http://www.channelinsider.com/c/a/Spotlight/10-Reasons-Tablets-Could-Just-Be-A-Fad-421110/
Here are their reasons and why I disagree with them.
Tablets mimic smartphones in several ways, but they fall short when compared to those mobile devices. Handsets have the same operating systems, more applications – and let you make phone calls. Smartphones have the luxury of lasting a long time, but tablets, who knows?
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Click to collapse
Fall short, how? Lasting long time how? My tablet lasts a hell of a lot longer than most phones out there when it comes to battery life.
Tablets are designed to be travel companions, but exactly how mobile they really are is up for debate. Without the proper case, they can be damaged when dropped. And even though companies like Apple are slimming them down, they can’t be tossed into a pocket for easy access. The limits to tablet mobility could very well hurt them over the long-term.
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Anything can be damaged when dropped. What the hell kind of reason against tablets is this? Here's a picture I'd like to share with you on how mobile my tablet is.
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Looks pretty mobile to me. Here's a thought for the writer. Would he rather carry around a laptop or would he rather carry around a tablet?
Laptops Are Still Ideal
When it comes to getting work done, there’s no reason to suggest the consumers or enterprise users should use a tablet over a laptop. Additional keyboard accessories are nice to help users type, but considering tablet software is underpowered and lack the programs found on traditional laptops, it’s hard to see how they would fare in the enterprise over the long haul.
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The writer her mistakes different for underpowered. Laptops still have their uses. I agree. That said, I have not powered my laptop on for 3 months now. Everything I needed to do that I used to do with my laptop I can now do with my tablet.
Being different does not mean inferior. Heck, if different means inferior, then I could say that the laptop is inferior to the desktop, since you can't change in and out hardwares.
Do Customers Need A New One Each Year?
Right now, consumers are buying new tablets each year. But as major jumps in functionality start to slow, will consumers realize that they're happy with the tablet they already have? Apple certainly hopes that won’t happen, but considering how expensive slates can be, it might be only a matter of time.
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Click to collapse
How is this evidence against tablet being here to stay? For me, the iconia should last me at least a couple years before I start eyeing something else.
What About Ultrabooks?
Notebook makers aren’t sitting back and allowing tablets to steal their market share. In fact, Intel has created a category of computers – called Ultrabooks – that offer an ultra-slim design that combines the power of laptops with the tablet-like features consumers want. When those devices launch later this year, they could stymie tablet sales.
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Click to collapse
Battery life, battery life, battery life, battery life. Until laptops can be as lite and lasts as long with a single battery charge as the tablets, I don't see much of a competition there.
Could Chromebooks Cannibalize Sales?
Chromebooks are not market leaders right now, but over the long-term, as Chrome OS becomes more popular, how might consumers respond to those products? After all, they’re lightweight, extremely mobile, and come with a unique operating system. If they catch on, they could seriously hurt tablet sales.
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Huh? Aren't chromebooks just another kind of laptop?
It Has Happened Before
The mobile-computing space is by no means a stranger to fads. First there were netbooks, now tablets are taking over. If netbooks, which seemingly had a bright future, can die, what makes anyone think that tablets are here to stay?
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I'm going to have to borrow Steve Jobs' words here. Netbooks aren't better at anything. They are just underpowered, overpriced minilaptops. Their battery life don't last as long as well. My gf's transformer, combined the dock, lasts 16 hours.
My gf is a therapist. She incorporates her transformer into her daily work. She uses her transformer to do everything from signing contracts with new clients to writing reports on them to taking notes during her sessions. Not possible with a laptop or netbook.
The Economy Could Hurt Them
If the economy is going well, tablets will likely continue to succeed without much trouble. But if the economy continues to decline and takes a while to recover, consumers and enterprise users might balk at buying new slates for the sake of having them. There’s a gold rush for tablets right now, but that could soon come to an end.
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Like everything else, the high demand for tablets will soon level off. So what? This happens with every new economic niche out there. How is this a reason why the tablets will die off?
Few Devices Succeed
Not everyone can be on top, and one can make the argument that only Apple’s iPad is a success in the tablet market so far. If that continues, it might not be long before other vendors abandon the tablet and the market contracts, causing all kinds of trouble for the space.
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And how likely do we think this will happen? Vendors abandoning the tablet just for the sake of abandoning it?
Early Success Isn't Predictive
When it’s all said and done, there’s no way to know for sure what will happen with tablets. But if anything is certain, it’s that early success does not necessarily mean that devices will be popular over the long-term. At this point, anything can happen.
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I completely agree with this one, actually. At this point, anything can happen. That said, the fact that I haven't brought along my laptop or even turned it on for 3 months should be telling. I have even used my tablet to type up a report a few times. Have also used it to create a powerpoint presentation.
All I can say is I have figured out a way to make my life easier with the tablet. And my laptop, which I previously carried with me everywhere, is now just sitting there collecting dust.
+10 (One + for each item)
I'll never buy another laptop. This tablet of mine has simply replaced the need for one. Ultra-compact, lightweight, portable, powerful enough to do everything I need it to do. As time passes, functionality can only improve.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again, I consider my tablet to be a laptop, but without the pesky keyboard (unless I want to use a keyboard, in which case I plug one in, and awayyyyy I gooooo)
Sent from my A500 using Tapatalk
Tablets with keyboard docks can easily replace laptops for most professionals, as they are much lighter and last much longer (and this will only go up). As for netbooks, their continued existence will rely heavily on whether Windows 8 will be optimised for them or for tablets. Either way, they will have to improve on weight, thinness and battery duration to effectively compete with tablets.
As for laptops, their main niche will be as a person's single computer, and in that aspect they compete more with desktops than with tablets. On the other hand, tablets will not be able to become someone's single computer for the majority, apart from those that only check facebook, emails and the occasional youtube video.
Boy, this person sure does seem to have an agenda against tablets! I'd say before you create an article like this, use a tablet for 2-3 weeks first!
Ted
HA i think his wife wouldent let him get one!!
To be fair, here is the reason why I think the tablet is not for everybody and that after the hype the number of users will level off.
I've been able to incorporate my tablet into my daily life. I take it with me to work everyday. I use autocad ws to quickly look up the specs at work. I can quickly check email, surf, etc. My girl friend likes to travel when we can, so I've been using the iconia as a video camera. I use it to document our travels. Look in the accessory forum for the thread I started on my own mount in the car.
But basically speaking, I have not turned on my laptop for 3 months now.
Some people have asked me how I can do more heavy duty work like autocad design and such and my answer to them is that's what my home desktop is for. The tablet was never designed to replace the desktop. But for me it has replaced my laptop completely. My laptop is now just sitting there collecting dust.
My gf is a therapist. She has the asus transformer with the dock. She has also incorporate that thing into her daily work. She uses her TF to sign contracts with her clients and then email the pdf right back to them. She uses the TF to take notes during sessions. She also uses it to write reports. Like my laptop, her laptop has been sitting there collecting dust. She's donating her laptop to her mom, which herself is considering buying a transformer before they go to Europe in a couple months.
You just have to be creative and adaptive to make full use of the tablet. I'm willing to bet most people who got a tablet are exactly the people who from time to time post threads asking "I've rooted my device, now what can I do with it?" People are nontechnical in general. I'm willing to bet the only reason these people got their ipad/tablet in the first place was because of the hype. And then once they couldn't figure out what the hell to do with their tablets, they start criticizing it saying it's useless.
I'm sure when the laptop first came out (a little before I was alive) there were people who bought the laptop for the sole purpose of the hype. Then after a couple years the number leveled off after most people realized they didn't know what the hell to do with it.
For me, I'm making full use of my iconia. Not anybody's fault if you can't figure out how to incorporate the tablet into your daily life.
Well said
I do a lot of travel - and my Iconia is *perfect* for this. In a small backpack I can fit my tablet, charger, external USB hdd full of movies and TV, Bluetooth keyboard / mouse combo, and everything I need.
I spend a lot of time in public locations with wifi hotspots - and unlike the average Laptop user I see - i can sit anywhere at the coffee shop, as my Iconia has a battery that actually can provide hours of heavy use without being plugged into the wall.
This article is pretty silly - the part about tablets being breakable if you drop them -- this is probably the best lol I have had in days. Drop a MacBook from 5 feet and see what happens. If anything, tablets should be more resistant to damage, as unlike the laptop - we don't have moving parts and sensitive hdd's that can be killed with nothing more then a good hard bump.
I hate to be the party pooper, but none of the current tablets can replace my laptop. As a disclaimer, it's an i7 with 8GB of RAM and a GTS 360M 1GB graphics card. Basically, a portable desktop.
This doesn't mean I agree with the writer that tablets are a fad though. It will be just like any new category of gadgets. Some people will jump on the bandwagon immediately. Some of those "jumpers" will like and use the new gadget to it's full potential. Some of those "jumpers" will hardly use it, but still think it's cool. The rest of the "jumpers" will be somewhere in between.
Then you will see other less agressive adopters buy this gadget. The same rules of use/not use will apply.
I honestly see tablets in it for the long haul. Even though it could never replace my laptop, I can see where it will do everything necessary for a lot of people. I need a serious computer for home, work, and school. I need to be able to run Microsoft Office (including Visio), Adobe Dreamweaver & Photoshop, and various other desktop class applications. This is why tablets will not replace my laptop. We will see what happens when Windows 8 comes around and is loaded on a tablet PC.
I also chose the Iconia for my tablet because of the full USB port and the working SD card slot. At the time of purchase, it was the only tablet with these options functional. I do not regret my purchase. I use the tablet regularly. It is especially handy when moving around the house, hanging out on the porch, laying in bed and trying to fall asleep, etc.
also
Check out the other articles by the author. I think we have one of two situations :
1) As has been already said, Don Reisinger's wife won't let him have a new tablet and he is sad.
2) Don Reisinger has no idea what he is talking about.
entropy.of.avarice said:
Check out the other articles by the author. I think we have one of two situations :
1) As has been already said, Don Reisinger's wife won't let him have a new tablet and he is sad.
2) Don Reisinger has no idea what he is talking about.
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Click to collapse
I concur! I really wonder if he's ever picked up a tablet and tried it out!
I really shook my head at his 10 Reasons To Leave The Tablet At Home And Bring the PC On The Next Trip
http://mobile.channelinsider.com/c/...ome-And-Bring-the-PC-On-the-Next-Trip-272091/
I'm wondering... Anyone ever compiled a 10 Reasons Don Reisinger is a Douche list??
Sent from my HTC EVO 3D using Tapatalk
i havent even seen a netbook ad in months i think they are dead, replaced by tablets
cordell507 said:
i havent even seen a netbook ad in months i think they are dead, replaced by tablets
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I've seen them at Staples recently, but I'm in agreement... thinking they're heading to the dustbin of history! Tablets will only get better/stronger/faster with time.
Sent from my HTC EVO 3D using Tapatalk
goodintentions said:
To be fair, here is the reason why I think the tablet is not for everybody and that after the hype the number of users will level off.
I've been able to incorporate my tablet into my daily life. I take it with me to work everyday. I use autocad ws to quickly look up the specs at work. I can quickly check email, surf, etc. My girl friend likes to travel when we can, so I've been using the iconia as a video camera. I use it to document our travels. Look in the accessory forum for the thread I started on my own mount in the car.
But basically speaking, I have not turned on my laptop for 3 months now.
Some people have asked me how I can do more heavy duty work like autocad design and such and my answer to them is that's what my home desktop is for. The tablet was never designed to replace the desktop. But for me it has replaced my laptop completely. My laptop is now just sitting there collecting dust.
My gf is a therapist. She has the asus transformer with the dock. She has also incorporate that thing into her daily work. She uses her TF to sign contracts with her clients and then email the pdf right back to them. She uses the TF to take notes during sessions. She also uses it to write reports. Like my laptop, her laptop has been sitting there collecting dust. She's donating her laptop to her mom, which herself is considering buying a transformer before they go to Europe in a couple months.
You just have to be creative and adaptive to make full use of the tablet. I'm willing to bet most people who got a tablet are exactly the people who from time to time post threads asking "I've rooted my device, now what can I do with it?" People are nontechnical in general. I'm willing to bet the only reason these people got their ipad/tablet in the first place was because of the hype. And then once they couldn't figure out what the hell to do with their tablets, they start criticizing it saying it's useless.
I'm sure when the laptop first came out (a little before I was alive) there were people who bought the laptop for the sole purpose of the hype. Then after a couple years the number leveled off after most people realized they didn't know what the hell to do with it.
For me, I'm making full use of my iconia. Not anybody's fault if you can't figure out how to incorporate the tablet into your daily life.
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Click to collapse
Very well said, and my experience has been very similar to yours.
I just got an a500. Gave it to my wife. I currently rely on my android smartphone for everything besides graphic design work. I love the tablet but just like our previous ipad, its mostly a novelty for us(the ipad became our 5 year old daughters toy. So we ended up selling it).
I might be one of the few or maybe only one but, I'm in love with ultra portable laptops. Anything around 11.6 to the 13 inch laptops are these sexy powerful beasts that I can't seem to stop fantasizing about.
I can see myself using a tablet more once its more useful to me though. I was playing with that autodesk sketch app. Pretty impressive.
Anyways. I think when it comes to tablets, the ipad is the real fad. Just like android smartphones, I think the sale\adoption of android tablets will grow at a faster pace eventually. Compared to the ipad, android tablets seem like a true replacement to laptops especially netbooks.
Well ,I'll try using it exclusively with my business and accounting applications, we'll see how usefull the tablet can be , aside from everyday tasks ,i dont see it not taking over , of course for those of us who tinker this wont be enough !
Vintage144 said:
Well ,I'll try using it exclusively with my business and accounting applications, we'll see how usefull the tablet can be , aside from everyday tasks ,i dont see it not taking over , of course for those of us who tinker this wont be enough !
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Well, the tablet isnt made to replace your desktop. If thats what you think, then youre in for disappointment.
Related
So I was looking at the iPad 2 conference on my Engadget app, and at 10:10am he mentioned that Honeycomb only has 100 apps compared to the iPad apps. And before that talked about the Galaxy S tabs. Check it out
http://m.engadget.com/default/artic...les-ipad-2-event/&category=classic&postPage=1
Ps...why is he back...
Sent from MYN EVOlutionary cellular....uh....mini tablet?
Is it 'disrespect' or just 'fact?'
I mean, you'd expect iPod to have a larger ecosystem -- right now.
I'm not an Android nor Apple fan boy; both entities are contributing to the forward movement of technology, which can only benefit us in the long run. Let's not get caught up on his words. In fact, they may stir the Android community to develop more and better apps for Android tablets to come.
Let's face it: No tablet is ever going to come close to the iPad or Apple, because big corps. just don't get it.
Hrshycro said:
Let's face it: No tablet is ever going to come close to the iPad or Apple, because big corps. just don't get it.
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Click to collapse
Apple is not a big corp?!
I was talking about the other big corps trying to make tablets. Not saying apple gets everything right, they don't, but they understand the majority and have a pretty good business model.
Sent from my PC36100 using XDA App
Ruki_Uki said:
So I was looking at the iPad 2 conference on my Engadget app, and at 10:10am he mentioned that Honeycomb only has 100 apps compared to the iPad apps. And before that talked about the Galaxy S tabs. Check it out
http://m.engadget.com/default/artic...les-ipad-2-event/&category=classic&postPage=1
Ps...why is he back...
Sent from MYN EVOlutionary cellular....uh....mini tablet?
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I've owned a iPhone 3G then moved to the EVO because android was more open and it supported flash.
I was going to attempt to make a reasonable post on how moronic it sounds to try and downplay the impact the iPad2 will have.
But I rather just say this: Nothing will come close to beating the iPad2 in terms of an market ecosystem/product design/buzz/fanboyism/price point within a reasonable competitive time frame.
The Xoom is more expensive and does not even currently support flash. One of the sharpest points Android has against iOS. HTC forth coming tablet is basically an EVO with a larger screen.
And lets not forget the iOS is way more flexible once you jailbroke it, which in itself is not terribly hard to do compared to when the first iPhone's came out.
I'm going to purchase a tablet this year, and had my heart set on an android tablet. The iPad2 made that choice a lot harder. HC still has a way to go begin to penetrate that tablet space.
IPad 2 is sexy. I love honeycomb but, android needs to work with the device manufacturers closer to be able to match apples software/hardware synergy. Everything the iPad2 does has been crafted so beautifully while something like the xoom still don't compare. Even the original iPad looks better and move smoother than the xoom. Based on the video on Engadget the iPad2 takes that to another level. **** the iPad2 cover is also amazing. Don't get me wrong my phone will most likely will always be an Android because of widgets but I think I want an iPad2.
if apple knew anything about what their customers wanted they'd of included flash on their devices by now...
How in the hell can they still not have flash on the ipad 2? where is the logic in that? Tablets are supposed to be replacements for netbooks/laptops, you would think the most basic thing to have would be flash....
I think the flash (non)support is adobe's choosing. Some battle between Apple and Adobe.
Regardless on your feelings for Steve Jobs and Apple, If it weren't for Steve Jobs, the Evo probably wouldn't even exist. Neither would Android, at least not in their current forms.
The iPhone is what brought about this cellular "reniassance". Try to remember the smartphone scene before the iPhone. It was pretty much non existant unless you it was your hobby, or you needed one for work. And remember the choices? The old Palm OS, Blackberrys, which did absolutely nothing but messaging, and Windows Mobile. Palm OS and Windows Mobile were little more than PDA's with celluar radios. Apple put the smartphone in the eyes and hands of the average person.
Of course he's going to trash talk Android, it's finally a legit competitor to iOS. WebOS, while a nice OS, has absolute trash for hardware. WindowsPhone7 will stay around I think, it has promise, but it launched on last years hardware missing features from last years smartphones, so it has some catching up to do. Blackberry might be ok if the new QNX based platform comes out, but QNX was developed for terminals and what not, and not meant to rely on a battery, so battery life was not a concern.
Anyway you look at it, it's a good time if you like smartphones, and you have Apple to thank for it.
dbonbass said:
I think the flash (non)support is adobe's choosing. Some battle between Apple and Adobe.
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Click to collapse
Nope. Apple won't allow third party dev platforms on their devices. Adobe even made it so you could build a Flash application and then compile for iOS or whatever so Apple made it against the TOS to even develop on any other platform.
The thing is, so many iOS apps are fancy frontends for websites or things you can do in Flash/Air. If you could run Flash apps in a browser or Flash player app, you immediately have access to a ton of the things iOS apps can do...but without Apple getting their cut of every sale. It undermines their control over a closed ecosystem which has kept their devices both relatively stable and incredibly lucrative.
Adobe has been pissed at Apple ever since they screwed them over when they dropped Carbon64 for Cocoa, wasting years of Adobe development for OSX. Since Windows was a riper market and more open for developers, they started to put a lot more effort into their Windows ports. Jobs got pissed about that and has held a grudge since. Between that and the desire for complete control, they have a pretty uneasy relationship with Adobe.
dbonbass said:
The iPhone is what brought about this cellular "reniassance". Try to remember the smartphone scene before the iPhone. It was pretty much non existant unless you it was your hobby, or you needed one for work. And remember the choices? The old Palm OS, Blackberrys, which did absolutely nothing but messaging, and Windows Mobile. Palm OS and Windows Mobile were little more than PDA's with celluar radios. Apple put the smartphone in the eyes and hands of the average person.
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Click to collapse
There were some pretty good smart phones before the iPhone. I had Treos and Pocket PCs and they had GPS, copy/paste, 3rd party apps, touch screens, etc. long before the iPhone existed. Even when the iPhone came out it didn't have most of the features of a smart phone.
What it *did* have was a bigger/more responsive screen and a great mobile browser. That was the contribution of the iPhone. It was a great contribution and one I totally appreciate but it was an evolution, not a revolution. The other big contribution was putting the Apple marketing machine behind it. Apple doesn't screw around when it comes to marketing whereas Palm and Microsoft and RIM never seemed interested in marketing direct to consumer instead of to business. Aside from the Palm Centro, you wouldn't really see ads for these things so people kept buying RAZRs and such for the most part.
The whole market has been evolving long before the iPhone. They didn't start it but rather let others break ground as they usually do, and then once a lot of the roadblocks were out of the way, they put out a device that was missing a lot of common smart phone features but which was very attractive to a wide market which wasn't being addressed and was not aware of what they were missing.
I'm glad this happened because it helped to popularize big screens and good mobile browsers. Other platforms and devices likewise influenced Apple to add things like GPS, copy/paste, third party apps, multitasking, changeable wallpapers, etc.
It's win-win for us since we have better options to choose from.
People keep harping on flash but skyfire works on IOS and shows flash just fine. I mean its been out since like last November.
cdszoke said:
IPad 2 is sexy. I love honeycomb but, android needs to work with the device manufacturers closer to be able to match apples software/hardware synergy. Everything the iPad2 does has been crafted so beautifully while something like the xoom still don't compare. Even the original iPad looks better and move smoother than the xoom. Based on the video on Engadget the iPad2 takes that to another level. **** the iPad2 cover is also amazing. Don't get me wrong my phone will most likely will always be an Android because of widgets but I think I want an iPad2.
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Except the fact remains is iOS sucks horribly at multi-tasking.
LOL I read the title of this thread and thought of the first Fast and Furious movie where the guy says SWAT came into his house and disrespected his family.
splmonster said:
Except the fact remains is iOS sucks horribly at multi-tasking.
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Click to collapse
Explain. Why would I want a calculator app running in the background taking up memory? Or having rouge apps cause wake lock problems? iOS has background processing for things that make sense, push notifications for updates, and save states for everything else. That frees up memory, CPU time, and battery life.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
I will be the first one to say I hate Steve jobs out of all my friends. Ipad 2 just gave every tablet a run for its money even the ones that aren't out yet that will launch thus year. Flash doesn't really mean crap 1 its still slow on the evos browser and html 5 will eventually be that standard I believe. I finally bought my first macbook pro this year 2 weeks ago. I have always been a windows user and could have purchased a windows comp with better specs than my macbook pro for half the price. Wanna know why I hate steve jobs/apple do much; because APPLE has the market by the balls. I don't know how else to explain it but they do.
Sent from my Evo in your sisters closet using Tapatalk
It is what it is... I don't get caught up in the wars between smartphone/tablet makers. I just let them battle it out because in the end.. competition is good for the consumer.
Like it or not, Apple puts out quality products... can't deny that. It's easier for them to perfect what they have because they use their own hardware/software where as android is on a lot of different hardware.
A lot of these so called "mid-range" android phones are garbage and really gives them a bad name. I'll call out the samsung acclaim... I know 3 people with that phone and it is their first android phone..and it is total junk. Between all 3 of them they random reboots, horrible battery, unresponsive screens, lag and hang ups out the rear.
I'm all for making yourself available.. but when you put products like that out that people are foced to keep for the duration of their contract, then you'll lose customers. The 3 people I know are definitely going iphone next.
I think that is just one of the ways Apple keeps their place among the top of the line.. by not putting their software on crap hardware that ultimately results in a bad rep for your product.
Just remember. Good marketing beats a good product all day long.
At the end of the day, this is just another rerun of 1984. Apple doesn't want to license their hardware nor software. Along comes IBM (In this case Android) and the clones which eventually let way to Windows which can be run on any IBM compatible (Android devices). Sound familiar?
I picked up this tablet mainly to play around with app development, but I must say, I am seriously underwhelmed. No Netflix, no skype video, can't get my DISH sling player to work on it, my digital copy movies won't even load, other movies which I have burned are choppy, seems evey time you jump back to a list (app store, settings uninstall, etc) you get put at the top of the list instead of where you left off, no native network sharing support, the micro sd is not hot swapable, many of the aps in the app store are hlf baked, haven't figured out how to do a mass clear of notifications (and this is a much applauded feature, where is the stinking "clear all"), the browser zoom is kind of quirky, and when I clicked the email link to reset my password for the XDA site here, it went into this wierd hypnotic flickering fit and I had to kill the browser session
...yada, yada, yada
Seriously, I don't know how anyone can even begin to copare this to the ipad (1 or 2), for all of the Apple bashing I have seen, all I have to say is "It just works". If I bought this to actually use in place of what I do with my IPad, and not to learn and try my hand at Android development, it would be on it's way back to the store right now or listed on eBay.
Even though it is only an iPad 1, it is HANDS DOWN WAAAAYYYYY BETTER. Steve can rest assured, even at this point in the game, if this is what the competition hads to offer, the iPad's future is quite secure. I mean, 5 minutes with Garage Band on the iPad and you realize it is like comparing a BMW to a Chevy Comaro. Yes the Camaro may look cool, but it is not nearly the same level of refinement and quality.
As it stands right now, I would classify the transformer as a novelty at best. Great idea having the ability to dock it to a keyboard, but I so wish they had used this concept on the ep121 (which I also own) as originally teased in the press kits as it would have truly provide a best in class device that could cross between a work horse and media/gaming device.
I really wanted to like this too. So sad, as the hardware and form factor are really quite nice.
Perhaps it may yet mature, but I see a lot of iffy post on Tegra 2 supporting DRM or MP4 support which allows me to play any of the movies in my video library.
But hey, it'll play flash content. Whooptedo
Different strokes for different folks. An iPad would serve no purpose for me. iPads have been out for nearly 2 years and I have had no desire to own one. I wanted a Transformer from the day I saw it mentioned on Engadget.
Garage Band is not a big deal. I've had it on my Mac since 2005, so using it on a tablet doesn't thrill me. Not sure what the real point of your post was. Coming on an Eee Pad TF forum and bashing the product you just bought, but everyone who purchased this over the iPad had a reason to do so and an iPad doesn't appeal to most of us or we certainly could have and would have purchased one.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using Tapatalk
Honeycomb is still early in development...it's only going to get better...
Garage band is just an app. try to compare iOS to honeycomb, most important is what the OS can do
the iPads been out for about one year and honeycomb is still in its infancy and I like my transformer heck I'm typing on it now but I have some light bleed and a dead pixel so I may replac it soon
I would never waste my money on an iPad because I do not want to connect the iPad to a PC to do almost everything. What's the point of owning a tablet if it cannot be used as a standalone device?
But hey, many people like the simplicity of the iPad and like being imprisoned with iTunes.
First of all the SD card is hot swappable.
Second of all, I own an iPad 2 and yes it's more buggy but it's a lot more functional. The iPad is nice and all but iOS is NOT a tablet OS. Honeycomb is. Dvd rips should play fine with moboplayer. HD videos play smooth after encoding with handbrake, keyboard is amazing and I have had no browser trouble.
One thing is for sure I wouldn't suggest the transformer to technologically impaired people ( like yourself), just like I wouldn't recommend any android device for them. If you want simplicity the iPad is nice, it does what you probably want to do smooth and easy. But if I want to type up an email or take notes or do anything related to content creation and not just consumption, I'll pick the transformer any day.
Haters gonna hate.
Garage Band? Seriously? GB's for kids. If I really wanted to make some music, there are better progs out there i'd want to use and I wouldn't be using an ipad.
I think the op was expecting too much. He knew what he was getting into before he got it and if he didn't, then he didn't do his due diligence and research. It looks like it's just not for him.
I on the other hand am quite impressed. Just the concept and form factor are pure win. The fact that future Tf's will be dockable with the dock are sound. The pad meets my needs even though I knew going in that high profile would be a problem, i'm content with it in that I barely use it to watch movies. If I want to watch a flick, it's gonna be on the big screen and I have an Xbox and PS3 to serve my Netflix and Hulu needs.
I knew it wasn't perfect and it's being worked on, but like someone else stated, it's only gonna get better.
1. I also own a ipad, but if I want to add a movie,song or app....Itunes comes to mind..you have to be connected to a seperate device...a stand alone item the ipad is not.
2. You mentioned you where developing for the android system. GOLD MINE...DEVELOP for this new and fledgling market. I repeat....new and fledgling market. I remember the first ipad was 3.11 ios if I am not mistaken. And there was plenty of phone apps for the iphone..then the ipad..does this sound like history repeating it self?
3. You mentioned about movies...i remember for the ipad...there where no movie apps in the begging and had to hit that 2x icon in the screen of a iphone app on the ipad.
4. IMO the screen is better than the ipad...try reading in portrait with a ipad or even landscape. I am refering to the IPS.
5. You mention you where underwhelmed, of course you are...these are the first gen devices..Xoom, tab, iconia and transformer....qnd so on...as a developer you should now the first gen devices usually are not what we want or expect.
6. I can put a movie on my micro sd...or a song...or even a document..give that same sd card to a friend at work and we can share. Try that with a ipad.
7. Hardware is more fluid on the ipad..time will heal that....there are more selection for the android system.gpu wise..intel, nvidia, texas inturments, quallcom....etc
8. Last but not least...flash support...how many businesses use flash?....Alot...not every company can support different types of needed web sites...(flash, silverlight, etc..). I do give kudos to apple for single handly creating the tablet market as we know it..but just like as history again repeats itself...it will be a matter of time before androids will out number apple products. Flash support is huge...i know you don`t believe that...but you are so used to the ipad..you never noticed. Also, one more point but maybe it does not count..not everybody can afford a ipad...
I like the part where he said he hadn't figured out how to clear notifications so rather than look it up, he complained.
I had an iphone and dropped it for android over a year ago with absolutely no regrets. I contemplated ipad, but simulator the iPhone, i wanted a stand alone device and no iTunes. I rooted my phone and then installed a custom rom and downloaded music all while riding the train with no computer. Just did the same for the tablet sitting on my couch.
I think the only way i could show more lovefor android is to get a little green guy tattoo. There'san idea.... (pauses working netflix to hot swap memory card for music and googles tattoo parlor locations).
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App
PS- i streamed music and movies over my network first thing out of the box with the preinstalled app.
No love for Apple fan boys who would rather flame than get their facts straight before complaining.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App
jgermuga said:
I picked up this tablet mainly to play around with app development, but I must say, I am seriously underwhelmed. No Netflix, no skype video, can't get my DISH sling player to work on it, my digital copy movies won't even load, other movies which I have burned are choppy, seems evey time you jump back to a list (app store, settings uninstall, etc) you get put at the top of the list instead of where you left off, no native network sharing support, the micro sd is not hot swapable, many of the aps in the app store are hlf baked, haven't figured out how to do a mass clear of notifications (and this is a much applauded feature, where is the stinking "clear all"), the browser zoom is kind of quirky, and when I clicked the email link to reset my password for the XDA site here, it went into this wierd hypnotic flickering fit and I had to kill the browser session
...yada, yada, yada
Seriously, I don't know how anyone can even begin to copare this to the ipad (1 or 2), for all of the Apple bashing I have seen, all I have to say is "It just works". If I bought this to actually use in place of what I do with my IPad, and not to learn and try my hand at Android development, it would be on it's way back to the store right now or listed on eBay.
Even though it is only an iPad 1, it is HANDS DOWN WAAAAYYYYY BETTER. Steve can rest assured, even at this point in the game, if this is what the competition hads to offer, the iPad's future is quite secure. I mean, 5 minutes with Garage Band on the iPad and you realize it is like comparing a BMW to a Chevy Comaro. Yes the Camaro may look cool, but it is not nearly the same level of refinement and quality.
As it stands right now, I would classify the transformer as a novelty at best. Great idea having the ability to dock it to a keyboard, but I so wish they had used this concept on the ep121 (which I also own) as originally teased in the press kits as it would have truly provide a best in class device that could cross between a work horse and media/gaming device.
I really wanted to like this too. So sad, as the hardware and form factor are really quite nice.
Perhaps it may yet mature, but I see a lot of iffy post on Tegra 2 supporting DRM or MP4 support which allows me to play any of the movies in my video library.
But hey, it'll play flash content. Whooptedo
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No Netflix is true, but it's coming. It only works with a several devices (officially) and Netflix is working on adding more devices as I type this.
No Skype video. True. That isn't the tablets fault. Blame Skype.
Not familiar with DISH slingplayer, but to be honest, DISH sucks. HBO Go and Showtime Go work with some cable providers.
Honeycomb can play low profile encoded HD movies. You would know this if you looked into it before buying the tablet.
SD card is hot swappable. Does the iPad even have an SD card slot (without having to pay $30+ for some adapter)?
It's obvious you're sold on the iPad. So why in the hell did you buy an Android tablet? Just to bash it on fan forums?
I have no issues with the useability of my Asus Transformer which will only get better with time. Have fun with your limited and regulated iPad.
Netflix works with a minor tweak and why is no skype a hang up with many other options, like google chat or tango?
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App
seshmaru said:
First of all the SD card is hot swappable.
Second of all, I own an iPad 2 and yes it's more buggy but it's a lot more functional. The iPad is nice and all but iOS is NOT a tablet OS. Honeycomb is. Dvd rips should play fine with moboplayer. HD videos play smooth after encoding with handbrake, keyboard is amazing and I have had no browser trouble.
One thing is for sure I wouldn't suggest the transformer to technologically impaired people ( like yourself), just like I wouldn't recommend any android device for them. If you want simplicity the iPad is nice, it does what you probably want to do smooth and easy. But if I want to type up an email or take notes or do anything related to content creation and not just consumption, I'll pick the transformer any day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cmon, I have been in the IT field for over 15 years. I am a died in the wool early adopter and was using a smart phones and a tablet PCs long before they were hip and mainstream.
Technically challenged? No, I have a family and I am time challenged and although I enjoy tinkering, sometimes I just want something to work with having to waste a whole of energy on it.
Everybody keeps saying Honeycomb is a REAL OS, so exactly what does that mean to 90% of the users out there? I have owned a tablet computer for over 6 years now (started with the motion computing products) and unless I am taking notes (with a stylis I might add), browsing the internet, reading an ebook or watching a movie I am going to want a keyboard. But along with that keyboard, I want real integration with all of my work stuff. Like for instance, running Eclipse, Toad, .Net, Oracle, SQL Server (etc, etc) or any number of other deveploment tools? Therfore, to me a real OS still means UNIX, OSX or Windows. iOs AND Honeyomb are not.
I am not here just to bash, I am here to offer some levity to others who may read this forum and get the impression the transformer (and I should really be saying Honeycomb and/or the Tegra 2 platform) is omething that it is not. To be fair, it has some pretty serious limitations (as does the iPad) and in my opinion, it has not still yet reached maturity for broad market adoption. Having heard all the buzz about Android and how well it has done in the phone arena, I did truly expect a bit more. And they way the Xoom and Galaxy tabs are being marketed, it seems they are trying to hook the mass market, and I think many people will be disappointed.
Perhaps some people will find a way to get work done with a Honeycomb machine. I still see it as an entertaimnet piece first and foremost, and in that context, the iPad does a better job with less hassle.
Me? I am going to break out my ep121 and wince when I have to go running for the power cord after 3 hours.
Regarding video playback, I have over 100 movies whcih have already been ripped, and while most of them do play, they are choppy. Figuring my hourly consulting rate and what it would take for me to ttranscode all of them, I could buy a couple iPads. It's jsut not worth it.
I guess I am also a bit disappointed that the transformer has so much potential (great display, decent sound in stereo no less, good price, great form factor (albeit with the keyboard dock that is still near impossible to buy), low weight, great battery life, so all in all I'd love to have it be my amainstay machine, but realistically, it's going to sit on the shelf still most of the time as a testing platform while I lug around my ep121.
And to correct something I said earlier, yes I suppose the SD card is hot swapable, but you need to unmount it before removing it from it's slot. I got used to being able to just unplug it as you can with Windows 7.
And please, this is a computer when all is said and done. No need to insinute I am "impaired". Why people get so worked up about what is better then this that or the other thing is as baffling to me as the sports fanatics who get in fist fights when someone badmouths their team. I am offering an opinion for others to consider.
jappetta99 said:
PS- i streamed music and movies over my network first thing out of the box with the preinstalled app.
No love for Apple fan boys who would rather flame than get their facts straight before complaining.
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
MM, yea. I have hundereds of digicam movies as well as feature flicks. On that preinstalled app, they all get thrown into the same list. Can I search or sort that list, ahh no.
On top of that, all of the feature films are on the same NAS and they don't show up. Why? No clue. Porbably has something to do with the encode settings not being supported. And those that do show give me a "fail to load" when I click on them. Why? Again, no clue.
What was that you said about facts? I am not flaiming, these are facts.
And because I own an Apple product I am a fan boy? Is this a fact? My household is mostly microsoft and it is my preferred OS above both Apple and Android.
jgermuga said:
Cmon, I have been in the IT field for over 15 years. I am a died in the wool early adopter and was using a smart phones and a tablet PCs long before they were hip and mainstream.
Technically challenged? No, I have a family and I am time challenged and although I enjoy tinkering, sometimes I just want something to work with having to waste a whole of energy on it.
Everybody keeps saying Honeycomb is a REAL OS, so exactly what does that mean to 90% of the users out there? I have owned a tablet computer for over 6 years now (started with the motion computing products) and unless I am taking notes (with a stylis I might add), browsing the internet, reading an ebook or watching a movie I am going to want a keyboard. But along with that keyboard, I want real integration with all of my work stuff. Like for instance, running Eclipse, Toad, .Net, Oracle, SQL Server (etc, etc) or any number of other deveploment tools? Therfore, to me a real OS still means UNIX, OSX or Windows. iOs AND Honeyomb are not.
I am not here just to bash, I am here to offer some levity to others who may read this forum and get the impression the transformer (and I should really be saying Honeycomb and/or the Tegra 2 platform) is omething that it is not. To be fair, it has some pretty serious limitations (as does the iPad) and in my opinion, it has not still yet reached maturity for broad market adoption. Having heard all the buzz about Android and how well it has done in the phone arena, I did truly expect a bit more. And they way the Xoom and Galaxy tabs are being marketed, it seems they are trying to hook the mass market, and I think many people will be disappointed.
Perhaps some people will find a way to get work done with a Honeycomb machine. I still see it as an entertaimnet piece first and foremost, and in that context, the iPad does a better job with less hassle.
Me? I am going to break out my ep121 and wince when I have to go running for the power cord after 3 hours.
Regarding video playback, I have over 100 movies whcih have already been ripped, and while most of them do play, they are choppy. Figuring my hourly consulting rate and what it would take for me to ttranscode all of them, I could buy a couple iPads. It's jsut not worth it.
I guess I am also a bit disappointed that the transformer has so much potential (great display, decent sound in stereo no less, good price, great form factor (albeit with the keyboard dock that is still near impossible to buy), low weight, great battery life, so all in all I'd love to have it be my amainstay machine, but realistically, it's going to sit on the shelf still most of the time as a testing platform while I lug around my ep121.
And to correct something I said earlier, yes I suppose the SD card is hot swapable, but you need to unmount it before removing it from it's slot. I got used to being able to just unplug it as you can with Windows 7.
And please, this is a computer when all is said and done. No need to insinute I am "impaired". Why people get so worked up about what is better then this that or the other thing is as baffling to me as the sports fanatics who get in fist fights when someone badmouths their team. I am offering an opinion for others to consider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You love the iPad. Go return the Asus and enjoy your iPad. Done deal, you eat your burger, I eat my sandwich. No need to convince people in the ANDROID forum to despise an Android device. We know the pros and cons of iOS and Android/iPad and Android devices. Did you expect love coming to XDA and saying the iPad is better? Cmon. People here are users who like the openness of Android and Android devices.
By the way, being in the IT field doesn't mean much.
jgermuga said:
And to correct something I said earlier, yes I suppose the SD card is hot swapable, but you need to unmount it before removing it from it's slot. I got used to being able to just unplug it as you can with Windows 7.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just to correct your correction, you don't *have* to dismount it to swap it. Since it's FAT32 formatted, you can just pull it out an insert another without issue.
Not bashing your post though - there's nothing wrong with having an opinion. Personally I think the iPad is a fine device, but it is not for me - and I own 3 Macs! It's also fair to say that Honeycomb has all the hallmarks of a beta level product, rather than a finished product. However, it's also fair to say that when the iPad was launched it do so with iOS 3.2, which really wasn't optimized for tablets at all.
Most tablets are generally for content consumption, not content creation - and I include the iPad in that mix. However, the TFs keyboard does lend itself well to content creation though it's fair to say that the apps are not there yet.
One thing it is excellent for is remote server access via VPN and RDP, which is my primary usage outside of content consumption.
It's horse for courses though - in my opinion, the EP121 is a total waste of time as a device as it is just a keyboardless PC rather than a tablet with a poor battery life.
It's bigger and heavier than my Macbook Air with a poor battery life, and I would have absolutely no use for one for those reasons - your mileage clearly varies of course, so if it works for you all well and good!
There's far too much unreasoned iOS bashing on these boards - there are plenty of reasons not to like Apple and its products, but it does produce good quality, strong products, and the iPad/iPhone is no exception to this.
My mum wanted a tablet just this week, and my advice to her was iPad all the way, even though I wouldn't have one myself. My wife wanted a new phone a few weeks ago, and now she has an iPhone 4 which she absolutely adores.
Regards,
Dave
jgermuga said:
Cmon, I have been in the IT field for over 15 years. I am a died in the wool early adopter and was using a smart phones and a tablet PCs long before they were hip and mainstream.
Technically challenged? No, I have a family and I am time challenged and although I enjoy tinkering, sometimes I just want something to work with having to waste a whole of energy on it.
Everybody keeps saying Honeycomb is a REAL OS, so exactly what does that mean to 90% of the users out there? I have owned a tablet computer for over 6 years now (started with the motion computing products) and unless I am taking notes (with a stylis I might add), browsing the internet, reading an ebook or watching a movie I am going to want a keyboard. But along with that keyboard, I want real integration with all of my work stuff. Like for instance, running Eclipse, Toad, .Net, Oracle, SQL Server (etc, etc) or any number of other deveploment tools? Therfore, to me a real OS still means UNIX, OSX or Windows. iOs AND Honeyomb are not.
I am not here just to bash, I am here to offer some levity to others who may read this forum and get the impression the transformer (and I should really be saying Honeycomb and/or the Tegra 2 platform) is omething that it is not. To be fair, it has some pretty serious limitations (as does the iPad) and in my opinion, it has not still yet reached maturity for broad market adoption. Having heard all the buzz about Android and how well it has done in the phone arena, I did truly expect a bit more. And they way the Xoom and Galaxy tabs are being marketed, it seems they are trying to hook the mass market, and I think many people will be disappointed.
Perhaps some people will find a way to get work done with a Honeycomb machine. I still see it as an entertaimnet piece first and foremost, and in that context, the iPad does a better job with less hassle.
Me? I am going to break out my ep121 and wince when I have to go running for the power cord after 3 hours.
Regarding video playback, I have over 100 movies whcih have already been ripped, and while most of them do play, they are choppy. Figuring my hourly consulting rate and what it would take for me to ttranscode all of them, I could buy a couple iPads. It's jsut not worth it.
I guess I am also a bit disappointed that the transformer has so much potential (great display, decent sound in stereo no less, good price, great form factor (albeit with the keyboard dock that is still near impossible to buy), low weight, great battery life, so all in all I'd love to have it be my amainstay machine, but realistically, it's going to sit on the shelf still most of the time as a testing platform while I lug around my ep121.
And to correct something I said earlier, yes I suppose the SD card is hot swapable, but you need to unmount it before removing it from it's slot. I got used to being able to just unplug it as you can with Windows 7.
And please, this is a computer when all is said and done. No need to insinute I am "impaired". Why people get so worked up about what is better then this that or the other thing is as baffling to me as the sports fanatics who get in fist fights when someone badmouths their team. I am offering an opinion for others to consider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It seems like you picked the few things that the TF doesn't excel at and singled them out in an attempt to downgrade the device.
The Ipad is not perfect and neither is the TF. Same goes for ios and honeycomb.
Which device is better? Who cares, they're both great and have their pros and cons (which you should of known before hand unless you just shell out money for new devices without doing research) to each his own.
P.S from my experience, a lot of people love the ipad but the majority of people that I know (about 6 or 7 personally) who own both a TF and Ipad 2 prefer the TF over the ipad in most scenarios other than sitting on the toilet and playing plants vs zombies.
Once again, to each his own. People should have enough sense to weigh the pros and cons before purchasing something, let them decide if a device is right for them or not.
jgermuga said:
Seriously, I don't know how anyone can even begin to copare this to the ipad (1 or 2),
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Do me a favor. Turn on your ipad and without touching a single icon, tell me what information is at your fingertips. The weather? The latest news on the war in iraq? Your stock prices? What your friends are up to? What time your dentist appointment is?
Not going to happen...
I have a Xoom WiFi only. What an amazing peice of kit. But it's crippled by the fact that Motorola or Google or whoever can't actually use the devices they make. I'm almost ready to throw mine in the bin it's so unusable.
- I had hoped I could use my Xoom on site rather than run round with my laptop, except I can't get files onto and off it easily. SyncToy won't play ball. I don't want to have to manually drag and drop each file in turn. Waste of time.
- Bluetooth and WiFi file transfer is just a missed opportunity
- SD card doesn't work
- Can't print reliably
- Simple features that are present on my HTC Desire are missing, like scheduling peak times for email polling so the wife doesn't get woken up at three in the morning if I forget to turn it off.
- Stupid stupid stupid stupid charger. No USB charging, which is supposed to be the universal standard. The charger is huge and the connector is so thin it'll break the first time someone trips over the cable.
- The Motorola Folio case is uggggggggly. Have these people not seen the Smart Cover for the iPad?
- I can stand the Xoom up in the folio case, but I can't charge it, because the charger connector is on the bottom. A poor attempt to get me to fork out more money for the charging dock I assume.
- Word, Excel etc, sort of work, but if you have headers and footers or anything like an automated spreadsheet, it ain't gonna work properly on Docs to Go or anything else for that matter. Good God, do these people not use the World's most dominant software?
It's great for games, and stuff though, but you CANNOT use it as a business tool; you'll spend all the time you were hoping to save in wrestling with the bloody thing.
The moral? Don't be an early(ish) adopter - I thought 6 months would be enough for Motorola to have this sorted.
TL;DR?
Rant over.
Sdcard is readable in 3.2 or u can simply root to make it fully usable
Usb charging is slow. The charger makes us can let our xoom fully charged super quiclly
The case for many ppl is nice
My bro bought it for business n he is quite happy with it
Have a lager and calm down, friend. I feel your pain.
However, you can save yourself a lot of grief by understanding that no matter what the marketing people say, a tablet is not a full laptop replacement yet, not even the iPad. You need to make some compromises if you intend to make full use of your Xoom while on the job.
First of all, lets discuss the charger. Moto opted not to allow the device to trickle charge simple because it would take far to long to fill the battery via a standard USB cable. Therefore they went for the dedicated charger which was a good choice under the circumstances. I agree I have worries to about the very thin connector, but they were working hard not to make the device too thick. THus far I have not brought the charger to the office because I have not had to charge the Xoom except for overnight. The battery can make it through a day pretty easily, so feel free to leave the charger behind and see how you do.
Next, Office apps. I agree, they are limited and are the same on pretty much every non-laptop you will try to work on. Key features are missing, other features work strangely...it gets ugly out there. Therefore, I try to restrict my Office app work on the Xoom to reading and making notes. I wouldn't try to actually create a document on the Xoom at this point, unless it was very short and/or I would be able to edit on my laptop later. I use the Polaris app that was provided with the Asus Transformer, which you should be able to find in the Xoom Apps forum here, and it actually does pretty well.
I have had good luck with Bluetooth transferring files, but it can take a while. You should try using the OTG connector in conjunction with a flash drive for larger files. It adds a step in the transfer but it works perfectly for me.
The folio case? I agree, ugly as sin. Therefore I go without a case during use since I really like the looks of the Xoom anyway. I put it into an iPad Exo Sleevecase from Waterfield (great company, great case) before putting it in my gear bag and it does just fine.
The Xoom is a fine business tool in my opinion, it just has its limitations. All tablets currently available are still at the stage where you are best off thinking of them as an extension of your laptop or desktop computer, not the whole shebang. Use it for the tasks it is suited for, and be creative with how you apply it to those tasks which are a bit beyond a tablet's skillset at the moment.
Remember, we went through a decade of clunky, useless TabletPCs before we suddenly had a burst of innovation (thanks Apple) to get to this point in mobile computing. We are still at the early stages...just think where we will be in a couple years. THAT is when tablets will really shine, and at the moment you are ahead of the curve, devising business use cases for tablets out of sheer necessity. That is not a bad place to be.
rschenck said:
Have a lager and calm down, friend. I feel your pain.
However, you can save yourself a lot of grief by understanding that no matter what the marketing people say, a tablet is not a full laptop replacement yet, not even the iPad. You need to make some compromises if you intend to make full use of your Xoom while on the job.
First of all, lets discuss the charger. Moto opted not to allow the device to trickle charge simple because it would take far to long to fill the battery via a standard USB cable. Therefore they went for the dedicated charger which was a good choice under the circumstances. I agree I have worries to about the very thin connector, but they were working hard not to make the device too thick. THus far I have not brought the charger to the office because I have not had to charge the Xoom except for overnight. The battery can make it through a day pretty easily, so feel free to leave the charger behind and see how you do.
Next, Office apps. I agree, they are limited and are the same on pretty much every non-laptop you will try to work on. Key features are missing, other features work strangely...it gets ugly out there. Therefore, I try to restrict my Office app work on the Xoom to reading and making notes. I wouldn't try to actually create a document on the Xoom at this point, unless it was very short and/or I would be able to edit on my laptop later. I use the Polaris app that was provided with the Asus Transformer, which you should be able to find in the Xoom Apps forum here, and it actually does pretty well.
I have had good luck with Bluetooth transferring files, but it can take a while. You should try using the OTG connector in conjunction with a flash drive for larger files. It adds a step in the transfer but it works perfectly for me.
The folio case? I agree, ugly as sin. Therefore I go without a case during use since I really like the looks of the Xoom anyway. I put it into an iPad Exo Sleevecase from Waterfield (great company, great case) before putting it in my gear bag and it does just fine.
The Xoom is a fine business tool in my opinion, it just has its limitations. All tablets currently available are still at the stage where you are best off thinking of them as an extension of your laptop or desktop computer, not the whole shebang. Use it for the tasks it is suited for, and be creative with how you apply it to those tasks which are a bit beyond a tablet's skillset at the moment.
Remember, we went through a decade of clunky, useless TabletPCs before we suddenly had a burst of innovation (thanks Apple) to get to this point in mobile computing. We are still at the early stages...just think where we will be in a couple years. THAT is when tablets will really shine, and at the moment you are ahead of the curve, devising business use cases for tablets out of sheer necessity. That is not a bad place to be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have found the Xoom to be a great substitute for a laptop out in the field. I just email the files to my work pc, or use my Passport HDD or thumb drive to save...I use dropbox for some non-secure files. Cloud print works fine if you run Chrome on your pc. My work network is locked down tight but I use Splashtop HD to sync with and remotely access my home pc, so I can use full MS Word, Excel, PP etc. I use my Moto BT keyboard and an MS BT mouse if I need do do intensive writing/editing, otherwise Tablet Keyboard Pro or FlexT9 work great. I have the WiFi only Xoom but use my Clear 4G mifi hotspot for connectivity most places I need to be.
This can work. Rooting helps--gives you a few more tools. The battery life is great, especially if you set your screen to minimum necessary brightness and set a battery-saving screen-off profile in SetCPU.
Ok, I will admit that Xoom(as with many android devices) has some bugs to work out, but Android 3.2 has done a lot of fixes that you are talking about....And as for stuff like file managers it matters what one u use.
Some good responses here, I have been on a couple of business trips and left the laptop at home, taking just the Xoom. Sync with and use of Exchange email is brilliant (as it should be). What I had hoped to be able to do is modify spreadsheets while walking round sites, I have some great Excel sheets with drop downs and the like but that is not going to be happening any time soon.
I have found Memento, a great database app that will be my work around for this, but I shouldn't be working around...
I included the iPad in the "tablet computing is sucky" title.
My issue with Bluetooth, a technology that has been with us for years, is that it insists on asking me to OK every file - if I take 100 photos on a site survey, I want them to come over to my laptop with one approval, not 100. It can take a hour, that's fine, just stop asking me if it's OK...This has been a problem for as long as I have been using a smartphone (except my Nokia N73, that had great Bluetooth.)
My frustration remains that I have been able to see the potential of mobile computing and now we have powerful enough devices to deliver it, but the software just isn't there - as usual its the back room hobbyists providing the real world solutions, the paid for software falls very short of the mark.
You talk of 3.2, I have a work device so rooting is not possible and Motorola don't seem in any rush to update me. Any ideas?
66mustang said:
Some good responses here, I have been on a couple of business trips and left the laptop at home, taking just the Xoom. Sync with and use of Exchange email is brilliant (as it should be). What I had hoped to be able to do is modify spreadsheets while walking round sites, I have some great Excel sheets with drop downs and the like but that is not going to be happening any time soon.
I have found Memento, a great database app that will be my work around for this, but I shouldn't be working around...
I included the iPad in the "tablet computing is sucky" title.
My issue with Bluetooth, a technology that has been with us for years, is that it insists on asking me to OK every file - if I take 100 photos on a site survey, I want them to come over to my laptop with one approval, not 100. It can take a hour, that's fine, just stop asking me if it's OK...This has been a problem for as long as I have been using a smartphone (except my Nokia N73, that had great Bluetooth.)
My frustration remains that I have been able to see the potential of mobile computing and now we have powerful enough devices to deliver it, but the software just isn't there - as usual its the back room hobbyists providing the real world solutions, the paid for software falls very short of the mark.
You talk of 3.2, I have a work device so rooting is not possible and Motorola don't seem in any rush to update me. Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're taking pictures with your xoom, have it connected to a network (via a wifi network or phone tethering) you can use the auto upload feature that google+ has. That way you can access those pictures on your laptop as well by going to your google+ account.
I love my Xoom, even if my love for Motorola is waning, but I do have to agree to a point.
When I bought the thing, I had dreams of an all-in-one device... something that I could use as a laptop replacement but that I could also use to make phone calls.
Well, I can make phone calls using GrooveIP, but I would be lying if I said I was satisfied with this solution. GrooveIP works fine but generally kicks me out of Google Talk, which is pretty annoying given that I communicate more through chat than phone calls, so keeping it resident makes chat iffy. And speaking of GrooveIP, what's going on with the official Google Voice app for Honeycomb? I never imagined it would take Google so long to get it released.
The result? I finally decided to give up the dream and buy a new phone.
In a lot of ways, the Xoom has replaced my laptop for web surfing, but it doesn't make for a great word processor. I've purchased a few of the word processing apps available for Android, and they really aren't that great and lack key features such as auto-save. I still think that Google's official Google Docs app is the best of all available word processor apps, but even it is really mediocre on the Xoom. I think I gave it three stars in the market, and that might be one star too generous. I dislike Apple greatly, but iWork on the iPad is superior to anything available for Honeycomb. A native Google Docs Honeycomb app that doesn't rely on WebKit would be absolutely killer.
I still use my Xoom for most of my word processing, but it is a less than perfect solution. I love the size, and the tablet+bluetooth keyboard are still much more lightweight than my laptop, which makes them a more ideal travel companion. In fact, these days, the Xoom has replaced my laptop for about 85% of all my tasks, but it's still not a true laptop replacement.
I think it was unrealistic of me to expect my Xoom to be anything other than a tablet.
The first mistake was expecting it to replace your laptop + be productive as a business tool from the day you purchased it. Some things you mentioned the iPad 2 can't even do so it is what it is man.....
BUT if you use your xoom for play and your laptop for work then you won't have to worry about being stuck on your laptop charger all day long.
66mustang said:
- I can stand the Xoom up in the folio case, but I can't charge it, because the charger connector is on the bottom. A poor attempt to get me to fork out more money for the charging dock I assume.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Easy solution: turn the Xoom upside down. There is no dedicated button, dedicated top or bottom for most applications. In that case power connection is in the top, easy to charge, easy to work on the tablel. Xoom works well for me as a laptop replacement.
I won't get into a long explanation as to why uninformed people should not be posting such a thread. Here is what I will say:
True... tablets cannot fully replace a laptop or PC just yet in terms of raw power, RAM, graphics, gaming, or features. Windows has been an OS for computers for a loooong time now. Honeycomb for tablets has not been around for that long. There is a HUGE difference between a tablet, and a desktop/laptop. I'll make this very clear for you so that it's easy to understand:
[Words of wisdom]
A desktop is a powerful computer that is meant to stay in one place at all times, a laptop is less powerful desktop computer that is portable, meanwhile a tablet is essentially an even more portable laptop with less power. It's not supposed to fully replace a computer in the first place, but rather work right along side it instead. Thus, one should not say tablet computing is "sucky". Apples and bananas as they say... cannot be compared. Don't even attempt to do such a thing.
[/End Words of wisdom]
Tablets are catching up fast in terms of overall specs to match computers, it's very impressive. They are currently working on beast quad core tablets. That's a lot of power for a small lightweight device.
Re: Charging - The Xoom uses a 7.4V/24.1Whr battery, so can't use USB charging which is only 5V. The iPad2 has a 3.8V/25Whr battery, so it can. (All current HC tabs AFAIK use 7.4V batt.)
The iPad2's USB wall-wart is 5V/2A, and users report it takes 3-4 hrs for a full charge. Based on this, charging from a PC's 5V/0.5A USB port would take a long time (charge time isn't linear to current level, but we're simplifying). So practically, you'd still have to lug along an AC charger for the iPad, although PC charging exists as an emergency measure.
Re: Charge adapter - Moto Mobo is a phone vendor. The Xoom is its first tablet, and it's likely that some components were common-sourced from existing phone parts. The smallish charge adapter plug is likely one. Ergonomic issues should be ironed out for the Xoom2, which undoubtedly will be thinner and lighter.
Re: Tablet as productivity device - It'd be interesting to see how much app support ICS gets, as HC didn't get much love from devs, or consumers for that matter. The major thrusts for ICS are phone+tablet convergence and cloud computing, at least as inferred from Google I/O '11. Productivity wasn't mentioned. It'd be a step up for Gbread phones, but I don't see a big improvement for current HC users.
On the flip side, if ICS is indeed incremental, then it should be here relatively soon after 3.2. My SWAG says Oct, which would be enough time for holiday shopping. If true, vendors would likely hold their 2nd-gen tablet offerings until that time. Else, we'll see the second wave starting in Sept. Moto's Xoom2 will serve as a bellwether.
Speaking of the Xoom2, my money is on it having the TI OMAP 4460, with the 7" probably using the 4430. Both are a big step up from the Tegra 2 wrt multimedia support, and the 4460's 1.5GHz speed will make for easy marketing pitch ("it's 50% faster!"). Pricing will likely be the same as current, ie USD$500 for 32GB wifi base model, and probably $400 for the 7".
I bought a really expensive power drill but it's terrible at hammering nails and useless for painting my walls.
I'm mad and posting about it.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA Premium App
hi_its_ryan said:
I bought a really expensive power drill but it's terrible at hammering nails and useless for painting my walls.
I'm mad and posting about it.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
lol, did u try applying the paint to the drill before using it on ur wall
hi_its_ryan said:
I bought a really expensive power drill but it's terrible at hammering nails and useless for painting my walls.
I'm mad and posting about it.
Sent from my Xoom using XDA Premium App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 +1 +1 +1 +1
I think a tablet pc would be great OP?
my fav part of the gripe is about not using the worlds most dominant microsoft software... Of course they are not going to use it... Microsoft competes with android... Its the same as crying that your iphone cant run flash or windows programs...
I know it sucks but a tab is not a direct replacement for a laptop just yet... Theres a lot of ways to get around some of your gripes.. Like dropbox app for posting and syncing all your files to all your devices.. Docs to go.. It aint perfect but it helps... Etc...
My only gripe where I agree with the OP is the charger and not being able to charge when in the folio case...but when you consider that the battery lasts at least 24 hours with normal usage it's really not s big deal. I can get a good 5 work days when I use it to stream Pandora or Slacker over WiFi without needing to recharge.
Remote control your PC from your tablet. Then you have the best of both worlds.
brandogg said:
My only gripe where I agree with the OP is the charger and not being able to charge when in the folio case...but when you consider that the battery lasts at least 24 hours with normal usage it's really not s big deal. I can get a good 5 work days when I use it to stream Pandora or Slacker over WiFi without needing to recharge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Umm... someone already mentioned it, but... there is NOT a "correct" way to hold the Xoom, or any Honeycomb tablet for that matter. The soft keys are located on the screen itself, and will follow the screen when rotated, meaning you can hold it any way you want. Just unlock the screen rotation option, and then rotate the Xoom to position the charging port to the way that fits your needs. That is what sets Honeycomb apart from the rest. If the OP has this "complaint" he should think again before opening his mouth. It's called rotation... it's a feature. The Honeycomb developers want you to hold and position your tablet however you wish, not force you to hold it one way. Look it up, or better yet... use it.
its interesting to see the posts we have here...
personally i think a tablet is pretty close to becoming a laptop replacement... for some...
now... my laptop at the moment will probably crush many many desktops out there by a long shot (i definitely moved from desktops 5 years ago) but in saying that my battery life is HORRIBLE... i cant even go through 1 class and my charger is the size of a house brick lol but personally i love how i could whizz through a thousand, tabs, programs, music whatever with not one instance of lag and it dual boots like a boss and the 18 inch screen is amazing..
my xoom i bought it to hopefully be able to replace the aspect of taking my laptop to uni as we have alot of classes with just a powerpoint and we can type our own stuff from there (i just received my hk cheapo folio keyboard case today; as i dont see paying $50+ for one with a wire i would have preferred a bluetooth with trackpad or something) and i think im going to try and leave my laptop at home next time.. i agree the word compatible apps are sometimes uses, i cant find one where i can edit the notes section of a powerpoint but what i would really love is too have 2 programs open side by side on the one screen as this would be even easier to multitask but i will be finished uni before these will be met and then simply put my needs now/future are minimal in the 'business' area.. but this will NEVER replace a laptop for me im on it everyday for 6+ hours easy and the necessity for ease of access, large screen, etc for me negate the tablet switch for sometime if at all
for those who require specified proprietary programs your needs may never be met and if so they may only be met in the apple arena for sometime to come.. apple is the in thing at the moment and for the average joe as we all know cant understand alot of techno-babble (this may be a good argument for proprietary stuff to come out on the more tech android, but in business there are alot of people with their head in the sand)..
as for the OP i say this...
1. really consider rooting/flashing a custom rom you can always revert back to stock for warranty (i purchased mine overseas so i have NO warranty, im a poor uni student and saved for mine and honestly it was cheaper than my phone but yeh)
2. get an OTG cable (i got mine for $3 from hk) and use your flash drive for everything you want from the tablet/computer transfers (get a 32gb if you really need a large one).. that will remove alot of file transfer issues with bluetooth, etc and if you need to have constant backups then copy the file to the sdcard of the xoom to be super safe
3. have a better look in the area of printing.. i can wirelessly print from my android devices and they come out great (not good for photos) but documents come out pretty clear
4. burn the folio case, dance around it and move on try something else (if so inclined lol)...
5. the battery life is awesome.. absolutely awesome... i can go 2 full days without charge and using it all day on the train, music, wifi, internet.. bla bla
sorry for being long
I'm in the market to get a new/first tablet. I've been looking around the web a bit. The new Asus transformer prime is sounding like a beast, but with the keyboard dock it will probably be fairly expensive and I'm not sure I really need that kind of power for my uses. Then I saw the new Xoom2 and I was intrigued but saw a lot of "it's barely an upgrade from the Xoom" kind of posts. After looking at the specs for Xoom and considering the fact that it will probably be significantly cheaper than the new gen of tablets, I'm possibly interested in it. Here's what I want from a tablet:
+Browsing - I want a tablet that is very capable of browsing the internet with ease and fluidity.
+Work/Note-taking/productivity - I want to be able to write articles and write down lecture notes very easily. How good is the typing experience on 10inch tablets with the virtual keyboard? There is always the bluetooth keyboard option I suppose.
+Movies/youtube - I want a tablet that's great for watching videos. How's the display on the Xoom?
+Front-facing camera - I need a tablet capable of doing video chat well. How good is the quality of the front facing camera and video chatting?
+Speed - I don't need a super-powered beast, but I need something that won't struggle on a day-to-day basis and that runs fast. How's the speed and fluidity on this tablet? With the Quad-core transformer prime coming, I want to know how this actually performs.
+Camcorder - In actuality I don't plan on using a tablet for its camera or camcorder, but I would have some use for good video recording on a tablet. Not really a factor in my decision, but how is the video recording quality on this thing?
+Design/styling - I've seen a lot of references to the thickness of the Xoom, but it does't look bad to me in pics/videos. How does this tablet actually look irl to you?
+Future Updates - I understand that this will be getting ICS. Not sure it will continue to get further updates. However, it is my belief that the original Xoom is bound to have probably the largest online community for a tablet for a while. That means that even if this doesn't get future updates, the community here will probably be able to support this tablet for quite a while (like the OG droid). Does that sound right?
+Pricing/availability - How much do new Xoom's tend to cost? Quick ebay search seemed to say around $450+ but that doesn't sound right. I suppose once the Xoom2 is released, motorola will reduce the price on their website.
+Your opinion - What is your overall opinion on the Xoom? Would you still recommend it?
Thanks
the browsing experience in xoom is fantastic
For me, typing is not too bad.. i nvr use a bt keyboard but a tablet stand with typing angle
The display quality of xoom is just normal.. anyway with good video player, the quality is still above average
Video chat works great on skype n gtalk
In stock 3.2, for me, with normal use, the speed is good enough. Anyway if u wan blazing fast u may root n flash custom roms n kernels .. n may overclock it too
Video recording is nice
For me the design is good n solid. Thickness of this device makes my fingers wont feel tired after a long use .. too slim may tired our finger
At this point in time the xoom is outdated. We all knew it would happen, hell every other month something new and shiny comes out.
Wait for the Transformer prime the first tegra 3 (quad core) tab.
tpham08901 said:
At this point in time the xoom is outdated. We all knew it would happen, hell every other month something new and shiny comes out.
Wait for the Transformer prime the first tegra 3 (quad core) tab.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know in comparison to what's coming, the specs of the XOOM seem outdated. However, I believe that the Transformer prime with the keyboard dock will be quite pricey (and who knows when it will get to Canada) whereas the XOOM shouldn't be. I want to know if the XOOM is right for my interests as mentioned in OP.
There is hardly any real difference between any of the "main" tablets out there right now. The hardware is essentially the same, the only real difference is with the types of ports the tablets have (USB, HDMI, microSD, etc). I chose the Xoom after the release of the Tab 10.1 because I hated how Samsung went with their proprietary dock for everything (like Apple does), and also the tab 10.1 feels like it would break easily. Yes, the Xoom is still very relevant, it has the same hardware as all of the other current tablets, has the best build quality, gets OS updates first, and has all of the ports you'll need. The only detractor is the LCD is not as bright as say the Tab 10.1. It's barely any thicker than the other tablets, but it is a bit heavier, mainly due to the fact that it isn't made out of thin plastic.
I too don't like the "plasticky" look and feel of the Galaxy tablets.
I was looking around and it seems that the Xoom has no haptic feedback? I find haptic feedback quite useful for touch typing. Has it been a drawback for your typing experience or does it make no difference?
syrenz said:
I too don't like the "plasticky" look and feel of the Galaxy tablets.
I was looking around and it seems that the Xoom has no haptic feedback? I find haptic feedback quite useful for touch typing. Has it been a drawback for your typing experience or does it make no difference?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haptic feedback is nice for devices with garbage touch screens, or when your fingers are ice cold and as dry as burnt toast... But for my uses, it hasn't been missed on my xoom.
Without having a quad core tablet to test and compare to, it is hard to say which will be better for cost vs. benefit. Just like PC's I expect that going from a dual core to a quad core CPU will make almost no difference for most users for the first few months or years- except for those users who know exactly why they want a quad. Just a guess, and a large part of why I bought a xoom a couple weeks ago.
Basically for me: The xoom is the best supported, best built tablet on the market, with specs equivalent to the other new shiny tablets. The screen is perfectly acceptable to me, the battery life is mind-blowing and browsing is far better than I thought possible on an Android device. Just don't expect HD flash content to work well in a browser. The unlockable bootloader was also a major consideration. I don't feel like there is any other tablet that compares currently, and I don't think I'd give up my bootloader for 4 cores... and if that is so important to me, I doubt the quad would be worth the difference in cash for me to be an early adopter. (I like being an early adopter too!)
Anyway, that's my 2¢.
Let's be realistic about what you are going to do with your tablet. Read email, browse the internet, watch some youtube videos, read a book. The Xoom does all of these things exceedingly well. I would even venture to say that it does them all just as good if not better than anything else on the market at the moment.
Being power hungry is awesome, and the newer 67-core processors are sweet but you aren't doing high end graphics or video editing on your tablet...so is it worth the extra money? Right now you can get brand new Xooms for like $350 in some places. I gladly shelled out $600 for mine at the time...so $350 for a new one is a damn good deal.
Also, there is something to be said for the AOSP experience. The Honeycomb featured on the Xoom isn't loaded with a bunch of UI layers to "enhance" the user experience. It's straight Android.
I'd also say it will get ICS before any of the other tablets do.
nooomoto;19106377Right now you can get brand new Xooms for like $350 in some places. [/QUOTE said:
Can you give some examples of where I could get that? Thanks
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Click to collapse
syrenz said:
Can you give some examples of where I could get that? Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1335020
Actually the prime will be 499 and the original TF will stay at 399
I think people pay too much attention to the hardware, when the software matters more, or even most.
Hardware-wise, as someone already said, things are pretty similar. All Teg2 tabs perform the same, and the OMAP4 is roughly equivalent. The one exception is video. OMAP4 is better on HD vids, so get that if watching vids is important to you.
Buyers all want "smoothness." That mostly depends on the OS and apps, and things like the Flash plugin. Honeycomb was kind of a beta in this respect, and hopefully ICS will bring more refinement. This aside, my opinion is that "smoothness" is mostly within the user's control. Watch what apps you run in the background, and don't load up on stuff like live wallpapers, etc.
Software always run at least one cycle behind the hardware. Most Android apps and games I've seen are still geared toward phones, although many will use the higher resolution if available. I've yet to see a game that really tax the Tegra2. The latest AAA shooter, Shadowgun, runs smoothly on a Nook Color, which has only a single-core A8. My takeaway is that current tablets should be fine for all the software for this and next year, at least until the next cycle when Jelly Belly appears.
>Can you give some examples of where I could get that?
WalMart currently sells refurb 32GB Xooms for $350. I'm fairly certain these are clearanced Xooms being rebranded. The only diff is that they may have a shorter warranty. You can find out your warranty period here,
https://motorola-global-portal.cust...i-fi---service:-frequently-asked-questions#w1
These shouldn't be confused with the newer Xoom Family Edition (FE), which is also around $350. I'd suggest against the FE despite its better screen, since it has no community support at the moment, and probably won't. Devs & enthusiasts will either hang onto their current Xoom, or upgrade to a newer tablet.
That said, the new Xoom2's aren't that much more. The 8.2" will be $400, and the 10" will likely be $450. New toys will always get better support--from both the vendor and the new community--than old toys.
e.mote said:
That said, the new Xoom2's aren't that much more. The 8.2" will be $400, and the 10" will likely be $450. New toys will always get better support--from both the vendor and the new community--than old toys.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are? That's not bad at all. Thought they were both over $500. Are they going to come to America/Canada though?
syrenz said:
They are? That's not bad at all. Thought they were both over $500. Are they going to come to America/Canada though?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The other question is whether the newer tablets (including Xoom two) will have unlockable bootloaders so they can be modded. The Xoom Family Media Edition doesn't, which is why there isn't any development for it.
Okay this is kind of mean to me... http://www.dailysteals.com/
I haven't had enough time to make my decision yet but this site wants to pressure me to get one within 22 hours and save... argh
Browsing - all 10,1" tablets available at REASONABLE price will perform similar
Work/Note-taking/productivity - you will not do that too often, trust me I use BT keyboard for longer cha...err... work, and Hacker's Keyboard (onscreen almost-real QWERTY keyboard) for quick texts.
Movies/youtube - I actualy re-discovered Youtube with my XOOM. You will need to buy Dice Player to enjoy full quality full length movies. XOOM's display is a little pale comparing to my SGS' sAMOLED screen. BUT it does not burn your eyes out.
Speed - like in every other IT field, the more crap you put, the less speed you get. You can always OC your tablet, but... what for?
Design/styling - XOOM looks like a heavy-duty device, while GT10.1 looks like a child's toy. Yes, aesthetics should not be discussed, since its interpretation is a matter of taste.
Future Updates - ICS for sure, who knows about the rest. As long as XDA Community exists, there is hope
Opinion - Well... I paid ~530$ last month for my second-hand XOOM 3G EU (yay, its good that all the people in Poland are sooooo wealthy that it makes no difference for us to pay much more for toys... ). And would pay it again if given another chance Played with Tab 10.1" - thin plastic didn't like that + the price? ~850$, geez... Thought about Transformer. Almost bought it, but with no keyboard dock and no 3G modem. ~530$. Docked and modem-ed? ~850$...
Well, you do not need a 16-core device to enjoy it, especially that there are no apps or games that could utilize all that power. I know, I know, some people buy themselves a Ferrari just to drive it slowly through the country, but... (well that was not a brilliant sentence).
Edited: one more thing - there ALWAYS is an upcoming, better-than-available device. You can wait forever.
Does the Xoom do what it did when it furst came out, yes, in which case to me it is still relivant.
>http://www.dailysteals.com/
They won't run out any time soon. The daily bargain sites rely on the classic buying button: a deal is more appealing when it's time-limited. "Hurry and buy now before it's gone!" Prices for Teg2 tabs will continue to drop. The Xoom will be $300 or less by Black Friday.
>there ALWAYS is an upcoming, better-than-available device. You can wait forever.
Tech toys and their pricing have cycles, and it's always better to buy at the start rather than the end of a cycle. You have more choices, and prices are lower (on the old toys). Moreover, the start of the tech toy cycle is timed to coincide with the holiday shopping season, which is when the best deals are to be had.
IOW, from now until the end of the year (any year) is the best time to buy new toys.
@OP
What's the "best" tab depends mostly on you and how you use one. The Xoom has many good qualities: high build quality, 32GB, good community support, available ports, dual-band wifi, etc. Its one notable drawback is that it's heavy.
Weight is a big deal if you plan to hold a tab unsupported for extended periods. It's not a big deal if you offset the weight with a supporting surface--your lap, a surface, etc. If your envisioned use is mostly while standing, then a lighter (or may be smaller) tablet is better.
More ergonomic stuff: I like the Xoom2's rubberized bezel (as opposed to edge-to-edge glass or plain plastic on most tablets). The more friction the bezel can provide, the lighter the needed handgrip, and the less hand fatigue.
OTOH, I don't pay much attention to the "thin-is-in" trend, although I understand it's necessary for marketing. A thinner tablet can actually be less comfortable to hold, if the edge is thin enough that it cuts into the palm of your holding hand. The tapered edge and smooth metal surfaces of the Asus TF Prime make it look very chic and sleek, but I wouldn't want to hold one for very long.
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syrenz said:
Okay this is kind of mean to me... http://www.dailysteals.com/
I haven't had enough time to make my decision yet but this site wants to pressure me to get one within 22 hours and save... argh
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I saw this link, and instantly pulled out my credit card.
I'm getting a xoom
Im a little late on this debate and the opinions are all completely valid.. I have had a xoom since my joining date of xda, also last week I just purchased another xoom after a very disappointing experience with an acer a500 (that i got to further provide experience in the realm of android); i also found the dev scene in xda on the a500 was rude and not at all friendly; that is a big thing for me I havn't been an a-hole to anyone and help as much as I can, the xoom forums are awesome for that as well
Browsing - browsing has been really good, first off I have to say i was a app junkie and had always used an app for the browser, flash worked well on most of them for me, some sites were poops but hey i also have a laptop lol.. i then rediscovered the xoom stock browser and say I use it almost exclusively and love it
Work/Note-taking/productivity - you can do many things, however my personal opinion is your ability to do these things are limited to exactly what you want to do. there are good-ish apps for work related things with office typed products; however for my university work I have noticed that I cannot do much of the things I want and compatibility issues are still there like good powerpoint manipulation etc, this is not a problem of the xoom this is a problem for the apps so whether you have a new/old whatever tab the experience with this is limited to my previous comments. If you need to type just documents like memos, letters, etc you should be fine with the current state of affairs
Movies/youtube - I havnt actually watched many videos on my xoom, as I dont have any on it at the moment, I will be on holiday soon and will definitely be watching some on the plane and i already have dice player in anticipation, it plays them quite clearly and depending on the video parameters you should be quite happy. I have watched flashed based videos on websites and they play great and keep me entertained
Speed - even with stock rom i had good speed, no lags, no reboots, nothing i was so stoked with my xoom, compared to the a500 where it had lag like all hell and rebooted frequently on stock rom, was poop
Design/styling - the xoom is not a elegant device as many are aware, however, in all honesty the asthetics are frequently covered by things such as a case, screen protector, hands, etc so why do people place so much emphasis on this. I wanted functionality, the xoom was the best for this and I am still smiling at it
Future Updates - ICS will come as soon as source is released, I think this is why the devs here are a tad quiet, they are either working on something now, or waiting until source is released, and then it will explode with a whole new set of roms
Opinion - i love my xoom, sure I am thinking about the transformer prime however, the price may make my stay away mainly because I have a laptop that I payed a small car for in price, I don't need to pay for other crap... i would like the prime maybe down the track when price is lowered or the dev scene is bigger like 'tegra3 dedicated games' or something of the like but I will almost certainly have to get one from overseas, australia is the last place to get electronics and we pay a premium for outdated stuff from our local vendors the screw merchants and they wonder why the aussie people are all buying online... anyway I digress.. I say go to your local walmart (or your stores over there sorry for the generalisation) and ask to have a little play, then you will instantly see what we are all talking about... even jump to the other forums on xda and see how the dev scene is and see how people treat each other, if your gonna buy a device on here im sure your going to be a part of the relevant thread and if you recieve no help or are screwed over you will be annoyed and resent your device
sorry for the long post and I hope i have helped
Probably stupid to even suggest this on the note forum, but thought I'd share my feelings of the Note anyway. I had the original Note and thought it was wonderful. It literally changed how I go to school. Once I used to have a twenty pound bag filled with books and notebooks, but now I have one device that I use for ebooks and note taking. It worked so well that once the new note was released, I upgraded. I'm now wishing I applied that money towards a Windows tablet. Don't get me wrong, the Note still rocks at what it does....most of the time. I do find that it can be rather finicky with certain things, but overall it takes notes well. Which is primarily what I use it for. (I have a GPad 8.3 for ebooks now) Once I get home I find that the Note sits in my bag and I pick up my Zenbook Prime for browsing and using full on desktop apps like spotify. I just don't use the note for anything but Note taking. Thats an expensive Notebook! Plus, I've heard tons of great things about Onenote and have seen youtube videos showcasing its awesomeness. And if I really really wanted lecture notes, couldn't I run it via bluestacks? Essentially getting a windows and android tablet in one? Of course everyones needs are different, and I never thought I'd see the day when I'd be a potential windows defector, but am seriously impressed by the slew of tablets pouring out of their camp. I am a die hard android fan ever since my OG Droid, but I just can't help but see the shortcomings of the android OS. I'll never go windows phone, but as far as tablets go.... I think Micro$oft is onto something....Plus Chrome for desktop rocks way more than the mobile version.
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Please don't hate me
Totally agree
supremekizzle said:
I'll never go windows phone, but as far as tablets go.... I think Micro$oft is onto something....
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Click to collapse
Windows and tablets are kind of an oxymoron. The fate of RT is unknown and with the inability to run legacy Windows apps it's pretty barren from a content perspective. The Modern touch UI is pretty much a failure with MS admitting it by bringing back the start button and allowing the desktop to boot to a standard Windows desktop. I use my N10.1-14 as a laptop supplement. I'll travel with it about half the time when I know I'm not going to be doing heavy duty MS Office editing and creation. If I am, I'll bring my 13" ultra book. Which, even though it's light, is twice as large and three times as heavy to carry when you add-in its accessories. Between RDP, Hancom Office, and a BT mouse/keyboard the N10.1-14 is a fantastic laptop supplement. But I can't imagine using it (or any Android tablet) as a true laptop replacement. For that matter, Windows Pro tablets don't really offer anything that more than an ultra book does so to choose between them I'd pick the latter. Android and iOS are the kings of consumption. Windows tablets (not the RT's) are the kings of productivity. You compromise productivity on Android/iOS and compromise consumption on Windows. So where someone is on the consumption/productivity spectrum and what they're willing to compromise determines which is the better choice for them.
When I'm traveling, especially overseas, consumption, battery life, and portability are important. Windows tablets are pretty poor in all three categories. My whole set-up fits in this bag. Carrying a Windows tablet and all its kit is the same as carrying a laptop.
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To me, this is a non-starter...
As for Lecture Notes<>OneNote<>S Note I used OneNote for years. It's far from optimized for handwriting. Since Samsung introduced S Note for Windows and introduced handwriting search in to S Finder I pretty much always use S Note unless I'm collaborating with folks on MS Office in which case I'll use OneNote. A lot of friends and associates have Samsung Note's though and we'll collaborate using S Note.
No two people here do the same things consumption and productivity wise nor have the same priorities. So it's all really just some interesting discussion.
BarryH_GEG said:
Windows and tablets are kind of an oxymoron. The fate of RT is unknown and with the inability to run legacy Windows apps it's pretty barren from a content perspective. The Modern touch UI is pretty much a failure with MS admitting it by bringing back the start button and allowing the desktop to boot to a standard Windows desktop. I use my N10.1-14 as a laptop supplement. I'll travel with it about half the time when I know I'm not going to be doing heavy duty MS Office editing and creation. If I am, I'll bring my 13" ultra book. Which, even though it's light, is twice as large and three times as heavy to carry when you add-in its accessories. Between RDP, Hancom Office, and a BT mouse/keyboard the N10.1-14 is a fantastic laptop supplement. But I can't imagine using it (or any Android tablet) as a true laptop replacement. For that matter, Windows Pro tablets don't really offer anything that more than an ultra book does so to choose between them I'd pick the latter. Android and iOS are the kings of consumption. Windows tablets (not the RT's) are the kings of productivity. You compromise productivity on Android/iOS and compromise consumption on Windows. So where someone is on the consumption/productivity spectrum and what they're willing to compromise determines which is the better choice for them.
When I'm traveling, especially overseas, consumption, battery life, and portability are important. Windows tablets are pretty poor in all three categories. My whole set-up fits in this bag. Carrying a Windows tablet and all its kit is the same as carrying a laptop.
To me, this is a non-starter...
As for Lecture Notes<>OneNote<>S Note I used OneNote for years. It's far from optimized for handwriting. Since Samsung introduced S Note for Windows and introduced handwriting search in to S Finder I pretty much always use S Note unless I'm collaborating with folks on MS Office in which case I'll use OneNote. A lot of friends and associates have Samsung Note's though and we'll collaborate using S Note.
No two people here do the same things consumption and productivity wise nor have the same priorities. So it's all really just some interesting discussion.
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Click to collapse
Quite a setup you have. Have you seen the newly announced surface pro 3? Looks pretty sick.
I'm actually in the same situation as you as I find I'm more productive on a Windows machine. I tried using my tablet but always felt I could've done more work had I had my laptop with me. I'm quite impress with the Surface Pro 3, and it looks like it may be a potential buy.
Love that the cigarettes are a part of the essential accessories!
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Zerogamer100 said:
I'm actually in the same situation as you as I find I'm more productive on a Windows machine. I tried using my tablet but always felt I could've done more work had I had my laptop with me. I'm quite impress with the Surface Pro 3, and it looks like it may be a potential buy.
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Click to collapse
Totally agree. I'd really like to know how lecture notes and other android apps run on bluestacks with a pen. With google drive and chrome apps available on windows, I'm really starting to question my need to have the Note. It kind of feels like a toy now. Plus, spotify, word, and other full on PC programs available, why use two devices when I can consolidate to one? The only thing about the Surface Pro 3 is the price. Woof, that bad boy is spendy...
Just remember that Microsoft tablets require a good antivirus to be installed since it's the same is as the desktop. Android doesn't have that problem. It is very possible to replace with does with android though. I replaced my Windows 8 laptop with the note and haven't looked back or over 4 months. I can do everything I Need to do on this, and I'm an IT person.
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk
Looks like nobody used and heard about Asus T100ta.
It replaced my laptop, desktop and tablets(Ipad and nexus).
Why..How..
It does everything a laptop will do with full windows 8. I hardly use any apps. Browser is good enough for me. When I want bigger screen, I just widi into my TV. 60" is always better then 13" laptop screen. I can watch movies on one screen and work on other no problem.
Bought couple of USB hub with ethernet from amazon and used that to configure 3 hotels network using this little bad boy.
Battery is solid 8-9 hours watching videos or document editing, No thinking about what format should i convert it to like ipad. Stand by time is amazing.
You will think why am I here then?? For my 3 year. Her ipad1 backlight gone and T100 is not for kids .
I'm done with Apple and Like samsung thanks to xda developers as it is easier to work on and flexibility it's products provide.
The recently announced Surface pro 3 really ups the ante in terms of making Windows tablets attractive. I'd like to see more of the new pen, first, but no doubt that OneNote is well built and useful.
The problem in my view is still weight, battery life, portability. When I carry the note (or a tablet) around, it's so I don't have to carry a laptop. I can't do all I want on a note, but on the road, on the go, it does enough so I can avoid carrying a laptop. But a surface pro 3 is still near double the weight of a note, more with the type cover, and less battery life, and again heavier with a charger too.
Basically, Surface pro 3 is still first a laptop replacement (as the comparison with the MacBook air made), not a tablet/note replacement, for me. I am still looking for the ultimate note taking tablet that can also be my mobile ebook reader and web browser and the note still is the closest there is for me.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
graewulf1 said:
Just remember that Microsoft tablets require a good antivirus to be installed since it's the same is as the desktop. Android doesn't have that problem. It is very possible to replace with does with android though. I replaced my Windows 8 laptop with the note and haven't looked back or over 4 months. I can do everything I Need to do on this, and I'm an IT person.
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
An IT person that thinks Android does not have any opportunity for malware? Must be on par with the IT folks where I work.
Back on topic, if Google continues to nerf Android (like the KK SD bug that must be there to make the Nexus more competitive with the alternatives with SD cards) the Windows alternatives will continue to look better and better.
Surface Pro 3 was released.....
with a massive price
I agree on the price and love the specs. I have the Note 10.1-14 in a Poetic Bluetooth keyboard case with a mouse pad and Bluetooth mouse. It does real will, though there are times a Windows laptop cannot be beat. Goodness, that thing is expensive.
Sent via my Note 8
WJThomas said:
An IT person that thinks Android does not have any opportunity for malware? Must be on par with the IT folks where I work.
Back on topic, if Google continues to nerf Android (like the KK SD bug that must be there to make the Nexus more competitive with the alternatives with SD cards) the Windows alternatives will continue to look better and better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I said anti-virus, not anti-Malware. Two entirely different things. Microsoft has a proven track record of being open to viruses and malware installing themselves. On Windows either can install itself without user interaction. Since android is Linux based, both require the user to install them to get into the system. Installing apps from reliable sources almost ensures a virus and malware free android system. Infected websites and emails cannot infect android without the user's permission, the same is not true on Windows. This is why I said a good antivirus is required on Windows tablets. It's optional on android.
If you want to bash android, take it to a Windows forum. This is an android tablet forum.
Sent from my SM-P600 using Tapatalk
graewulf1 said:
I said anti-virus, not anti-Malware. Two entirely different things.
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Click to collapse
Splitting hairs a bit there. The industry commonly lumps all malware together and the combined anti-malware software is called antih-virus.
graewulf1;5u2842009 said:
If you want to bash android, tjake it to a Windows forum. This is an android tablet forum.
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Click to collapse
Who is bashing Android? I am a big Android fan. I am bashing Google for their anti-user and anti-competition polices. They are starting to turn into an Apple/Microsoft. The removal of the SD card write access is the beginning of the end. I just hope the community will be able to overcome Google and keep Android a viable alternative.
Back on topic...
There's a good conversation going on in the N12 forum discussing the Note/Pro's vs. the SP3.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=52847377
I upgrade from an old windows tablet the hp 2730p elite notebook to the sm-p600. I had windows tablet was designed for windows xp but I had 7 installed with 3gb of ram 60gb hard drive and that this new android tablet was better in every way except for storage space which can easily be remedied with a memory card.
Productivity wise the note 10.1 I would say is better in my experience especially since I have a spare wacom pen from my windows tablet that has the eraser on the back end that works perfectly with the note 10.1. Coding is a bit more difficult but I usually just remote desktop to my main pc and run Visual Studios. I have an otg cable with a usb hub for a hardware mouse and keyboard but haven't found a way to have the right mouse button in android to work as one instead of the back key.
Media wise the note 10.1 is better than my old windows tablet little to no lag full hd support and all that and hdmi out beats svideo out.
Gaming wise this is where I would consider upgrading to a windows tablet. As old as my hp 2730p notebook was I could still play minecraft (min settings 15fps), World of Warcraft (min settings windowed mode only 10fps) but at least Terraria played at a decent framerate 25fps+. On the note you have android ports of Minecraft and Terraria with touch controls in mind and being incompatible with the pc version. I would love something like http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2209247 for the sm-p600. I have toyed with LinuxOnAndroid and hoping they make progress with a native gui vs vnc. Hell I would even dual boot with windows if I could.
Don't get me wrong there are great android games out there and the humble mobile bundles help but it seems like the good ports or versions are still on the iphone/ipad and android users are left with inferior products. Chu Chu Rockets for example has 1-4 player multiplayer support through bluetooth wifi and gamecenter and on the ipad 4 players can share one screen. So far on the android port multiplayer consists of 1 human and 3 cpus.
I have a few unrelated Samsung gripes with the note and I am not sure what I would upgrade to in the future.
urtruelove78 said:
Looks like nobody used and heard about Asus T100ta.
It replaced my laptop, desktop and tablets(Ipad and nexus).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Resurrecting an older thread, I know, but I just picked up an Asus Transformer T100ta new and factory sealed for $250 (from Amazon.com). It's running the full desktop version of Windows 8.1 (32-bit), 64GB SSD, 2 GB RAM, keyboard/mouse dock with a USB 3.0 port, HDMI out, micro SD slot (with no limitations on what can be stored/installed/accessed), charges with a standard micro USB phone charger, has the Intel Atom Z3775 processor, 11 hour battery life, and it includes Office 2013. My kids are playing Steam games on it, Minecraft, Halo 1 & 2, etc. These aren't just HD phone games like what's available for the iPad and Android tablets...these are the real deal. I'm also running a real photo editor and desktop versions of browsers, not to mention real Office.
And this device was released in October 2013 -- rapidly approaching 2 years ago. Meanwhile, our Note 10.1 2014 doesn't even have Lollipop yet. I can't even update my tablet with the recent incremental Kitkat update because it fails and says my tablet has been modified simply because it's rooted (with a completely stock ROM and stock recovery). Did I have to root it? No, of course not...but I had to root it if I wanted open access to the SD card after the KitKat update. Not to mention wanting to do the crazy thing of, y'know, backing up my apps and data (I know, it's a lot to ask, but....). I don't have to worry about rooting the Transformer tablet. And Windows 10 is already working on this device and is a free update.
I'm really a big fan of Android and have been since the early days, but it's gotten to the point where I feel it's only really good for use on phones. With being able to load the full desktop version of Windows 8.1 or even Windows 10 on a tablet the same size, I just don't really see the purpose for Android tablets anymore.
graewulf1 said:
Just remember that Microsoft tablets require a good antivirus to be installed since it's the same is as the desktop. Android doesn't have that problem. It is very possible to replace with does with android though. I replaced my Windows 8 laptop with the note and haven't looked back or over 4 months. I can do everything I Need to do on this, and I'm an IT person.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Windows 8.1 includes anti-virus through Windows Defender. That's all I'm running on two Windows 8.1 devices in my house, and on the three Windows 7 machines I"m running...ready? Nothing. You don't get viruses or malware if you know what you're doing, especially if you setup your network and workstations securely. I've been a network engineer for over 25 years, so I don't buy into all the virus/malware hype that non-techs do. No, you can't have that philosophy in the corporate environment, because there are too many unknowledgeable users that are the weak link, but you can definitely (and easily) do that with a home network, and especially a personal tablet.
internetpilot said:
Windows 8.1 includes anti-virus through Windows Defender. That's all I'm running on two Windows 8.1 devices in my house, and on the three Windows 7 machines I"m running...ready? Nothing. You don't get viruses or malware if you know what you're doing, especially if you setup your network and workstations securely. I've been a network engineer for over 25 years, so I don't buy into all the virus/malware hype that non-techs do. No, you can't have that philosophy in the corporate environment, because there are too many unknowledgeable users that are the weak link, but you can definitely (and easily) do that with a home network, and especially a personal tablet.
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Click to collapse
I concur. As long as you 1) know what you are doing (not running random downloaded exe files), 2) keep system updated, 3) connect to internet that is behind NAT (meaning you always connect via WiFi or router) you should be fine. I use Ubuntu mostly but all my Windows installations have been running nothing beside the default Windows Defenders for years without any issue. In the times of Windows XP it was much more risky though.
not looking back
I retired my note 10.1 2014 for a surface pro 3 and will never look back. Superior quality and functionality.(and im a huge samsung fan) just could not take all the manufacturing flaws anymore