Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

About 2 to 3 months ago, as I began to realize that (most likely) the Kindle Fire HDX 7 was not going to receive any more updates, I reevaluated my needs for a tablet. It eventually dawned on me that the main reason I'd originally gravitated towards a Kindle Fire HDX was because, despite being steeped in the Amazon subsystem, it was one of the most powerful devices for the price at the time. However, it further dawned on me that the only content I *needed* to be able to utilize a tablet for, where Amazon is concerned, are videos and music; and those can be accessed on any Android tablet. So I begun to look for a suitable replacement. At the time, I considered several tablets - the Galaxy Tab S, Galaxy Tab S2, Kindle Fire HD8, and so on. I eventually settled on, and ordered, a Galaxy Tab S, but despite being a very nice tablet, Samsung has had a reputation for barely supporting their tablets for the requisite 18 months. Having considered the Nvidia Shield Tablet in the past, I'd been seriously interested in it, but not at the price point of $299 at the time; so imagine my surprise when the same tablet (sans stylus and charging cables) was rereleased as the Shield Tablet K1 just 3 days ago. I returned my Galaxy Tab S and ordered the Shield Tablet K1. Put simply, I believe it is by FAR the best tablet for under $200. Display: While not *quite* as nice as the one on the Galaxy Tab S, it's nowhere NEAR bad. Accurate color representation, very bright. Size: It's a bit thicker than some tablets might be - 9.3mm as opposed to the 6mm or so that a Samsung Galaxy Tab S is - but not at all unpleasant to hold. Build quality: I believe this is, aside from using last year's specs, this is where the bulk of the money was saved. The build quality is not quite as nice as, say, the Galaxy Tab S or a Sony Xperia tablet, but it's put together well and perfectly serviceable. Features: Aside from wireless charging, pretty much anything anyone could need - mini-HDMI, micro-USB, 3.5mm jack, microSD slot, and so on, not to mention BT, wireless connectivity, etc. Sound: Maybe not the best out there, but in my opinion close to it. Definitely better than the Kindle Fire HD8, Galaxy Tab S, etc. This brings us to graphics. I've owned several tablets in the last few years - Nexus 7 (2013), Kindle Fire HDX 7", Kindle Fire HD 8, Samsung Galaxy Tab S, etc. *NONE* of them have operated as smoothly or as fast as the Shield K1. The CPU may not be the absolute fastest out there (quad-core 2.2GHz Cortex A15), but the 192-core (ONE HUNDRED NINETY TWO) Kepler GPU is better than ANYTHING out there in any similarly priced Android tablets, and it definitely shows in normal operation. Having used many iDevices in the past (iPad, iPad Mini, iPhone, etc.) I'd somewhat resigned myself to experiencing little 'hitches' in performance and transitions in the Android devices I've owned - things I never experienced in the iDevices I've used. Well, the Shield K1 has changed my opinion - I have yet to have it stumble on anything, whether graphics-intensive games, basic games, movies, music, etc. Simply put, in my opinion, given the decent CPU, the PHENOMENAL GPU, and the mix of features (BTW - Marshmallow is confirmed for this device), it is THE best sub-$200 Android tablet out there, bar none. Unless slim form factor is a huge deal for you or you're a die-hard iFan, buy this tablet if want a good Android tablet. You will not be disappointed.