New Apple Tablet

[dirk digler]

Cool stuff. On Engadget live right now

http://www.engadget.com/2010/01/27/l...est&refresh=30

[patteeu]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Those are accessories...(another added cost in addition to the IPad itself). I can buy a laptop for the same price as an IPad.

I don't know how much that particular accessory costs, but IMO, if you buy a tablet, you'd better factor in the cost of a case of some sort because they need the protection.

You can buy a laptop for the same price (or less) as an iPad, but most inexpensive laptops can't be tablets, whereas, with the right accessory, this tablet can be a laptop, for the most part.

[KevB]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

What's there to post about? Complete FAIL on Apple's part. They have officially fallen behind in all aspects of tablet hardware except battery life. With Honeycomb being a better OS, there will be almost no reason to buy an iPad over the slew of other tablets coming out this year.

(caveat: this is based on skimming the specs, I'll take the time to go over them in detail later)

Well, for starters, it's $100 less than the Xoom (Wifi only) that hasn't even been announced with a date yet. I was pretty set on the Xoom and Honeycomb, but I think I'm going with the iPad 2. Thousands more apps, easier interface for my wife and kids and will have plenty of accessories. I have my EVO that will satisfy my Android tweaking tendencies.

[AustinChief]

Originally Posted by KevB

Well, for starters, it's $100 less than the Xoom (Wifi only) that hasn't even been announced with a date yet. I was pretty set on the Xoom and Honeycomb, but I think I'm going with the iPad 2. Thousands more apps, easier interface for my wife and kids and will have plenty of accessories. I have my EVO that will satisfy my Android tweaking tendencies.

Have you had a chance to actually play with a Xoom yet? Go to BestBuy and take a look at how much better Honeycomb is... it's a massive leap forward.

I wouldn't buy an overpriced Xoom or an useless iPad... I'd wait a few months and buy after the massive influx of competition hits the market.

Unless you HAVE to have a tablet right now... it's the WORST time to buy. I'll wait for the Tegra 3 "Kal-El" quad core processor to be released later this year. 10x the performance with 1/2 the power consumption. Combine that with the next version of Android and you are looking at the first generation of tablets that are more than just toys.

[Swanman]

I am still happy with my Archos 101. At a price point of $350 for the 16GB version, it was the best price/quality match I could find. The build isn't as sturdy as the Ipad, but it contains a lot of features out of the box that Apple does not provide:

- microSD slot
- hdmi out
- 2 different usb connections
- kickstand (very handy when watching movies on a plane)
- can run Flash with a simple to install hack
- you don't have to use Itunes, just drag and drop files over a USB connection

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by patteeu

I don't know how much that particular accessory costs, but IMO, if you buy a tablet, you'd better factor in the cost of a case of some sort because they need the protection.

You can buy a laptop for the same price (or less) as an iPad, but most inexpensive laptops can't be tablets, whereas, with the right accessory, this tablet can be a laptop, for the most part.

LIke i said, they are cool devices and im not here to slam Apple, i just dont think they make alot of $$sense$$ for me personally. I can do more with a laptop and pay the same or less.

[patteeu]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

LIke i said, they are cool devices and im not here to slam Apple, i just dont think they make alot of $$sense$$ for me personally. I can do more with a laptop and pay the same or less.

Sure, I understand. Not trying to convince you, just presenting the other side of the argument as a devil's advocate. I don't plan on buying one for myself, but my wife likes hers. I'd probably rather have a laptop for most of what I do.

[NewChief]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

LIke i said, they are cool devices and im not here to slam Apple, i just dont think they make alot of $$sense$$ for me personally. I can do more with a laptop and pay the same or less.

I heard a great summation of that from a Cnet reviewer recently.

Apple took two devices that we actually need (laptops and phones) and combined them into something that no one actually needs but lots of people want. They, in effect, created a new market.

Similar to the iPod (and yes, I know that slates/tablets were coming down the pipes for a long time, but apple got there and popularized it first... just like with the iPod). And hell, the iPad is actually a piss poor halfass tablet computer. It really is its own class of device (and I don't mean that in a necessarily good way).

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

What's there to post about? Complete FAIL on Apple's part. They have officially fallen behind in all aspects of tablet hardware except battery life. With Honeycomb being a better OS, there will be almost no reason to buy an iPad over the slew of other tablets coming out this year.

(caveat: this is based on skimming the specs, I'll take the time to go over them in detail later)

Complete fail? I thought that about version 1 and I was wrong.

[WoodDraw]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

Unless you HAVE to have a tablet right now... it's the WORST time to buy. I'll wait for the Tegra 3 "Kal-El" quad core processor to be released later this year. 10x the performance with 1/2 the power consumption. Combine that with the next version of Android and you are looking at the first generation of tablets that are more than just toys.

Everyone said that exact same thing before Honeycomb and the Xoom cam out.

I don't think the two are comparable, honestly. iPad murders the Android as a multimedia device. How can Google still not have a single market access to buy video and songs? Obviously, the app disparity has been talked about a lot, and remains true.

Apple has never cared much about specs. They deliver polished products on a predictable, incremental timeline. You can buy one on March 11th, plug it into your computer, and be ready to go. You know exactly what you are getting.

Compare that to Google, who always seems half-assed. How many times have I heard someone say "wait for the next version, that'll be more polished." As a consumer, do you want a tablet with higher specs but an early adopter experience, or do you want the established, leading platform that offers a reliable and predictable experience?

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

LIke i said, they are cool devices and im not here to slam Apple, i just dont think they make alot of $$sense$$ for me personally. I can do more with a laptop and pay the same or less.

I agree. I don't really see a need for a tablet unless it could do all the functions of a laptop and I can install programs that I want.

[AustinChief]

Originally Posted by WoodDraw

Everyone said that exact same thing before Honeycomb and the Xoom cam out.

Except that now there REALLY will be other competitors on the market in 2011.

Also, Honeycomb is the ONLY true tablet OS out there. If you haven't had a chance to actually play with... try it out before you make any judgments. It's THAT much better.

[AustinChief]

Originally Posted by WoodDraw

Compare that to Google, who always seems half-assed. How many times have I heard someone say "wait for the next version, that'll be more polished." As a consumer, do you want a tablet with higher specs but an early adopter experience, or do you want the established, leading platform that offers a reliable and predictable experience?

I agree wholeheartedly that Android has been half-assed on the UI side of things... UNTIL now. The new head of UI who is responsible for Honeycomb is the best in the business.

[KevB]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

Except that now there REALLY will be other competitors on the market in 2011.

Also, Honeycomb is the ONLY true tablet OS out there. If you haven't had a chance to actually play with... try it out before you make any judgments. It's THAT much better.

The extent of my experience with either the Xoom or the iPad is about 5 minutes with each at Best Buy. I'd be interested in why you believe it's so much better, because I don't feel I have enough experience with either to judge. You've probably already touched on it in an earlier post; if so, I can just go find that.

My family (me, wife and kids) owns 2 EVO's, a 2nd gen Touch, a 4th gen Touch, a HP netbook, a new ThinkPad and 2 desktops. I feel like a I have a feel for both Android and iOS, but the tablet experience is different, especially with Honeycomb. But the Touch is more intuitive for my kids than my EVO, and I'm guessing it would be a similar experience on the tablets.

We don't "need" a tablet pc certainly, but my wife received some money for her b'day and she's set on getting one for the family (learning opps for a son with slight developmental issues, and we've read rave reviews on that front). If it were just me, I'd want Honeycomb for a number of reasons. But with my wife and kids, I think the Apple ecosystem is best and the iPad 2 has upgraded the specs 'enough' that I'm comfortable going that direction.

[WoodDraw]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

Except that now there REALLY will be other competitors on the market in 2011.

Also, Honeycomb is the ONLY true tablet OS out there. If you haven't had a chance to actually play with... try it out before you make any judgments. It's THAT much better.

I've played with it, and agree. It's handling of multitasking and notifications blows iOS away. It's a much better experience. I'm just saying that I'm still not convinced that's going to translate to consumer support.

You've got to have a lower entry level price point. I don't care that the Xoom price is "comparable" to Apple's. The fact is, I can get an iPad for $499, $300 cheaper than the Xoom.

I don't know - Google just drives me crazy sometimes. We've been hearing about Honeycomb and the Xoom forever, and then the launch is just half assed. One high price point, "upgrades" needed to enable simple functions, and no real "blow the world away" functioning. After all of Motorola's quality advertising saying they're going to revolutionize the tablet, and for me it was very "meh".

In order to compete with the iPad, Honeycomb -needs- users. That's the only way you'll get the development support behind it. If I was buying a tablet, I'd go for Honeycomb. But if my sister, or girlfriend, or any other casual user asked me to recommend Honeycomb or iPad 2, I don't know how you in good faith say Honeycomb.

[KevB]

Originally Posted by AustinChief

I agree wholeheartedly that Android has been half-assed on the UI side of things... UNTIL now. The new head of UI who is responsible for Honeycomb is the best in the business.

How long do you think it will take apps to catch up? In the mobile phone space, it was a good year if I remember correctly (I've had an Android smartphone for 2.5 years or so).