Guest Bobby Elliott Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 The additional cost of having a 3G/GPS module is bumping up the price for a lot of the new tablets, and tbh I think it's a waste in a tab. I tether mine to my HTC Hero and it works perfectly when out and about. IMO, right now tablets are directly competing against two other products. Netbooks and Smartphones. Games is an obvious pull. But we will ALWAYS rely on communities like this to get the most out of them. Many interesting points. If you have an Android phone, the 3G question is a non-issue. Wi-fi sharing is a no-brainer. I don't think tablets are competing with any existing technology. I have a desktop PC (easily the nicest device to use), a laptop, a tablet, and a smartphone. They all serve a different purpose. The tablet's gaming potential is particularly interesting. I think tablets will become the standard gaming platform within the next five years. Of course, they will do much more, but stand alone gaming devices (I am including consoles in this) will be threatened by the increasing power of tablets. Enthusiasts will need communities like this, but 95% of tablet users will simply use the device out-of-the-box. Honeycomb is pretty fantastic as it stands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Vansphone Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Many interesting points. If you have an Android phone, the 3G question is a non-issue. Wi-fi sharing is a no-brainer. I don't think tablets are competing with any existing technology. I have a desktop PC (easily the nicest device to use), a laptop, a tablet, and a smartphone. They all serve a different purpose. The tablet's gaming potential is particularly interesting. I think tablets will become the standard gaming platform within the next five years. Of course, they will do much more, but stand alone gaming devices (I am including consoles in this) will be threatened by the increasing power of tablets. Enthusiasts will need communities like this, but 95% of tablet users will simply use the device out-of-the-box. Honeycomb is pretty fantastic as it stands. I think you are right, but Nintendo and the PSP are already being effected by Apple. Nintendo blamed worse than expected profits on competition from Apple. I read a article that made a fair point, why spend $30 buying Tetris for your DS when you can by it as an app for $3. I also read that the App Store has 20,000 games, the PSP 600. So unless Nintendo and Sony do something radical, I think you are right, the future of handheld gaming will be tablets (let us hope Android tablets) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest rferrett Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Not sure I *totally* buy the "3G" not relevant if oyu have an Android phone. I have a Desire running custom firmware and in truth wonderful though the kit is battery is a real issue. Unless I am going somewhere where I will definitely be able to plug my phone in somewhere no way I oculd be out and about for a whole day using my phone as a modem. Perhaps if you have a phone with a ocnsiderably better battery life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest phil8715 Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 (edited) I think you are right, but Nintendo and the PSP are already being effected by Apple. Nintendo blamed worse than expected profits on competition from Apple. I read a article that made a fair point, why spend $30 buying Tetris for your DS when you can by it as an app for $3. I also read that the App Store has 20,000 games, the PSP 600. So unless Nintendo and Sony do something radical, I think you are right, the future of handheld gaming will be tablets (let us hope Android tablets) Having owned both devices and some of the prices of the games is a rip-off, for example Supermario on the DS costs around £30 and the price has never come down, I bet if I went into game and saw the price it would still be the same. I love playing Angry Birds on my Vega it's so smooth to compare I had a go on Angry Birds on the iPad and there's no difference, even the adverts on the Vega doesn't bother me, but on played it my ZTE Blade and some of the later levels are a bit laggy coupled with the adverts on the screen it doen't make for a pleasurable playing experience. Edited May 2, 2011 by phil8715 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest warriorscot Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 When Apple "invented" (if that is the right word) the tablet Apple didn't invent the tablet they just made the first one that was based on something other than x86 to be popular. Tablets were not as popular for the last few years but still had decent sales they were just more expensive windows varieties. What apple did was realise that phones had become powerful enough to drive a bigger tablet screen and be useful and because they have the resources they got a product to market quicker than others who either didn't have the resources to do it quickly or enough money to take the risk on a big tablet release. Also up until android 2.0+ the only suitable OS for the lightweight tablet was iOS which is long in the tooth compared to android. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bobby Elliott Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Apple didn't invent the tablet No, it didn't. Apple hasn't invented anything. But it does one thing brilliantly -- it takes an existing technology and re-designs it for consumers. And the design is ingenious. That is a form of invention. The iPhone wasn't the first smartphone by a long way (I had a Windows Mobile phone 10 years ago) but it was a revolution nonetheless. Same for the iPad. When Nokia ran into trouble recently, I read that it had 50,000 people "working" in R & D. Clearly, all Research and no Development. There is still a gap in the market that needs to be filled. The home PC. We need someone to do an "Apple" on that form factor. There is an opportunity for someone to create a home PC that just works. Buy it, take it home, switch it on -- and it is instantly your home hub. It would connect to an HD TV and you would use it for TV, movies, music, video calling, media streaming, media backup, gaming, etc. The "Apple" bit would be the software. No "UpnP" crap or "IP" bullshit or "incremental backup" clap-trap - it just works. And it consumes every piece of media (CD, DVD, BlueRay, USB stick) that you put into it -- including every portable device in its range. It's coming. I just hope it's not got an Apple logo and an Apple price ticket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Vansphone Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 No, it didn't. Apple hasn't invented anything. But it does one thing brilliantly -- it takes an existing technology and re-designs it for consumers. And the design is ingenious. That is a form of invention. The iPhone wasn't the first smartphone by a long way (I had a Windows Mobile phone 10 years ago) but it was a revolution nonetheless. Same for the iPad. When Nokia ran into trouble recently, I read that it had 50,000 people "working" in R & D. Clearly, all Research and no Development. There is still a gap in the market that needs to be filled. The home PC. We need someone to do an "Apple" on that form factor. There is an opportunity for someone to create a home PC that just works. Buy it, take it home, switch it on -- and it is instantly your home hub. It would connect to an HD TV and you would use it for TV, movies, music, video calling, media streaming, media backup, gaming, etc. The "Apple" bit would be the software. No "UpnP" crap or "IP" bullshit or "incremental backup" clap-trap - it just works. And it consumes every piece of media (CD, DVD, BlueRay, USB stick) that you put into it -- including every portable device in its range. It's coming. I just hope it's not got an Apple logo and an Apple price ticket. Yes, invent was a poor choice of word, perhaps refined would have been better?. I still have a Fujitsu 3500 tablet with a touchscreen that was designed to work under Windows 98 (which I was rash enough to upgrade to Windows 2000). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest .stu Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 The Asus Transformer is £378, looks like an iPad2 and runs Honeycomb right now. It is a delight to use. Tablets are not toys. For consumimg media and information, they are unrivalled. But, boy, do I like getting back to my laptop. Tablets are the ideal Apple device... passive, consumer, uncreative. I am more productive in 15 minutes on my laptop than I am in a day on my tablet. So it's the ideal device for 99% of people. :-) Sorry but have you seen an ipad2? It is really thin compared to the tranformer which is more like an ipad1 IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bobby Elliott Posted May 2, 2011 Report Share Posted May 2, 2011 Sorry but have you seen an ipad2? It is really thin compared to the tranformer which is more like an ipad1 IMHO. The iPad2 is thinner but the difference is irrelevant in a practical sense, since there is a 48 gramme difference between the two in weight. The Asus also has a larger screen. I've used both iPad and the Asus and they are both superb. So it comes down a straight choice between Google Goodness or Apple Evil. ;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest warriorscot Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 Since when is thinness the biggest factor honestly the ipads are a touch too thin they just are not that comfortable too hold compared too a slightly chunkier android tab. Also they have to use a crapload of metal alloy to get then sturdy enough to be thin and not break which makes them heavier than a larger all or partially polymer tab. Tablets might not be the ideal creation tools but they are ideal companions for creation making work much easier replacing paper in some cases or giving access to available android based tools. Its also great for working away from a pc its brilliant if you ideally want to work mostly on paper or somewhere more comfortable but got stuck chained to the pc because it was the only way to get the net access. Its also good for sharing data and teamwork. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tony barnes Posted May 3, 2011 Report Share Posted May 3, 2011 iPad 2's are damn impressive IMO, great build quality, and they do come across as very slender. From a weight point of view, all of these devices weigh sweet FA as far as I'm concerned, so that doesn't matter. Having played with a mate Xoom the other week, I can hand on heart say that the Vega is still a bargain. We compared load times for games, etc, and it was basically neck and neck. However, the screen on the Xoom crapped all over the Vega's from a great, great, great height. That is the big issue for me. Sure, it will be ace if someone gets HC up and running on the Vega, as it worked a lot nicer than Froyo does, but the screen isn't going to improve. Its funny, as when you use the Vega on its own you sort of accept the screen quality, just when you side by side it with something like the Xoom you think 'ah'... I wonder if an after-market screen could become available... I'd probably pay up toabout £75 for a decent one, not sure if that's the right ball park, lol! Strangely I preferred the Vega marketplace though, the HC version was a bit OTT for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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