Is a "Tablet" PC Worth Buying

[Michael in Texas]

I need to upgrade my laptop and will probably be purchasing a new computer in
the next few months to take advantage of Vista.

I am TOTALLY hooked on the potential I see in OneNote.

Do you tablet pc users enjoy the experience of the notebook without paper?
Is it worth the typically larger investment?

 

[Josh Einstein]

Hi Michael, the price premium on a Tablet PC has dropped significantly.
There are some Tablet PC's out there selling for less than comparable
laptops. So I don't think you're in for a much larger investment at all.

Tablet PC's are great and since I bought mine in 2003 I would never go back
to a regular laptop. In fact, just this week and last I've been on a jury
where we were only allowed to take notes on paper and I thought I would go
crazy. Things like inserting space, copying and pasting handwriting and
drawings, using templates, etc you start to take for granted.

I strongly advise you to limit your selection to a convertible notebook
model though. If you jump right in and get a slate (the type of Tablet PC
without an integrated keyboard) you will likely become frustrated early on
and resent the platform as a whole as a result. With a convertible notebook,
you aren't compromising anything and you get the best of both worlds.

Hope this helps.

 

[Ben M. Schorr, MVP]

We issued tablets to all of our field personnel and we've found them
invaluable.

 

[EMRhelp.org]

With a convertible notebook,

you aren't compromising anything and you get the best of both worlds.

Depending on your needs, a tablet can be either a pain or incredible
pleasure.

Do you anticipate any benefit from handwriting vs. typing ? ie. are
there times that plunking on a keyboard doesn't suit you ? Ask
yourself: how and when would you use the tablet in Tablet (keyboard
underneath and hidden) mode ?

Tablets generally have
(1) a higher price tag.
(2) shorter battery life
(3) less optimal screens (ie. brightness, viewing angle, glare).

I ink on my tablet all day long, but I also have a desktop computer
right beside me at all times.

 

[Josh Einstein]

With all due respect (I am new to this OneNote newsgroup so I don't mean to
come off smug) at least two of your views on Tablet PC's are a bit outdated.
Tablet PC's came on par (and in many cases better) with battery life in the
2nd-3rd generation devices. Because of the nature of tablets and how and
where people use them, longer battery life is more desirable on a tablet
than a laptop and OEMs have listened.

Screen resolution is not an issue anymore either. There are many models with
widescreen resolutions or 1440px wide resolutions. As for brightness and
viewing angles, Tablet PCs were innovators in this category. Motion and
Fujitsu were offering indoor/outdoor displays with wide viewing angles long
before they were common in notebooks.

#1 is still debatable. The price premium still does exist but it has
decreased significantly. While you can certainly find several bargain
laptops with a much lower cost than even the cheapest Tablet PC, when you
look at comparable machines, the difference is small. It's just that people
aren't making bargain priced Tablet PCs the way Dell can offer a $600
laptop. I think Gateway still has a model somewhere around $1000. It was
less at one point.

 

[EMRhelp.org]

You are picking and choosing issues. You find me a Motion with View
Anywhere and get me a price quote. I'll find a laptop with the same
specs for $1000 less.

 

[BAM]

Michael,

I recently made the switch about one month ago to a tablet PC (Lenovo
ThinkPad X60) and I'm very pleased so far. In my opinion, OneNote is the
killer app for this type of technology. Other software applications appear
to be limited. The other post with the recommendation to try a convertible
instead of a slate is good. You gain the best of both worlds. What I have
found useful is attending meetings in my company and being able to fold down
the screen and write (instead of having the laptop monitor sticking up).
This has allowed me to go paperless to meetings and keep organized and not
give the appearance of working on something else in a meeting by having the
laptop screen open.

Good luck!

 

[DaveZ]

I am an old-fart, paper kind of guy and after an hour with my notebook I
became a convert. I will NEVER, NEVER, NEVER go back to a traditional
laptop. Here's the thing. It cost me $200 more to buy a notebook from
Toshiba than one of their comparable laptops. I get 2.5 hours of battery
life in a typical office setting, less in a bright area with full screen
brightness. The screen resolution is good and clear, but not as good as the
latest multimedia screens. I can use my notebook as a laptop - I don't give
up a thing. The notebook function is an added bonus over a traditional
laptop. Now, here's the best part - while my colleagues carry around reams
of papers, I only carry the laptop. I always have everything I need: never
forget something at home or in the office. Using OneNote I can search any or
all of my documents while those around me scramble going through paper notes
or slowly searching through files. Granted, you can do all of this using
OneNote and a traditional laptop, but how annoying are you to those around
you banging on the keyboard while the VP is talking. Writing is quieter and
with the screen down, you are more accessible during face to face
interactions. As an industry consultant, I advise my clients to go with the
notebook. They quickly pay for themselves by allowing a functional paperless
office. I have recently returned to school where I spent $450.00 the first
semester for paper notes. I have already paid off nearly half of the cost of
the notebook (2 semesters) and I am not annoyingly typing away during lecture.

Opinionated? Sure. But an old fart has that prerogative. Good Hunting!

 

[EMRhelp.org]

DaveZ said: Granted, you can do all of this using

OneNote and a traditional laptop, but how annoying are you to those around
you banging on the keyboard while the VP is talking.

Great quote.
Get a spare battery (or two) and a charger, it's expensive, but it's
worth it. I have 5 batteries that I got off ebay for a reasonable
deal.

 

[Josh Einstein]

Motions are high end tablets geared towards vertical industries. Try Toshiba
or Lenovo.