# Tablet

> A computer that is just a big touchscreen, between a phone and a laptop.

- Level: Basic
- Topics: Hardware
- URL: https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/tablet/
- In Spanish: [Tablet](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/es/tablet/)

A **tablet** is a thin, flat computer where almost the whole front is a touchscreen. There is no physical keyboard or mouse: you tap, swipe and type on the glass. Inside it is very close to a smartphone, with a similar chip, battery and operating system, only with a screen usually somewhere around 8 to 13 inches.

Apple's iPad, launched in 2010, turned tablets into a mainstream product, and today there are many Android models and Windows tablets too. People use them for reading, watching video, drawing with a stylus, video calls, and in shops and restaurants as point-of-sale screens. Many can take a snap-on keyboard, which brings them close to a laptop.

The trade-off is in the software. Tablet apps are built for touch first, which makes them easy and pleasant for media and quick tasks, but heavy work with many windows, files and precise editing is often still more comfortable on a laptop. Whether a tablet can replace your computer depends mostly on which apps you need.

## An analogy

A sketchbook instead of a full desk. It is lighter, you can take it anywhere and use it on your lap, but for spreading out many papers at once, the desk still wins.

## Keep in mind

- Mostly screen: you control it by touching the glass.
- Inside it resembles a large smartphone more than a laptop.
- The iPad (2010) made the category popular; Android and Windows tablets followed.
- Add a keyboard and stylus and it gets closer to a laptop, but apps set the limits.

## Go deeper

- [Tablet computer on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tablet_computer)
- [iPad on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IPad)

## Related terms

- [Smartphone](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/smartphone/): A pocket computer that also makes phone calls.
- [Chip](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/semiconductor-chip/): A sliver of silicon carrying billions of tiny switches that compute and remember.
- [Lithium-ion battery](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/lithium-ion-battery/): The rechargeable battery inside phones, laptops and electric cars.
- [Operating system](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/operating-system/): The base software that runs a device and lets every app share its hardware.
- [Apple](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/apple/): The company that sells the iPhone and the Mac, plus the services that run on them.
- [Laptop](https://tidbit.legios.com.ar/laptop/): A whole computer folded into one portable case that runs on a battery.