Tablet PC Recommendations?

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theWUbear

theWUbear

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Anyone have recommendations for a specific tablet PC to buy?

I spent way too much time attempting to pick a model, and I bought this:
http://us.toshiba.com/computers/laptops/portege/M780/M780-S7210

After a week of my order status saying "waiting for toshiba to ship", the order was canceled by CompUSA, saying Toshiba has none left. What is this, Soviet Russia? Are we rationing our computer parts?

Any recommendations/advice would be appreciated. Budget is probably 1.5k for a worthwhile investment
 
theWUbear said:
Anyone have recommendations for a specific tablet PC to buy?

I spent way too much time attempting to pick a model, and I bought this:
http://us.toshiba.com/computers/laptops/portege/M780/M780-S7210

After a week of my order status saying "waiting for toshiba to ship", the order was canceled by CompUSA, saying Toshiba has none left. What is this, Soviet Russia? Are we rationing our computer parts?

Any recommendations/advice would be appreciated. Budget is probably 1.5k for a worthwhile investment
Click to expand...

Lenovo x201 tablet
 
I don't know your reasons for wanting a table pc, but my advice is to get a really nice laptop with the 1.5k. I don't believe you are getting your moneys worth with the specifications posted.
 
Easy. Don't get a tablet. Also, don't spend 1.5k on a laptop.

You're going to be taking notes and using powerpoint (and MAYBE onenote). You're not making movies or building skyscrapers.

Don't throw away your money. Also, buy a Lenovo. They are awesome.
 
Buy a 300 dollar net-book and 1200 dollars worth of ??
 
Here are my reasons for buying a tablet - if you feel they are unvalidated I would love to hear more of your input. I have found a refurbished lenovo tablet for 1k that I may end up purchasing

1. I spend a lot of time at work standing outside exam rooms waiting for doctors to finish with patients to ask permission to enroll patients in research studies, all the while wishing I could spend that hour every day finishing paperwork on my laptop. I assume tablet allows that with convenience. This point can be generalized to my feeling that it would be very convenient to use on the go

2. I would like to think this can be used instead of a paper-notebook for taking notes. That would be saweet

3. I haven't purchased a new computer since high school, and haven't gotten less than an A in a long time. If it's a good investment I want to treat myself

Your thoughts, SDN:
 
Pro-tip:
Don't buy a tablet.

They're consumer toys for entertainment value and provide no productivity.
 
agreed that tablets suck. It will not be easier than writing or more convenient. Use a laptop + write in a notebook when needed.

It is a toy more than a tool.
 
Forthegood said:
Easy. Don't get a tablet. Also, don't spend 1.5k on a laptop.

You're going to be taking notes and using powerpoint (and MAYBE onenote). You're not making movies or building skyscrapers.

Don't throw away your money. Also, buy a Lenovo. They are awesome.
Click to expand...

👍
 
I got a tablet the summer before my soph year. I used it for every class (regardless of whether teachers supplied notes/powerpoints). I did love the fact that it recognizes my handwriting and I can go back and search for a specific topic in all of my notes.

To be honest though, i am just now starting to get back into handwriting my own notes again. Im a fan of color and while you can use different highlighters in a laptop, its easier to do yourself.

That being said, i still love my HP tx2z.
 
I've encountered a fair number of people with Lenovo and Toshiba tablets, doing things like what you've described. With onenote. Tablet users seem to find them very useful, and often commented that they didn't understand why more people didn't use them.

Things to keep in mind - the CPU is slow, it's for sure not good for gaming or other apps requiring power. Second, battery life is pretty key, if you're getting a refurbished one, be careful about the battery condition or just assume you'll need to buy a new one. Lenovo parts are pretty expensive. Don't lose the stylus, that's pricey too.

The negative responses demonstrate an interesting SDN phenomenon. There's an accepted orthodoxy to opinions here. You'll frequently see the same thing on other topics, there are the opinions everyone else echos, and then minority views that get slimed. The accepted opinions are often not based on any personal knowledge. Note that neither of the two negative commenters said "I have one (or know someone with one), it was a mistake". Rather, they just said "Don't get one".
 
I was thinking about getting a tablet too. Considering when I finish with a class my notebook usually disappears about 10 seconds after the final is over. So don't worry, I support you and will be checking back on this thread later this year.
 
Trying to buy a computer these days is like looking for the right needle in a stack of millionz of needles

If we are in agreement that lenovo and it's thinkpad x201 beat toshiba's portige, the HP Slate, and the HP tm2t in what-you-get-for-what-you-pay, I'll buy one and stop losing money on lost productivity at work trying to find myself a new computer...
 
Forthegood said:
Easy. Don't get a tablet. Also, don't spend 1.5k on a laptop.

You're going to be taking notes and using powerpoint (and MAYBE onenote). You're not making movies or building skyscrapers.

Don't throw away your money. Also, buy a Lenovo. They are awesome.
Click to expand...
👍👍👍👍👍

Buying a tablet means wasting money on a gimmick you'll never use. Typing is faster, and writing on paper is free. Also, don't get a Mac unless you just have cash you're looking to burn (which, if you're interested in a tablet, I guess you might).
 
MilkmanAl said:
👍👍👍👍👍

Buying a tablet means wasting money on a gimmick you'll never use...
Click to expand...
Wow, this is exactly what I was talking about. Any experience with this Al? The people I know use the "gimmick" constantly. Daily.

I guess you become a mod by learning to parrot others' comments, whether they're informed or not? And whether you're informed or not.
 
Sorry you don't like the advice people give, but that isn't my problem. Not everyone is going to agree with you all the time, and that doesn't necessarily make them wrong or stupid.

Just FYI, many people in my class have tablets, and I've played around with them quite a lot. Most of them stopped using the tablet function in class when they found out there wasn't a lot of use for it. Of course, it doesn't really take much of experience to tell you that paying a rather substantial price premium to be able to manually write things into your computer is not the best deal in the world. Again, typing is faster, and there's typically not too much you need to be writing into your PowerPoint slides, anyway. Even if you are the writing kind, just print the slides out beforehand (or pick up the printed version if your school does that for you). At least a couple people have experienced frequent compatibility issues with the tablet functionality and whatever program they were trying to open the slides with, so that brings it down to paying a premium for a gimmicky feature that sort of works.

It's your cash and your life, so go off in a huff to buy a tablet if you want. Once school starts up, you'll wish you either saved your cash or spent the money on a better computer, but whatever works for you.
 
theWUbear said:
Anyone have recommendations for a specific tablet PC to buy?

I spent way too much time attempting to pick a model, and I bought this:
http://us.toshiba.com/computers/laptops/portege/M780/M780-S7210

After a week of my order status saying "waiting for toshiba to ship", the order was canceled by CompUSA, saying Toshiba has none left. What is this, Soviet Russia? Are we rationing our computer parts?

Any recommendations/advice would be appreciated. Budget is probably 1.5k for a worthwhile investment
Click to expand...

FYI, tablet pcs usually have the best lcd displays of ALL laptops. The thinkpad x200/201t both either use IPS/AFFS+/PVA displays which provide far,far superior viewing angles/color accuracy/image quality for use compared to typical glossy TN displays out there.

Ive been using my x200t for a year now and although I agree that the tablet function is rarely used:laugh:, it comes in handy when you're just typing up notes in class and the prof moves to an overhead type display to draw a figure/diagram and you can quickly copy it directly in onenote.

Check out the lenovo outlet as you can normally find new redistributed tablets for around 1-1.2k
 
at24 said:
FYI, tablet pcs usually have the best lcd displays of ALL laptops. The thinkpad x200/201t both either use IPS/AFFS+/PVA displays which provide far,far superior viewing angles/color accuracy/image quality for use compared to typical glossy TN displays out there.

Ive been using my x200t for a year now and although I agree that the tablet function is rarely used:laugh:, it comes in handy when you're just typing up notes in class and the prof moves to an overhead type display to draw a figure/diagram and you can quickly copy it directly in onenote.

Check out the lenovo outlet as you can normally find new redistributed tablets for around 1-1.2k
Click to expand...

When using it as a normal laptop, do you ever feel like it is second rate to a normal laptop?

I imagine I would watch movies/tv shows (torrented/tvduck, of course) with it in tablet mode, and this would be really compact and convenient, almost like holding a little rectangular flat screen TV in my hands while I'm chillin in my bed or something. Is this a realistic representation of the product? Or is it too bulky or not great for that use for some other reason.

Thanks to everyone for their opinions. I think I'm going to end up buying one from an online reseller with a no-hassle return policy, check it out for twenty days, return it, and if I liked it build one to my specificities online or buy from the lenovo outlet
 
theWUbear said:
When using it as a normal laptop, do you ever feel like it is second rate to a normal laptop?

I imagine I would watch movies/tv shows (torrented/tvduck, of course) with it in tablet mode, and this would be really compact and convenient, almost like holding a little rectangular flat screen TV in my hands while I'm chillin in my bed or something. Is this a realistic representation of the product? Or is it too bulky or not great for that use for some other reason.

Thanks to everyone for their opinions. I think I'm going to end up buying one from an online reseller with a no-hassle return policy, check it out for twenty days, return it, and if I liked it build one to my specificities online or buy from the lenovo outlet
Click to expand...

Nope, never second rate. The x201, at ~3.5lbs with the 4cell (approx 3hrs) and a hint under 4lbs with the 8cell (7hrs, more charge/cell), is still lighter than a macbook pro at 4.3lbs or so, the defacto student laptop. I use it in slate mode all the time when lying in my bed. The multitouch option is great if you want to use your fingers to navigate but the one drawback is a grainier screen since there is an extra layer over the lcd. I went with the pen only screen as thats good enough for my uses.
 
Musclemass said:
The negative responses demonstrate an interesting SDN phenomenon. There's an accepted orthodoxy to opinions here. You'll frequently see the same thing on other topics, there are the opinions everyone else echos, and then minority views that get slimed. The accepted opinions are often not based on any personal knowledge. Note that neither of the two negative commenters said "I have one (or know someone with one), it was a mistake". Rather, they just said "Don't get one".
Click to expand...

Funny.

My personal experience isn't an echo of another person. I've used them, I've had friends who have had them, and they suck.

I agree sometimes SDN can "echo" itself, but when I echo it's with good cause.
 
Musclemass said:
Wow, this is exactly what I was talking about. Any experience with this Al? The people I know use the "gimmick" constantly. Daily.

I guess you become a mod by learning to parrot others' comments, whether they're informed or not? And whether you're informed or not.
Click to expand...

dude, take it down a couple notches. do you ever have anything constructive to say?

I might be in a good position to answer OP's questions, as my school gives us Dell latitude XT2's at the start of the first year (yes, gives them to us - price and support included with tuition.) so i'm able to assess the usefulness of the tool without being clouded by how much i paid out of pocket for it.

pros: OneNote is a really worthless program, unless it's on this platform. here it shines. print all your powerpoints into onenote, mark them up to your hearts content, then make bombass outlines during study time. the ability to search your notebooks is, as someone else said above, incredibly powerful when you're dealing with this volume of information. also, portability is key: i love not having to lug lots of books/notebooks around, stuff getting lost, etc. when i go to school, all i have to carry with me is my three pound instrument of mass destruction. if i leave town, knowing i have to get work done while i'm gone, but not sure exactly what? bang, i'm set. sure the cpu is crap, but the SSD makes up the difference and more. I can't tell the difference in Win7 boot time b/t this thing and my quadcore desktop.

cons: it's a Dell 😡 i really can't understand why they couldn't have supplied us with the Lenovo when the retail cost is the same and the x201 is so obviously superior. Dell must have given them a sweeter deal somehow. the tablet function is fun, but unnecessary. when i put it into tablet mode, i do feel like a badass, but it's not so good a feeling that i'd pay $$$$ money for it. you will never use it in the manner you are hoping for, becoming more productive when on the wards. even here, a school where the curriculum is very tech/laptop centric, you won't see the third years using them. PDA/smartphone, yes.

verdict: it's awesome (thanks, school!) is it $2k+ dollars awesome? f*** no. i use the aforementioned desktop more often, largely because I also have a 23" flat panel and I get a lot out of having the extra real estate. then again, i don't go to lecture. the best suggestion is probably the one where someone told you to use a netbook, but i wouldn't do this without also having the more robust desktop solution. also, i don't know if most netbooks have the balls to do the OneNote/PowerPoint manipulations i've described (these files are pretty big.)

tl;dr whatever. hope someone found this useful.
 
MilkmanAl said:
Sorry you don't like the advice people give, but that isn't my problem. Not everyone is going to agree with you all the time, and that doesn't necessarily make them wrong or stupid.

Just FYI, many people in my class have tablets, and I've played around with them quite a lot. Most of them stopped using the tablet function in class when they found out there wasn't a lot of use for it. Of course, it doesn't really take much of experience to tell you that paying a rather substantial price premium to be able to manually write things into your computer is not the best deal in the world. Again, typing is faster, and there's typically not too much you need to be writing into your PowerPoint slides, anyway. Even if you are the writing kind, just print the slides out beforehand (or pick up the printed version if your school does that for you). At least a couple people have experienced frequent compatibility issues with the tablet functionality and whatever program they were trying to open the slides with, so that brings it down to paying a premium for a gimmicky feature that sort of works.

It's your cash and your life, so go off in a huff to buy a tablet if you want. Once school starts up, you'll wish you either saved your cash or spent the money on a better computer, but whatever works for you.
Click to expand...

Nice response.

Funny that he is attacking your response as if you are just reading some company line.
 
gravitywave said:
dude, take it down a couple notches. do you ever have anything constructive to say?

I might be in a good position to answer OP's questions, as my school gives us Dell latitude XT2's at the start of the first year (yes, gives them to us - price and support included with tuition.) so i'm able to assess the usefulness of the tool without being clouded by how much i paid out of pocket for it.

pros: OneNote is a really worthless program, unless it's on this platform. here it shines. print all your powerpoints into onenote, mark them up to your hearts content, then make bombass outlines during study time. the ability to search your notebooks is, as someone else said above, incredibly powerful when you're dealing with this volume of information. also, portability is key: i love not having to lug lots of books/notebooks around, stuff getting lost, etc. when i go to school, all i have to carry with me is my three pound instrument of mass destruction. if i leave town, knowing i have to get work done while i'm gone, but not sure exactly what? bang, i'm set. sure the cpu is crap, but the SSD makes up the difference and more. I can't tell the difference in Win7 boot time b/t this thing and my quadcore desktop.

cons: it's a Dell 😡 i really can't understand why they couldn't have supplied us with the Lenovo when the retail cost is the same and the x201 is so obviously superior. Dell must have given them a sweeter deal somehow. the tablet function is fun, but unnecessary. when i put it into tablet mode, i do feel like a badass, but it's not so good a feeling that i'd pay $$$$ money for it. you will never use it in the manner you are hoping for, becoming more productive when on the wards. even here, a school where the curriculum is very tech/laptop centric, you won't see the third years using them. PDA/smartphone, yes.

verdict: it's awesome (thanks, school!) is it $2k+ dollars awesome? f*** no. i use the aforementioned desktop more often, largely because I also have a 23" flat panel and I get a lot out of having the extra real estate. then again, i don't go to lecture. the best suggestion is probably the one where someone told you to use a netbook, but i wouldn't do this without having the more robust desktop solution. also, i don't know if most netbooks have the balls to do the OneNote/PowerPoint manipulations i've described (these files are pretty big.)

tl;dr whatever. hope someone found this useful.
Click to expand...

most helpful response thus far.
 
By the way, I should note that my comments about the tablet feature being pretty much useless and all that only apply where taking notes in med school classes is concerned. I originally figured that'd be pretty obvious, but just in case there's some more angst around, it seems like a worthwhile clarification.
 
Musclemass said:
I guess you become a mod by learning to parrot others' comments, whether they're informed or not? And whether you're informed or not.
Click to expand...

Great work here. After Milkman tells us how to become a mod, you can tell us what it took to become an @sshole.

Here is something constructive. Of the 3 people in my class who I know personally that have tablets, 2 never use the tablet function and the other's broke. They now have a mac. My good buddy in pharmacy school also bought a tablet, and the battery life sucked so bad he ended up buying a laptop (lenovo). So, that is 3 in med school and 1 in pharm school. Sure, it is not a large sample size, and I am not telling you that you have to use this advice.

Of course that IS what we do on forums, we talk about our experiences and give advice. It is a personal decision for the OP to make, and has nothing to do with how informed or not any of us are.
 
I love my mac. Its 3 years old, I still get about 4 hours of battery life on it with the original battery. I have never had to put money into it, so I'm not sure what that person above was talking about... My Dell last one year. If I have any advice it would be to stay away from that company. Their products are always inferior. I'd also say the same about HP's. As for tablets specifically, I can't help you... But I trust Apple and I would say the Ipad
 
Look into the HP TM2. Its a 12 inch tablet with discrete graphics card. So you can do some gaming on it, no you cant run crysis, but SC2 is very playable. Also its sub 1k

As for people saying that its a gimmick etc., well that all depends on how you use the machine. Most people are not tech savvy and just dont know how to use the functionality to its fullest, hence they go and buy a mac.

I did my first year with pen and paper notes and I really wish I had the tablet last year.

Being paperless is awesome, in a word. We can get access all our books online if we want and before the tablet I never used them because it was awkward reading from a computer screen like that but I just flip the tablet down and read it like a normal book. I still carry a few of the smaller books with me. Also having all of my notes in one easily accessible place is great instead of having it in 7 different notebooks.

Someone said its faster to just type. This is kinda true. I wouldnt want to hand write a novel on a tablet, but I write all of my school notes on mine.

If you get the tablet OneNote is a MUST. This program takes advantage of the tablet functionality and without it i could easily see why people say tablets are a gimmick.

You can both type and write in onenote. You can easily set up different colors highligher colors. Often times there will be a picture i like in a lecture i can easily paste it into a page in onenote and then draw all over it. Onenote can convert the things you write into text as well. I dont use this feature because i like my notes in my handwriting and I like scribbling things on the side or above and below lines.

You can also search all pages/sections/"notebooks" in one note, even if the words are handwritten or part of a picture it will find them. This feature works well with the text but written words its a little iffier, probably due to my poor handwriting, but you can train windows to recognize your handwriting better, I just havent done it that much.

You can also tag things in one note. So when a prof says "so and so pops up on boards alot, I just tag it for boards, or when they say this is gonna be a question on a test I tag it for test. Instead of having to go back through my notes I just pull up all "step 1" tags etc.

Also alot of people like to annotate books like FA. You can get those books scanned and print it to onenote and have the entire book there. I can annotate a billion things and never run out of paper. I can also search FA now.

If you want you can PM and I'll send you some screens of the way I have onenote set up.

I dont know how feasible your idea of doing paperwork while waiting is though. While its certainly very possible, it really depends on the infrastructure of the place you work. If everythings already online then it will probably be very easy for you to do this. If all this paperwork is actual paper then I dont know if it would be worth the hassle of scanning everything.

You can def go paperless once you get the tablet. I still use a few books, but im not lugging around robbins all the time like i used to.

You can sit around and read it like a magazine and it is very portable, but keep in mind it is around 4 lbs. So if you wanted to walk around with it while going to patients rooms and such, you would need to hold it on the outter edge with the inner side resting on your forearm. Its actually designed to be held this way so its quite comfortable and makes it more stable to write on. You can hold it in one hand like a closed book but it would probably become uncomfortable quickly.

Sorry for the long post. I think the tablets are worth it, its just a matter of how much you take advantage of its technology.
 
Forthegood said:
Great work here. After Milkman tells us how to become a mod, you can tell us what it took to become an @sshole.
Click to expand...
Yes indeed, I can do that.

What it took was having a bad day. Sorry for the comments that didn't belong.
 
bought a x201 =) at $1400

I've been a one note lover for many years, using it for work (unfiled notes), class (onenote notebooks of inserted slides with my notes annotating them), taking bazillions of screenshots (windows+s will forever be my favorite shortcut), my to-do list, and a bunch of other lists. I'm excited to feed my one note addiction.

I have no need for the best processing (haven't gamed since Diablo II) - I just use Epic and Centricity EMR's, excel, word, and one-note. ...and limewire and utorrent. and chrome.

I hope to use it in tablet mode for watching movies/tv shows when sitting in bed relaxing, and during the couple hours every day I stand outside the exam room where an attending I need to speak with is seeing a patient

I promise to post if I don't like it or any of the uses don't work out! Thank you all again for helping me make this decision!
 
it does sound like you'll be one of the people that might actually get alot out of the investment. it will be fine for all the tasks you describe (we use Epic here as well)

i hope it works out as you hope! Lenovo 😍
 
In case anyone ever stumbles upon this thread, tablet PC [lenovo x201t] has been awesome.

While waiting to see physicians during my clinical research hours I was able to take care of paperwork, keep my email in order, do my homework, etc., with full laptop functionality - all while standing outside an exam room

I have fully eliminated the need to carry around any spiral notebooks during the semester. I take notes for all my classes on the tablet while recording them (OneNote is God)
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5849/classnotes.png

I also take book notes on my tablet
http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/731/booknotes.png

When flying on a plane, or just hangin out in bed, I use my tablet in tablet mode, set it in landscape, and watch a movie with a device more compact than a normal laptop.

Core i7 processor, whatever that means (i believe it is higher end). Computing hasn't been slow at all and that's all i ask for in a computer

Battery life is up to 8 hours. 8. hours. so good
 
theWUbear said:
In case anyone ever stumbles upon this thread, tablet PC [lenovo x201t] has been awesome.

While waiting to see physicians during my clinical research hours I was able to take care of paperwork, keep my email in order, do my homework, etc., with full laptop functionality - all while standing outside an exam room

I have fully eliminated the need to carry around any spiral notebooks during the semester. I take notes for all my classes on the tablet while recording them (OneNote is God)
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5849/classnotes.png

I also take book notes on my tablet
http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/731/booknotes.png

When flying on a plane, or just hangin out in bed, I use my tablet in tablet mode, set it in landscape, and watch a movie with a device more compact than a normal laptop.

Core i7 processor, whatever that means (i believe it is higher end). Computing hasn't been slow at all and that's all i ask for in a computer

Battery life is up to 8 hours. 8. hours. so good
Click to expand...

Thanks for the follow-up WU. I was considering getting a Lenovo tablet for med school.

P.S. You have awful handwriting. <3
 
awesome! and thanks for the follow up. I'm really glad it's working out for you.

also, Lenovo makes me jealous 😳 i sigh and pine away every time i look at the worthless pointing stick on my Dell.
 
Last edited:
theWUbear said:
In case anyone ever stumbles upon this thread, tablet PC [lenovo x201t] has been awesome.

While waiting to see physicians during my clinical research hours I was able to take care of paperwork, keep my email in order, do my homework, etc., with full laptop functionality - all while standing outside an exam room

I have fully eliminated the need to carry around any spiral notebooks during the semester. I take notes for all my classes on the tablet while recording them (OneNote is God)
http://img20.imageshack.us/img20/5849/classnotes.png

I also take book notes on my tablet
http://img11.imageshack.us/img11/731/booknotes.png

When flying on a plane, or just hangin out in bed, I use my tablet in tablet mode, set it in landscape, and watch a movie with a device more compact than a normal laptop.

Core i7 processor, whatever that means (i believe it is higher end). Computing hasn't been slow at all and that's all i ask for in a computer

Battery life is up to 8 hours. 8. hours. so good
Click to expand...

I skimmed through the engadget review. 4GB RAM, i7 (latest Intel tech, quite powerful)

The i7 is quite a head turner for a tablet, you got a good computer. Great buy!!
 
My plan is also to be rocking a tablet and using it for note-taking versus lugging notebooks come fall. I'm glad to see that people who have them, and use them as intended are quite satisfied with them. Also, I am surprised to hear of the functionality of one-note. Tagging notes and pieces of data for "This is going to be on the test/boards" sounds like a VERY handy and time-saving feature.

Again, I think its understanding that a hammer is a hammer, and not using it as a sledge or a crow-bar is contributing to a lot of satisfied users. For any heavy graphics-intensive uses, i have my custom gaming desktop.
 
(didn't realize thread was 3 months old)

My new comp as of a few days ago 😀
Under $900. To the OP, PM me if you want some help picking a laptop / specs. Sandy Bridge is out now (Newest intel core architecture) so you can get some great deals on Arrandale CPU's.

HP Envy 14
• Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• System Recovery DVD with Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
• Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-580M Dual Core Processor (2.66GHz, 3MB L3 Cache) with Turbo Boost up to 3.33GHz
• 1GB ATI Mobility Radeon(TM) HD 5650 switchable graphics [HDMI] - For Dual Core Processors
• 4GB DDR3 System Memory (2 Dimm)
• 500GB 7200RPM Hard Drive with HP ProtectSmart Hard Drive Protection
• No Additional Office Software
• Two 8 Cell Lithium Ion Batteries (standard)
• 14.5" diagonal High Definition HP BrightView Infinity LED Display (1366x768)
• SuperMulti 8X DVD+/-R/RW with Double Layer Support (Slot Load)
• HP TrueVision HD Webcam and Dual Digital Integrated Microphones
• Intel Wireless-N Card with Bluetooth
• Backlit Keyboard
• Adobe(R) Photoshop(R) Elements 8 & Adobe Premiere(R) Elements 8
• HP Mobile Broadband with GPS (Choose Verizon Wireless, AT&T or Sprint; service activation required)
• FREE Upgrade to Computrace LoJack for Laptops, Four Years from Computrace LoJack One Year
• HP Home & Home Office Store in-box envelope
 
ColeOnTheRoll said:
Thanks for the follow-up WU. I was considering getting a Lenovo tablet for med school.

P.S. You have awful handwriting. <3
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same, but I wanted to verify first that powerpoints would be available before lecture. I guess this is school specific, but does anyone know if the notes are generally handed out electronically or just in a binder? Most schools I've interviewed at seem to provide them hard-copy form, but to me it would make so much more sense to have them available online to take notes directly... I guess I'll have to wait until I know where I'm going to figure that out!
 
that's an awesome question for the current students you'll meet at second look weekends.

here they are available pre-lecture, d/l 'em and print 'em to one-note, away you go. I've only ever seen one PP on the printer in the student lounge and i think i gave whoever it was a dirty look - there's just no logic to printing out hardcopies when you have this tool to use instead that's light-years better.
 
ColeOnTheRoll said:
Thanks for the follow-up WU. I was considering getting a Lenovo tablet for med school.

P.S. You have awful handwriting. <3
Click to expand...

Isn't that how you know you're meant to be a doctor? :laugh:

I do have a serious question though, let's say I have a perfectly fine working laptop and don't have the money to buy a tablet...BUT got a free iPad. Will the iPad be just as useful and can onenote be utilized with it? I was thinking about selling it so I can buy a DSLR camera (seriously want one) or trade it for an unlocked iphone 4 but...now i'm not sure 🙁
 
AutumnChild said:
Isn't that how you know you're meant to be a doctor? :laugh:

I do have a serious question though, let's say I have a perfectly fine working laptop and don't have the money to buy a tablet...BUT got a free iPad. Will the iPad be just as useful and can onenote be utilized with it? I was thinking about selling it so I can buy a DSLR camera (seriously want one) or trade it for an unlocked iphone 4 but...now i'm not sure 🙁
Click to expand...

Cant use onenote on the ipad. The ipad has some notetaking program, which is not bad, but its nowhere near as versatile as onenote. You can use one note with a regular laptop, but it really shines on a tablet thats meant to be used with a pen.
 
Dr Oops said:
Cant use onenote on the ipad. The ipad has some notetaking program, which is not bad, but its nowhere near as versatile as onenote. You can use one note with a regular laptop, but it really shines on a tablet thats meant to be used with a pen.
Click to expand...

True, this is a problem w/ mac. One fix for this is that Word in Office 2011 for Mac has about 99% of the functionality of Onenote if put in notepad view. Freestyle drawing, audio recording, etc.
 
I wanted a tablet PC also; but read many reviews of peoeple sayin they weren't the best hardware. I looked through a lot o alternatives and found this:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0..._m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=14NBSJWAG9MMNTWFK5HV

I've had it since the beginning of this semester and have NO complaints at all! Very convenient, very portable, saves ALL my files. I'm able to upload all my documents to onenote and i'm still able to search through my writing and convert it to text. In my opinion, i'd just buy a nice, normal laptop for around 600-800 dollars and buy the ACECAD pad. At least that's what I did. If you'd like any more info on it I'd be happy to oblige 🙂.
 
Hey man, if you want the tablet I say go for it. I've had a gateway c-140x (it's a BRICK) for four years now and I love it to death...literally the poor thing is falling apart.

Tablets save time and paper, and they're fun to use. I'm a studio arts minor, and I use mine every single day for drawing as well as for taking notes in class.

I have a few suggestions if you haven't made your decision yet.

First, if you're not in dire need for the computer have you checked out the Modbook Pro? It's an Apple after-market customization of the Macbook Pro and it looks fantastic. The slate design may take some getting used to, but if you're not willing to give up being a PC guy you don't have to, because it comes with the option of a partitioned hard drive running Snow Leopard and Windows 7. The catch is that it's not on the market yet, but is due to be out before April. I'm holding out for it I think. modbook pro

If you need it and you need it NOW I would say go with the lenovo. I have friends who have it and love it. And it seems to be reliable. Lenovo ThinkPad
 
Now that you've been using your tablet for a while, are there any upgrades you wish you would have gotten?

I'm thinking about the same thing, but going with the SSD option...

Thanks for the update!!!
 
crazychadtu said:
Now that you've been using your tablet for a while, are there any upgrades you wish you would have gotten?

I'm thinking about the same thing, but going with the SSD option...

Thanks for the update!!!
Click to expand...

SSD would be pretty tight, this laptop (along with my dad's new sony and another couple new laptops i've seen) have software installed on them that pauses the HD when it is subject to "jolts" (aka you walking around with it...) to limit possibility of hard drive failure. I've put those settings on low sensitivity
 
i highly recommend SSD in these machines - the benefits are so clear. Markedly superior performance given the weaker CPUs found in mobile computing and far lower chance of catastrophic failure than the ol' spindle/platter setup, a major concern in the harsher environmental conditions these machines are in.

you don't need heaps of storage in these things anyway. keep all your movies and photos on your desktop at home.
 
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