Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

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Classicgamer
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Joined: Thu Sep 11, 2014 3:37 pm

Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Classicgamer »

Does anyone here game on a tablet and have a view on which is best for this purpose?

I broke my 6th IPad recently so it's time to buy a new tab but I'm not really up to date on what's good in this space. I need something for travel.

I've always thought that IOS has the nicest interface but they have just become too restrictive for gaming. I.e. No micro USB, no SD card slot, no internet downloads and no emulators in their App Store.

I've been thinking about one of the Samsung tabs for their OLED screens. What do you guys think?
Classicgamer
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Classicgamer »

In case anyone else was wondering, the best tablet for travel gaming / emulators I could find is the Samsung Galaxy Book 12". These things were evil expensive when new but I was able to pick up a refurbished 8gb ram / 256gb ssd model for $450.

This is the older (and more powerful model) with an Intel I5 cpu and running full Windows 10. So far it has run every mame and N64 game I have tried perfectly, including 3d games like Ridge Racer 2. For example:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0FwM0QhEQOM

The screen is a gorgeous 12" 3:2 OLED with a 1600p res (which is better for scaling 240p than a 1080p display). It looks amazing. The blacks are so dark that borders on 4:3 games look like part of the bezel.

Unlike my IPad, it has two USB C ports so, with a $3 adapter, you can use any USB controller you like. You can play two player or play and charge at the same time. It even comes with a detachable keyboard case which acts as a stand to hold the screen up so you can play at the right angle.

It's kinda amazing what they can fit into a device that is not that different in size or weight to the original IPad....
Taiyaki
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Taiyaki »

To me the best is any ipad because of the 4:3 aspect ratio. If anyone knows of an Android like that please do tell but I've never found one. You have to make sure the ipad is jailbreakable first though.
Classicgamer
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Classicgamer »

Taiyaki wrote:To me the best is any ipad because of the 4:3 aspect ratio. If anyone knows of an Android like that please do tell but I've never found one. You have to make sure the ipad is jailbreakable first though.
I understand why you would think that. I thought the same and it would have been convenient as I have at least 5 IPads I no longer use. There are several issues that made the Galaxy Book better though.

The 1st is that Apple are constantly striving to make it impossible to jailbreak IPads. The latest models can not currently be jailbroken. It does not seem impossible that at some point users could be faced with a choice between obsolete unsupported software or giving in to the constant nagging to update the OS to one that can't run emulators.

The 2nd is Apple's infuriating need to prevent you using standard "non-approved" USB peripherals. I want to use my chosen controller, not the one they say I can use. Bluetooth controllers suck.

3rd, IPads use obscure resolutions like 1536p which do not scale well from 240p like the 1600p Samsung.

4th, mame and other emulators are not well supported for IOS. The Galaxy Book runs full Windows 10 so you can use any emulators that work on a PC including the latest mame versions.

5th, IPads do not have SD card slots or any ability to upgrade storage. You could fill up the base IPad models with a brisk fart and Apple charges a fortune for tiny memory upgrades. The Galaxy Book comes with a 256gb ssd and as much additional storage as you need via SD cards, USB drives and even external hard drives.

6th, new IPad models do not have headphone jacks which leaves you stuck with Bluetooth which sucks through battery life.

7th, there is no good way of moving files around on an IPad, even if it's jailbroken. The Galaxy Book comes with a detachable keyboard and mouse pad which switches the tab into desktop mode which allows you to organize and move files around like you would on a regular laptop. It acts as a stand too, which IPads do not come with.

8th, all current IPad models use LCD screens. My wife has the latest IPad Pro and the screen is nowhere near as good as the OLED screen on the 12" Galaxy Book. It really is incredible. It's the best I have ever seen. It's not even close.

The Galaxy Book 12" screen is 3:2, not 16:9. The borders on 4:3 content are tiny and, with it being OLED, just look like part of the bezel. That 3:2 ratio is also better for watching 16:9 content which is pretty much everything you would watch on a tablet.

I think the 10" Galaxy Book has a 4:3 screen but it's LCD and the specs are lower all round. I think there is also a lower spec Samsung Android tab with a 4:3 OLED screen but I preferred to go the Windows 10 route for obvious reasons.
Taiyaki
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Taiyaki »

All of those are very good reasons not to use an iPad but what I did is use an iPad 2 (maybe the next one might also be ok but after that they changed to to those higher resolutions which as you pointed out aren't as friendly for emulators). The resolution scales well and you can run any 2D game other than some Mame games for obvious reasons (still all Neo Geo and CPS1/2 will still run at full speed). Of course none of the emulators running on this are going to be top notch accurate but it serves its purpose very nicely imo. I stopped bothering with upgrades and just used it fully dedicated for emu, it really mostly comes in handy when traveling. Bluetooth remotes is a bummer but you can use a wiimote classic which is not a bad controller, it's just a bit unwieldy.
Classicgamer
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Classicgamer »

These Galaxy Books are in a different league to IPads so it's not entirely fair to compare them but, if you are buying a new tablet.... and you can find a good deal, then they provide a far better gaming experience.

They can run any game in mame, including 3d ones. Model 2 and 3 work fine too. N64, SNES, pc engine etc all work well too. I haven't tried Dreamcast games yet.

The Galaxy Book I have is the old model which is better for gaming (than the GB2) IMO (due to faster processor, more storage and more ram ). More importantly, being 2 years old, they can be found for a fraction of the RRP. When new, the 8gb / 256gb 12" Galaxy Book was more than $1800.... they aren't worth that much but the $450 I paid was a steel.

I have an IPad 1, 2, 3, the latest IPad Pro, the mini 2 and mini 3, so It's fair to say I know my IPads. The hardware is solid but they are all let down by Apple policy and software limitations.

The IPad 1 and 2 are both 768p which is not divisible by 240p. 240p games just don't look good without shaders on them and the hardware is not fast enough to do shaders well. The 768p screen would be great for EGA model 2 games if it could run them (which is can't).
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ApolloBoy
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by ApolloBoy »

Classicgamer wrote: 6th, new IPad models do not have headphone jacks which leaves you stuck with Bluetooth which sucks through battery life.
Only the current iPad Pros don't have a headphone jack, the rest of the lineup (regular iPad, Air and mini) still have a headphone jack.
Taiyaki
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Taiyaki »

Classicgamer wrote:The IPad 1 and 2 are both 768p which is not divisible by 240p. 240p games just don't look good without shaders on them and the hardware is not fast enough to do shaders well. The 768p screen would be great for EGA model 2 games if it could run them (which is can't).
You're right. I had that wrong. Personally though on the screen it works pretty well. I agree though, these need shaders and as far as I know these were implemented in later versions of the .emu line of emulators so only Mame can be made to look quite nice.
Classicgamer
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by Classicgamer »

Taiyaki wrote:
Classicgamer wrote:The IPad 1 and 2 are both 768p which is not divisible by 240p. 240p games just don't look good without shaders on them and the hardware is not fast enough to do shaders well. The 768p screen would be great for EGA model 2 games if it could run them (which is can't).
You're right. I had that wrong. Personally though on the screen it works pretty well. I agree though, these need shaders and as far as I know these were implemented in later versions of the .emu line of emulators so only Mame can be made to look quite nice.
You can definately make it look acceptable on an IPad. It's just never going to beat that Amazing OLED display but that applies to any LCD. I heard that the next IPad generation will have OLED though.

It's not just the amazing contrast that helps the OLED displays. There is a noticable difference in color accuracy and range too. It looks very crt-like (except with darker blacks).

Ironically, you get the best scaling and therefore the best overall look with mame on Android devices (with OLED). Android mame has a mode called "smooth scaling" which just seems to apply a correct algorithm to make it fit the screen. It has the option to output the image in 320 x 240 and with smooth scaling on, it looks very accurate with no other effects or shaders needed. It looks even better than on my Windows 10 tab. It's just a shame that Android mame is stuck with version 139.
kelvin26
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Re: Best tablet for gaming / emulators?

Post by kelvin26 »

If you are bored with the iOS and you have already too much money on the android products, then you can go for the Samsung galaxy tab S4.
The product is not too expensive and has nice features. Samsung galaxy tab S4 has a screen size of 10.5 inches with a screen resolution of 2560 X 1600.Along with this, it has thinner bezels. A new feature has been introduced in the product which is 2.1 lockable mode.It's the best gaming tablet ever I use.
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