Tablet advice, please - OG Myth-Weavers

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Tablet advice, please

   
Tablet advice, please

I'm looking to buy a tablet computer for the purposes of GM aid. I want something relatively cheap, user friendly, able to run PDF, DOC, JPG, BMP, all the basic stuff, and something that works as close to a laptop or desktop as possible. Anyone have suggestions or horror stories.

The new windows 8 Pro slate tablet is supposed to be able to run any program a home computer or laptop can run. It even comes with a cover that has a keyboard in it.

That is what my next tablet is going to be if I get another one.

The only problem with the Surface Pro (mentioned by Nerian) is that it's probably going to fall more into the laptop category as far as price goes. (They haven't released the price on it yet, AFAIK.) Still, if you're looking for a tablet that does basically everything a laptop or desktop does, a Windows 8 tablet is the way to go. IMPORTANT NOTE: There's also something called "Windows 8 RT," and there are some pretty slick tablets available that use it. It will not run all of your old windows programs, though. (Its primary advantages over Windows 8 tablets are price and battery life, not power or flexibility.)

So if you're looking for something to take the place of a laptop, Windows 8 is a good bet--but check whether it's running Windows 8 RT or the full Windows 8.

I had a post written up, but the forum decided to eat it.

Here's the extremely condensed version of what I had:

I sell Windows tablets and laptops all day long.

I highly recommend a Windows RT tablet. It has a built in PDF Reader application with multiple free ones on the Microsoft store. It also has a true USB port which will allow you to add PDFs to the tablet no problem, as well as if you want to digitally create media and quickly put it on the tablet. As previously mentioned however, it will not run Windows desktop applications. It does have a pre-installed version of Microsoft Office, however.

iPad is an Apple product. A solid product built exactly like any other Apple product.

The Google Nexus 10 is the best Android tablet. Extremely versatile and capable of anything you would need it to do.

Prices:

Windows RT tablet starts at $499.
Windows 8 Pro tablet is not on the market yet.
iPad starts at $499.
Google Nexus 10 starts at $399, but is also not on the market for purchase yet.

Any thoughts from anyone on the Kindle Fire? I'm mostly asking because my Kindle III ereader is the single greatest gadget I've ever purchased in my life (I really cannot underestimate how much I love it)(seriously, my wife took my coat to work one day while it was in the pocket and I got the shakes from kindle-withdrawal).

It's smaller than a lot of tablets, but cheaper too.

Everyone I've talked to (including my customers) about the Kindle Fire (and the Kindle Fire HD) say that they have liked it a LOT more than they thought they would.

For the price point, the Kindle Fire is easily the best eReader/tablet hybrid (Google Nexus 7 being a close second, if not better if you're looking for full tablet functionality). The Nook tablets are... okay, from what I've heard. Amazon just has a huger selection of everything.

I mostly just want access to my Pathfinder books, a Word equivalent program for text documents, and internet access. Cheaper is better, I'm wondering though if I'm going to get what I pay for. Will a low end tablet be dead in a year? What's the durability of, say, a 8GB Galaxy tablet? That's looking like my best option at $199 most places

If you're gonna be typing documents or posts on it, it then get something with a proper keyboard. I own an Asus Transformer myself, which I'm really happy with. I've got my gaming pdfs on there, I can use it to write and edit docs, syncs with my google drive etc. Works great for surfing the web and of course myth-weavers. It has a usb port and takes sd cards.

I've also heard good things about the Microsoft Surface. The people I know that own Samsung tablets/phones/whatevers are all happy as well, don't think your keyboard options are so hot there, but if you don't need one then that's probably the way to go.

The Asus looks right up my alley, a little more than I was hoping to pay but the tech nerd in me loves it.

I've decided that whatever I get it'll have 'Don't Panic' written in large, friendly letters on the cover.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bumblor View Post
I mostly just want access to my Pathfinder books, a Word equivalent program for text documents, and internet access.
For that list of tasks, the 32 GB Surface RT sounds like a great fit. However, it costs the aforementioned $499 instead of the $199 of the Galaxy tablet you mention.

If you want a cover or a keyboard accessory, factor that into your price, too. The Surface RT comes with an excellent cover/keyboard combo, but not until the $599 price point. (Again...PRICE.)

If you go with an Android unit, it helps to be tech-savvy since that can open up a lot of options for you.

And "Don't Panic" is always hoopy advice.




 

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