Nexus 7, iPad or Surface?

[Hawkwind]

I'm quite feeling the need for the Surface Pro. Roll on January (assuming decent-ish battery life and non-lol price).

Trying to delay a US trip so I can get one. I've been sen t a pre-order email from MS Store in California so I can reserve one

 

[Tilda]

Positive reviews on engaget from a CES edition

 

[soze]

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4769062/apple-highest-spec-ipad-ever-739-price-tag.html

What a stupid story they are babbling on about massive prices when it is £80 to double the storage. Not much extra when you are already looking to spend over £600 on the 64gb 4g model.

 

[Yaka]

its the sun what do you expect.

still kinda worrying how they are spitting out diff versions so quickly now that steve jobs aint around

 

[soze]

It is still the 4 just a 128GB version so nothing major? Though there are rumors of the iPad Mini Retina in March and the iPad 5 (a 4 but with the smaller bezel like the Mini) at the same time. I am going to start going off them if they keep releasing stuff without at least a years gap. I like the fact I had current tech for a year.

 

[Bahumat]

Got the Nexus 10 the other day. Really impressed with it so far.

 

[Madmaxx]

For my current course we had to do a small research project which was technology based, so I chose "Will Tablets replace Laptops" since it's kind of a choice I was going through before about which device would be suitable for what I needed. Anyway with tablets like the Microsoft surface and Asus Transformer I thought now would be a pretty good time to ask the question.

I don't need many results but I made a basic Google Docs survey, so then it can put the results into charts for me.

If any get a free minute its only 10 basic questions if you kind folks would help a brother out it would be appreciated, just about what devices you own or would consider buying in the future.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1bKO3Dg4Z-k6VUgow0VT1p5Uk6NyZ1ImiA2K8dYNv4G0/viewform

 

[DaGaffer]

For my current course we had to do a small research project which was technology based, so I chose "Will Tablets replace Laptops" since it's kind of a choice I was going through before about which device would be suitable for what I needed. Anyway with tablets like the Microsoft surface and Asus Transformer I thought now would be a pretty good time to ask the question.

I don't need many results but I made a basic Google Docs survey, so then it can put the results into charts for me.

If any get a free minute its only 10 basic questions if you kind folks would help a brother out it would be appreciated, just about what devices you own or would consider buying in the future.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1bKO3Dg4Z-k6VUgow0VT1p5Uk6NyZ1ImiA2K8dYNv4G0/viewform

I filled it out, but seriously fellah, get help with survey design.

 

[Hawkwind]

Filled out but Google are tits, just because I live in UAE doesn't mean I want the page in bloody Arabic! Some of the question options with a typed entry were in Arabic only.

Personally I love using a tablet (surface) for work such as off site meetings and short travel. Light and has all the software I need for 80% of work I would normally do.

Laptops I use for office work and at home/travel for gaming. I like a nice big laptop decent size screen and as powerful as I can afford. Just purchased a MSI GT601-US Dragon in the US for playing whilst on travel.

Yes, the work is becoming more mobile. The company I work for puts internet and GSM systems on planes. When the GSM systems were first developed the thinking was that passengers would make calls but there would be a small amount of SMS and data required. It turned out to be the opposite. SMS and Data usage is very high with only a few voice calls originated from the aircraft.

 

[TdC]

So I'm guessing lots of texting "Im onna PLANE bro!" and porn browsing and no calls to the wife?

 

[Hawkwind]

MSI GT70-609US not 601 damn the edit timer

 

[Hawkwind]

So I'm guessing lots of texting "Im onna PLANE bro!" and porn browsing and no calls to the wife?

Unfortunately we block the porn

 

[TdC]

 

[DaGaffer]

General consensus amongst analysts is that tablets will be the growth form factor for no more than five years, eventually replaced by virtual displays (e.g. Glass or similar, with or without accompanying hardware). Much as I dislike the creep factor inherent in Google Glass, and basically the total death of privacy, using this type of device and a virtual keyboard/gesture/voice combo is a logical progression.

 

[Kryten]

Well, finally got pissed off with my iPad3 so handed it back and now rocking a nexus 7 Awesome, just a shame about the lack of a camera on the back (a seemingly odd thing to miss out but nm)

 

[Yaka]

it was done on purpose, they knew theyd have to keep some thing back for the next version so peeps would keen on up grading.

thinkj thy call it drip feed effect or somat

 

[Syri]

it was done on purpose, they knew theyd have to keep some thing back for the next version so peeps would keen on up grading.

thinkj thy call it drip feed effect or somat

It was actually to keep costs down, as they were making it as close to the line as possible. Besides, most people who own a tablet will also own a smartphone. That gives them access to a decent-ish camera on a device that's a lot easier to use for point and shoot photography. Maybe not so bad with a 7" tablet, but even so I'd personally much rather hold my phone than my tablet to take a photo, when I don't have my actual camera to hand of course.

 

[Aada]

Just returned from 3 weeks in US and have two MS Surface tablets. One is a XMas present for my son for school use. Have to say I love it, great product. The big selling point for me is MS Office which is fully compatible for Office 2010 on my work laptop. So I am able to present and even edit PowerPoints. I have the Micro DVI to VGA and HDMI cables so connecting to projectors is no issue. I was even able to use my Logitech R400 Presenting mouse thingy. Not found a device yet that won't work. Even a USB 3 Ext. SATA HDD kit. I have upgraded the memory using the MicroSD slot behind the kick stand. $49 (Amazon) for a Sandisk 64Gb Ultra. So 128Gb in total for memory. I have some Mp4 movies on it which I watched on the way back from Seattle to Dubai. 9-10 hours of usage before I had to think about recharging.

The USB and MS Office is a huge draw for me, being able to use those products rather than coverting to PDF like I used to do on my iPad. The tactile Keyboard is a must also I really do not like the standard one that comes with it. Only app I really need for now is Google Earth and I could pretty much do 90% of my work on it. Wife will get my iPad now.

What are your thoughts on the Surface after this time using it?

Thanks.

 

[DaGaffer]

I'm kind of drawn towards a Galaxy Note 8.0 when it finally arrives, if the price isn't utterly ridiculous (impossible to tell from Expansys pre-order prices).

 

[Aada]

Is the surface pro still even being released here? It seems like its been months since it was released in the states.

What about price are we talking £900 for this monster?

 

[DaGaffer]

Is the surface pro still even being released here? It seems like its been months since it was released in the states.

What about price are we talking £900 for this monster?

End of this month, but still no price announced.

 

[Hawkwind]

What are your thoughts on the Surface after this time using it?

Thanks.

Use it most days for work, battery life is better than reported and I get through most days without the charger. Most use is MS Office based, Google Earth Mapping Tools and web based reporting tools. I think its great and handing over my iPad to the Mrs was a great move, I don't miss it one bit. Presentations are a breeze with the add on connections I can connect to just about anything. So much easier than carrying around the laptop. The pen is easy to use. Although buying a spare was an issue, luckily the Samsung Tablet pen works and they are easy to get hold of. Great piece of tech, I love it.

 

[Aada]

Use it most days for work, battery life is better than reported and I get through most days without the charger. Most use is MS Office based, Google Earth Mapping Tools and web based reporting tools. I think its great and handing over my iPad to the Mrs was a great move, I don't miss it one bit. Presentations are a breeze with the add on connections I can connect to just about anything. So much easier than carrying around the laptop. The pen is easy to use. Although buying a spare was an issue, luckily the Samsung Tablet pen works and they are easy to get hold of. Great piece of tech, I love it.

Cheers in the market for a second tablet and wondering if I should get a Surface pro or rt hmmm have a inkling the the pro is going to be obscenely priced here if the RT is £550 with the touch cover then what on earth are they going to charge for an i5 with all the bells and whistles?

 

[Tilda]

Surface pro is amazing. I cannot express how awesome I think it is.

I use it daily, it has all my work on it (via dropbox and skydrive), it runs office 2013 beautifully.
All my lectures Onenote voice records, I "print" the lecture slides into onenote, and then during the lecture I write with the wonderful pen - the waacom tech is like using a real pen.
As hawkwind says, presentations are amazing, using the Pen and powerpoints "presenter" mode, i can read notes, and draw on the screen, while nobody else can see what I see. Its brilliant.

If I didn't play PC games, i could happily use it as a PC replacement, people on Surface forums are using them to drive huge 2000x1900ish sized monitors with no slowdown.

I got mine brought back from US by a friend, paid £700 total including a Type keyboard.

Very happy to make videos or something if there's anything anybody wants to see demonstrated/shown in more detail.

 

[Hawkwind]

Cheers in the market for a second tablet and wondering if I should get a Surface pro or rt hmmm have a inkling the the pro is going to be obscenely priced here if the RT is £550 with the touch cover then what on earth are they going to charge for an i5 with all the bells and whistles?

The RT is good for basic MS Office use but watching HD video in MKV is an issue (MPEG4 is fine), there are 3rd party apps but the ones I've tried were not great. The advantage is that you get Office RT free. My son has one for school, excellent for that. The Surface Pro will run Office 2013 no problem at all but you have to buy it. 550 GBP is steep for an RT. The Pro should only be 600 GBP given the exchange rate and the US price.

 

[Tilda]

I'm using a Pro fwiw and had an RT that my mum is now using very sucessfully.
Only reason I upgraded was the Waacom pen, which is worth its weight in gold. My mum is still loving the surface as a neat tablet for internet/email/office (although email/calendar is complicated on RT by the fact google calendars don't play nicely).

 

[Kryten]

I would like to side by side compare a Pro with something like a HP Elitepad (one of the decent versions rather than the Atom). - including price. Look very interesting indeed, it's more capable than the Surface is supposed to be but I've only ever had a quick toy with either separately.

 

[Aada]

Surface pro is amazing. I cannot express how awesome I think it is.

I use it daily, it has all my work on it (via dropbox and skydrive), it runs office 2013 beautifully.
All my lectures Onenote voice records, I "print" the lecture slides into onenote, and then during the lecture I write with the wonderful pen - the waacom tech is like using a real pen.
As hawkwind says, presentations are amazing, using the Pen and powerpoints "presenter" mode, i can read notes, and draw on the screen, while nobody else can see what I see. Its brilliant.

If I didn't play PC games, i could happily use it as a PC replacement, people on Surface forums are using them to drive huge 2000x1900ish sized monitors with no slowdown.

I got mine brought back from US by a friend, paid £700 total including a Type keyboard.

Very happy to make videos or something if there's anything anybody wants to see demonstrated/shown in more detail.

Which size HDD do you have? I can get the Pro 64gb version for £500 no KB though, good deal?

 

[Aada]

Managed to haggle it down to £450 can't wait to get my hands on it.

 

[Tilda]

It depends what you're using it for. The keyboard is brilliant, I had the type keyboard which was alright, but the touch keyboad is far better I think for touch typing.
I have the 128GB but tbh, I haven't used half of it yet. You can always put a card in it to increase your storage. At home, its easy to plug in an external HDD to save stuff onto.