Tablet Schmablet

I do not own either of these products…being an employee of lockergnome gives me knowledge to know what to buy and even-more…what NOT to buy.

I own none, don't see the need to! Get a stylus and pad, VOULA!

I own a Media Center. I just moved and don't have it yet in my new apartment. I miss it alot. Not being able to record, pause, rewind or get details about what I am watching is frustrating. I may not seem like the most revolutionary product, but after you use one for a little while you get hooked on it. As for a tablet, I don't own one right now, but will be getting one around christmas. I need a 14″ screen, good processor, and good batterly life, and I can't get that combo yet. I am a student, and as such, the tablet would be a HUGE benifit for me. The PDA doesn't work, I have tried that, and I currently have a notebook (computer) which works ok, but isn't the best for taking notes, espically in math/science type classes where being able to diagram would be useful.

I have a Tablet that I use as work (one of three machines).
I don't own one personally but I plan to this year. I think the Tablet is a big deal- again, as with most things MS, its not about the hardware. The software is really good, and the SDK allows for some really cool applications to be developed that can be used by a large user base. That has always been a problem with PDAs, not enough applications that are worth using.

It's Bill's mission in life to make us want to use the things we don't want to use. Tablet PCs receive mixed reactions from users. For most people, I think they would be gee-whiz gadgets and little more. I agree they are more like an oversized PDA. The main advantage, IMO, is the ability to jot notes, such as a doctor would do when writing a prescription for a patient. Last I checked, converting handwritten scribble into machine recognizable bits was an inexact science.

I don't. Biggest reason is lack of green paper. ;p

My response is posted. Love to see how it goes.

I agree 100% on the downside of the tablet. I bought one to 'test' in an instructional envionment (i.e. classroom technologies as I work with faculty) but it was very cumbersome…too awkward to practically use, lay it flat on the media cabinet and it is fodder.
The lack of a real keyboard is a huge drawback and though the ability to 'jot' and diagram was cool when paired with Microsoft's OneNote, it is just too difficult to use a pen as primary input device. It can be of use in specific applications but impractical for most people, even the couch-potato web surfer.
I also have similar issues with voice-recognition…just imagine a corporate cubicle-farm with dozens of people talking to their computers. I don't think so! Even if the technology was 100% accurate the idea of dictating anything within earshot of co-workers (and bosses) is rather frightening. The keyboard, for all its faults is private (most of the time).
Moral: There is a lot of technology that is 'cool' for the moment but the reality is that much of it will go the way of the dodo or be relagated to a nitch application. However, it is a nessesary evil that we go through technology fads so that we may find those few nuggets that change everything or at the very least move us in the right direction.
Too long for my first post, right? ;-)
BTW, has anyone gotten MT to run on Windows 2003 Server and IIS6?

The Tablet PC is not meant to replace the laptop. I doubt that it would compete with it in a true comparison. The Tablet strength is quick stylus input and great portability. The weakness is without external devices there is no removeable media. This is ideal in vertical markets like medicine; instead of 50 clipboards of paper, a professional need only carry one Tablet and use the built-in wireless LAN to bring up patient records. I got to play with one for a few weeks at work and I have to say I was impressed. The handwriting recognition software even picked up on my cursive scratchings; and I could do everything with the Tablet (with a USB CD drive) that I could with my laptop. It was, however, more convenient in meetings than a laptop and definitely less obtrusive to take notes with at the meetings.

TK: Huh?
Can't lie flat? What Tablet are you using?
Doesn't have a real keyboard? My Toshiba has one. The NEC, if that's what you were using, comes with a real one that you plug in via a USB port.
It really sounds like you haven't tried using one at all.

i would like a tablet.. of course, i wouldn't consider it until apple comes out with one, which thy probably wont, based on the huge failure it's been.. shame, i would really like it.
As for media center- Tivo 2 does the same, but for way cheaper and better.

I can see a tablet being useful for picky photo editing type stuff (I'd like one for that reason) But I agree it would mostly be a cool gadget. But what a gadget to have! It's just waaaay to expensive to justify the cost.

Tablet Pc's suck, give me a notebook any day.

Tablet PC's rock for sketching and testing UI's with, muh bread 'n butter.

In an 'enthusiast', amateur or everyday-use role - no. I can't see the Tablet outvaluing the Laptop. But depending on the line of work you're in, just the aesthetics/logistics alone are enough to transform your experience.
In Real Estate/Architectural Photography, taking the Tablet along on appointments and carrying it around 'clipboard-style' with the stylus (as opposed to having one central location for the Laptop I had to keep running back to) - it was priceless.
Other independent contractors in the field (Home Inspectors, Interior Designers, etc) found a tremendous amount of convenience, time saving and accuracy/quality improvements with them.. simply being able to carry them around to checklist their materials, findings, etc.. as they go along, right into custom software and reports - rather than feverishly jotting down page after page of notes, then translating them into the software later, or worse.. trying to remember the technical details or nuances of things they couldnt record at the time.

I don't think Bob was a mistake. Sure it was slow, but get a few 5 year old kids playing with it and they'll think it's the best thing ever!

and for my next trick I will show you all how to put this little chip in your wrist………….. don't worry we are not tracking you! muhahahahahahaha

I don't have either. They are just too expensive. I would love to have a Media Centre PC but who has the money to keep two PCs up to date?

Um, yea I have used one. A new Fujitsu. Put it on a flat surface and it is useless unless you are hovering right over it. The angle is too poor. I (and other people) fought to prop the think up on an angle while teaching. To make it useful, we had to manufacture a prop-holder and carry a usb mouse and the infrared keyboard with us. Then connect it to a instructional system with video-out and network (no wireless unfortunatly) and you ended up with a squid-like system that was not much use. A true laptop is much better designed. You have your keyboard, touchpad and a screen that can be adjusted to the angle you want without having to prop up the entire ssytem. Oh yes, I have used them.

The only reason I don't have a convertible Tablet PC is they're too expensive.

TK: it sounds like you'd be a lot better off with the Toshiba, which works like a laptop and can be converted to a Tablet.
It sounds like your teaching area isn't very well designed. Maybe you need a sloped podium?

I work for a major publishing firm and we purchased a few Toshiba tablet PCs to try out. These things are great for us magazine creators. We can make notes on the screen, edit images, draw concept sketches along with many other features. As for price, they aren't that much of a price hike when you look as saving the money you would spend on a Wacom Cintiq to be able to draw on the screen and edit photos on the photo in Photoshop. I'm not saying every home user needs one just as not every user needs a digital camera or PDA but it does have it's applications for the photo/artistic people and for business collaborators.

Perhaps a sloped podium would be good but no matter what, you can't win. A sloped podium (actually a multimedia cabinet) would make it taller and the shorter instructors would complain. Trust me, it has happened and when you are putting in a $100k system into a 1000 seat lecture hall…but really, I would like to redesign future cabinets but we have 100 existing classrooms that cannot be changed. I have high-end and reliable Wintel systems built in to these systems but many people insist on bringing their toys. I just got done pulling Macs out of 80 classrooms because support/upgrade costs too. ;-)

When Da Goddess and I went to Joe Bonamossa's show, there were a couple of 'cigarette girls' pawning Marlboro cigs and premiums. They each had Tablet PCs.
Not being one to turn down free smokes or other freebies, I let them take my information.
She clutzed around on the tablet PC. It freaked out on her twice, she had to start the program again. It gave her fatal errors, wouldnt respond, It even BSODed on her, in true Microsoft form.
Ooh, really made me want one.

Picked up a Compaq Tablet at the beggining of the year and have used it every workday since. In a project management environment, it has the necessary tools to keep on top of all the details of multiple projects while dashing from meeting to meeting. The Franklin Covey Tablet planner works great to keep track of the day to day to-do's, upcoming meetings, and “where did I put that number”s, while MindJet's MindMapping software is the best solution available for capturing meeting notes and planning any type of project.

I have to disagree with you here - I LOVE the Tablet PC. It's somewhat like my idea of a dream computer come true - I can scribble on it, jot down ideas, draw concepts…and it'll all be saved in the comp for future reference so I don't have to look through a muddle of paper or battle with sticky keyboards and mice. My dad and I test-drove a few, from Acer…they were absolutely brilliant. I have one of the worst handwritings ever and it picked up what I wrote just fine. Even my signature came out right! :D Now if only I had the money to buy the thing…*glares at Dad*

I don't own any of these products either. I would think a laptop would be better since you can do more with it. EX. Burn CDs, DVDs, edit movies on powerful ones, and chat. With a tablet PC you can mostly only take notes. Leo from Call For Help on Tech TV had a question with a college student about this and he said that a labtop would probaly be better. The Tablet does let you just scribble down some notes, but it doesn't do much more.

There is nothing inherently wrong with the TabletPC, and some manufacturers can't keep up with demand for them.
The Toshiba is a good example… a laptop with Tablet features.
One thing I like about Tablet PCs over PDA is the larger screen. To me it is easier to read an e-text (book, magazine, etc.) on the larger screen.
I think I'll hold off on getting one until they have the option for a built-in DVD burner.
The Media Center PC is OK, and might be viable if they unbundle the hardware from the software. If, for example, the software was available to ATI AllInWonder upgraders, I'd buy the software today. But, no, I won't buy a whole machine just to get the software.

I picked up a tablet pc last week. In many cases the laptop will do the job. I think (like anything else) it all depends on your individual needs. There is no one solution for everyone. It works for me because I do a lot of one one one powerpoint presentations and take a lot of notes at meetings. I can sit down with someone after a presentation and explain things and answer questions with a drawing pad for notes and I can even email them the notes later or beam them to their handheld right on the spot. As for Media Center, I would by one as my next PC only as a replacement for my existing pc. You have to use all of it's features to make it worthwhile. It's an expensive toy if all you use it for is Watching TV/movies and listening to mp3's. The only one I really like right now it the alienware version. Small and not obtrusive and would look nice in your entertainment center.

I own both products and recently built another MCE for my dad who can’t stop talking about how much he loves it. The tablet I can see some people not being into but calling them a total failure is incredibly clueless. They haven’t done anything on the mass market but in niche applications they have become must haves in some industries. I know a couple doctors who use them exclusively. I watched him do things like pull up a record of a test, look it over, add some notes, save it and then link to it in the notations of the check up he was completing. Easily some of the best use of technology I have ever seen. I mentioned this to a doctor friend of mine and he knew the system having just fallen in love with it himself - to the degree that his office was planning to do away with the massive file storage cabinets as soon as everything was digitized. Look beyond your own need, or lack thereof, for a tablet and you’d see that they were not a mistake.