My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a
plain 'ole laptop. I am sure this has been discussed here thousands of
times, and I am not asking to begin such a discussion again. But if
someone has some suggestions as to how to go about evaluating the value
of one over the other, I would be grateful.

Thanks
Ken K

Got a smart daughter, huh? I've got three of them, two of whom use Tablet
PCs and the third a Media Center Edition system. The two with Tablets have
the higher grades. 8-)

You could start with the information here:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/t...c/default.mspx There are a lot of
links to explore, including one to Tablet PC at Work, which includes
resources for education:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/t...n/default.mspx

Also, while you're making up your mind, you may want to see the best
comparison charts on the web. Tablet MVP Terri Stratton has all the current
information for slate, convertible and hybrid models here:
http://thetabletpc.net .
--
Chris H.
Microsoft Windows MVP/Tablet PC
Tablet Creations - http://nicecreations.us/
Associate Expert
Expert Zone - www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone


"Ken K" <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com> wrote in message
news:117sj4h3pap7uc1@corp.supernews.com...
> My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
> for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
> article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a plain
> 'ole laptop. I am sure this has been discussed here thousands of times,
> and I am not asking to begin such a discussion again. But if someone has
> some suggestions as to how to go about evaluating the value of one over
> the other, I would be grateful.
>
> Thanks
> Ken K

On Sun, 08 May 2005 10:31:59 -0700, Ken K <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com>
wrote:

>My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
>for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
>article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a
>plain 'ole laptop.

You and your daughter should jointly do enough research to get a
general idea of how tablet computers work (I assume this isn't an
issue for the laptops). Then find a dealer or owner who will let her
TRY them. Preferably, try a few different examples of each, so that
her perceptions of the product categories are not tilted by the
peculiarities of an individual product. Hands-on experience will be a
lot more useful to her than any amount of research!

My email address is LLM041103 at earthlink dot net.

"Ken K" <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com> wrote in message
news:117sj4h3pap7uc1@corp.supernews.com...
> My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
> for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
> article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a plain
> 'ole laptop. I am sure this has been discussed here thousands of times,
> and I am not asking to begin such a discussion again. But if someone has
> some suggestions as to how to go about evaluating the value of one over
> the other, I would be grateful.

If you get a convertible Tablet, you get the best of both words a laptop and
a Tablet. I've had mine just over a week and I would never consider owning
a laptop again.

It's so much nicer to use, you don't have to be clicking away at a keyboard
(very rude in class), it's no louder then writing. And because you can put
them into a portrait format it's so much nicer to read anything on, and just
not having the keyboard being in the way is just awesome, you can actually
do work when you're lying down on the sofa or in bed now.

--
Paul Smith,
Yeovil, UK.
http://www.windowsresource.net/

*Remove 'nospam.' to reply by e-mail*

On Sun, 8 May 2005 23:35:25 +0100, "Paul Smith"
<Paul@nospam.windowsresource.net> wrote:

>If you get a convertible Tablet, you get the best of both wor[l]ds...
>It's so much nicer to use, you don't have to be clicking away at a keyboard
>(very rude in class), it's no louder then writing.

Good point. I think it goes without saying that if your daughter gets
a tablet PC it should be a convertible machine, not a slate. Most
people find the keyboard essential for writing substantial amounts of
text. (I believe any slate computer would accept an external keyboard,
but who wants to carry a separate keyboard around?)

I think the only significant advantages of laptops over tablets are
that they are less expensive, they generally have more bits on the
screen, and they tend to have a fuller complement of devices and
connectors.

My own recent experience in an American law school was that using a
keyboard in class was not a problem. To be blunt, all the other kids
are doing it. In most of my courses, 40% to 50% of the students used
laptops in class, and nobody complained. Actually, I can't recall
whether the keyboards were even audible over the background noise.

My email address is LLM041103 at earthlink dot net.

What machine did you choose?

Thanks
KK

Paul Smith wrote:

>"Ken K" <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com> wrote in message
>news:117sj4h3pap7uc1@corp.supernews.com...
>
>
>>My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
>>for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
>>article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a plain
>>'ole laptop. I am sure this has been discussed here thousands of times,
>>and I am not asking to begin such a discussion again. But if someone has
>>some suggestions as to how to go about evaluating the value of one over
>>the other, I would be grateful.
>>
>>
>
>If you get a convertible Tablet, you get the best of both words a laptop and
>a Tablet. I've had mine just over a week and I would never consider owning
>a laptop again.
>
>It's so much nicer to use, you don't have to be clicking away at a keyboard
>(very rude in class), it's no louder then writing. And because you can put
>them into a portrait format it's so much nicer to read anything on, and just
>not having the keyboard being in the way is just awesome, you can actually
>do work when you're lying down on the sofa or in bed now.
>
>
>

Paul is in the U.K., so may be asleep, but he's got a Toshiba M200. 8-)
--
Chris H.
Microsoft Windows MVP/Tablet PC
Tablet Creations - http://nicecreations.us/
Associate Expert
Expert Zone - www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone


"Ken K" <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com> wrote in message
news:117tmdiaf23ej9e@corp.supernews.com...
> What machine did you choose?
>
> Thanks
> KK
>
> Paul Smith wrote:
>
>>"Ken K" <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com> wrote in message
>>news:117sj4h3pap7uc1@corp.supernews.com...
>>
>>
>>>My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
>>>for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
>>>article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a plain
>>>'ole laptop. I am sure this has been discussed here thousands of times,
>>>and I am not asking to begin such a discussion again. But if someone has
>>>some suggestions as to how to go about evaluating the value of one over
>>>the other, I would be grateful.
>>>
>>>
>>
>>If you get a convertible Tablet, you get the best of both words a laptop
>>and
>>a Tablet. I've had mine just over a week and I would never consider
>>owning
>>a laptop again.
>>
>>It's so much nicer to use, you don't have to be clicking away at a
>>keyboard
>>(very rude in class), it's no louder then writing. And because you can
>>put
>>them into a portrait format it's so much nicer to read anything on, and
>>just
>>not having the keyboard being in the way is just awesome, you can actually
>>do work when you're lying down on the sofa or in bed now.
>>
>>
>>
>

Chris,

Thanks for the references. I will do the research.

Do you have one? Comments?

Ken K

Chris H. wrote:

>Got a smart daughter, huh? I've got three of them, two of whom use Tablet
>PCs and the third a Media Center Edition system. The two with Tablets have
>the higher grades. 8-)
>
>You could start with the information here:
>http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/t...c/default.mspx There are a lot of
>links to explore, including one to Tablet PC at Work, which includes
>resources for education:
>http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/t...n/default.mspx
>
>Also, while you're making up your mind, you may want to see the best
>comparison charts on the web. Tablet MVP Terri Stratton has all the current
>information for slate, convertible and hybrid models here:
>http://thetabletpc.net .
>
>

"Chris H." <winxpnews********.com> wrote in message
news:%23jJwrwEVFHA.2128@TK2MSFTNGP14.phx.gbl...
> Paul is in the U.K., so may be asleep, but he's got a Toshiba M200. 8-)

In bed with flu! Which is where I am right now, if the desktop was on I
could remote over to it and take a snap of the may positions you can use a
tablet in. LOL

--
Paul Smith,
Yeovil, UK.
http://www.windowsresource.net/

*Remove 'nospam.' to reply by e-mail*

Yes, I do, Ken. I agree with Paul's assessment of a convertible being the
best of both worlds. However, some of the other slates, like the Motion
series, have keyboards which simply attach to the underside of the unit when
not in use, and that is also a very good option.

There are so many combinations and manufacturers available, I would really
take a long look around before you and your daughter make a decision. Keep
in mind being able to expand the unit with additional memory at some time in
the future. I recommend at a minimum 512 MB of RAM (the sweet spot for
Windows XP), but you need to remember that she also will be doing Inking on
top of that.

I think, depending on the unit, that 1 GB is an excellent position. Most
models now will go to 2 GB, if she's going to be doing any heavy number
crunching or art work. And I would go with after-market memory purchasing
from Crucial or Kingston, to save some money.

Sorry you're sick, Paul. Bummer. Please do not send pictures. 8-)
--
Chris H.
Microsoft Windows MVP/Tablet PC
Tablet Creations - http://nicecreations.us/
Associate Expert
Expert Zone - www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone


"Ken K" <psnw@RE-MOV-Ethekrones.com> wrote in message
news:117tseuluokam91@corp.supernews.com...
> Chris,
>
> Thanks for the references. I will do the research.
>
> Do you have one? Comments?
>
> Ken K
>
> Chris H. wrote:
>
>>Got a smart daughter, huh? I've got three of them, two of whom use Tablet
>>PCs and the third a Media Center Edition system. The two with Tablets
>>have the higher grades. 8-)
>>
>>You could start with the information here:
>>http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/t...c/default.mspx There are a lot
>>of links to explore, including one to Tablet PC at Work, which includes
>>resources for education:
>>http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/t...n/default.mspx
>>
>>Also, while you're making up your mind, you may want to see the best
>>comparison charts on the web. Tablet MVP Terri Stratton has all the
>>current information for slate, convertible and hybrid models here:
>>http://thetabletpc.net .
>>

Ken,

I've used both slates and convertables. Highly recommend convertable.
Convertable has best functionality for a college student. Slates are for
niche or specific usage.

I have used Toshiba M200 and it has been great. One thing it lacks is
integrated CDROM. Have now switched to Fujitsu T4010, this is also a great
machine and does have integrated modular CDROM-DVD.

Some Tablets I've demo and recommend:

-New Toshiba R10
-New Toshiba Tecra M4
-Fujitsu T4010 or T4000

Recommended config:
512MB Ram
Pent M 1.6 or higher.
A must have software component to make tablet worth while is MS OneNote SP1.

Bill




"Ken K" wrote:

> My daughter will be off to college next fall and I am beginning to look
> for a portable computer for her. I would like to be directed to an
> article or FAQ discussing the pros and cons of a tablet PC versus a
> plain 'ole laptop. I am sure this has been discussed here thousands of
> times, and I am not asking to begin such a discussion again. But if
> someone has some suggestions as to how to go about evaluating the value
> of one over the other, I would be grateful.
>
> Thanks
> Ken K
>

On Tue, 10 May 2005 12:50:05 -0700, "Bill C." <Bill
C.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>Some Tablets I've demo and recommend:
>
>-New Toshiba R10
>-New Toshiba Tecra M4
>-Fujitsu T4010 or T4000

Can you give us a little background, please, to help us put your
recommendations in perspective?

When you say "demo," do you mean that you have received demos from
salespersons, or that you have given demos as a salesperson?

If you're not speaking as a salesperson, what do you use tablet PCs
for? What features or characteristics do you value?

What other tablets do you have experience with, and what feature(s)
cause you to choose these over others?

My email address is LLM041103 at earthlink dot net.

Jonathan,

Personally I've used a Tablet PC for almost 2 years. (Toshiba M200)
-In the workplace as a network Administrator for a K-12 public school
-And as a student while working towards a Training and Development cert. at
Penn State University

I have physically used demo units provided to me by Acer, Gateway, Toshiba,
Hp, and Fujitsu. These were eval units for a project I started last October.
The 05-06 school years for our school district is the 5th year replacement
cycle of high school teachers computers. I acquired the demo units to have
faculty try them out to see if tablet computing would be useful tool for
them. As it stands now we will be rolling out tablet PCs to the 133 staff
members (teachers and admin) during the months of Sept to Dec. The models we
are rolling out are Toshiba Tecra R10 and Fujitsu T4010. I selected tablets
because it is an emerging technology with value that will support our staff
for the next 5 years.

I have switched from my M200 to the Fujitsu we are purchasing.

Features I like:
-Natural feel to taking notes
-annotate Word docs
-annotate PowerPoint’s (my profs sends today’s class PP and I make all my
notes directly on the slides)
-MS OneNote ( The tablet is useless without this piece of software)
-OneNote allows me to create diagrams as I'm brainstorming for a network
layout or topology.
-OneNote allows me to create a graphical concept map for work or school
-OneNote allows me to flag and then summarize on the flags.
-OneNote allows me to search for handwritten text
-OneNote provides an excellent organizational to for me in the workplace and
as a student.
-Lightweight my Fujitsu is 4 lbs. the Toshiba's are 6.5 lbs


Differences between the 2 models that have been selected for the HS rollout
are:
-Fujitsu 12" display, 4 lbs
-Toshiba 14" display, 6.5 lbs.

Each model we will deploying has:
-Firewire
-modular CDROM-DVD
-modem
-10/100/1000 ethernet
-Intel pro wireless b/g
-PCMCIA slot
-2 or more USB
-SD slot

Models used or eval:
Acer newest model (can't remember #) - 14 " display, heavier, case has a
lot of plastic and didn’t seem to go together properly, seemed flimsy.

HP (Compaq) Slate- Slow processor (very slow), clip keyboard, very
lightweight, too many accessories to carry around to be functional as a
workstation, has its place in niche markets. No modular components

Gateway - Slow processor, when you rotate the display to slate mode you have
to press a rotate button for the screen to rotate. The other models rotate
automatically.

Fujitsu has new technology for screen brightness and contrast (very nice)

Modular battery additions to models that support this are very nice. I’m
getting several hours with CDROM removed and second battery added in Fujitsu.




"Jonathan Sachs" wrote:

> On Tue, 10 May 2005 12:50:05 -0700, "Bill C." <Bill
> C.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:
>
> >Some Tablets I've demo and recommend:
> >
> >-New Toshiba R10
> >-New Toshiba Tecra M4
> >-Fujitsu T4010 or T4000
>
> Can you give us a little background, please, to help us put your
> recommendations in perspective?
>
> When you say "demo," do you mean that you have received demos from
> salespersons, or that you have given demos as a salesperson?
>
> If you're not speaking as a salesperson, what do you use tablet PCs
> for? What features or characteristics do you value?
>
> What other tablets do you have experience with, and what feature(s)
> cause you to choose these over others?
>
> My email address is LLM041103 at earthlink dot net.
>

Awesome, Bill. Thanks for the report. Go Nittany Lions! 8-)
--
Chris H.
Microsoft Windows MVP/Tablet PC
Tablet Creations - http://nicecreations.us/
Associate Expert
Expert Zone - www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone


"Bill C." <BillC@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:61D31333-0AAF-42C4-8D6C-71FA480F3488@microsoft.com...
> Jonathan,
>
> Personally I've used a Tablet PC for almost 2 years. (Toshiba M200)
> -In the workplace as a network Administrator for a K-12 public school
> -And as a student while working towards a Training and Development cert.
> at
> Penn State University
>
> I have physically used demo units provided to me by Acer, Gateway,
> Toshiba,
> Hp, and Fujitsu. These were eval units for a project I started last
> October.
> The 05-06 school years for our school district is the 5th year replacement
> cycle of high school teachers computers. I acquired the demo units to have
> faculty try them out to see if tablet computing would be useful tool for
> them. As it stands now we will be rolling out tablet PCs to the 133 staff
> members (teachers and admin) during the months of Sept to Dec. The models
> we
> are rolling out are Toshiba Tecra R10 and Fujitsu T4010. I selected
> tablets
> because it is an emerging technology with value that will support our
> staff
> for the next 5 years.
>
> I have switched from my M200 to the Fujitsu we are purchasing.
>
> Features I like:
> -Natural feel to taking notes
> -annotate Word docs
> -annotate PowerPoint's (my profs sends today's class PP and I make all my
> notes directly on the slides)
> -MS OneNote ( The tablet is useless without this piece of software)
> -OneNote allows me to create diagrams as I'm brainstorming for a network
> layout or topology.
> -OneNote allows me to create a graphical concept map for work or school
> -OneNote allows me to flag and then summarize on the flags.
> -OneNote allows me to search for handwritten text
> -OneNote provides an excellent organizational to for me in the workplace
> and
> as a student.
> -Lightweight my Fujitsu is 4 lbs. the Toshiba's are 6.5 lbs
>
>
> Differences between the 2 models that have been selected for the HS
> rollout
> are:
> -Fujitsu 12" display, 4 lbs
> -Toshiba 14" display, 6.5 lbs.
>
> Each model we will deploying has:
> -Firewire
> -modular CDROM-DVD
> -modem
> -10/100/1000 ethernet
> -Intel pro wireless b/g
> -PCMCIA slot
> -2 or more USB
> -SD slot
>
> Models used or eval:
> Acer newest model (can't remember #) - 14 " display, heavier, case has a
> lot of plastic and didn't seem to go together properly, seemed flimsy.
>
> HP (Compaq) Slate- Slow processor (very slow), clip keyboard, very
> lightweight, too many accessories to carry around to be functional as a
> workstation, has its place in niche markets. No modular components
>
> Gateway - Slow processor, when you rotate the display to slate mode you
> have
> to press a rotate button for the screen to rotate. The other models rotate
> automatically.
>
> Fujitsu has new technology for screen brightness and contrast (very nice)
>
> Modular battery additions to models that support this are very nice. I'm
> getting several hours with CDROM removed and second battery added in
> Fujitsu.
>
>
>
>
> "Jonathan Sachs" wrote:
>
>> On Tue, 10 May 2005 12:50:05 -0700, "Bill C." <Bill
>> C.@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:
>>
>> >Some Tablets I've demo and recommend:
>> >
>> >-New Toshiba R10
>> >-New Toshiba Tecra M4
>> >-Fujitsu T4010 or T4000
>>
>> Can you give us a little background, please, to help us put your
>> recommendations in perspective?
>>
>> When you say "demo," do you mean that you have received demos from
>> salespersons, or that you have given demos as a salesperson?
>>
>> If you're not speaking as a salesperson, what do you use tablet PCs
>> for? What features or characteristics do you value?
>>
>> What other tablets do you have experience with, and what feature(s)
>> cause you to choose these over others?
>>
>> My email address is LLM041103 at earthlink dot net.
>>

Thanks, Bill, for your extensive comments! You have made a substantial
addition to the newsgroup's store of concrete information on this
topic.

My email address is LLM041103 at earthlink dot net.