Poll: Do you own/use a tablet?

[KingsGambit_v1legacy]

Well I'm looking at tablets at the moment. I'm not sure why precisely since I'm not entirely certain what it will add to my life. The choices however are varied and I'm interested to hear from tablet owners/users about what they have and what they do with it.

Which "ecosystem" did you opt into? What was the main draw for your choice of tablet? What do you use it for? Do you game on it? Are you happy with it, or looking to replace it with a more suitable model? How does it fit into your life amongst phones, desktops, laptops, smart TVs and smartphones?

If you don't own one, do you plan to buy one? If so, which one do you think you'll buy and why? So far, I'm most tempted by the full X86 Windows tabs running on the Intel Atom platform. I understand that the app store is severely lacking compared to the competition, but the main draw stems from the ability to run full Windows 32-bit programs in addition to the finger-friendly apps. I can't see a personal benefit to an Android tab since my phone already runs it and thus, all android apps too.

For discussion value, what do you think is the future for tablets/smartphones/laptops in the competition for our attention? What are the best/must have apps/games? What do tablets do better than anything else? What do they lack compared with other hardware?

 

[tippy2k2]

I do not own a tablet and I have no plans to ever get one.

If I need the internet, I have my computer. If I need the internet but I'm lying in bed and don't want to get up, I have my smart phone.

It does help though that I live in a studio apartment so I have no need really for a "walking around" device like a tablet. Once I have more room, I'd be more open to a tablet (for example, my mum uses it for recipes and so she has her tablet in the kitchen. For me, I just walk about two feet back to my computer if I need to see my recipe).

 

[Vault101]

the only situation I would consider having one is if I were to go into higher education where it would be helpful to have something on hand for internet and typing...I don't know much about tablets but to me the choice there would be mabye a microsoft one? keep it simple

I can sort of see tablets taking over the market for laptops...

otherwise I prefer to browse on my desktop and my phone is there for portability (as annoying as it can be to use)

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I neither own nor want one. I resolve all things internet from my laptop.

 

[StriderShinryu]

Personally I don't own one and don't want one. If I really need to do something that requires a computer and I, for some reason, can't use my laptop or desktop I can probably do it on my phone. For gaming on the go I once again use my laptop or my newly acquired Vita.

 

[MysticSlayer]

I don't own one, and as of right now, I have no need for one. If I'm in my room (college) or house, then all I need is my laptop, which I can also bring to the library and class. If the laptop doesn't work, my smartphone is more than enough for the job, and I'm hardly ever worried about its battery life. The only reason I'd get a tablet is if I'm moving away from laptops, which doesn't seem likely anytime soon. Sure, they are cheaper than laptops, but generally I also get laptops to game on when away from my desktop, and tablets just don't offer good enough gaming yet to replace that.

 

[Hazy992]

I don't own one and I have no plans to get one. I have no need for them, anything I might want to do with one (checking emails, web browsing etc.) will be done better on a laptop. Plus my smartphone has a lot of the same functionality as a tablet anyway.

I know there's the fact that they're more portable, but honestly it's not a big enough trade off for me. Besides if you get something like a MacBook Air or a Windows Ultrabook or something then it's even less of an issue.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I own an iPad 2, I've had it for about two year and a half years now.
My laptop broke nearly two years ago so I've been using this instead of paying to replace my laptop.

Honestly, I love it, I use it way more than my phone, which is a crappy Samsung, and I can do pretty much everything I used my laptop for except it's much more portable and I don't have to plug it in to charge every two seconds.


Basically, I use it for pretty much everything and I take it everywhere.

 

[Esotera]

I was given a Kindle Fire for a birthday, so i guess that counts as an Android tablet. It's very useful for reading books, and I never buy physical books now as it's worse for the environment, more expensive, and takes up more space. I will sometimes use it for browsing the web if I don't have a computer with me.

Basically I haven't used my tablet for anything else other than my phone, so if you already have a decentish phone I wouldn't bother getting one. There's just a slightly bigger screen, and possibly more battery/storage space.

 

[DarkhoIlow]

I don't own an tablet or an Iphone and I couldn't care less.

Last thing I want when I go outside is get distracted by surfing the internet.

 

[solemnwar]

Whenever people mention tablets my first thought isn't those weird doohikies that people bang on about nowadays, but drawing tablets.


I have one of these:

 

[FPLOON]

Tablets? Iphones?

I only own a basic phone from 2007 as well as a wooden clipboard... Do you know how many games I can play on that one clipboard? (The answer's pretty obvious...)

But seriously, I could never find a justifiable reason why I should own a tablet in the first place... But, then again, that's just me...

 

[GabeZhul]

I have a very cheap Android tablet (so cheap that I had figure out how to root it based on its hardware configuration because the manufacturer apparently doesn't exist on the net), and I mainly use it for the tablet exclusives (like playing Puzzle & Dragons) or reading e-books on the train and other places where taking out my laptop would be cumbersome (the screen is pretty crappy, but I am used to reading huge chunks of text on monitors already, so it doesn't hurt my eyes).

Aside of these things, there is not much else to a tablet. It doesn't hurt to have one, but only as a situationally useful secondary device beside a PC or a laptop, not as your main gaming/internet surfing/utility device.

 

[iseko]

I own a samsung tab 2 (10 inch). I use it a lot actually.

My laptop is for working/gaming on. I use it a lot but sometimes I want to look up something really fast or I don't want to boot it up etc.

So if I want to look something up really fast I go for my smartphone. I own a nexus 5. It is pretty great for surfing. Screen is big enough and full hd so looking at sites isn't a hassle.

When do I use my tablet? Mostly at home and sometimes on the train. For example when I am reading the newspaper. I also have to read a lot of articles (i.e. pdf's) for work and stuff. I enjoy doing that in my couch with my tablet. You have a lot of apps for android that make this kind of thing easy. My number one is ebookdroid. Free and perfect for my reading needs. I don't really game on it but thats just because I don't like any mobile games. Often when I'm at home I also use my tablet for a quick search on dze interwebz. I also have an app on it that lets me control my mediacenter with my tablet. pretty nifty. My homescreen is just my calendar for the month. Gives me a nice oversight at the ready. Batterylife of tablets is usually pretty damn good. Unless I start watching movies on it I usually do at least two days on one charge. Sometimes a week.

Most of the people that I know that own a smartphone and a pc/laptop only need a tablet for two things.
1) reading: not just books because then I'd go with a kindle. But also the newspaper, pdf's, etc
2) gaming

It might seem silly to buy a tablet just for that but I don't think so. The only remark I have is: if you are going to buy a tablet for reading. Buy it full HD. Nexus 7 or nexus 10 are great tablets (especially price/quality). 7 inch or 10 inch... Depends. If you are going to use it mostly at home then 10 inch is for you. If you take it with you on the train and work I'd go 7inch. Fits nicely in your pocket. And only buy it if you have to read different formats on a (semi-)daily basis. Being able to have all your research articles/books/papers/... in your pocket is a definite improvement for me.

But don't buy any of that transformer or wireless keyboard crap. I have not met a single person who actually finds it an improvement. Know what you are using it for. Its a tablet. Not a laptop wannabe.

That is my two cents.

 

[Albino Boo]

I own an android tablet. I mainly use it so I can read in bed without disturbing my wife by having the light on and on the busy commuter train to work. The train I get is standing room only by 7.05 am and trying to use a laptop in that crowed space isn't going to happen.

 

[Eamar]

I was given a Google Nexus 7 for Christmas, but if I'm honest I don't use it much and I definitely didn't need (or ask for) it. That said, it's a nice bit of kit. I like that it can be synced with my Android smartphone, so I didn't have to buy/search for all the apps I like again. It's decent for gaming too, though as with any tablet/phone you have to sift through a phenomenal amount of shovelware to find the good stuff.

The big problem with it at the moment is that Flash player isn't supported on Android any more. Apparently there are workarounds, but I haven't got it to work yet (not that I've put much effort into it, if I'm honest).

As I said though, it's kind of obsolete next to my laptop and smartphone.

 

[Drops a Sweet Katana]

I have an android tablet that I got with my phone contract, but I've barely ever used it. What it does, my laptop does better plus my laptop can do more things and I can to some extent upgrade it if need be. If I need to use it for the internet and my laptop's not handy, I've got my phone, which is smaller and more likely to be on my person. I just don't see the point, despite my parent swearing by it. I think the only thing it has over either is a slightly better battery life. I may get some ebooks or something of the like since carrying books when I'm travelling can be a hassle and slightly worrying.

 

[fenrizz]

I've got an iPad mini and an iPad 2.

Pretty pleased with the Mini, great size for a tablet.
It has displaced my use of PC for all things except writing and gaming.

Also, Hearthstone is rally great to play on a tablet.

 

[SirDeadly]

I own an iPad which I use for uni. It does its job but if I could buy a new tablet I would go for a surface pro.