Interesting. I was intrigued by them and have played with them several times at the Apple Store and Best Buy, partly because I have an iPhone, a 3G which I find pretty darn slow and hard to type on (my eyes aren't what they once were), but beats the hell out of no internet when I'm somewhere on the fringes of civilization. I've complained somewhere on the board before about having a hard time reading the small print of sites that don't have mobile versions of their software, so I thought the iPad looked pretty cool. It's a hell of a lot nicer than my 3G, but I wish it was a few ounces lighter. You really can't hold one for any length of time in one hand, not comfortably, which bugs me a little. Maybe they'll make the next one lighter? I hope so. Honestly, I'm more apt to pick up one of the new Air's for my next Apple product.
You can lay it on your lab or buy a case with a foldout stand. It is un-comfortable to get a grip on to me.
It wasn't. HP made it clear a while back when speculation was going crazy post the Palm acquisition that: 1. The Slate was not cancelled, and that it would in fact be targeted towards the business/enterprise market 2. They are working on WebOS tablets as well (which by implication will be more targeted to the general market). And the Slate is definitely not a fail. There are lots of people out there who could use a capable tablet around the office that can actually take pen input, video conference and run existing office productivity and enterprise applications. HP just gave them that. You're obviously not one of those people and don't have an idea how useful this would be in enterprise, but that doesn't mean the market isn't there.
Yeah, there are some nice options if you want to park it somewhere, but I just wish it could lose a few ounces. I think it would make a big difference.
Deckard my wife and I or in are 60s it weighs so darn little you get use to it quickly, we took it on vacation instead of a laptop. If you travel extensively buy a good hard case for it. People have dropped them downstairs and cracked the screen. They have some very good cases on amazon just read the reviews carefully. Yes my wife has dropped hers on cement but the case saved it. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002CNRNHG/ref=oss_product Kroo Carbon Fiber EVA Apple iPad Case (Black) with Free iPad Travel Charger Included
Thanks for the info! I have a good case for my iPhone, which has saved it a couple of times. Anyone who doesn't get a good case for these kinds of things is crazy, IMO. I'll keep looking at them and thanks again.
The Slate was not intended for business only market. MS' Balmer shoes it at CES as an example of windows 7 tablets for the masses. What happened is that when HP saw the IPad, they said "oh ****, this won't compete. They expected the iPad to be near $1,000. They changed their strategy and acquired Palm to compete in the mobile space better and decided to use the webOS tablet in the consumer space.
Ipad is crap, I had one and sold it, I felt like such a moran for spending $500 for a xl ipod touch No flash support No custom OS, it uses the iphone's OS I NEVER used it because my iphone 4 was more portable and convenient to check mail, photos, music, etc. small hard drive, compared to mini laptops EXTREMELY OVERPRICED, imo it should cost no more than $300, and even at that price, I bet apple has a significant profit margin you can buy mini laptops for $300 that can do 10X more stuff than a xl ipod touch
All that tells me is you didn't do your homework before buying it and you didn't have good foresight in its usage. 1) No flash support- a well known issue. 2) No custom OS - well known. And I'm not certain why its a flaw in your opinion. 3) Just duh, for all the iPhone function stuff. 4) Yes a netbook can do more. A netbook is a full computer. The iPad is a gadget. Gadgets have their place too (see ebook readers). Most of the complaints with the iPad I hear of stem from people not having a good idea of what they're buying it for. I'm sure that's money to Apple's ears but it does make for disgruntled customers. I will agree that people shouldn't be buying so many iPads without a good idea of what its useful for and not useful for.
How could you possibly have not known this before you bought it? It has been one of the biggest complaints, if not the biggest, since before the iPad was made available.
That is strictly your opinion and conjecture. There is no evidence that HP's decision to change the intended market for the Slate was driven by the iPad. Palm was up for sale, and there were several players involved in bidding for it before HP won out. Obviously the Palm acquisition gave them a much better software platform for the consumer space, but you can't say "HP bought Palm because the Slate couldn't compete with the iPad." That is just absurd. Especially considering that HP (which is bigger than Apple, as many people tend to forget) has a MUCH stronger marketing and distribution presence in the enterprise than Apple does, and didn't really have a significant presence in the personal consumer devices market until after the Palm acquisition. And there is probably even more money to be made in the business market than in the consumer space here.
Yeah, but it doesn't make much sense that WebOS was acquired for the Enterprise market. Not that I'm saying Scarface's scenario is 100% true, but it's pretty obvious that the attraction of Palm (and hence the primary reason in purchasing it) was WebOS. HP (at least, if their announcements are to be believed) is going 'all in' with WebOS and will be pushing a number of devices out with the os on it. This is not for the benefit of the enterprise market. The iPad - much like the iPhone did - has caused everyone to jumpstart and accelerate their desire to push a tablet device out to market. They now have proof that it can sell as a mainstream device. That HP went after WebOS as this happened isn't just a coincidence. 'couldn't compete with the iPad' may be a little 'absurd'. But 'wanted a stronger presence in the tablet market' isn't. And right now at least, that's first and foremost the iPad.
Archos Internet Tablet > Apple iPad Has USB 3G tethering. Has Flash. Will have Android 2.2 (Froyo) by the end of November. Half the price of the iPad. The 7" model also has a 250GB version for those that want a portable video library.
I'm just curious, do you own one of the Archos tablets or are you just basing your opinion off of the Archos tech specs? This will sound so fanboyish but I've never heard of someone who preferred an Archos to an Apple product. Maybe if price was a big consideration. But every Archos product I've ever seen was unrefined rip-off technology. I'd maybe give Samsung or Sony the benefit of the doubt with their products but Archos just does not have a reputation for a quality consumer product.
The Archos is a disappointment. My boss tried one (he also tried an iPad); he's looking for something to replace his laptop out on the field. He returned it as well. It's fine if all you want to do is watch some movies on it. But by that token, so is the ipad. Don't know if you own one or are looking to get one, but you should also try looking up reviews sometime. It's kind of hit or miss depending on the model.
