Your next computer could well be a tablet

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Your next computer could well be a tablet

By Woody Leonhard

Like it or not — and I know that some of you don’t — tablets are changing the way the world works and plays.

Whether it’s an iPad, Kindle, Nook, or a tablet based on Google’s Android OS, mobile devices are swirling across the computing landscape. Here’s how to pick the right one.

The full text of this column is posted at WindowsSecrets.com/top-story/your-next-computer-could-well-be-a-tablet/ (opens in a new window/tab).

Columnists typically cannot reply to comments here, but do incorporate the best tips into future columns.

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Maybe your next col. should be “Beware how you ARM yourself”. Unlike the intel based PCs, ARM devices (phones, tablets etc) seem to have HW level based software. As I see it, this is potentially a big problem, as you can’t update what you buy as you can with a PC. EG: my PC purchased 2003 is still running well and being used but my phone is not. My current phone bought December 2011, has ARM6 processor and can’t run firefox – you need ARM7 to run Firefox. 6 weeks old !!!!
The greatest thing about PCs was that IBM dictated architecture, and it was backwards compatible. So, everyone (after a while) followed – EVEN APPLE !! But with Android, Google has not learned this lesson. I hope they do soon, and will try not to commit to any tablet until I see a clear stabilization of the android environment.

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I’ve already broken down and got myself an iPad 2, but it’s still far from being an actual computer.
The iPad will fit the bill nicely for the basic computing tasks mentioned in Woody article, if one can tolerate iTunes on the PC to sync your content with.
(iTunes is the most horrid thing I’ve ever seen)
But the best thing about the iPad is it’s efficiency, it goes from sleep to fully on in a heartbeat, it’s very thin and sleek, very good battery life, and it also
seems to have a very good balance of basic functionality in terms of software and hardware. Apple realy did get this right.
The screen size is also just about at the sweet spot in terms of size and quality of viewing.

I fear Windows 8 on a tablet with be largely bloated and it’s performance will suffer like all it’s operating system predecessors.
I do hope this will prove to be wrong though.

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Well, mine certainly will be. I bought my first Macintosh laptop (a Macbook Air) about 15 months ago, my first Macintosh desktop 8 months ago (a 2011 iMac), and my first iPhone (a 4S) a month or so back. I do still have a couple of PCs in the house. One I keep for the occasional Windows app that doesn’t run well in a Parallels virtual machine, and the other is my wife’s desktop PC, which i haven’t persuaded her to replace with a Mac yet. Sorry, but after about 25 years of Windows use I’ve seen the light. The great thing about the Apple Ecosystem is that things just work, and they work together. Microsoft might well come out with a tablet computer in 2013 or maybe 2014, but in our house we already have an iPad 2, and by 2014 we’ll in all likelihood have two iPad 4s that will work seamlessly with our desktop and laptop PCs, our phones and probably our television.

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While the Android tablet offerings are diverse and rather fragmented, I think leaving Samsung’s 10.1 Galaxy Tab without a mention in the article doesn’t give a well-balanced overview. It is a serious contender, and some would say holds the advantage over the ipad. I personally own a 1st gen ipad, bought secondhand, as I concluded that for my use it is sufficient, but when comparing ipad2 vs 10.1 tab, I was strongly leaning towards the tab.

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Well, I do have an iPad2 now (6 months old) and I love it (even got used to iTunes, ha ha) but I have had a look at Windows 8 and I hate it! Windows 7 is good but 8 is a pain, and OK, it is not the software that will be sold as an OS, but as it was two months ago is not something I would like to have on my work computer. I had an Android tablet and an iPhone. I kept trying to do things on the tablet as I did them on the iPhone and that did not work. So then I bought the iPad and gave my Android tablet away. But all real work, like long e-mails, uploading lots of pictures is still done on my old HP desktop, running Windows XP most of the time and Windows 7 when I want to use one of the new features.

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Well, I do have an iPad2 now (6 months old) and I love it (even got used to iTunes, ha ha) but I have had a look at Windows 8 and I hate it! Windows 7 is good but 8 is a pain, and OK, it is not the software that will be sold as an OS, but as it was two months ago is not something I would like to have on my work computer. I had an Android tablet and an iPhone. I kept trying to do things on the tablet as I did them on the iPhone and that did not work. So then I bought the iPad and gave my Android tablet away. But all real work, like long e-mails, uploading lots of pictures is still done on my old HP desktop, running Windows XP most of the time and Windows 7 when I want to use one of the new features.

iPad 2 Keyboard iPad 2 Smart Cover

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“Just as many of us moved from DOS to Windows, from desktops to portables, and from printed and faxed documents to the Internet…”
True… but we also moved to bigger and bigger display screens along the way. That’s one of the tablets biggest drawbacks. If one has to carry a tablet around that is as large as a laptop or notebook — what’s the point?

I’m retired, but even so I barely have enough screen landscape to get by with every day. During my career as a systems analyst and sometimes programmer, I can’t even imagine how I could have accomplished my work with tablet.

I see the where tablets and smartphones can be used advantageously for many uses and applications — but to replace the PC? Jus ain’t seein’ it….

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I find myself agreeing with Grafitti. This article has totally ignored the excellent Samsung Tablet range which now includes the hybrid Samsung Note Phone/Tablet that fulfills my requirements for a single portable and pocketable device that performs as a phone and a Tablet on the move.

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I had also concluded my next computer should be a tablet, but like most readers I own a digital camera and dislike the Apple SD card reader dongle kludge as well as the Apple lock in & 30% app tax. So which tablet to buy?

Well obviously I would be looking for an Android tablet with a 4:3 screen to match the aspect ratio of my photos, plus a full size SD card slot like I’ve had in my current model for years (a Palm Tungsten T5 since you ask). It would be nice if it could double as a digital photo frame too with some sort of stand/charging cradle, but we can’t expect everything all at once. Hang on a sec, seems the best I can get is 2 of those 4 requirements. The only vendor I found offering a full size SD slot is Sony and their slot is VERY tight. Yes some vendors offer a mini-SD slot, which I could just about live with, along with an adapter to put it in my camera. 16gb seems to be the max size for this combo however.

What about that 4:3 screen (P.S have you ever seen a photo of someone using a widescreen tablet in portrait mode? Have you ever heard an iPad user complaining that Apple didn’t offer a wide screen version?). Well Viewsonic offer a 4:3 screen on their Viewpad 10e. Nice screen with good viewing angles for sharing photos, but unfortunately that tablet is aimed at the bottom end of the market and suffers in other areas. Why has almost the entire Android market ignored this format when they are all trying to compete with the 4:3 iPad, which is such an obvious success? It is reported that Asus let slip the reason – Apple is soaking up most of the 4:3 panels being made, so they wouldn’t be able to get sufficient supply (Viewsonic make their own screens, which gives them an advantage here). I know in the monitor market 4:3 panels have mostly given way to widescreen formats because they are cheaper to manufacture, so perhaps that’s another factor in the tablet market.

So come on Viewsonic give us a real competitor to the iPad, you might find you have a runaway success, especially if you target it at the millions of digital camera owners out there.

Oh and the other elephant in the room with tablets is they can’t compare with my old Tungsten T5 for stylus input – tablets were originally conceived by Microsoft with note taking as a major reason for buying one – think One-Note & E-Ink (which got good reviews). Windows tablets failed to take off I know, but I think that was for other reasons.

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I finally broke down and got an iPad 2. I’ve worked on desktops since CP/M was the OS of choice, and I still use W7 daily. But the one app I never see people mention that is the most useful is OnLive Desktop. It’s a cloud based Windows environment available in a variety of configurations. The basic configuration with 2Gb of cloud storage is free. There are more business-like options up to enterprise level. If you have an android tablet, they’re working on an android equivalent. See: http://desktop.onlive.com/

I find that tablets are useful when I to keep up with certain things. It’s kind of like a dayplanner on steroids and possesses other useful apps. I highly recommend searching in the app store under generic names to find apps, and to check out as many free apps as you want. Some are crap, some are gems (just like in Windows), but on the iPad it’s easy to delete any you don’t want (press and hold until they jiggle, press the ‘x’ to bring up the delete app dialog box). If you buy an app, delete it, then realize you deleted the wrong app – no worries. The iStore remembers all deleted things you purchased and will redownload it for nothing.

The iPad 2 seems to learn most of your habits. That’s handy.

Cons – iCloud does NOT play nice with outlook on the desktop. If you synchronize your contacts list and your calendars – the iCloud software takes them away to your iPad and to the iCloud web site. That’s not my idea of synchronization. I was fortunate and had backups with minimal things to change on my desktop. But I know that would have peeved me if I did my business scheduling that way. I can’t speak to the exchange server – my job’s exchange server makes it doggone difficult to connect with a PC, let alone anything else.

Like any tablet, buy a cover and a screen protector.

BTW – I have a Kindle 3 e-ink device. Once in a while it will stop charging. Reboot the device. Turn it off, turn it back on but hold the button until the screen goes completely blank. It takes a while to boot, but when it returns it seems to charge right again. Hope this helps someone.

I also have the Nook e-ink. While good enough for reading books, I still prefer the Kindle for getting books. BN makes you jump through so many hoops compared to Amazon in my opinion. However, that said, the Nook is a great device.

I agree with the author of the article about android – so many manufacturers have so many versions. I have two different versions that react in an unpredictable fashion to apps.

If you’re wondering where I get all the cash for these – I don’t. I am a Computer Science professor considering what we will need to teach in two years time. I received donated and purchased equipment to examine. I wouldn’t consider myself an expert. These are just my observations so far. I hope my experiences help with other people’s experiences to provide some insights.

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Try out the Ainol Novo 7 Basic Android tablet. I got mine from around $150 and just upgraded to ICS 4.0.3

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I haven’t used ICS compared to the prior two major versions of Android. If you have, can you provide some comparisons? Thanks!

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Long long time ago I had a Grid tablet, loved it. I have never understood why that form factor never took off. A few years back came the iPad, but it (as you say) is not a PC. I bought my wife a Color Nook, I have a low end android tablet, but, they are not PCs, they never will be, I can’t see how the iPad incarnation of the tablet can ever replace my PC. Now along comes Microsoft, you remember them, the folks that brought us Windows 95 et al. These guys have this Windows 8 os, I’ve seen it, touched it, played with it. By Jiminy, its my old Grid, updated 30 years, but it is a “PC Tablet”, it runs all those old programs and stuff designed fo the ‘tablet’ world.

My point is this, I think you may be missing a form factor here, I don’t believe its “PC->Laptop->Tablet” I think it is going to be PC->Laptop->PC-Tablet->Tablet. So my next PC is going to be a touch screen intel Windows 8 PC-Tablet. Docked its a PC, grab it and run it’s a tablet, with a little extra guts. Why should I settle for a Tablet that does only most or some of what I need it for when I can have it all. By the way, for those of you at HP, Dell and others, please put a cell radio in the thing so I can use it as a phone as well.

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“Let’s start with a given. A tablet is not a PC.”

This is the best statement in the article. Too many in the technology press have been pushing the idea that a tablet can replace a PC or laptop. For people that only surf the Internet, read e-books, and play an occasional game that may be true. But for the rest of us, a tablet is an extension of a PC or laptop.

As far as comparing the Kindle Fire and the Nook Tablet to an iPad, the comparison is ludicrous. Its like comparing a Cadillac CTSv to a Chevy Cruze. Of course the CTSv is the “better” car. For some purposes. Apples to oranges. I continually see articles touting how much better the iPad is than the Fire and Nook Tablet. Well of course it is! Its larger and more expensive. but not everyone needs, or wants one.

I suppose it really comes down to personal preference, but I’ve compared the Nook Tablet side by side with the Kindle Fire. Hands down the Nook is a better device. Better screen, faster, much more responsive (though I understand the latency issues on the Fire have been improved with the last update). My only two nits about the Nook are the built in browser and some of the interface features. The browser issue can be fixed by downloading the free Puffin browser. Its fast and more than makes up for the inadequacies of the built in Nook browser. The interface issues are really just a matter of understanding how things work and coming up with your own way of using it.

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“Let’s start with a given. A tablet is not a PC.” The problem with this statement is that it lacks the modifier “yet” I predict that the tablet form-factor will indeed become the standard for providing a general purpose computing platform, primarily providing a CPU, local data storage, a mobile rendering engine (the tablet screen) and mobile connectivity. Using a technology such as WiFi Direct, when you walk into your home or your office, it will seamlessly connect to your desktop peripherals (keyboard, mouse, monitor), connect to your LAN for networked peripherals such as your printer and your networked disk. You will set the tablet into it charging dock and not look at it until you are ready to move to a new location. Hotels and other remote work locations could offer a standard keyboard/mouse/monitor setup in the room that would allow the user to have a higher quality work environment than having to tote around freestanding peripherals.

Desktop PCs will be reserved for high-end gaming and engineering tasks that require a much higher level of computing power. Laptops (with their built-in keyboard and mouse) will disappear completely as providing no value add over this architecture.

I strongly suspect that this is how Microsoft expects to recapture significant market share on this platform. Windows 8 will provide a more complete and comfortable experience for most users than having to learn a new or secondary OS.

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The pads are more suitable for consuming, PC are for the creation of content.
As soon as the works gets more complicated, documents become longer, precision mouse manupulations are necessary, or correct colors: forget the tablet!

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Good article but should have mentoned th BB Playbook. Different operating system. Once it gets the updated will b decent tablet.

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I like the article, but for what it’s worth, I thought like many article of this nature it was one sided to a certain extent. I know you can’t please everyone, and I’m not going to bash Apple, etc. But I felt he threw himself at the feet of Apple and when it came time to discuss the other contenders there was the little eye rollings, well I suppose we should cover these other model, cough. It’s not about Apple vs. whomever, it’s about using what you like and not worrying about what someone has to say about it. If everyone bought an Ipad tomorrow I wouldn’t care, my A500 still does what I need. 

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Interesting article, but it failed to see how the tablet will or should evolve.

I was putting off getting a tablet to see where things would go and it didn’t happen fast enough for me. I bought an Acer 10″ screen with Windows7. I choose that one because I have 2 programs that I run all the time that are not made for IOS or Android but do run on Windows (I also have 2 Internet sites open and active along with other Internet access and email, and a non-MS firewall and anti-virus, etc.). And I wanted to find out how a tablet would work for me. I was amazed how well it worked with what I do. The only difference between the Acer and my Dell laptop with a 17″ screen was the screen size and speed.

Makers of tablets apparently did not believe how much ram Windows7 needs or how fast the processor needed to be to run to days programs. The Acer has a 1GHz processor and only 1GB of memory, but it does have a physical keyboard that attaches and makes a nice stand, which unfortunately falls off each time you pick their tablet up!

The advantage to Windows is that instead of buying apps, you just download what you need from the Internet.

With Windows, the tablet IS a replacement for a laptop or desktop and I believe that was the original intent for tablets. But before I get another tablet, there will have to be a tablet with 4 USB’s, Windows and 4GB memory if it’s 32bit (and that’s maximum memory on 32bit), or at least 6GB memory if it’s 64bit. And the processor has to be at least 1.7GHz. And 240GB HDD would not take any more room than the current 32GB or 64GB HDD. From what little I’ve seen and heard about Windows8, it would have a hard time being an acceptable replacement for even a Windows 95. Many users are very tired of MS’s “new” OS that is just Windows98 with menus switched around, some bugs fixed, and other cosmetic changes. And of course a few new bugs.

We also have a Dell Mini 9″ which is really too small a screen. The 10″ tablet which is larger than the iPad, was a great improvement and there are 12″ tablets available which is what I would like to have. It is important for the tablets to weigh about one pound. The Acer tablet at about 2 pounds with it’s physical keyboard is a little bit of a problem because of weight.

I suspect that the other tablet’s are in need of a lot more memory and better processor speed since they are doing the same things that Windows does. Tablets running other OS’s tend to be about half the price of tablets running Windows. That’s an indication that Windows must be doing something right even though you have to buy a “new” Windows every few years. Other OS’s know what to do with a .JPG file or a .HTML file and process all sorts of file types the same way as MS. Why can’t they also process a .EXE file?

Maybe someone needs to think about a screen that folds in half??? Then we could have an 8.5 x 11″!!

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All these portable devices have a niche, but that’s just it … They are niche products, mostly doing one thing, or extending the capabilities of something more permanent. Tablets have the best opportunity for making an inroads into the PC market, to which Microsoft, Apple, Linux have a stake … Microsoft isn’t the only ‘personal computer’ on the playground. When an iPad comes equipped with Apple’s OS X Panther or newer, I will consider it viable as a PC replacement … And the truth of the matter is that by the end of the decade, or certainly within the next 20 years, there will be a new technology breakthrough that will make all the technologies I have mentioned, obsolete and most likely, usesless as well.

Personal readers like nook and kindle should have been in the classroom for at least a decade now. Textbooks should already be downloadable to reader devices and/or computers, instead of costing $140 at your local college bookstore. How many millions of trees could have been saved in the last ten years?

There will always be a need for a Desktop PC, or an incarnate that is similar. Something that is separate from household technologies, that can communicate with the multitude of devices that take care of the ‘niche’ things we use to better our lives. Now, it may be something hidden in a closet and wirelessly connected to everything. Yet, like people, there will always be a home PC and it will evolve and become the homeplace’s Master Computer.

If Apple doesn’t give the iPad a meaningful operating system, it will remain a niche product, an extension of larger server. Which kind of brings us full circle, where there is one super or big computer connected to a lot of satellite devices.

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I found the comments about e-Readers interesting, especially in light of the ‘huge number of books’ which I’m always being assured are available.

Where this falls down badly is how geographic zones are imposed by the publishers. The number of books which are in stock may be huge, but I may not be allowed to buy them because of where I live (I’m in Australia). That’s not the seller’s call, usually, as they are really just resellers – it’s the publisher.

I purchase downloadable audiobooks for someone blind. It is unbelievable how often I find a book they want but I hit this barrier and simply cannot buy audiobooks which are recorded and listed for sale, but not to me. I’m talking about the major resellers here such as but not only Amazon (which owns Audible). And it’s pretty near impossible to find if there’s anyone at all who IS authorised by the publishers to sell a book to my region – I have emailed many publishers and even authors and had no reply, one painful book enquiry at a time.

I’m usually not talking about the latest bestseller either – more likely books written in the 1920s-1960s. Many forums, such as whirlpool.com.au, have a lot of very unhappy people discussing this issue, not all of them blind.

I originally had very high hopes of e-readers, thinking I could buy the ‘e-print’ books and then at least read-aloud software could be used (even though that’s not anything near as good as a properly recorded audiobook). But I’ve quickly discovered that similar limits are being imposed on these by publishers. Even if I can buy the e-book (geographic zones are imposed on e-books too), often it then can’t be read allowed by the e-reader software because the rights to do this haven’t been included by the publisher in the sale.

It’s a copyright and legal minefield which I believe will only get bigger. Publishers have every right to protect their investments, but the current limits are also stopping sales so authors and customers are losing out.

It’s very much buyer beware, even more than usual.

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I enjoyed your article about the new-fangled tablets, but wanted to make a point. Tablet PCs have been around for years! I use a great one made by Motion Computing. Others are made by Lenovo, Toshiba, Acer, etc. It has a full version of Windows 7 and runs full versions of Microsoft Office, including OneNote (my favorite app). It networks well, etc. It has both a pen-based screen and a touch-based screen. It is a full-fledged computer, not a watered down browser. Unfortunately, Apple usurped the name “tablet” to describe its iPad product. It’s a bit 1984-ish to me. But then, Moses had a tablet, too, didn’t he.

Perhaps you could write an article that distinguishes [/FONT]the two vastly different meanings between tablet and tablet!

OneDave

Who is John Galt?

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 with Windows 10, MS Office. Samsung Galaxy S9+ with Android 10.

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As a self taugh and evolving student of I.T. equipment and operating systems,I feel compelled to thank the writers of WS for their ‘no nonsense matter of fact presentation of the facts.
I still use a ‘mobile phone’, you know, one that makes calls…just calls!!! Therefore, advances in technology often sprint ahead of me rather than proceed at a gentle pace. Terminolgy becomes an alien language, leaving one with the sense they have wandered into their worst nightmare.

Thankfully, since discovering WS the clear and plain English language used by the writers makes it easy to understand the subject matter. The style of writing draws the reader closer and doesn’t leave them feeling stupid, inadequate or plain dumb. Well done everyone for a job well done.

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I bought a Nook Tablet, the newest device in the Nook Line, and at $249 it is a fairly full-featured tablet without the “bells & whistles” I didn’t need on a tablet: 3G or 4G (with pricey data plan!), camera, bluetooth, etc. It’s Wi-Fi (802.11n) is very robust and Web surfing is quick and problem free. And unlike Amazon’s Kindle, it reads DRM-free ePub-format ebooks. So unless you are a bit-fruit equipment fanatic, or really need a tablet with a data plan, the Nook Tablet is a good choice.

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Thanks byoung651 I’ll look into the Nook for future consideration. Certainly, for those of us not interested in ‘Gaming’, something as versatile & portable as a Tablet could well be ‘the next big thing’ in online technology.

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Several posters to this thread noted a concern over avalability of eBooks. I am a huge fan of Science Fiction, and quickly found that if you go directly to the publishers’ Web sites you have a much better selection, often at better prices! For instance Baen Books, which publishes much of the SciFi I read, was one of the first publishers to embrace eBooks, and sells them in all formats. They also have a Baen Free Library, where their authors voluntarily post full-length e-books of their choice that you can download for free! They are usually the first books in a series, so it’s a great way to discover new authors and series for free! Sort of like beta books! I imagine other publishers offer similar enhancements.

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Does the iPad require a monthly data plan?

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I am surprised that a lead in article for a Windows newsletter neglects to mention Windows ‘tablets’. I had always wanted a computer in that format, even before the latest craze. I had tried various other formats and just couldn’t live with the small screens and limited aspect ratios. Now that I no longer need one, I purchased a Fujitsu q550. I tried the ASUS EP121 and while it is a beatiful device, I found it a little large, wanted a removable battery, and hated the reflective screen.

Why don’t you look into devices that run the o/s being discussed.

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Does the iPad require a monthly data plan?

If you have WiFi on your iPad, there is no data plan. (Of course, if your ISP has a monthly cap on the volume of data you can transfer to or from the Internet, you will be subject to your ISP’s policies and/or fees for overages).

If you have a 3G or 4G capable iPad, then you would have to subscribe to a service to be able to utilize your 3G capability. I have no experience with 3G or 4G to know if any of the companies offering these subscriptions have any limitations on the volume of data transactions in their subscription fees.

Apple provides iPad owners with 5GB of free iCloud storage for your data .

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I am curious to know why there is no mention of the Samsung Series 7 Tablet or the one I am currently using to write this my Gigabyte S1080, it runs all the windows apps I have loaded on it with no problems. I have full versions of Adobe, Office 2007, Vipre and many others and the best of all it has a RJ-45 port, USB3 and will read SDXC cards it has a 320 GB HD and the touch screen works great.

The only thing I have found I like about thee iPad is it is with out a doubt the best I have found for reading books and magazines but not much else and yes I have tried a nook and kindle but do not like the small sizes.

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I have a question.I am a computer repair technician and i work with pc’s primarily.Now if sales of pc’s are down what does that mean for someone like me? should i learn how to repair tablets?

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I am an IT admin with 16 years under my belt, and have experience supporting Windows, Macs, Android, and Blackberrys. I own equipment from all those worlds. I currently use a Toshiba Thrive, running Android Honeycomb 3.2. I chose that specifically because of the limitations of the Ipad. No Flash. No widgets. No expansion slot. No USB. Overpriced IMO. Everything you list the Ipad can do, my tablet does, and more, for a much cheaper price. I am no cheerleader. I choose things based on what I think is right for the job. I just think many people buy without doing the research.

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YUP! But there will be PC’s around for at least as long as you or I are still alive!

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I would also liked to have seen comments on the Motorola XOOM. It has upgraded itself to “Ice Cream” and really is a well running tablet. Got it for small group presentations (standing and walking) so the size is really handy. Runs all MS Office files. Apps available to edit also, but then I come back to the PC and the ease of working with PDF, XL and other files. THEN sending to the XOOM. Mine is wi-fi only due to the expected use.

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My Win 7 installation takes up 30 Gb of disk. It’s a clunker. Takes 2 minutes to start up to a useable screen. My new Win 7 PC is too big to lug around. My older one, Win XP, is separate bits, a box, a screen, a mouse, keyboard. Both use Intel hardware: heavy, noisy, energy draining. My Android/ARM phone does everything, almost, that they do.

The advantage of the Wintel PC is screen size (for spreadsheets and such). It’s upgradeable, yes, but how upgradeable is a Wintel laptop and try getting one fixed when the graphics chip overheats! I have one under the desk in a bag.

Will Win8 be any less demanding of disk space and hardware? Quien sabe? Will Intel ever bring out an ARM style chip?

I’ll buy a tablet, probably an Asus prime and I’ll keep my Wintel PC for basic office tasks, scanning, faxing. But the day Dell or somebody brings out an ARM/Android desktop with a 23″ screen, they’ll get my money and Microsoft and Intel will be history.

But the day Dell or somebody brings out an ARM/Android desktop with a big screen they get my money.

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Reply to sillyname (post #24)

And how long does it take to boot up your phone? In my case (its an iPhone 4S), about as long as it takes the iMac. Mind you, one very seldom shuts down a phone, or an iMac, so wake from sleep is really fast – much faster than doing the same thing on a PC, I’ve found. I haven’t tried, but I suspect that one could attach an external monitor to an iPad via the USB dongle, if you had a USB video adapter, and you could certainly attach an external keyboard, but I don’t see why you’d bother. It would probably be awkward and slow. I wouldn’t be in the least surprised if you couldn’t install IOS or Android on a PC already – I’m pretty sure I’ve seen how to articles, but I expect it wouldn’t be all that much faster, and would also probably be less capable. The heart of these iThings is the multi-touch screen, so ideally you’d need a multi-touch 24″ monitor? I imagine that might get a little awkward to operate. My advice is to use a desktop computer for what it’s good for, and a phone for what it’s good for (mostly, making phone calls…)

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The tablet opens up a whole new range of applications that could not be met satisfactorily with a smart phone, laptop or desk top.

For example, we are a group of musicians who meet weekly and have found that a tablet is the perfect device to mount on a music stand. Further, we use a Drop Box “share” folder to disseminate songs to the group real time so that we are all looking at the same page. This has many obvious advantages over the old method of making and passing out hard copies.

(Of course, we only use public domain music).

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So Woody,

According to Amazon.com’s web site, the Kindle Fire is only available in the U.S customers. Don’t you live in Thailand?

Canadian Dave

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So Woody,

According to Amazon.com’s web site, the Kindle Fire is only available in the U.S customers. Don’t you live in Thailand?

Canadian Dave

Helluva good question! (and I second vmcrk’s comments.)

I had a friend buy the Kindle and ship it to Phuket. For most things it works fine (having a US credit card helps with purchases), but for viewing videos I need to set up a WiFi connection with a router that connects to a VPN in the US. That’s a pain in the neck.

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Although I’ve held my breath and bought an iPad 2, I haven’t been completely disappointed but Apple’s Walled Garden has been a frustrating experience. I enjoy the ability to read everything and play with the only partially useful apps, but data input is decidedly clunky, both text and graphics, and I’ve downloaded Pages, Brushes, and any number of note takers and pads. They all depend on that exasperating keyboard and the even more exasperating auto-correct (the butt of more jokes than I can recall).
As a techie, the biggest irritation is the lack of interfacing ability, this being completely restricted by Apple (Android’s better, but not by much). A USB connector on an iPad does not a USB connector make. It only looks like a USB and is only a subset of what a USB can do, so the ability to make data come or go on these tablets should never be assumed. I’d love to be able to do analog measurements, use the Pad as an oscilloscope, etc. but there are only limited dock interconnections to date and every time Apple updates the firmware, they turn off or on different port properties, reconfiguring them so that 3rd party developers have to rejig their interface. Hardware accessory manufacturers must be ready to go postal with this problem. Anyone with any sensibility would never develop external interfaces as long as Apple keeps doing this.
Also, having to use various kludges and 3rd party solutions to import and export data on and off the devices is just sadistic on the part of Apple. In years to come, outlandish stories will be written about how people in 2011+ had to beg to get their data off of their iPod apps. I hope that Microsoft sees this stupidity and offers a solution with their OS.
Although the iPad is beautifully designed as a piece of hardware (oh, except for the fact that if you don’t wear rubber gloves while handling it, it will slip out of your grasp and fall to the floor), and although the apps are attractive, this is not a producer/creator’s device. It only works at its best when the user is receiving information. Computers, for all their clunkiness and cranky O/Ss are devices used to manufacture and manipulate data and will be around for a long time because of that.

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Would love to see a review and hear your perceptions of Lenovo Think Pad Tablet!

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Jonbon,
Interesting. I’ve never actually held one in my hands, but after going 10 rounds with the Apple barriers, seeing a picture of those 3 ports on the side of the tablet is as if it’s screaming, “Come and get me, baby!!”
I also like their take on the front and back cameras…. not for Skype, but for “superior video conferencing”. Cool.
I’ve always liked IBM/Lenovo products but couldn’t often afford them. Price point looks good too.
Of course, now one has to go dissect Android to see if it has embedded functions to do A/D interfacing. I know that their sound services are a little behind Macs but didn’t rumors say that the new version would catch up?

David

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Just a bit of added info about KINDLES & NOOKS. Kindle works better internationally. I have several friends with NOOKS and they can’t add new material when outside the US. Kindles do much better at this. I have been able to add books and apps. I am told that you can’t download movies outside the US and I haven’t tried. I’ve been told that about apps too but I have been able to download apps fine.

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I was disappointed by the editorial thrust of this article. Over at Betanews, Joe Wilcox has been pushing the same line and referencing the same kind of statistics, all taken out of context, and often not even valid or reliable; lots of what’s been coming out aren’t, but then that’s marketing. Recent desktop hardware advances have offered little to most users over what they already have. Thus, even they have the money – note the long-term unemployment figures in the U.S. and Europe and corporate stinginess in this deep recesssion – desktop sales should be going down. Mass-marketed tablets are new and have lots of actual and potential uses and thus will appeal to a segment of the market. Hence their sales should be going up. That is, temporarily at least, until some large percentage of purchasers find the tablet’s limitations are too great, or they just get tired of this latest toy. But as a non-niche alternative to desktops or laptops, I don’t see the tablet creating any major change without a fundamental convergence between the types. And that seems to be some years off. In any event, there’s no way I take a tablet on a trip with me instead of a net/notebook when I have to type emails or write a letter. Reading the various users comments at other sites, I know that I’m far from alone in that view.

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While I get that RIM’s future seems murky at best, I believe it’s a bit of a criminal omission not to mention the Playbook AT ALL. It’s a 7″ tablet with the capabilities of a larger 10″. It’s not for everyone, but has both front and back cameras and video recording in 1080p, the screen handles HD extremely well. For me it has the most hardware bang for the buck (admittedly at slashed prices), and even if RIM caves in by December 2012 my tablet will continue working as it is. Many bemoan the lack of an email client, but I can do that on the web just as well. I’m afraid I don’t understand why that’s such a con. In fact I would argue that the more I can do with the browser the better. For example I have kindle books I can read on the Playbook through Amazon Kindle’s Cloud Services, and you don’t even need an internet connection for it once you’ve downloaded the book in question, it works like a charm and the screen works very well on it. I can even save bookmarks on the home screens, so I don’t need a two or three step process of tapping the browser app and finding the right bookmark.

I am uncertain with regards to productivity applications. I’m still exploring this part and I’m sure Apple and Android are miles ahead in this department. But in terms of content consumption, the playbook is almost as good as any other device for facebook, twitter, youtube, music, video, etc. If you need a lot of screen real estate the playbook may not be for you. I find it sufficient though, it’s the same as a Nook Color, Kindle Fire or a Galaxy Tab 7″.

The big drawback though, is that RIM may well fold. Unless they can pull a rabbit out of their hat, they may end up getting bought and fall by the wayside, so obviously any investment in such a tablet now may find its future limited. OTOH tablets are coming into the market year after year, so if you expect to get a replacement every 18 months, the playbook is probably worth a look. If it disappoints or RIM dies, the iPad 3 (or 4) or Windows 8 tablets or etc, will be there waiting for you.

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I’ve had my Nook Color for almost a year now and I love it. I’m still trying to find out what exactly an iPad can do that my NC can’t. Granted no camera or mic-but who cares. I have cameras and mics on my desktop and netbook and hardly ever use them. I don’t see every one walking around w/ their iPads talking on Skype all the time, so I’m guessing it’s a moot point. I also don’t need to take photos w/ my NC as I have a nice dslr digital camera. I don’t need to call anyone on it, I have my cell phone. With all the updates and new apps for the Nook Color I have Quickoffice, so I can do anything there. I can browse the web either using the built in web browser-which actually works fine- or Puffin which is fine as well. I also have Flash and watch videos. I have Netflix. I don’t have Hulu, but really don’t care as I don’t subscribe to them. I IM my friends when needed, I play games, can draw, type letters and emails, read books (obviously) and when I’m done put my NC in it’s nice leather case and stick it in my purse. Screen size is perfect, even with my horrible eye sight. I don’t need to be connect to the web constantly as I do have a life. If I’m about and about, then I’ll go to Starbucks or some other place w/ free wi-fi. And since I have my dsl w/ Century Link, I have access to wi-fi in many places. So once again, I find myself asking the question, why would I spend $300.00, or more, to do the same things other tablets can?

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