The 17 Best Android Tablet Apps

Feedly is an RSS reader app that automatically downloads the latest articles and posts from sites with an RSS feed. The interface is easy to use, it syncs between devices, and you can follow as many topics and feeds as you want.

Follow a few topics or RSS feeds and then when you log in, your news feed will automatically refresh.

Pocket is a free save-for-later online reading app that lets you curate your own news feed. Save stories, articles, news, videos, and more, from any publisher or app on your tablet. Use the tablet app to read all the articles you didn't have time to read previously.

ZINIO is a digital newsstand app, giving you access to magazines from around the world. Use your tablet's larger screen to enjoy a traditional magazine layout experience or use the innovative text mode for a more modern reading experience. Selected articles are free, while others require a subscription to the magazine.

PressReader is an online magazine and newspaper reader. For a monthly subscription, readers get access to over 7,000 magazines and newspapers from around the world. Even without a subscription, PressReader gives complimentary access to their entire catalog when you're at one of their HotSpots; you can search for them easily from their site or through the app.

Libby by Overdrive is an eBook and audiobook platform tied to libraries around the world. Simply open the app, connect it to your local library, and you can borrow eBooks and audiobooks with your library card for free. Download books to read offline, send books to your Kindle app, and keep track of your reading history in the Activity tab of the app. 

Moon+ Reader is another eReader app for those looking for a no-frills, basic reader for their tablet. It supports a wide range of eBook formats, has 10+ themes, gesture controls, auto-scrolling, and multiple device syncing via Dropbox. Get access to even more settings and ditch the ads by going pro for $4.99.

Flipboard is a news reader app where you can create your own virtual magazine. Simply choose interests to have the app find related articles for you or add in your favorite site RSS and social media feeds to it. Flipboard displays everything in an easy to read manner while making it easy to share the stories back on your social media feeds too. While it's great on a smartphone, it's even better on a tablet as you can take advantage of the larger screen size. 

The Amazon Kindle is a free app you can use buy and download books. Tablets make good ebook readers because of their larger screens. The Kindle app has a variety of reading options and settings, including downloading books for offline reading. The app is flexible enough to let you import non-Amazon books or documents too, including PDF and TXT files. 

The Google Play Books app is another good free eBook reader. Like the Kindle app, you can purchase books from the Google Play store or upload your own PDF or EPUB files to read. It also has a good free books list that you can download to your app.

The granddaddy of all the streaming services, Netflix is great to use on your tablet to take advantage of the larger screen. It has a huge selection of shows, movies, and documentaries and streams videos in HDR10 and Dolby Vision videos. Use the app to enjoy your shows on the larger tablet screen instead of your smartphone.

Autodesk Sketchbook app is a digital drawing and painting app for tablets. Whether you're a casual drawer or a professional artist, you can use Sketchbook to capture any idea you may have. Snap a picture of a drawing and import it into the app to finish it off with colors and effects. Draw with pencils, inks, markers, or one of the 190 customizable brushes available in the app to help you incorporate textures and shapes into your drawings. 

Snapseed is a free photo editing app and offers serious tools usually only found in higher priced apps. Use the edit brushes or film-related filters to give your pictures a professional touch. The Portrait and Head Pose modes give you the ultimate control on selfies and other pictures with people in them, so you can highlight eyes, smooth skin, change the background focus, and more. The Undo and Redo options make it easy to try out changes to your photos without committing to them, and with a full edit history, you can remove or re-apply earlier effects easily. 

Pixlr is a free photo editing app with a wide selection of tools and filters you can add to any picture. Edit your pictures with traditional photography tools like contrast, crop, and brightness, or adjust it with fun tools like color splash (turning all but one color to grayscale) or doodle (freestyle drawing on top of the picture). Pixlr lets you share your edited pictures directly to Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, or you can simply save it locally on your tablet. 

For those of you who like to travel, Lonely Planet's Guide app is for you. It bundles maps, recommendations, and budget guides for over 100 cities around the world. Discover where to stay and eat, what attractions to see, and uncover the hidden gems of these cities from Lonely Planet's expert writers. You can even start learning some key phrases in different languages, so you'll be prepared for your trip. 

A veteran of the travel app market, TripAdvisor is good for finding reviews about places to go and stay. On a tablet, it's great to explore the photos and videos of cities, attractions, restaurants, and hotels. Customer feedback and ratings are one of the top features of the app, letting you sort through cities, attractions, hotels, and more based on the ratings.

Bookmark your favorites and come back to them to plan your next trip (or to simply view the pictures again). When you sign up for a profile on the app, you can see all of your favorite places, ratings, and more. You can also follow people through the app, which is especially handy if you find someone with similar tastes as you, making it easier to find new places to go and see.

Discover new recipes to try with All Recipes' Dinner Spinner app. Featuring nice pictures, reviews, and clear instructions, using this app on your tablet will make meal time a breeze. Bookmark recipes to try them out later or share them via email, Pinterest, or Facebook. You can even check out videos of the recipes, to learn new techniques or just see how others make them.

Sadly, the Dinner Spinner feature isn't included on the tablet version of the app, which would let you randomize a recipe based on an ingredient or meal type, but it's still a great app for browsing recipes.