IOS vs Android vs Windows 8 on tablets?

[BobLobIaw]

I have a convertible myself and the touchscreen is used a lot, but what these convertible devices never account for is that we as consumers may use these devices in a laptop form factor than tablet form. I used a Surface Pro 2 and 2 inn Best Buy before and I found the keyboard cramped and the trackpad lacking a bit. Even my Split X2 has an awful trackpad and it's laptop form is more laptop like.

I am not bashing the Surface line though, but I feel the keyboard and trackpads aren't built for typing 10-15 page essays or long form reports and research. I would rather have an actually laptop and a touchscreen. As far as the Windows 8 tablets go, the tablet market may not be able to handle them, they have a niche I suppose, but for general consumers, unless they get priced the same as Android tablets or less, mass consumers won't take notice. I know it is tired but the apps and services they want are not there as apps on the Windows store, and just using the browser is just settling when they can use a tablet with the apps and services they want, and be just as much productive.

Like any keyboard, there is an adjustment period. However, I have written many 30 page briefs on my Surface pro with absolutely no discomfort. And I have big hands as well. For someone who uses the trackpad a lot, that may be a deal-breaker, I don't know. I just find that I can seamlessly accomplish anything by touching the screen and typing on the type keyboard. At this point, it is second nature to me. I guess we will see if the Surface Pro line, and perhaps other less expensive WinTabs running full Windows will succeed. I think they will, based upon my own experience.

 

[BobLobIaw]

My main gripe with the SP3 is the price. The basic $799 one has 4GB RAM, i3, and 64GB of storage and the $130 keyboard is still extra. All told, it costs $930. That is big leagues considering the specs. The form factor and portability shouldn't command that much money. Same specs with a 128GB SSD gets you my HP Split X2 with keyboard included for less than $700.

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That's a good point, but when you consider that a Surface Pro 3 replaces a laptop and a tablet it doesn't seem too pricey anymore. I 86'd my laptop and gave my iPad to my dad, and now I just have a desktop, a Surface Pro and a smartphone. Add it up, it's not very expensive.

For me, it is worth the extra money over something like the HP Split because I take my SP everywhere in my messenger bag because it is so small and lightweight. I can't say the same for larger devices. A two-pound device is drastically different than a five-pound device. I think the lighter third-party WinTabs that run full Windows will become more popular because of the price point, but we shall see.

 

[TOTtomdora]

That's a good point, but when you consider that a Surface Pro 3 replaces a laptop and a tablet it doesn't seem too pricey anymore. I 86'd my laptop and gave my iPad to my dad, and now I just have a desktop, a Surface Pro and a smartphone. Add it up, it's not very expensive.

For me, it is worth the extra money over something like the HP Split because I take my SP everywhere in my messenger bag because it is so small and lightweight. I can't say the same for larger devices. A two-pound device is drastically different than a five-pound device. I think the lighter third-party WinTabs that run full Windows will become more popular because of the price point, but we shall see.

Yeah, I was very close to getting a windows 8 tablet over my nexus 7 due to it being a full OS (a big deal for me) but the only problems were:
-there are no 7" ones. The smallest is 8, which is one inch too large; it no longer fits in my pockets.
-gaming performance is not good on pretty much all of them.
-the cheaper ones, like the venue 8 (the one I was considering), don't have good screens.
It's a shame because to me windows 8 tablets are completely awesome, but we'll have to wait and see what happens with them. Maybe once Ubuntu touch fully releases I can have what I want

Sent from my Nexus 7

 

[Halil Bilgin]

Don't buy cheap android tablets . They are very slow :/ . However, For instance, Samsung products are fine. IOS tablets are good too but don't expect from anyone to recommend you to buy IOS tablet in an android forum

 

[A895]

Like any keyboard, there is an adjustment period. However, I have written many 30 page briefs on my Surface pro with absolutely no discomfort. And I have big hands as well. For someone who uses the trackpad a lot, that may be a deal-breaker, I don't know. I just find that I can seamlessly accomplish anything by touching the screen and typing on the type keyboard. At this point, it is second nature to me. I guess we will see if the Surface Pro line, and perhaps other less expensive WinTabs running full Windows will succeed. I think they will, based upon my own experience.

The problem is that Microsoft introduced something new into a market that falling into a rhythm of using traditional laptop form factors and buying tablets separately. The problem is that Windows tablets, at least in my opinion aren't compelling enough to drop a Nvidia Shield Tablet or an iPad Air. As far as Surface goes, I actually prefer using the TrackPad a lot (as compared to using the touchscreen) and that is why I am considering getting a wireless mouse for my Split X2. A touchscreen is useful at times for navigating, but a lot of elements in W8.1 requires a mouse/trackpad input.

 

[A895]

That's a good point, but when you consider that a Surface Pro 3 replaces a laptop and a tablet it doesn't seem too pricey anymore. I 86'd my laptop and gave my iPad to my dad, and now I just have a desktop, a Surface Pro and a smartphone. Add it up, it's not very expensive.

For me, it is worth the extra money over something like the HP Split because I take my SP everywhere in my messenger bag because it is so small and lightweight. I can't say the same for larger devices. A two-pound device is drastically different than a five-pound device. I think the lighter third-party WinTabs that run full Windows will become more popular because of the price point, but we shall see.

My split X2 tops over 4 lbs, the weight difference between the 2 is minimal and I have a tablet and laptop form factor too, with more memory, that is why I think the SP3 costs too much. I can throw mines inn a messenger, bookbag or anywhere and not worry about weight.

 

[A895]

Don't buy cheap android tablets . They are very slow :/ . However, For instance, Samsung products are fine. IOS tablets are good too but don't expect from anyone to recommend you to buy IOS tablet in an android forum

There are quite a few good Android tablets that are very good.

 

[BobLobIaw]

The problem is that Windows tablets, at least in my opinion aren't compelling enough to drop a Nvidia Shield Tablet or an iPad Air.

There's no problem. You are just describing your preference and that's fine. Others, including myself, find a ton of compelling reasons to choose a Surface Pro model over an Nvidia Shield or an iPad. The differences are well documented.

 

[BobLobIaw]

My split X2 tops over 4 lbs, the weight difference between the 2 is minimal and I have a tablet and laptop form factor too, with more memory, that is why I think the SP3 costs too much. I can throw mines inn a messenger, bookbag or anywhere and not worry about weight.

Sorry, but saying that a weight difference of less than half doesn't matter is disingenuous. The original Surface Pro was lambasted because it was heavier than the iPad. Weight matters--maybe not to you, but to most.

 

[Davehow]

The Surface is too large for couch surfing compared to most popular tablets. That's why if I bought a surface I'd still end up feeling the need for a tablet. For that reason there's no one vs another for me.

 

[Serjers]

I like Android, the best for me!

 

[A895]

There's no problem. You are just describing your preference and that's fine. Others, including myself, find a ton of compelling reasons to choose a Surface Pro model over an Nvidia Shield or an iPad. The differences are well documented.

Not a Surface Pro, any 8 inch Windows tab. Those are what I see as not that compelling, and by the recent news of Lenovo, and Best Buy, that is also documented why they aren't selling.

 

[A895]

Sorry, but saying that a weight difference of less than half doesn't matter is disingenuous. The original Surface Pro was lambasted because it was heavier than the iPad. Weight matters--maybe not to you, but to most.

Yeah, most on the internet, in all my time in college so far, I have never heard someone claim that their 15 inch laptop was too heavy. Some reviews claim about the Surface Pro, does not represent the population at large, and it has been proven time an again, mass consumers don't care about weight for their personal computing, if they did, those 15 inch laptops that go for less than $500-$600 wouldn't sell well.

 

[Davehow]

Yeah, most on the internet, in all my time in college so far, I have never heard someone claim that their 15 inch laptop was too heavy. Some reviews claim about the Surface Pro, does not represent the population at large, and it has been proven time an again, mass consumers don't care about weight for their personal computing, if they did, those 15 inch laptops that go for less than $500-$600 wouldn't sell well.

I would be surprised if you did. In all my life I have never heard people feel compelled to comment without being asked about their laptop weight. That's an odd unsolicited conversation topic:

Good morning how are you?
Oh not bad, I wish my laptop was lighter!
Yeah same here. I also wish my bedsheets had a higher thread count.

 

[BobLobIaw]

Yeah, most on the internet, in all my time in college so far, I have never heard someone claim that their 15 inch laptop was too heavy. Some reviews claim about the Surface Pro, does not represent the population at large, and it has been proven time an again, mass consumers don't care about weight for their personal computing, if they did, those 15 inch laptops that go for less than $500-$600 wouldn't sell well.

If that has been proven time and again, I'm sure you won't have any problem providing me with citations for that authority.

 

[BobLobIaw]

Not a Surface Pro, any 8 inch Windows tab. Those are what I see as not that compelling, and by the recent news of Lenovo, and Best Buy, that is also documented why they aren't selling.

When you said Windows Tablets, I didn't realize you were arbitrarily limiting them to the 8" ones. If those are not compelling to you, does that mean that the larger Windows Tablets, including the Surface Pro, are compelling?

 

[zedorda]

Weight is so low on the avg persons priority list when choosing electronics even marketing has noticed. They have proven that style/color has a larger impact than weight. Many miss this fact but you can easily see it on any product with multiple color options because 9/10 times they are the heavier options.

Plus only about 15% of the population actually make their own choices the rest are just followers that choose what their friends and peers choose. Worse part is they don't even know they do it because they rationalize their choice to themselves till they believe it.

The science behind marketing is always denied unless the individual is profiting from it even tho it is well documented for years.

 

[A895]

If that has been proven time and again, I'm sure you won't have any problem providing me with citations for that authority.

Or yourself. In what world do you think mass consumers care about weight? Some do, sure. But for the majority the average laptop weight falls in between 4-5+lbs. If they want lighter, there are ultra books and macbook airs, what niche does the Surface fill beside being a device for the future than something consumers will buy now.

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[A895]

When you said Windows Tablets, I didn't realize you were arbitrarily limiting them to the 8" ones. If those are not compelling to you, does that mean that the larger Windows Tablets, including the Surface Pro, are compelling?

They can be depending on what you look for in a device. For me personally they don't quite do it for me. You have to make some compromises when you go the Surface route and more than anything I need a laptop first.

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[A895]

Weight is so low on the avg persons priority list when choosing electronics even marketing has noticed. They have proven that style/color has a larger impact than weight. Many miss this fact but you can easily see it on any product with multiple color options because 9/10 times they are the heavier options.

Plus only about 15% of the population actually make their own choices the rest are just followers that choose what their friends and peers choose. Worse part is they don't even know they do it because they rationalize their choice to themselves till they believe it.

The science behind marketing is always denied unless the individual is profiting from it even tho it is well documented for years.

This.

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