Why buy a tablet?

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#568494 13-Jan-2012 16:12

^ it sure does. otherwise an IR port would be pretty useless on a tablet.

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klyster

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#568582 13-Jan-2012 18:52

My most common use is comics.

Perfect viewer and my Asus Transformer are comic heaven, I can't think of a better alternative apart from actual comics, and carrying comics around just isn't that practical.

Movies and web is my next most common use, with the dock.

Games are okay, quite interested to see if ICS will improve HD movie playback.

throbb

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#568589 13-Jan-2012 19:19

I think the tablet fills the gap between smart phone and laptop. Mines always sitting on the coffee table, its so easy to pick up and check the web or emails on a whim, then to carry it to bed with me to read or whatever.
It rarely leaves the house unless i'm traveling, its just always there there ready for instant use.

lchiu7

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#568608 13-Jan-2012 20:36

I am over at CES at the moment which admittedly is a Geek show. It is interesting observing the number of folks carrying tablets (mainly iPads but there are many Android tablets on view) versus laptops. They are just so great at consuming content.

I myself have only taken a tablet with me on the trip (Motorola Xoom) which I have left in my hotel room and use a phone all day. When I am back in the hotel room I am using mhy Xoom to check mail etc. and to make life easier for creating content I am also using a BT keyboard. I use the phone only to provide 3G access and tether the table to it.

There is very little I cannot do with the tablet that I would need to use a laptop apart from accessing our work VPN which requires ActiveX in the browser but I can work around that.

As an obversation so many vendors were showing tablets this year it's clearly what the industry thinks people want to buy and use.

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listudio

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#568674 14-Jan-2012 00:36

Now tablet for me seems indispensable:

1.The gaming experience on tablet is different with PSP and laptop mainly because of the touchscreen. In future most popular tablet will be gaming tablet I guess.

2.Book reading: I just love to read books on tablet; it helps me to do skip reading. And I can read wherever I want, like café and gym.

3.Photo Viewing: the monitor is good.

4.GPS on tablet is better than iphone because of bigger screen.

5.Skype: it would be cool if I travel overseas I can skype with my friends and family wherever I want. My xoom camera is not too bad to do the job.

6.Digi-painting: you can draw some funny stuffs and send it out to your friends.

7.Radio: I love listening Radio Tarana on my table, incredible amazing Indian music channel. But all my music collections are on my iphone, thats why I bought an iphone for.

8.Common uses: email, blog, news, google, comic, movie, music, events.

tdgeek

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#568695 14-Jan-2012 08:56

I bought an iPad as its better than a laptop. Well, better, as in when on the run and need a laptop. The iPad is smaller, longer battery life, has 3G. An iPad in a sponge case vs a laptop in a bag with all the required accessories. Around the home, quick and convenient. At the coffee table, browsing, etc, I prefer the laptop as its bigger and more convenient for that.

Perhaps a better argument is Tablet or Netbook? Both are small, both good battery life. Tablet for consumption, netbook if you need to create a lot.

CdTDroiD

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#568696 14-Jan-2012 09:05

I havent read the whole thread, but just for some input. When i got my Tablet it cut my laptop usage down by a huge amount, the only thing i really used it for was developing... Main reason is the tablet batterys are much better than laptops (In my case, and I have a good laptop) plus they are lighter and easier to carry around. But i think they are more like an extra toy if you already have a laptop and a smart phone.

Great for like sales reps and stuff who have a 3G version, I know many people that use them for that reason.

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psychrn

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#568704 14-Jan-2012 10:00

timmmay: I use it to read articles and check email at work, in bed, and on the sofa. It plays movies for me when i'm away, and does email and web then too. I play games on it, I read stuff on the train.

It's a good toy.

With your transformer you have the ability to add a dock / keyboard.which would allow more creating content.
I at moment have an iPad , android smartphone (Galaxy Note)
Just as a side I'm sure you can add a BT keyboard with most of the tabs out now.

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alienwithin

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#569007 15-Jan-2012 09:45

i had a talk with my father one day (over 70 years old). Do you want a tablet? answer was no he would never use it. He had a play with my tablet then said he wouldn't use it but if I wanted to buy him one I could. over 200 books now on the tablet he uses it every day and loves it. while they aren't for everyone i think the best option is to actually just go into a shop if you are thinking about getting one and just have a play around, see if you would use it or not.

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#569022 15-Jan-2012 10:48

They, like laptops are a romantic notion for the vast majority of people. They get a lot of use initially and then sit in a cupboard or on a coffee tablet not getting used. It's like laptops that people get because they want to work at home, failing to realize that when they get home they are tired and have a house full of screaming kids and a spouse that wants some interaction

Wade

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#569028 15-Jan-2012 11:11

I am yet to buy a tablet but will do so this year, I intend on using it in-car a lot (media center/GPS) so am yet to find a suitably specc'ed unit but I am sure the right unit will show its face before the years out.

My parents (mid 60's) bought an ipad2 last year and it goes everywhere with them, these are not tech savvy people I may add, they would struggle to live without it now despite it being a bit of a impulse buy on my mothers behalf has proven to be a brilliant buy.

Giggs

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#569410 16-Jan-2012 12:39

Thanks for all the feedback.

I think my wife may benefit more than me with a tablet at this stage as she finds using the laptop a real chore. Having just got the Visa bill though, she maybe waiting a while!

Cheers

crackrdbycracku

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#569537 16-Jan-2012 16:52

I agree with others on here that say it is niche device.

I would say it depends on what other stuff you have.

If I was setting up from scratch with enough money I would go desktop PC (connected to the TV); tablet for content consumption, web and email; smartphone for when being able to put the thing in your pocket is more important than screen size.

If you can't afford all three then a laptop and a smartphone will do, they do fine for me at present. Or if you need the extra power, storage, etc of a laptop, for content creation when you are away from home then that may be the way to go.

I don't think tablets can be used as laptop replacements just yet unless you have a 'proper' PC somewhere in the mix and the laptop being replaced is the secondary PC. This is mostly because the storage isn't there yet. There is probably a way around this using a NAS or cloud storage for your stuff but it's still probably more trouble than it is worth at present.

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Linuxluver

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#569755 17-Jan-2012 08:53

I recently bought a 10" tablet. I find I use it for many of the things I was using my phone for, but with the larger screen it's much more enjoyable to use. It takes good photos. They are easy to edit and share. Nice to look at on the big screen. Same for video. The tablet also fills most of the uses of a laptop...and it easier to use it when sitting in a recliner chair with your feet up. It's lighter. The battery lasts AGES.

I use the SlideIt swiping keyboard in portrait mode (landscape is too.....wide) for typing and it works really well and feels very natural. Definitely better than two-handed hunt-and-peck (my laptop / desktop typing mode).

At this point, if I had a 3D-capable tablet that had a 2D / 3D still / video-editing app(s) on it.....I'd have no real use for the phone or the laptop....though the phone's small size makes it VERY portable. So I guess the laptop would be odd man out.

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Linuxluver

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#569761 17-Jan-2012 09:01

....

I don't think tablets can be used as laptop replacements just yet unless you have a 'proper' PC somewhere in the mix and the laptop being replaced is the secondary PC. This is mostly because the storage isn't there yet. There is probably a way around this using a NAS or cloud storage for your stuff but it's still probably more trouble than it is worth at present.

If you have a tablet like the ASUS Transformer you are able to plug external HDs into it...which solves any storage problem. Plugging a couple of terabytes into a tablet should resolve any storage issues. :-)

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