Tablet PC's

[mod 135639]

So I had a chance over the holidays to play with a "Kindle" from amazon and I was very impressed.

 

It downloads books very quick off the 3G network (You pay for the book but not the internet access), has no monthly contract and you can even get news and browse some websites with an experimental browser (in black and white on the model I tested).

 

It does not have a normal screen, it uses a screen like your old Etch-a-sketch where it draws the screen and then uses little (or no) power to hold the image. A image of a book stays on the screen when you turn it off too... I suspect that it only uses power to refresh the image and the screen is not back lit (So it's just like a book) and that is why the batter lasts such a LONG time.

 

Personally... I think it's better than a book as it has less eye strain and weighs less... and you never loose your page! It's tiny, thin and delicate so don't fall asleep with it and roll over CRUNCH! Oh, and no reading in the bath (But I bet they make a water proof case just for that reason!)

 

I only heard one person say they would not like it (and that was because they like the NEW BOOK smell).

 

Now, remember back in Feb I said "Tablet PC's were around the corner" well this is just the start. With new battery technology, high speed wireless, SDcards for hard drives, lower power consumption CPU's etc... this will be the year of the tablets and will start a whole new revolution in portable computers!

 

I suspect (and so do many others) that Apple will announce the new 10 inch touch tablet this month... and I am saving to buy one! The Iphone software is a good indication of how this tablet will perform I a m sure!

 

Rumor has it that it will be called the iSlate but that is just a rumor.. who cares what it is called... it will be something to look forward to. It is suspected to be launched to rival the color version of the amazon kindle and will offer e-books on iTunes store.... but it will also make a amazing portable PC.

 

For the geeks... The rumors say the tablet will have

-ARM Holdings dual-core Core9x chipset.

-OLED screen

-cost between $500 to $700 USD

-Dell, Intel, HTC and Nokia are rumored to also have tablets to compete coming this year

[Guest s******ecan****]

I used a tablet notebook for about 3 months on a trial basis a few years ago (it was an HP) very cool. I would have bought one but they were about 4K at the time.

 

I'm due for a new laptop soon, and I'm going for an Apple this time.

[mod 135639]

I actually don't really care for the small mac book but the large one (titanium is it?) my friend has it and I like it a lot.

[Guest Ou**or**n]

Whether its made by Apple or somebody else...

 

I want table-like device that is simple and elegant - like say an iPod but somewhere between 10" and 12" in size. I've never used one so I don't know the perfect size yet but I'll know after using one for a while.

 

I want to get up in the morning and sit down with my morning coffee and read the Citizen. Yes I can do that now either sitting in front of my desktop (yuck), or on the sofa with my laptop propped up on my lap, mouse at my side and adapter plugged in. However a simple tablet would be so much easier. The screen of a tablet would work in either portrait or landscape and I'd like to read an online version formatted to maximize the use of my screen. I like local ads if they don't impair the time it takes to read or take up too much of the screen. Thus in my ideal world the tablet would have downloaded the whole paper sometime in the middle of the night so my reading will be quick.

 

I'd then fire it a small case and head down for my bus ride to work. On the bus I'd read a magazine. Like the newspaper it too would have ads. I read magazines relating to my hobbies and I find the ads to be a big part of the whole magazine reading experience. Of course I would hope the tablet has built-in 3G network support because when I see an ad for a product I like I want to click it and go the vendors website and from there maybe checkout some related discussion forums to see what others have to say.

 

Back at home I'd prop it up on some stand or dock in the kitchen while I'm making dinner and watch the news. It would stream through my WiFi connection.

 

Over the evening I would maybe watch another show or movie if my daughter is hogging the big screen tv in the living room. The tablet would connect to my main home theatre pc where all my downloaded movies are stored. I'd play some games too, maybe some chess or euchre.

 

Finally I'd head off to bed and read a downloaded paperback. Yes I could do this on a Kindle but I prefer colour.

 

I'd pay for the book but wouldn't be willing to pay for either the newspaper I read in the morning or the magazine I read on the way to work. In my opinion tablets will enable advertising that is meaningful to me and provide a workable business model to publishers.

 

I drift off to sleep contemplating putting all my bookcases for sale on Kijiji as they are no longer full of CD's, DVD's, books or magazines.

[mod 135639]

Well Steve Jobs (Apple) announced it as anticipated this morning.

 

Personally I have been waiting for this for years.... but the name. Well, it's the iPad and it's not the best name... it got some funny comments at the office today.

 

In fact those of you who watched MADtv will remember a number of years ago they did a skit on the ipad ....

this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQJiRDrL9MI&feature=PlayList&p=623A41C2BF10CA96&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=38

 

...but, check out the video! This thing is AMAzING!

http://www.apple.com/ipad/#video

 

For the techies...

-it has a dock cable to usb included

-it's a A4 apple chip (1ghz)

-Battery will last about 10 hours using Wi-Fi

-No hard drive (Flash drive available in 16/32 and 64 gigs)

-1024x768 ips multi touch

-anti finger print coating

 

Also has a Mic, Speakers, Headphone, Sim card (in 3g model), accelerometer, ambient light sensor and even assisted GPS (Meaning it must be within the 3g or wifi range to use gps as the maps are not pre-loaded).

 

I HATE doing email from my PDA and I hate lugging around a laptop and booting it up just to check in on email and to see if the servers I am monitoring are all ok. This is the answer for me (and I am sure for many of you).

 

I am pre-ordering it myself so stay tuned as it will take 90 days before they start to ship this.

[Newton 714]

It looks great. I'll get one when it comes to a store in Ottawa. Hopefully soon.

[HarveySpecter 1908]

Interesting gadget indeed. to an extent it almost makes the netbook something else rather than protable. And such there will be more tweeks along the way with this iPad but for now Apple seems to have seen the way forward in terms of portability.

[Mizz Martinez 135]

Well Steve Jobs (Apple) announced it as anticipated this morning.

 

Personally I have been waiting for this for years.... but the name. Well, it's the iPad and it's not the best name... it got some funny comments at the office today.

 

In fact those of you who watched MADtv will remember a number of years ago they did a skit on the ipad ....

this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQJiRDrL9MI&feature=PlayList&p=623A41C2BF10CA96&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=38

 

...but, check out the video! This thing is AMAzING!

http://www.apple.com/ipad/#video

 

For the techies...

-it has a dock cable to usb included

-it's a A4 apple chip (1ghz)

-Battery will last about 10 hours using Wi-Fi

-No hard drive (Flash drive available in 16/32 and 64 gigs)

-1024x768 ips multi touch

-anti finger print coating

 

Also has a Mic, Speakers, Headphone, Sim card (in 3g model), accelerometer, ambient light sensor and even assisted GPS (Meaning it must be within the 3g or wifi range to use gps as the maps are not pre-loaded).

 

I HATE doing email from my PDA and I hate lugging around a laptop and booting it up just to check in on email and to see if the servers I am monitoring are all ok. This is the answer for me (and I am sure for many of you).

 

I am pre-ordering it myself so stay tuned as it will take 90 days before they start to ship this.

 

I want one!

[Guest Ou**or**n]

I was pleasantly surprised by the price. I only see myself using it home or the cottage - both of which have wireless networking so I don't think I'll want the 3G model. I'll dip my toe with starter model and see where this product goes over the next couple of years.

[buggernot 588]

It won't be a flop because there's enough Apple fanboys and tech freaks that have to have the newest latest, but this still isn't enough to make Tablet PC's desirable. Just a big toy, that's all it is. Somebody else needs to come along and do it right - a locked down unit like this cannot do what laptops/netbooks can.

 

Made me laugh when I first saw this picture though. It's not that the iPhone got bigger, it's more like it stayed the same size and Steve Jobs got smaller:

 

[mod 135639]

Well.. I would disagree with that. It's incredibly desirable to me as I could moderate cerb very easily from anywhere (and it sucks on my PDA)... I hate booting up the laptop and trying to find a comfortable spot to sit with it.

 

The Iphone software was actually originally written as a tablet software but the technology was not ready yet (Battery life, processor, hard drive/memory, 3g speed, etc...) so they shrunk it and made it into a phone OS and that was the best thing they could do as all the applications were developed for it!

 

The technology is here now (I agree in 2 years it will probably be a dinosaur but someone like apple had to do this to kick off the era!) This is ONLY the beginning and I do think this will change how we use computers and in the future this will replace laptops! As things get smaller and faster and batteried last longer... this will be it. A phone screen is just not big enough (Not even the iphone) and you can use this as a phone if you want! It's high speed so voip will work with it I am sure.

 

Believe or not... this is the future of computers right here. Windows7 even has lots of development in it for mutli-touch applications - everyone knows this is the way things are going and this is just the beginning.

 

I contacted my Mac rep today and asked to be on the waiting list as I want to have one with the first order.

[BownChickaBown 4829]

I bought a Gateway Tablet 4 years ago and find it great for presentations and the on-the-fly wow factor of using a stylus and hand-writing notes to text to instantly e-mail folks my presentation and notes as they watch on screen. Makes surfing the Web faster to.

 

The iPad is a flop imho, as it fails to make a real leap forward, such as with using Apple's patents to embed webcams behind an OLED screen whereby when one videochats, they can look @ the persons eyes, and not off-angle to a mounted cam.

 

As well, they failed to converge the iPad w/ Apple TV. Boo.

 

A big let-down, this one. ...but hey, Why shouldn't Apple spend some of it's 'cool' credit on consumerism. Welcome to capitalism. Squeeze every last dime.

[mod 135639]

Sorry to break your spirit... but the iPad can control your AppleTV and iTunes remotely...

http://www.apple.com/itunes/remote/

 

They hit the nail right on the head!! They did not BLOAT the system with all this crap... instead you simply install the applications (Apps) for what you need. This makes the system run fast, not take up a crap load of space and not have a million things to sift through on your device to find something.

 

 

The iPad sdk developer package makes it VERY easy for people to write apps for the ipad... and opens a HUGE world of things that can be done. It's the same software as the iphone (with added features) so any app for the iphone will work on the tablet. Take a minute to see what is already available (It's impressive)... it is innovative and cutting edge and others are already scrambling to follow suit.

 

As for patents... Patents are made all the time for "works in progress" and just because it has not been released to the public does not mean it is still not in the works.

 

Now, I will have to get my hands on a ipad to see if I miss the stylus... as apple chose not to include one with this device (but google it and you will see some companies already have them in the works).

[buggernot 588]

It's still a very neat little gadget, but it's more in the toy realm than anything else. Most anything a Power User would want to use it for, the pad would be inept or inefficient.

[Guest sl*nt*ds*x]

I've heard rumours that it won't multi-task though... I'm still waiting to see but if it can then yes it's a toy I would love to own

[mod 135639]

The current ipad/iphone software does not multitask. It runs one app at a time... but it does that one app very well.

 

If you have specific needs for multitasking you either have to have an application made custom to do what you need (or) you may want to hold off for the intel "Moorestown" based tablets that will multitask.

 

Rumor has it that apple held back on some features (web cam, mutlitasking, etc..) for the initial release (To keep the costs down and so they have something to launch in a year with more features to get people to upgrade). In a world with no real competition (Like Apple will have with the Ipad) they can afford to do this.

[A***** A***** 510]

The current ipad/iphone software does not multitask. It runs one app at a time... but it does that one app very well.

 

If you have specific needs for multitasking you either have to have an application made custom to do what you need (or) you may want to hold off for the intel "Moorestown" based tablets that will multitask.

 

Rumor has it that apple held back on some features (web cam, mutlitasking, etc..) for the initial release (To keep the costs down and so they have something to launch in a year with more features to get people to upgrade). In a world with no real competition (Like Apple will have with the Ipad) they can afford to do this.

 

So are you going to get one? Me, it doesn't do anything for me, too big. Loved the IPOD touch I had, it kicked ass:razz:

 

Also, what is Win 7 like? I am getting a new HP laptop with it next month, and I am not quite sure to expect. Will beat this old P3 866 right out of the water:lol:

[mod 135639]

Windows7 is a BIG improvement. I personally like it and think it is the best OS so far from Windows.... I like MAC os better but I have a HP laptop (Not a macbook) so I am also guilty of the windows over mac for price and software choices. I do run both windows and linux on the HP laptop (and working on a thumbdrive solution that will allow me to run apple OSX on my HP with a little bootloader hack)

 

As for the iPad I am on the contact list and I do think I will buy one when they come out. A app for the iPhone exists that I love that lets me monitor servers and do all sorts of great remove access stuff but I find the iphone too small to do any work efficiently so I have to use the laptop right now... the ipad is perfect for what I need (Email, server maintenance, cerb, etc... if I could run photoshop on it I would be in heaven but that is just way too over the top for it's current capabilities)

 

...but I will wait until the 3G version comes out unless I can use my 3G usb modem with the WiFi only version. The 3G version is expected to be a month behind the launch of the WiFi only version.

 

I am hopping that if the iPad can not be used with my current USB modem that I can trade it in or upgrade it to the iPad but who knows yet who in Canada will be caring the iPad 3G.

 

Rogers did such a poor job on the iPhone plans that it would not surprise me if some other company got to sell the new iPad 3g and rogers would get the boot.

 

None of them have good dataplans yet that would let you really use the iPad affordable so here is hoping.

[buggernot 588]

...but I will wait until the 3G version comes out unless I can use my 3G usb modem with the WiFi only version. The 3G version is expected to be a month behind the launch of the WiFi only version.

 

I thought I heard that there was no USB port on the iPad?

[mod 135639]

Technically it doesn't have a actual USB connector... instead it has a single "Dock port" (30 pin port) where you plug in a typical AC power supply or dock it to a keyboard if you need to type out something large (Touch screen typing sucks).

 

It is a communication port and you can use this port with a number of dongles for stuff like usb, web cam or even a media card (Like a SD or any other compact flash media card).

 

The problem is it may lack existing software to make the USB device work with the iPad itself.

 

On another note the HP "Slate" (Competition for the iPad but running windows) would be compatible and does have USB from what I have read. And as a BIG bonus... it already has flash installed (Joint effort between adobe and HP) and it is a very impressive machine as well from what I have seen. (This has been a big let down for iPhone users as the iPhone does not display flash and apple pitched it as a complete web surfing experience before the launch - it is the best web surfing experience on a mobile device but how many sites use flash??? None of them work on the iphone!!)

 

This means our chat room here on cerb would work on the HP tablet for sure... but I am not sure about the ipad (yet) apparently you can watch youtube video's on the iPad (youtube videos are encoded in flash10) so a good chance exists that the iPad does have some means of playing flash .... but I can't seam to confirm it and some people are saying it's a hack just to watch youtube as it converts to mp4.

 

Anyone with a iphone have any more info on this?

 

Now... if you can put a 16+GB sd card on the dongle and it can run java (You can run Java on the iphone but you need to jailbrake it and that is not recommended) but ... it is possible and with java running you can be sure you can get flash to work on it one way or another - it's just a matter of time before someone creates a java virtual environment for a full version web browser like firefox. It's beyond my capabilities but I am sure someone will make it happen.

[Ragnaglar 440]

I really do not know what people were expecting when the Ipad came out. sure it has its limitations but WOW its great for what it does. the problem with other devices is either it does too little (Kindle) or tries to do too much (PC Tablets)

 

I have over 60 apps for my Iphone I have downloaded over 128 apps over the less than 1 year I have owned it. (I have the 32GB model)

 

The Ipad is a convergence device and frankly I see many uses for this device as it is well made, lightweight. I can actually see the medical industry getting hot and heavy into the ipad very quickly.

 

I know many developers who have the SDK and have actually submitted apps and have made money on it.

 

Plus add the Citrix app and now you have access any app and OS you have avail in a thin environment.

 

Trust me, the apps are there and more will come, hell even my govt department is looking into the iphone as a convergence device, phone + apps.

 

and as a multimedia device I do not think anyone can contest Apple's dominance in the arena.

 

I owned a Fujitsu Tablet a couple of years ago, and I thought it was nice, needed the Pen to use had USB ports etc etc I would rather have my Iphone any day over the that tablet. PC tablets require so much just to run the OS!

 

now Slate will be interesting, but I highly doubt that they will manufacture anything as sleek as the Ipad.

 

Sure it can run flash, and sure its going to crash and sure your going to need antivirus software and sure your going to need more ram and add on the patch Tuesday every month ..........etc

 

 

Now to answer the MOD's ??? about youtube, when you access youtube via Safari on the Iphone it sends you to the mobile site with touchscreen.

 

(in fact there are 3 options mobile, touchscreen, Desktop)

 

when desktop is selected the videos ask for flash!, so the m.youtube must link to the .mp4 file.

[mod 135639]

That is what I thought... Still no flash app for the iphone. Apple and Adobe must have some fight they need to workout.

 

Sure it can run flash, and sure its going to crash and sure your going to need antivirus software and sure your going to need more ram and add on the patch Tuesday every month ..........etc

Antivirus! Ain't that the truth!! It will need antivirus for sure.

 

You know my Mac desktop crashes more often than my PC these days and I must say Vista would run weeks on my HP quad core PC without any crashing (Same with windows7 it is rock solid).

 

I think it's unfair to say that windows crashes more than a mac these days.

 

Windows only really locks up these days when you mix and match untested parts... and the mac craps out too when you try to add a third party hardware. These days I buy Dell and HP/Compaq as it's tested well. I stay away from the cheapy stuff and the "Home Built" pc's. It's a crap shoot when you do buy cheap or home built machines.

 

BTW... Kindle rocks. It's by far the best digital book. That e-ink screen makes it so easy to read, it's very light (Lighter than a standard book) the battery lasts a LONG time ... hell it even has a free experimental web browser feature for emergencies but in Canada the sites are limited to things like wikipedia (at least that is all I could access at xmass when I was playing with one) ... it's very easy to order and find books and has no monthly fee's. It is what it is (and it's very good at it) and anyone with one falls in love with it. It does not need anything more and it already has WAY more than any book can offer ... if you like magazines you may want the color one for the photos... but for novels it really has way more features than necessary.

 

The sony e-book reader has a optional touch screen (Who needs that) and is USB connected (Not wireless 3g like the kindle) - I find the sony one not as comfortable and the screen on the kindle is better (My preference of course as they are both e-ink screens - The kindle screen has more shades of grey and the tablet feels more comfortable). Kindle can hold 1500 books (Sony can hold under 350 books but does have a card slot to increase this). The kindle has "Text to speach" and is less expensive... I would take the kindle over any of the others any day.

[Ragnaglar 440]

Kindle is in hot water over the text to speech thing, the publishers disagree and want it removed or to be compensated as this will/could cut into their audio book sales.

 

As for the crashing of systems I agree with one stipulation vista/windows 7 are less crash prone but xp while excellent in it's day has been patched to death and is no where near the same os as it was compounded with poorly written software/hardware drivers

Posted via Mobile Device

[A***** A***** 510]

When you do get that IPAD mod, let us know how it works. Maybe do a review and post some pictures? I can't get my head around it or really know any of peers that would have one:|

[twoblues 258]

BTW... Kindle rocks. It's by far the best digital book. That e-ink screen makes it so easy to read, it's very light (Lighter than a standard book) the battery lasts a LONG time ... hell it even has a free experimental web browser feature for emergencies but in Canada the sites are limited to things like wikipedia (at least that is all I could access at xmass when I was playing with one) ... it's very easy to order and find books and has no monthly fee's. It is what it is (and it's very good at it) and anyone with one falls in love with it. It does not need anything more and it already has WAY more than any book can offer ... if you like magazines you may want the color one for the photos... but for novels it really has way more features than necessary.

 

 

I got a Kindle (Int'l) for Christmas and absolutely love it. Just got back from Mexico and it's such a nice travel device.

 

Interestingly, when the Kindle Int'l first came out, I noticed an extra $1.99 charge for purchases outside of the States...but while in Mexico, I bought one book, paid the extra $1.99 and now on every other book I've looked at, there is no additional charge.

 

So, no idea if it is a one-time charge, a once a month charge (pay once, then don't pay again for a while), or if they suddenly removed the charge while I was away.

 

As for the Text-To-Speech, the authors are idiots...the text-to-speech is no where near the quality of an audio book...it's the silly computer voice and nothing else.