Best Tablet for Truckers — 3 Most Popular Suggestions

Chances are you aren’t keeping paper logs anymore. There are several reasons why more and more truckers were opting to take a tablet on the road with them in lieu of a full-size laptop — convenience, portability, accessibility…the list goes on. Tablets have worked their way to become an industry norm over the past decade. But, which tablet is right for you? Most major brands have one, but it really just comes down to reliability, preference, and price range.

The Best Tablet for Truckers

We asked our Facebook fans what tablets they would recommend for life on the road. As you can imagine, the suggestions were mixed between several different ones. I’m not going to dive too deep into the nitty-gritty of each tablet, but here’s a basic overview of some of the most popular tablets if you’re in the market for one.

Apple iPad

Unsurprisingly, we found that the iPad was the most common tablet among truckers. A 64GB iPad is available for $329 or $450 if you purchase it with the cellular data plan. A 64GB iPad Mini has a 8.3″ display and is available for $499 or $649 with a data plan. If you are looking for a more powerful machine with larger screens and more battery life the 64GB iPad Air 10.9” is available for $559 and the 11” iPad Pro starts at $799 offering more storage with Apple's new M1 chip. Complete with FaceTime, millions of apps, high-quality cameras, and more, the iPad is an all-encompassing tablet that is great for truck drivers if you’re willing to shell out the money.

Kindle Fire HD

A 10″, Kindle Fire 64GB, or you can downgrade to a 32GB for $149, provides a more affordable tablet option. Kindle provides a forward-facing camera for video chatting, WiFi, over 23 million movies, TV shows, songs, and books, and has its own app store. I own the Kindle myself, and I have to say it does everything the iPad and a laptop do for considerably less money. The one gripe I have about it — not as many apps as on the Apple store.

Samsung Galaxy 2

Samsung’s Tab A7 Lite 8.7” is available on Amazon for $129. It comes with 32GB of memory and also comes in 64GB of memory for $169. It features a Media Hub where you can find over 1,000 videos as well as music and games. If you are already an Android device user this tablet may be the way to go!

Uses for a Tablet

I’d say the biggest reason a truck driver might want a tablet is for staying in touch with friends and family back home. The Wifi access available on tablets allows you to connect with people via Facebook, Twitter, or any other preferred social media sites. Most tablets come equipped with front and rear facing cameras, allowing you to video chat with your best buddies at home on a larger screen.

There are also lots of recreational uses for a tablet. For example, when you’re waiting for a load assignment or maybe just on some downtime at the end of the day, you can watch movies, TV, play games, browse the internet, and read books, all on one device. You can also find apps on virtually every device that are made specifically for truck drivers.

It seems many truck drivers are opting for these smaller alternatives to laptops, and for due cause. It’s hard to deny that they’re super convenient for the on-the-go lifestyle of truck drivers.