In the Android world, your best bets for 10 inch tablets are probably the Nexus 10, the Samsung Galaxy Note, or whatever the most recent Asus Transformer is. The Nexus 10 is a finger-input only tablet, much like the iPad. The Note adds an active stylus which is apparently well loved by those who like such things. And the Transformer can add an extremely high quality keyboard dock that also brings extra battery life. So they all have different selling points.

In the Windows 8 world, the Surface is apparently pretty great. That market is still coming into its own. I'm holding out for one with an active stylus - probably a Lenovo. (And when I say I'm holding out, I means I probably still won't buy it but will lust for it).

But if she's primarily an Apple user, can afford the iPad, and especially if she has an iPhone or iPod Touch and intends it mostly for consumer use, I think she's probably right to go for an iPad or iPad Mini.

I use a Nexus 7 and love it. It's quite easy on the eyes. I think your mother could see one in person at Staples. The Nexus 10 screen is lovely as well, although I've only ever used pre-production units and haven't used one extensively.

If one wants to watch legally acquired TV shows or movies on a tablet than Apple is the way to go. Google Play has only a fraction of the content. The same might apply for apps, it would be good to make sure the apps one wants are available on the platform one buys.

For eBooks the situation is better. The Kindle app is good on both Android and iPad and you can switch back and forth easily and Amazon has almost anything anyone else has.

Windows Surface is getting some pretty bad reviews: [link] is particularly damning . I'd wait until at least the next generation before buying one.

In general, I'd think most people who are asking for their mothers should go iPad. iPad or Android will probably do most of the things she can think of to have her tablet do, but she's already familiar with iOS, and the things that sell a lot of people on Android she probably doesn't care about.

(Size isn't an issue--my Android tablet is a couple years old and it's a bit thinner than an iPad with a skosh larger screen, but you couldn't tell them apart by eyeballing the dimensions)

If one wants to watch legally acquired TV shows or movies on a tablet than Apple is the way to go.

Well, anything in the Kindle line would work quite nicely for this as well. Amazon's video selection is certainly comparable to iTunes. If you're in the Amazon ecosystem at all, they can be compelling. I didn't mention them because they're all smaller, and I got the impression larger tablets were the goal.

ETA: Actually, it looks like the Fire HD 8.9" tablet is out! [link] . Don't know if that has appeal, but I do quite like my OG Fire so if she's an Amazoner it could be cool. The educational stuff looks like it has some pretty neat potential for parents.

ETAA: The Kindle Fire HD 8.9" is apparently only $249 today using a promotional code FIREHD89 at checkout. That's a pretty sweet price.

I finally upgraded my computer from Leopard to Snow Leopard and it's like a whole new world. Wow. I apparently know a lot less about computers than I thought I did, but I somehow GAINED 20GB of hard drive space in the process. Is Snow Leopard that much smaller of an OS than Leopard was?

Is Snow Leopard that much smaller of an OS than Leopard was?

Snow Leopard is smaller than Leopard, because it longer included PowerPC binary support, and it no longer installs printer drivers that you don't need.

Thanks! That makes sense.

Damn! I'm not excited about the new front end for Skitch on my desktop, BUT there's now a Windows version. For reasons I can't explain Snagit 10 seems to be working on my office laptop, but Skitch does the basic things I want out of a capture app--a couple options for how to grab, BIG arrows, and outlined text.

Looking again, they seem to have removed some of the control over the text (at least on the Windows version), but added a "pixellate" tool, which is handy. Those missing text controls are going to limit its usefulness, though.

Thanks for all the info.

Mom doesn't have an iPod or any kind of smart phone.

and her lap top runs Windows. She uses Amazon but doesn't have prime. I think I'll look at the apps that are available between google play and iTunes. and then talk to her more about what she wants.

My SLR doesn't support SDHC cards, I see tell that "some" 4GB cards are SD only. All I see at Frys is a micro card, for which I have an adapter around here somewhere.

Is it worth it? It would be my primary shooting card, and I have a 2GB I was going too use for backup. Or should I just get another 2GB? It seems the 2x micro card to add to 4 doesn't have good write speeds.

It's not bad --now hat I'vw reformatted and adjusted sizes, it's over 200 per card, but my other not as nice camear that is inable of taking raw ohotos have topped out their number scheme telling how many pictures space is left for.