On paper I think the iPad has better specs for the display. But the Tabs display is very vivid videos almost look 3D. I do not notice a difference between the two. It seems at least for me, that 7 inches is the perfects size for a new style of thumb based typing where you type with your two thumbs. It is really fast and I like it now that I have used it for a little while. If you think about holding a Tab in the vertical position with your fingers under the Tab, and your thumbs above it, that is the way you hold it when typing, the 7" (at least for me) is the perfect size to efficiently reach every key. It is not as fast as a physical keyboard, but then again none of the virtual keyboards are. That being said, the voice automation and dictation is second to none, and free me from using the keyboard for simple items. You can get turn by turn directions by just speaking directions to "somewhere", you can email a contact by saying send email to "jim" "hey lets do dinner tonight" same with a SMS and several other commands, search the web and a host of others. The nice part about the Tab is it comes with a widget on the desktop that you just click the mic speak and off it goes. The voice activation alone is worth it to me.