Advice on best Android Tablet for data collection

Hello,

I hope you are all well.

I just wanted to ask for some advice on what you believe is the best Android tablet for data collection with ODK Collect. I am aware that it will all depend on the use and it can be very subjective. But I thought it might be useful to learn people's positive/negative experiences they had with different devices.

Any help/suggestion would be very appreciated :slight_smile:

Thanks,
Olimpia

Hi @Olimpia
I can't tell you what device is better than the others but I know which devices are most popular.

According to our statistics for the last 365 days most popular tablets used with ODK Collect were:

  1. Lenovo Lenovo TAB4 8 Plus (TB-8704X) - 3k+ used devices
  2. Samsung Galaxy Tab A (8.0", 2019) - 3k+ used devices
  3. Samsung Galaxy Tab A 7.0 (gtexslte)- 2k+ used devices
  4. Samsung Galaxy Tab E 9.6 (gtel3g) - 2k+ used devices

I haven't heard any complaints about those devices so I assume they are ok.

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We're running a fleet of about 50 Samsung Tab A 8" tablets with thick silicone sleeves and standard screen protectors for turtle monitoring in Western Australia. Our conditions are sandy, hot, sometimes humid, windy. The tablets are transported in generic nylon pouches with zips. We've lost one tablet to theft, but none due to harsh conditions. These are our current first choice of hardware.

Our previous fleet were Lenovo Tab3 7" tablets without any cover, and we lost about 10 of 70 due to screen scracks, and two blew up their batteries in the heat. They were a great cheap option.

More thoughts on our quest for reliable, available, affordable hardware at https://dbca-wa.github.io/wastd/data_collection/data_collection_overview.html#devices-shoot-out

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Hi both,
Thank you very much for your suggestions, I will have a look into it.

Stay safe
Olimpia

We carry out various surveys from face to face interviews to the comprehensive recording of infrastructure for cycling.
We use various devices from different manufacturers (LG, Samsung, oneplus, Range Rover.

The purpose of your investigation is important.

For face-to-face interviews, devices for less than € 100 are easily enough.

For capturing with photos and GPS, I would rely on more expensive devices.
These should have a large battery, the photo quality should be good and GPS should be fast and precise. It should also be waterproof.
The prices begins at 300/400 € and the sky is the limit.

My most used buying guides are the websites of

For medium or high-end smartphones.

For the cheap devices I search on Google with the search term: smartphone up to 100 €.
Corresponding pages of tech blogs then appear

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