E lite 7" 4.4 operating system

[krauster]

I can't find a sub forum for the E lite tablets so I am asking this question here in the Tab 2. BTW, I do have a Tab S2 that I like a lot:

Thinking about buying the smallest tablet for a reading device while in bed. I see sub $100 prices for the E lite 7" which seems like it would fulfill my needs. I am curious about it coming with only 4.4 Android. I think my first Galaxy S4 phone came with 4.0 four or five years ago. Why does the E lite series come with such an old OS? - not that I would need a newer system but I am curious.

 

[B. Diddy]

The E Lite was released in Jan 2014, so its >4 years old. Most budget devices won't get many updates (if at all), so it's not surprising that it's still stuck on 4.4.

If you're looking for a cheap 7-8" tablet, consider a refurbished 2013 Nexus 7 (which you can probably find for about $100, and can be updated to 6.0.1), or a new Lenovo Tab 4 8 (which is $129 and comes with Nougat). I recently got the latter for my daughter, and it's a pretty decent tablet, with a surprisingly good screen and stereo speakers.

There are a few good reasons to look for a tablet with a much more recent OS version than 4.4. First, it's good for security, since 4.4 probably still has a number of unpatched security flaws. Second, KitKat is old enough that developers are starting to drop support, which means you might not be able to install some popular apps.

 

[krauster]

I actually had a Nexus 7 early generation. It was my first Android device. It got to be too slow running 4.4 and I gave it away. I'm really looking for a smaller tablet, maybe under 7". Something easy to hold up while browsing prone in bed. There's lots of stuff out there in 8" size. I have a 9" tab2. I'd really like a 6" tablet or even something the size of my Note4.

 

[sparksd]

I actually had a Nexus 7 early generation. It was my first Android device. It got to be too slow running 4.4 and I gave it away. I'm really looking for a smaller tablet, maybe under 7". Something easy to hold up while browsing prone in bed. There's lots of stuff out there in 8" size. I have a 9" tab2. I'd really like a 6" tablet or even something the size of my Note4.

You're really getting into phone sizes. What about the Google Pixel XL with a 6" screen? Get that with just a cheap data plan. Pricey, though - what about Galaxy S8?