Tablet Suggestions for Students

[CampbAndrew]

Hi all!! I've recently had a bad experience where I was robbed of my laptop close to end of the semester :'( . That being said, i started looking for a replacement and it came to mind that a tablet might work well in this instance. I'm trying to decide between the iPad 4:-$ and the Nexus 10 . I think i've already almost made up my mind to get the Nexus 10 but does anyone have any other suggestions for a tablet that might serve a student well in the productivity area?:-\ And if you do, why?

 

[JRDroid]

Hi all!! I've recently had a bad experience where I was robbed of my laptop close to end of the semester :'( . That being said, i started looking for a replacement and it came to mind that a tablet might work well in this instance. I'm trying to decide between the iPad 4:-$ and the Nexus 10 . I think i've already almost made up my mind to get the Nexus 10 but does anyone have any other suggestions for a tablet that might serve a student well in the productivity area?:-\ And if you do, why?

What is your major? What is your max price? And are you certain you will not be taking any classes that will require more specialized software that a tablet won't be able to run? Once you answer those questions, suggestions will be easier

 

[CampbAndrew]

What is your major? What is your max price? And are you certain you will not be taking any classes that will require more specialized software that a tablet won't be able to run? Once you answer those questions, suggestions will be easier

I'm a Science Major. Marine Biology to be exact and I'm sure that I won't be required to run any specialized software. My max price is $500 USD.

 

[bclinger#IM]

If it includes note taking, check out the Samsung Galaxy 10.1 Note.

Sent from my SPH-L900 using Tapatalk 4 Beta

 

[Farish]

I am going to recommend to ever college student. First find out if there are any restrictions or issues which would prevent you to use material on an Android/IOS tablet.

Somebody in another thread posted they could not view their online classes with an iPad.

 

[CampbAndrew]

My lecture notes are all online. But they's saved in powerpoint format and pdf. So they're downloadable. I figured I could just use Google Docs and Adobe to view them.

 

[CampbAndrew]

I tried replying earlier but it wasn't going through. I'm a Science major and my max price is $500 USD.

 

[Farish]

I tried replying earlier but it wasn't going through. I'm a Science major and my max price is $500 USD.

What kind of science? Are you ever going to run simulations? Will you ever need to use CAD software? What about linear regression, predictive modeling, etc etc. These are things tablets really (some in part because of software support isn't there yet) don't do. You can get a great laptop in that price range at Frys.

 

[CampbAndrew]

Marine Biology. Most of my courses involve field work. My work as it relates to projects and so forth would mostly involve just writing my reports and stuff. I have access to other computers should I need to heavier word processing or creating presentations. Other than that, my studies don't demand too much.

 

[Farish]

Marine Biology. Most of my courses involve field work. My work as it relates to projects and so forth would mostly involve just writing my reports and stuff. I have access to other computers should I need to heavier word processing or creating presentations. Other than that, my studies don't demand too much.

Only thing left then is to make sure if you need flash or do not. Then I would get the tablet that fits your needs the most. For example you may want an iPad because you have movies you purchased on iTunes. or you may want an Android tablet because of customization.

I lean towards Apple with tablets because their App selection is better and the tablet app market is about 1-2 years away to catch up on the Android side of things. The Nexus 10 though is a beautiful device. If you are brave you can always do a Windows 8 tablet but they are behind the curve compared to the other two, but they have something the others dont, Microsoft Office.

 

[CampbAndrew]

As much as I would love Microsoft Office on my tablet.....nothing could get me to buy a Win8 tablet at this current point in time. Too many drawbacks imo. I'm tempted by Apple's offerings but their price tag pushes me away. And here in Jamaica, we have an extremely meagre App Store. My Apple ID doesn't even work in the US Store:'(. So i think i'm going to stick with Android. I'm already in love with Google's ecosystem and i think i'm patient enough to wait on the App store to grow a bit more.

 

[JRDroid]

Having owned and used extensively an iPad, several Android tablets, and a Windows 8 tablet, for a student I would honestly recommend a Windows 8 tablet. 8 not RT. Then you can run most programs you may need and you can use blue stacks to run Android apps. Asus has the Vivo Tab Smart that is an Atom tablet at $499 that would serve you well and Dell has the Latitude 10 that also is $499 and uses Atom. I know you said you didn't want a Windows tablet, but if you want honest opinions, I think an iPad or Android tablet would be a waste of money to be a primary device for a student. If you insist on a tablet over a cheap laptop, an Atom based Windows 8 tablet will serve you best.

 

[Farish]

Having owned and used extensively an iPad, several Android tablets, and a Windows 8 tablet, for a student I would honestly recommend a Windows 8 tablet. 8 not RT. Then you can run most programs you may need and you can use blue stacks to run Android apps. Asus has the Vivo Tab Smart that is an Atom tablet at $499 that would serve you well and Dell has the Latitude 10 that also is $499 and uses Atom. I know you said you didn't want a Windows tablet, but if you want honest opinions, I think an iPad or Android tablet would be a waste of money to be a primary device for a student. If you insist on a tablet over a cheap laptop, an Atom based Windows 8 tablet will serve you best.

Do you have an atom based tablet? How does it run compared to iPad and Android?

 

[JRDroid]

Do you have an atom based tablet? How does it run compared to iPad and Android?

They are fairly comparable. Launching apps can take a little longer on a Windows Atom tablet, but that is really the only place I notice a difference, and it isn't such a long time as to be a deal breaker. Its just long enough to be noticeably without being annoying or hampering the use of the tablet. And I actually just got rid of my tablet because I am going back to school for Comp Sci and needed a more full power laptop, and figured I'd get an Android tablet if I was going to have a Windows 8 notebook for getting actual work done on.

An iPad or Android table would make a great second device for taking to classes so you can have a bigger, heavier, more powerful laptop or even a desktop, but there are just too many things that you need Windows for at most colleges for an iPad or Android tab to be a realistic only device. You will end spending a lot of time in a computer lab, which usually sucks.

 

[CampbAndrew]

An iPad or Android table would make a great second device for taking to classes so you can have a bigger, heavier, more powerful laptop or even a desktop, but there are just too many things that you need Windows for at most colleges for an iPad or Android tab to be a realistic only device. You will end spending a lot of time in a computer lab, which usually sucks.

Thanks. This was actually something I've thought about a lot. It's just hard to find a laptop I loved as much as my Pro-book. I truthfully only used it at home when I was studying or writing lab reports. I'm thinking of just getting a cheaper laptop for word processing tasks and getting the Nexus 10 to carry around. I'm also a musician so i'm always mobile too. So lugging that Pro-book around with my bass got really annoying after a while.

 

[Farish]

They are fairly comparable. Launching apps can take a little longer on a Windows Atom tablet, but that is really the only place I notice a difference, and it isn't such a long time as to be a deal breaker. Its just long enough to be noticeably without being annoying or hampering the use of the tablet. And I actually just got rid of my tablet because I am going back to school for Comp Sci and needed a more full power laptop, and figured I'd get an Android tablet if I was going to have a Windows 8 notebook for getting actual work done on.

An iPad or Android table would make a great second device for taking to classes so you can have a bigger, heavier, more powerful laptop or even a desktop, but there are just too many things that you need Windows for at most colleges for an iPad or Android tab to be a realistic only device. You will end spending a lot of time in a computer lab, which usually sucks.

I want a Windows 8 atom tablet because I am looking for a laptop replacement. I am hoping the new "Clover Trail" chip is good enough that is coming out. I am going to wait for that then and see how it benchmarks.

 

[Aquila]

I would heavily recommend Asus, either in their Transformer series or, like previously mentioned, you can brave the Windows versions and that might realistically be a smarter option. The keyboard docking station can be a huge plus, but has an advantage over laptops being that the screen is removable and becomes a full sized 4.2 tablet. I had the TF300 and it was great fun, but now I'm exclusively on the Nexus 7 for my Tablet activities and on Windows for PC activities (yuck).

 

[Yizhimei]

Don't get a iOS or Android tablet.
First, they are too small. Do work process on it would be tedious and time consuming.
Second, their battery won't last long if you are a heavy user.

Get a Window 8 convertible ultrabook. You can get a ultrabook and a tablet but the prices are not cheap. You can consider too.
Some models are: ASUS VivoBook, ASUS TAICHI, Lenovo Yoga 13, DELL XPS13, many many more.