Tablet PC vs Laptop

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Master Geek

#16975 6-Nov-2007 15:36

Hi all,

I'm thinking about moving towards a Tablet just for the fun of it and was wondering if anyone can tell me what differences in uses are between Tablet PCs vs Laptops? Are you compromising any functionality if you choose a Tablet instead of a Laptop?

Also any recommendations on any good ones? I'm using a thinkpad right now and they seem to be reasonably good quality so I was looking at a X61.

Any advice would be appreciated,

Cheers,

freitasm

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#93951 6-Nov-2007 15:37

Tablet PCs add functionality to laptops, they don't take anything away. I favour the convertible ones because sometimes it's faster to type than to write things.

tonyhughes

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#93960 6-Nov-2007 16:35

There are some tradeoffs (in my humble opinion).

I have a consumer V5000 Compaq 15.4 widescreen laptop at home, and had an HP nx6320 as my work laptop.

I ditched the nx6320 for a tc4400 HP tablet (convertible to standard laptop with its swivel screen)

Its great, and I love it, but.....

Keyboard significantly narrower (as case is much smaller). Fine to type with, but slower for lots of typing over a long period (I have big hands...)
Touchpad is smaller (it makes a difference if you are 'mousing' a lot with it in laptop mode.
Single speaker, mono and slightly less volume than the nx or v5000's stereo speakers.
Screen doesnt have quite as much clarity or brightness (due to touchscreen overlays?)
tc4400 in particular has no optical drive.
SD/MMC slot but no other formats.

Having said that, its a pretty small whinge list, and overall I think its a great machine, and much prefer it to my laptop.

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Master Geek

#93977 6-Nov-2007 17:38

Thanks for the replies guys.

Tony: How much did that HP tablet set you back by?

Looking at the X61 Tablet, it's over $3k. I've also noticed that it's only 12.1" which is probably a little small coming from a 14.1" or is that the biggest screen you can get for a tablet?

Cheers,

KiwiOverseas66

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Master Geek
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#93979 6-Nov-2007 17:48

I had an HP tablet last year (older model compared to brad - the TC1100) and loved it. I'm thinking of buying one personally second hand.What I like the best was that it seems more portable then a laptop. On the business side of things - writing directly to the screen was a sinch (does anyone use that word anymore - how old am I)! It also meant I could keep all my notes in the one place - and referring back to them was easy. If I was having a coffee between meetings it was alot easier with the tablet to sit down, fire it up, and then use the pen to navigate around the screen, fire up the 3g card, browse, check emails, reply to a few of them, etc. If I did need to do a bit of typing - out came the swivel keyboard and away you go. Never failed to get a coment in a cafe as to "what the hell is that...."

Agree with brads comments re the keyboard, and the screen was too small to use for long periods as well. This all got resolved when plugging it into the docking station with a normal 19 inch screen and a full size ergo keyboard. Also - prior to getting one had a few comments that using a tablet would mean hardware with reduced performance. Never turned out to be the case.

KiwiOverseas66

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Master Geek
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#93981 6-Nov-2007 17:50

oh crikey - I just called tony - brad. Sorry tony! I know you don't live in Otago - the Hawkes Bay has more sunshine....

sorry, sorry, sorry.......

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#93985 6-Nov-2007 18:08

KiwiOverseas66 : banned user

:o)

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#93987 6-Nov-2007 18:12

Doesnt appear to be on sale anymore, and I cant remember what they were worth (internal Gen-i purchase).

12.1" screen, fine for an hour or so, though in my office I have a 19" wide LCD, dual head setup with tablet next to it, dock, keyboard/mouse etc.

Great for size or functionality, but I wouldnt buy one 'just because', I would only buy it for the need.

Very happy with the performance, although we did take them up to 2GB the day they arrived.

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#93991 6-Nov-2007 18:28

if you want hp and tablet pc, 2710p is great with LED screen and Core 2 Duo U7x00 cpu.

specs. highly recommend this.

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Master Geek

#94293 8-Nov-2007 16:28

Thanks for the responses guys..

I haven't really got a use for a tablet to be honest. I'm only thinking about it as something different. A new toy to play with =oP

Maybe I'll go out this weekend and see if I can find one to play around with to see what it can do before I go out and spend money on it.