Another thing I didn't like about tablets was how they could break so easily...I've only ever broken one laptop screen (I stupidly put it on my lap with the extended battery that sticks out in it so of course it fell off my lap) but out of all of my tablets I've owned I believe I've cracked 3 of them, and they didn't really fall that far. And you know what I did once they broke? I recycled them. That's how disposable tablets are.
That's actually a very good point. It's one of the things that annoys me the most, is that they're way too thin and compressed and thus can't really be repaired. Plus, there's the display that costs a billion dollars to replace because it's so damn fragile and nobody tries to develop anything to prevent this because they'll lose a lot of money with the repairs. Sure, if you have a cell phone that can't be repaired, there's no problem, it's a cell phone, not a computer. But a tablet that tries to be laptop-replacing? Hell no. Isn't it fun when you have to use a heat gun to open an iPad?
Another thing I didn't like about tablets was how they could break so easily...I've only ever broken one laptop screen (I stupidly put it on my lap with the extended battery that sticks out in it so of course it fell off my lap) but out of all of my tablets I've owned I believe I've cracked 3 of them, and they didn't really fall that far. And you know what I did once they broke? I recycled them. That's how disposable tablets are.
That's actually a very good point. It's one of the things that annoys me the most, is that they're way too thin and compressed and thus can't really be repaired. Plus, there's the display that costs a billion dollars to replace because it's so damn fragile and nobody tries to develop anything to prevent this because they'll lose a lot of money with the repairs. Sure, if you have a cell phone that can't be repaired, there's no problem, it's a cell phone, not a computer. But a tablet that tries to be laptop-replacing? Hell no. Isn't it fun when you have to use a heat gun to open an iPad?
This is an issue with regular laptops now though. If you saw Duff's thread about his XPS 13 and how difficult it was to replace the LCD you know what I'm talking about. Companies are just making electronics thinner and thinner and sacrificing repairability for it. That's why I don't own a single consumer grade laptop newer than the Win7 era. (I do have a Thinkpad from 2012 and a Custom Built from 2013 though)
The only repairable computers now are the budget and business class laptops, and desktops of course.
Laptops are meant to be portable... my criteria when buying a laptop is that it must be thin, light, and have tons of battery power. If I have to carry a charger, then something is wrong.
I use my x240 all the time and never take my charger with me. I charge it up at night and it lasts all day. And sometimes I've skipped a day or two and still had plenty of power. I don't know how repairable it is as I've never had to repair it, but I'll willingly sacrifice a little repairability to get the lightweight and thin form factor. I've got too much other gear in my backpack to add a giant ass laptop to it.
As far as tablets go, I've never broken a tablet screen (*knock on wood*). I do like the form factor as it's really nice for some tasks. Like say you need to reboot a server really quickly, you can RDP in, reboot, go on with your life. If you need to do more indepth tasks, it sucks, but for quick things it's really nice.
I'd really like something like the surface pro, but the edges are too sharp to hold it comfortably, the kick stand thing is stupid, and the type cover is bleh. But I love the concept.
Laptops are meant to be portable... my criteria when buying a laptop is that it must be thin, light, and have tons of battery power. If I have to carry a charger, then something is wrong.
I use my x240 all the time and never take my charger with me. I charge it up at night and it lasts all day. And sometimes I've skipped a day or two and still had plenty of power. I don't know how repairable it is as I've never had to repair it, but I'll willingly sacrifice a little repairability to get the lightweight and thin form factor. I've got too much other gear in my backpack to add a giant ass laptop to it.
As far as tablets go, I've never broken a tablet screen (*knock on wood*). I do like the form factor as it's really nice for some tasks. Like say you need to reboot a server really quickly, you can RDP in, reboot, go on with your life. If you need to do more indepth tasks, it sucks, but for quick things it's really nice.
I'd really like something like the surface pro, but the edges are too sharp to hold it comfortably, the kick stand thing is stupid, and the type cover is bleh. But I love the concept.
It is convenient to have something to help you mess with something quick...but I can do that with my cell phone. I don't see the point of carrying around an additional device along with a laptop and cell phone.
Also, I'm kinda used to carrying a Toughbook, so I guess you can take my opinion on laptops being thin and light with a grain of salt.
Just keep thinking that a tablet is a media consumption device. Companies are using the "cloud" more and more that requires less computing power to access data. Tablets have replaced a lot of point of sale devices in stores and restaurants, my job is switching to a tablet device and even the POS server is web based. My bank uses iPads for their terminals since they migrated from Windows XP. Last time I went to the doctors office I had to input my quick medical history with a tablet device instead of using that typical single form.
If things keep going web based and relying on a remote data center to store data on a cloud then a tablet can and will replace desktop and laptop systems. Granted there was Newtons and Palms back in the day but since the Internet had gotten too big for it's own good everything will require a internet connection for the simplest task.
Just keep thinking that a tablet is a media consumption device. Companies are using the "cloud" more and more that requires less computing power to access data. Tablets have replaced a lot of point of sale devices in stores and restaurants, my job is switching to a tablet device and even the POS server is web based. My bank uses iPads for their terminals since they migrated from Windows XP. Last time I went to the doctors office I had to input my quick medical history with a tablet device instead of using that typical single form.
If things keep going web based and relying on a remote data center to store data on a cloud then a tablet can and will replace desktop and laptop systems. Granted there was Newtons and Palms back in the day but since the Internet had gotten too big for it's own good everything will require a internet connection for the simplest task.
Tablets are still terrible for video editing, writing (even though some idiots think they can write long emails and documents with them), playing a game that isn't Candy Crush,Emulating, and even though web browsing is becoming more and more tablet compatible - it's still much easier to browse with a keyboard and mouse. Those are just a few things I just came up with now. I don't think that tablets will ever completely replace computers.
Well put it this way. Back in the day Commodore and Apple were the front runners until IBM came into the light more with their home computing systems like the XT and AT lines. Commodore fell out of the light then started the chain reaction of IBM compatible "clone" systems so the war PC VS Mac started. Apple pretty much lost for the average home computer race since clone PC systems were cheaper.
Granted it's better to use a keyboard and mouse but tablets like the surface pro and iPad can use a keyboard and mouse by ether bluetooth or USB.
If you ask me, I would pick a desktop over a tablet anyday. Desktops are more powerful and they have the superior form of control, the keyboard and mouse.
As far as tablet's go, I spend a lot of time on my Dell Venue 11 Pro. For media "consumption" I use it as a tablet, and even though using the onscreen keyboard for FB is somewhat annoying, it's usable.
Then I can drop it into it's keyboard "dock" and it turns into an 11 inch laptop. Add my BT mouse and I can do development work in VS 2010 as well as anything else doable on a little laptop, like writing this post. For a while I even used it to replace an ill desktop, using a big monitor and a combo USB3 hub and gigabit ethernet adapter.
It doesn't work for games (but will run Halo and contemporaries), but I can stream Steam to it from my desktop rig. That and 10 hours of battery (15 if I use the keyboard)...I find it quite useful.
No, I can't sway parts like on my desktop rig...but there's nothing really to swap: The SOC has everything except for memory, storage (EMMC), and wireless. You kinda need that level of integration to get such battery life...the Atom Z3770 uses less than 4 watts and does damn near everything... I *could* add 4G LTE to it, and I can replace the battery, which is a plus, but I've never really felt the need.
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This is an issue with regular laptops now though. If you saw Duff's thread about his XPS 13 and how difficult it was to replace the LCD you know what I'm talking about. Companies are just making electronics thinner and thinner and sacrificing repairability for it. That's why I don't own a single consumer grade laptop newer than the Win7 era. (I do have a Thinkpad from 2012 and a Custom Built from 2013 though)
The only repairable computers now are the budget and business class laptops, and desktops of course.
I use my x240 all the time and never take my charger with me. I charge it up at night and it lasts all day. And sometimes I've skipped a day or two and still had plenty of power. I don't know how repairable it is as I've never had to repair it, but I'll willingly sacrifice a little repairability to get the lightweight and thin form factor. I've got too much other gear in my backpack to add a giant ass laptop to it.
As far as tablets go, I've never broken a tablet screen (*knock on wood*). I do like the form factor as it's really nice for some tasks. Like say you need to reboot a server really quickly, you can RDP in, reboot, go on with your life. If you need to do more indepth tasks, it sucks, but for quick things it's really nice.
I'd really like something like the surface pro, but the edges are too sharp to hold it comfortably, the kick stand thing is stupid, and the type cover is bleh. But I love the concept.
It is convenient to have something to help you mess with something quick...but I can do that with my cell phone. I don't see the point of carrying around an additional device along with a laptop and cell phone.
Also, I'm kinda used to carrying a Toughbook, so I guess you can take my opinion on laptops being thin and light with a grain of salt.
If things keep going web based and relying on a remote data center to store data on a cloud then a tablet can and will replace desktop and laptop systems. Granted there was Newtons and Palms back in the day but since the Internet had gotten too big for it's own good everything will require a internet connection for the simplest task.
Tablets are still terrible for video editing, writing (even though some idiots think they can write long emails and documents with them), playing a game that isn't Candy Crush,Emulating, and even though web browsing is becoming more and more tablet compatible - it's still much easier to browse with a keyboard and mouse. Those are just a few things I just came up with now. I don't think that tablets will ever completely replace computers.
Granted it's better to use a keyboard and mouse but tablets like the surface pro and iPad can use a keyboard and mouse by ether bluetooth or USB.
Then I can drop it into it's keyboard "dock" and it turns into an 11 inch laptop. Add my BT mouse and I can do development work in VS 2010 as well as anything else doable on a little laptop, like writing this post. For a while I even used it to replace an ill desktop, using a big monitor and a combo USB3 hub and gigabit ethernet adapter.
It doesn't work for games (but will run Halo and contemporaries), but I can stream Steam to it from my desktop rig. That and 10 hours of battery (15 if I use the keyboard)...I find it quite useful.
No, I can't sway parts like on my desktop rig...but there's nothing really to swap: The SOC has everything except for memory, storage (EMMC), and wireless. You kinda need that level of integration to get such battery life...the Atom Z3770 uses less than 4 watts and does damn near everything... I *could* add 4G LTE to it, and I can replace the battery, which is a plus, but I've never really felt the need.