I have the Galaxy Note 10in and my husband has the Tab 2 10in. Both were purchased from the Currys ebay outlet as refurbished models for around £150 last year. It's worth keeping an eye out for them on eBay if you don't mind having last year's model as they are often around half the price of brand new and come with 12 month's warranty.
I have a laptop for working and keep the tablet for browsing the internet, playing games and watching catch up tv. I didn't think I needed one until I had one! I've never owned anything Apple so can't compare with ipads and the like, but I briefly owned a supermarket's own brand tablet and would pick the Samsung every time.