Top 7" Tablets Under Rs 25,000 (February 2013)

A couple of weeks ago, we listed out the five tablets that you can get for under 10 grand. Of course, a small budget almost invariably means certain compromises. If you are looking for a tablet that is better built, better speced and more importantly, 'feels' more upmarket, you'll have to up your budget by a factor of two, give or take. While 7 inch and 10 inch tablets are available at this price range, we have narrowed this list down to 7 inch devices only. Generally speaking, they are better speced than their larger cousins. We'll also put together a 10 inch tablet buyers guide shortly.

[Note: 1. The ordering is on the basis of approximate street price and is not necessarily a ranking.
2. While our buyers' guides and top lists usually feature five choices, here you will find only four, given the dearth of good choices in the market, despite the sheer number of models]

1. Huawei MediaPad 7 Lite (Rs 13,700)
If you're ready to cross the 10k mark, but not willing to go too far, then the Huawei MediaPad 7 Lite is perfect for you. This tablet from the Chinese manufacturer packs in a 1.2 GHz Cortex A8 CPU and 1 GB of RAM. Its 7" IPS screen has pixel dimensions of 1024x600. The MediaPad features a 3.2 mp rear and 0.3 mp front camera, Wi-Fi, 4 GB of internal storage, and microSD card slot. Did I mention its 3G phone functionality? You can't ask for more at this price tag. Nevertheless, if you can up your budget, we suggest reading further into this article.

2. Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 P3100 (Rs 16,000 for Wi-Fi + 3G version)
If you can't stand Apple's restrictions (no USB transfer, no geeky custom OS, etc) or think that the value for money equation does not add up, Samsung's waiting for you on the other side with its GALAXY Tab P3100. This 7" tablet boasts of a PLS display that offers wide viewing angles. In terms of fire-power, you get a dual-core TI OMAP 4430 chipset consisting of a 1 GHz CPU coupled with PowerVR SGX540 GPU. It features Android 4.0 (ICS) out of the box. Like the Huawei, and unlike the iPad Mini, this Samsung comes with microSD card slot and full phone functionality. If you are looking for a 7 inch Android tablet, this should be in your shortlist.

3. Asus Nexus 7 (Rs 20,000)
The Nexus 7 is every Android fan's dream come true. This tablet packs in a Quad-core 1.2 GHz Cortex-A9 CPU, which is seldom seen at this price tag. Its 7" IPS display has 1280x800 pixels and is protected by Corning's Gorilla Glass. Apart from that, it features 1 GB of RAM and front-facing camera. Being a Nexus device, this tablet boasts of "pure" Android Jelly Bean experience, and will be eligible for future updates. All in all, it's a very good deal for Rs 20,000.

4. Apple iPad Mini  (Rs 22,000 for Wi-Fi only version)
iPad has become a synonym for tablet computers, and there's a good reason for that. Apple's tablets are exceptionally well built, the OS is more stable and secure than other platforms. There are tons of third-party apps, too. With the Mini, you get a 7.9" screen with pixel dimensions of 1024x768 and 1 GHz dual-core CPU. The screen specs may not be screaming latest and best, but as a package, it works. On the software front, you get the latest iOS 6. So if you're in for a 7" tablet that 'just works', the iPad Mini is the best you can get.