Tablets, even old ones or slower ones, can be used for social media and communication apps. They can be used for email, messaging, online audio or video calls, and social media interactions. There are plenty of apps available for iPads and Android tablets for these purposes. However, Amazon tablets are much more limited.
Email
Messaging
Online Calls
Social Media
Most tablets come with an email app and an easy way to add popular email accounts. Included with iPads is Apple's Mail app, while Android tablets have the Gmail app, which is also available on the iPad App store. Amazon tablets come with Amazon's email app and Samsung tablets add a second email option with their own app.
While the apps function in basically the same way for receiving and sending emails, they differ greatly in other features. Apple's Mail app for iPad is based on its Mac version that has been around since 2003. As a result, it's probably the most advanced email app available for tablets.
I don't use messaging apps since none of my friends do, but iPads come with a built-in messaging app that you can use to communicate with friends or business associates. Samsung has its own messaging app that is automatically installed, and the Google Messages app can be installed on Android tablets from the Google Play store.
Although there is no native messaging app for Amazon tablets, there are third-party apps available. Facebook Messenger is available for all three types of tablets.
Apple includes its FaceTime audio and video calling app in the iPad's operating system. Although it can be improved, especially in terms of ease of use, it has one feature that is probably missing from similar apps. If you have a hearing loss, you can turn on closed captioning during a call and see a written text of what you and the other person are saying in real time. This is a real plus for anyone who has difficulty hearing speech during a call.
If you have an Android tablet, you can use Google Meet for audio and video calls. I've read that the Alexa app works for video calls on Fire tablets, but I couldn't get it to work on my 2019 HD 10 so it maybe only works with newer Amazon tablets.
If you don't want to use the native video calling apps, there are third-party alternatives. The Zoom Workplace app is available for all three types of tablets and it might be the best option for conference calls.
iPads and Android tablets have apps for most of the popular social media sites. I checked out a few of these on the iPad, Google Play and Amazon stores and there are apps for X, Instagram, Facebook, and Tik Tok on all the app stores. Reddit only has apps for iPads and Android tablets.
