad. It was only a matter of time. Android users needed something to compare features to when it comes to Mac products. The Motorola Xoom doesn’t disappoint. Using Google’s Honeycomb Mobile Operating System (Android 3.0), this tablet is a very good alternative to the iPad (for those that don’t want to jump ship from the PC world). You can find some pretty impressive qualities about this device: 1GB of DDR2 RAM, 32GB storage, nice sized screen (half an inch taller than the Mac – but more narrow), 2 cameras, and free hardware upgrades down the road when the new Big Red 4G Lite network comes on board. Of course, as they say in Spider-man, ‘with great power, comes great responsibility’. In this case, it comes out of your pocketbook. The Xoom costs a pretty hefty $799. It does have more features than most models of Tablets out there, though.

SAMSUNG GALAXY TAB

This tablet has been out for awhile. It was supposed to be the first real competition for the iPad. They promote they have Flash (which they do), plus a 1GHz processor, f Android 2.2, dual cameras, support for up to 32GB of storage and WiFi / 3G connectivity. It’s not a bad tablet at all. There are some very good qualities with this tablet. They include: working with all major U.S. cell phone carriers, it is built pretty solid – yet is lighter than many of the other tablets on the market, and it is lower priced if you purchase the optional 2-year data package ($600 without it).

BLACKBERRY PLAYBOOK

Blackberry has always been a top choice in the business-related, smart phone category. While being the second smallest of the tablets (see Samsung Galaxy Tab), this device is both compact and light. It is also ideal if you currently own a Blackberry phone because it syncs flawlessly with that device. Blackberry started a little late to the whole tablet war, however, so it does not have all the tablet-specific games and apps that the others have. You can hook it up to your television and play games off of the device on the bigger flat screen, so that is a nice quality. The price on the Blackberry is a little high for the size of the device, which is smaller than the Apple iPad for the same price. Blackberry might be trying to use its name recognition to follow along with its users.

LG-G SLATE

This new tablet from T-Mobile was originally announced as the tablet that was going to be the first with the Honeycomb Mobile Operating System. That didn’t happen. Motorola Xoom stole that thunder from them. The G-Slate features a 1GHz dual-core Tegra 2 processor, 32GB of internal storage, both a gyroscope and accelerometer, and — this is key — stereoscopic rear-facing video cameras capable of 1080p 3D capture, one of which doubles as a 5 megapixel still camera with LED flash. There’s also a third 2 megapixel camera up front for video chat over T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network or WiFi. There has been a lot of talk about the LG-G Slate’s 3D capabilities, as well. You are able to watch 3D movies on it, which is kind of cool. T-Mobile is charging $400 for the device right now after a $200 rebate and a 2-year data contract. The data is 4G, so they are also claiming to be 2x faster than the iPad and 3x faster than the Xoom. Not a bad little tablet!

This article was originally published by James Fowler on the web site myFiveBest.com (http://myfivebest.com/the-battle-of-the-tablets-which-one-should-you-buy/)